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9 paid iPhone apps and games you can download for free today

Published Apr 27th, 2018 3:08PM EDT
Best Free iPhone Apps

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Friday’s iOS app roundups are always bittersweet. On one hand, you have another list t enjoy of the best paid iPhone and iPad apps on sale for free. On the other, you’ll have to wait until Monday for another list. There are nine new apps and games included in today’s roundup, but they’re only free for a limited time so grab them while you can.

This post covers paid iPhone and iPad apps that have been made available for free for a limited time by their developers. BGR is not affiliated with any developers. There is no way to tell how long they will be free. These sales could end an hour from now or a week from now — obviously, the only thing we can guarantee is that they were free at the time this post was written. If you click on a link and see a price listed next to an app instead of the word “get,” it is no longer free. The sale has ended. If you download the app anyway, you will be charged by Apple. Subscribe to our feed to be notified as soon as these posts are published, and you’ll avoid missing the sales we cover.

Le Parker: Sous Chef Extraordinaire

Normally $1.99.

“…one of the best retro-style platformers on the App Store” -Touch Arcade
“One of the most fun titles of 2016.” -Cult of Mac
CNET’s Best Mobile Games of 2016

Le Parker: Sous Chef Extraordinaire is a tough-as-nails platformer with tight touch controls crafted in the spirit of the classics we loved as kids. You play as Le Parker [Sous Chef Extraordinaire] who makes a meringue so perfect, so impossibly light, it literally floats. The lightest dessert, however, is the heaviest burden. Only Parker’s true love has the secret recipe — the Princess! But the King has his men raid her chambers! They steal Parker’s secret, harness the meringue’s immense power for evil and banish Parker from the Kingdom! Guide our hero on an epic culinary quest to rescue the princess, assemble a kitchen of secret utensils, and give the King his just desserts. Bon Voyage, Parker!

Reviews and Write-Ups:

“Head and shoulders above other App Store platformers.”
MacStories

“Le Parker is one of the ones that gets just about everything right, and all the little things come together to form one amazing package.”
Jared Nelson, Touch Arcade

“If you enjoy tough-as-nails games and love a test of your platforming skills, then Le Parker is one that you must check out. If you liked games like VVVVVV and RunGunJumpGun, then you will love what Le Parker: Sous Chef Extraordinaire brings to the genre. I’ve played a ton of platformers on iOS during my time here at AppAdvice, but Le Parker: Sous Chef Extraordinaire is one of the better ones I’ve found. The game is absolutely gorgeous with dreamy landscapes and endearing character models, plus the music and sounds are fun to listen to. The controls work well enough, and the game is fairly challenging, even for seasoned platformer veterans. Le Parker: Sous Chef Extraordinaire is definitely one of the better games I’ve picked up on iOS this year.”
••9.0•• review at App Advice

Features:

Gameplay
• Simple, super responsive touch control and in-air jumps for accurate and truly challenging platforming. Legitimately tough, never impossible.
• High replayability with multiple challenges per level — Time Attack, Macaron Collection, and Secret Kitchen Utensils are available on every stage.
• Final stages include a massive donut chase, an angry ice cream truck, and the evil king himself.
• Universal purchase and iCloud saving, so play on your iPhone, iPad and Apple TV.
• MFi controller support.

Environments
• 32 dreamy, design-led stages over 4 pixel worlds.
• Rich layered “hi-bit” visuals, varying times of day, a soft pixel look and other general oddity.

Soundtrack:
• Over 20 original songs, cheeky French VO, and a princess who waxes poetic about our hero. Ooh La La.

Download Le Parker: Sous Chef Extraordinaire

PPI: Projected Personality Interpreter

Normally $4.99.

What personality do I project?

Unlike run-of-the-mill personality questionnaires that are focused on basic personality traits, the PPI app understands that what you write is intended to project a personality defined by your written word.

With the PPI app, you are able to compare the personality projected by your social media footprint (Twitter, Facebook, etc.), blogs, web pages, or student essays or research papers, or work reports and executive summaries, and measure the personality traits projected.

