Radio Flare for iPhone and iPod Touch Review

There are things on the screen that need to be destroyed. That sums up 50% of the games for the iPhone and iPod Touch. Of course the uniqueness comes from the manner in which things are destroyed, and the rewards for doing so. Radio Flare lends a unique twist to a familiar concept.

In Radio Flare, you pilot a spaceship and are tasked with essentially lasso-ing satellites and other ships, which then detroys them, leaving behind a small red flare in their place. Collect these flares to move on to the next levels and score points. Radio Flare combines this gameplay with a unique soundtrack, in which your action of collecting the flares becomes part of the music. Either my flare gathering is terribly out of rhythm, or this feature isn't working quite as I expected.

Check it out below, and there's also a lite(free) version of the app to get a feel for the gameplay:

Glyder for the iPhone and iPod Touch

Attention game designers, there's still an opportunity to make the best flying simulator for the iPhone! While several different games aim to re-create the airplane pilot experience, (with varying degrees of success...more reviews shortly) Glyder takes a different approach. Glyder involves, you guessed it, gliding to obtain crystals, opening up new worlds and allowing Erin, the hero of the story, to find her way home. 

The game play is simple: you tilt the iPhone/iPod to glide up or down. The real-life effects of gravity are added, as you need to find thermals to increase your altitude if you're too low, without enough speed. The gameplay is relaxing, and un-rushed. 

However, I found it difficult at times to accurately judge how close obstacles were, and would occasionally crash when I thought I had easily passed rocks, buildings, etc. After playing a bit longer, you start to get a better feel for your position, and you can continue to focus on Erin's not-particularly-hurried attempt to get home.

Take a look:

Bowman for the iPhone and iPod Touch

Currently, gaming on the iPhone is mainly about the little things, or more precisely, the little games: short, simple games, that can be played and "finished" within minutes. Take today's app, Bowman. Bowman re-creates a popular flash game in which you are adjusting the angle and force of your archery arrow, in hope of shooting an opponent, before he does the same to you. 

The graphics are intentionally sparse, and the game offers some fun options like additional barriers/walls to make it more challenging. Personally, I found it challenging enough in the standard beginning mode. And if you get frustrated, you can go into bird hunt mode, and shoot birds out of the sky. It's like two super-tiny games in one!

Take a look:

Big Oven Recipes for the iPhone and iPod Touch

You know those tiny gems you find behind the fridge, or under the couch? Those "so that's where that went" moments? Well, we experienced one of those this week. This video review for Big Oven Recipes has fallen into our digital crevice (Yikes) but has been found once again. (We now understand all those "lost" episodes of old TV shows that always seemed impossible before.)

Big Oven gives you access to over 160,000 recipes. You can search by ingredient, which is great. The recipes are culled from the Big Oven community; a hive-minded Betty Crocker, if you will.

Here's a look:

Daily Finance for the iPhone and iPod Touch Review

So maybe, just maybe the financial markets are starting to turn a corner. And maybe you actually feel like checking out your stocks again. Well, if you want to check your portfolio on the iPhone, Daily Finance is the way to go.

Powered by AOL's Money & Finance page, Daily Finance provides news, market sector information, "real time" stock quotes, and some dandy looking charts. The only point of contention would be the real time quotes. The NASDAQ and NYSE quotes are delayed but for those of you trading on the BATS exchange, those are real time quotes.

Here's a look: