| Dear Reader | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | Local No. 12 |
| Publisher(s) | Local No. 12 |
| Designer(s) | Eric Zimmerman |
| Platform(s) | iOS, macOS, tvOS |
| Release | September 19, 2019 |
| Genre(s) | Word puzzle |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
Dear Reader is a word puzzle game developed by Local No. 12. and released in September 2019 for iOS, macOS and tvOS as a launch title for Apple Arcade. [1]
Passages from classic novels and poems are displayed as pages and the player is challenged with tasks such as correcting the word order or rearranging phrases. The challenges are time-based depending on the player's preference and completing a passage rewards them with ink. Cheerful music and sound effects accompany the challenges.
Dear Reader was released by Local No. 12, developers of party game Metagame, for iOS, MacOS and tvOS for Apple Arcade subscribers on September 19, 2019. [2] It was crowdfunded on Kickstarter as Losswords in May 2016. [3] The game uses public domain books like Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice , Claude McKay's Harlem Shadows and Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain's Sultana’s Dream . [2]
The New York Times found it to be inventive and nimble, evoking "close reading". [2] Eurogamer said it keeps adding new ideas and a sense of panic to figure out "someone's voice". [4] TouchArcade said it to be relaxing and found it to be educational. [5]
It won Best Meaningful Play at the 2020 International Mobile Gaming Awards. [6]
Lumines: Puzzle Fusion is a 2004 puzzle game developed by Q Entertainment for the PlayStation Portable (PSP). During the game, players must strategically arrange falling 2×2 blocks comprising two colors to form single-color 2×2 squares. A vertical "time line" sweeps across the field, erases completed squares, and awards points. Each stage features a unique skin that influences the background, block colors, accompanying music, and the time line's speed.
Sonic Dash is a 2013 endless runner mobile game developed by Hardlight and published by Japanese game studio Sega. It is Hardlight's second Sonic the Hedgehog game, the first being 2012's Sonic Jump. The game was released in March 2013 for iOS, November 2013 for Android, and December 2014 for Windows Phone and Windows, along with an arcade release in November 2015 as Sonic Dash Extreme. It was initially released as a paid application, but was made free-to-play a month after its iOS release.
The Room is a puzzle video game developed by Fireproof Games. The game was originally developed for the iOS platform and released in 12 September 2012. The Android version debuted as part of a Humble Bundle in March 2013 and was subsequently released on Google Play. A free expansion for the title was released in August 2013. An enhanced version of the game was released for Microsoft Windows in July 2014, and for the Nintendo Switch in October 2018.
Simogo is a Swedish independent video game developer based in Malmö. The company was founded in 2010 and is best known for creating games for mobile devices, including Year Walk and Device 6. Its name comes from the name of its founders Simon (SIM), and Gordon (GO); the 'O' from the Swedish word "och" meaning "and".
The Room Two is a puzzle video game developed by British-based Fireproof Games as a sequel to The Room. The game was originally developed for the iPad and released in December 2013; it was made universal to work with the iPhone in January 2014. The Android version was released in February 2014. A Windows version was released on 5 July 2016. An Apple Arcade version, named «The Room Two+», was released on 2 April 2021. It was also released for Nintendo Switch in August 2022.
Monument Valley is a puzzle and indie game by Ustwo Games. The player leads the princess Ida through mazes of optical illusions and impossible objects while manipulating the world around her to reach various platforms. Monument Valley was developed over ten months beginning in early 2013 based on concept drawings by company artist Ken Wong. Its visual style was inspired by Japanese prints, minimalist sculpture, and indie games Windosill, Fez, and Sword & Sworcery, and was compared by critics to M. C. Escher drawings and Echochrome. The art was designed such that each frame would be worthy of public display.
Threes is a puzzle video game by Sirvo, an independent development team consisting of game designer Asher Vollmer, illustrator Greg Wohlwend, and composer Jimmy Hinson. The game was released on February 6, 2014, for iOS devices and later ported to Android, Xbox One, Windows Phone, and Windows. In Threes, the player slides numbered tiles on a grid to combine addends and multiples of three. The game ends when there are no moves left on the grid and the tiles are counted for a final score.
Asher Vollmer is an American indie video game developer. He created Puzzlejuice and Threes. Vollmer also worked on Guildlings and Beast Breaker.
SpellTower is a 2011 word puzzle game developed by Zach Gage. In the game, the player must clear the screen before it overflows by creating words from assorted letter tiles. The game has several game modes and a multiplayer battle mode. The impetus for the game—the concept of combining elements from Tetris and Boggle in what was a prototype of the puzzle video game Puzzlejuice—inspired Gage to create SpellTower. The game was released for iOS in November 2011 to generally favorable reviews. Versions for OS X and Android followed over the next two years. In 2017 SpellTower Minutes was released. This browser-based Flash game created special "blitz" like modes not found in the mobile releases. A new iOS version released in 2017 swapped out the unnamed dictionary and began using Merriam-Webster's Third New International Dictionary, Unabridged. French and Dutch language specific versions were also released. A 2020 release, SpellTower+, added new game modes, cleaner visuals, and a jazz soundtrack.