Compare the results and learn how you can improve the image you are trying to project. Am I open enough? Do I project a desire to achieve? Am I agreeable or modest? Am I susceptible to stress or too self-conscious? Do I project that I need excitement? Do my values show that I am open to change? Is what you want to project different from what in reality is projected by your written text?

Submit any text, or that of others, to get detailed results that will amaze you. Welcome to the futuristic age of cognitive computing!
The PPI app leverages the power of IBM Watson analysis of natural language and Darwin Ecosystem data analytics.

Download PPI: Projected Personality Interpreter

Mordheim: Warband Skirmish

Normally $3.99.

Explore the ruins of the City of Mordheim, clash with other scavenging warbands and collect Wyrdstone – valuable shards from the comet that destroyed the city.

Legendary Game’s adaptation of Games Workshop’s classic table top game: Mordheim, set in the Warhammer world. Multi player turn-based arena strategy right at your fingertips, you’ll have the freedom to play how YOU want to play. Hide in the shadows and wait for the right moment to strike, get a vantage point and pick your targets off with ranged weapons, or bring the fight straight to your opponent in an up close and personal confrontation, the choice, is yours!

Beware all who enter Mordheim the Warhammer Universe is brutal and it doesn’t get more dangerous than a ruined city teaming with rival warbands and monstrous horrors. A core game feature is a permanent death and permanent injury! Players must prepare for death, destruction and disability. You will need to hire replacements, dismiss warriors from your band that get too badly injured and sometimes you may need to disband a warband completely and start again.

From release three mercenary factions are available: Reiklanders, Middenheimers and Marienburgers each with different traits and play styles. Each represents one of the factions pitted against each other in a brutal civil war over who should sit in the throne as Emperor. Can you harvest more Wyrdstone from Mordheim than your rivals to fuel your master’s war effort?
More factions will follow as DLC, including:

● Skaven – Skulking sinister rat men who need Wyrdstone to thrive
●Sisters of Sigmar – The only faction with remotely honourable intentions
● Witch Hunters – Agents of the Grand Theogonist who will burn first and ask questions later
● Cult of the Possessed – Men who have turned to the dark powers for salvation
● Undead – Agents of the Vampire Counts, helping their bid to control the living

Key Features:
● Tactical turn-based gameplay with incredible action sequences
● Recruit, customise and train your Warband
● A rich, powerful and immersive fantasy world
● Multiplayer online – you will go up against other player made Warbands
● Available for both iPhones and iPads!
● Continuous planned updates, including extra content and map variations.
● “Graphic novel” art style with a grim undertone perfectly setting the scene of the harrowing city of Mordheim

Download Mordheim: Warband Skirmish

VR Guide: Universal Studios

Normally $0.99.

The Unofficial MotorCo VR Guide to Universal Studios Hollywood application is an extensive location and virtual reality based guide to the rides, shops, hotels and restaurants in the amusement park located in Los Angeles, California.

The app tells the user their proximity to the different rides in the park, starting from nearest to farthest. This app also provides more detailed information on each activity. The specific attraction details are wired with a live map (see the button below) to the particular attraction, giving exact directions to the location in question, as well as a virtual tour of the activity.

As your location changes, the app updates its location and provides new information as to the activities which are closest to you.

If you are standing in line waiting for a ride, the app will give you the proximity of all of the other rides closest to you, sorted from nearest to farthest. Also – by being able to simulate the location – you’ll have more information before you go.

Also, the two major hotels are profiled so one can find the location from hotels to specific activities, and the restaurants things to do in City Walk and other attractions are described as well.

The app has no ads, pop-ups, registration or sharing of any data.

You can purchase tickets to the park here:

https://store.universalstudioshollywood.com/PurchaseTickets.aspx

No pop ups, no ads, no sharing of location or registration. Just a GPS enabled guide to one of the most popular amusement parks in the world.

Download VR Guide: Universal Studios

This Way – auto rotating map

Normally $0.99.

This Way is a map app that rotates by itself to match where you’re heading, so it’s easier for those who can’t read maps.

As you get closer to your destination, the map zooms in automatically, so you can check confirm where you are by comparing it to your surroundings.