Hitman: Sniper is a 2015 mobile shooting gallery video game in the Hitman series by Square Enix Montréal. As the series' mainstay protagonist Agent 47, the player looks through a first-person sniper scope vision on their touchscreen device to assassinate several powerful figures who have assembled at a lakeside compound without alerting their associates. The player uses the environment to find creative ways to kill these targets, sometimes prompted by secondary objectives. Through mission progression, the player unlocks more powerful weapons and new weapon abilities.
The Gardens Between is an adventure/puzzle video game developed by Australian studio The Voxel Agents and published in September 2018 for Windows, macOS, Linux, Nintendo Switch, and PlayStation 4. It was later released for Xbox One in 2018, iOS in 2019, Android in 2020, and PlayStation 5 in 2022. The game, which conveys its story through visuals and gameplay rather than dialogue or narration, follows two children, Arina and Frendt, in the treehouse in a garden between their houses. In a dreamscape, they progress through sets of island levels, each representing different shared experiences. The characters walk along a path that winds through each level, and the player solves environment-based puzzles that prevent the pair from reaching and activating a portal at the end of the path. To do so, the player controls the flow of time forwards and backwards and causes the characters to interact with nearby objects and spheres of light, rather than moving the pair directly.
Apple Arcade is a video game subscription service offered by Apple. It is available through a dedicated tab of the App Store on devices running iOS 13, VisionOS, tvOS 13, iPadOS 13, and macOS Catalina or later. The service launched on September 19, 2019.
Assemble with Care is a 2019 puzzle video game developed and published by Ustwo. The game centers on an antique restorer who goes around a town fixing broken objects. The game released September 2019 for iOS, MacOS, and tvOS as a launch title for Apple Arcade. A Microsoft Windows version was released on March 26. 2020.
Lego Builder's Journey is a puzzle game developed by Light Brick Studio and published by Lego Games. It was originally released in December 19, 2019 on iOS, macOS, tvOS through Apple Arcade and Nintendo Switch and Microsoft Windows on June 22, 2021. It was also ported to Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S on November 25, 2021. The PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 ports of the game released on April 19, 2022. Lego Builder's Journey and Lego Brawls were the first two Lego games for Apple Arcade. Lego Builder's Journey has received generally positive reviews.
What the Golf? is a sports video game developed by Triband. It was originally released for iOS, macOS and tvOS through Apple Arcade by The Label on 19 September 2019, with a visionOS version also released on the service in 2024 by Team17 USA, The Label's successor. Ports for Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 were released by Triband, respectively in 2019, 2020 and 2024.
GameClub is a video game subscription service for iOS and Android devices. The service primarily offers games that were previously delisted from app stores or are no longer actively maintained by their original developers, updated to support newer devices and software. They have since expanded to releasing mobile ports of games available for PC and console.
Grindstone is a 2019 puzzle video game developed and published by Capybara Games. The game revolves around the player completing levels by clearing enemies using attacks. It was originally released for macOS, iOS, and tvOS through Apple Arcade on September 19, 2019. Its Windows release was exclusive to the Epic Games Store, until 20 of June 2022 when the game was released on Steam.
Super QuickHook is a 2010 mobile 2D platform game developed and published by Rocketcat Games. The game released on June 17, 2010, for iOS devices, with an Android port releasing later on July 23, 2015. The game is a spiritual successor to 2009's Hook Champ, and follows its playing characters traversing two-dimensional levels, primarily using a grappling hook.
Kamibox is an independent German video game developer founded by Philipp Stollenmayer. Stollenmayer is the sole employee of the company, which creates almost exclusively mobile games. Some of Kamibox's games have received awards for their design, including an Apple Design Award. Kamibox games often have a philosophical element to them, such as see/saw and Sometimes You Die, which explore the concept of death in video games.
A Monster's Expedition (Through Puzzling Exhibitions) is a 2020 puzzle video game developed and published by Draknek & Friends. Gameplay involves exploring a series of islands by solving Sokoban-based puzzles. The player navigates a two-dimensional grid, rolling logs to create bridges and rafts to traverse between islands. The islands comprise a museum of human civilization, featuring exhibits of everyday objects, accompanied by humorous descriptions written from the perspective of an outsider. The game incorporates open world elements, having a nonlinear, branching path of levels, but is primarily a puzzle game. Developed over more than three years, the game was first released in September 2020 for iOS and macOS through Apple Arcade and Windows, and later for Linux, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 5.