You can specify your destination by the following ways
– Type address or coordinates manually
– Copy address or coordinates and the app recognizes automatically
– Use address in address book
– Choose where a picture was taken.

The app shows:
– Direction to the destination*
– Distance to the destination
– Travel time* based on average speed

*The app has below LIMITATIONS.
– No turn by turn direction
– Cannot calculate time based on traffic condition or routes

Download This Way – auto rotating map

Galaxy Trucker Pocket

Normally $4.99.

The award-winning adaptation of Vlaada Chvátil’s award-winning board game. Build space ships, dodge meteors, and fight off bad guys, all in a quest to be the trucker with the most cosmic credits at the end of the game.

“This is one hell of a good game” – Pocket Tactics, rated 5/5

“They hit it out of the park” – BoardGameGeek, rated 5/5

“Hands-down the best adaptation of a board game to the digital format yet seen” – Pocket Gamer, rated 4.5/5

FEATURES:

– Official adaptation of a space-faring classic
– Family-friendly gameplay accessible to all ages
– Build your own spaceship from different tiles
– Local multiplayer on the same device
– Compete online and play multiple games at the same time
– Go frantic in real-time mode, or slow things down in turn-based mode
– A campaign, special ship parts and more exclusive to this digital version!

Can you build a space ship from sewer pipes? Are you willing to face meteors, pirates, and smugglers? Can you fly a five-engine ship after four engines have been destroyed? Then you are our kind of trucker!

We offer good pay, a xenologically diverse crew, and a dynamic work environment. Bonuses paid for prompt delivery.

Sign up to be a galaxy trucker today!

Download Galaxy Trucker Pocket

Backgammon HD

Normally $4.99.

Play the #1 Backgammon on the App Store! Now with the best online Backgammon experience with background match-making and two ways to play online: Turn-based gameplay or live games via Game Center. Challenge your friends, play against random opponents, compete for leaderboard glory, and earn achievements.

– – – – – –

** Recommended by MacWorld as a Top Download for your iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad in their November 2010 issue.

** “Backgammon Premium is the crème-de-la-crème ‘gammon’” 9 out of 10 stars Appaddicts.com!

** Nominated for “best dice game of 2009 in the 2009 Best App Ever Awards hosted by bestappever.com!

– – – – – –

Backgammon is believed to have started in Persia, eventually finding its way to Britain with the Roman conquest in the 1st century and was played by Emperor Claudius who even had his carriage equipped with a playing board! It became such a gambling mania that it was declared illegal under the Republic.

Playing on the history of the game, there are 6 visually pleasing, rich board designs; Egyptian, Roman, Medieval, Victorian, Modern and Classic.

We also offer, out of the box, two classic game variations: “Old English” and Nackgammon. “Old English” is the most popular game variation in England. Nackgammon is a more challenging variation designed to add more creativity and skill to the game.

With integrated Bluetooth Peer-to-Peer support you can play with your friends over Bluetooth with no network required! You can also play against the computer in either Easy, Medium or Hard difficulties, or play with a friend on a single device.

Features:
– Two ways to play online: Turn-based or live with Game Center
– Background match-making: search for opponents while you play!
– Universal. Play on your iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad
– Single Player Games (with Easy, Medium, Hard or, soon, with our brand-new Expert player)
– Match support! Play to 3, 5, 9 or 15 points with Doubling. Matches use the Crawford Rule
– On the phone Multiplayer and Bluetooth peer to peer games
– Move-Assist, highlights available moves
– Unlimited “Undo” in single-player games
– Extensive game statistics

Download Backgammon HD

aSmart HUD

Normally $0.99.

aSmartHUD is simple and clear vehicle digital dashboard featured by

– HUD mode
– SHORT-TERM WEATHER FORECAST
– IPOD MUSIC PLAYLIST CONTROL
– PHOTO CAMERA WITH IMAGE MARKING
– ADJUSTABLE TRANSPARENCY APPLE MAPS SCREEN

It visualizes your
– current speed,
– average speed,
– current time,
– elapsed trip time,
– heading,
– altitude,
– trip elapsed time,
– distance/time/direction to home location,
– weather forecast for nearest 48 hours the with 3-hour time interval,
– direct distance (kilometers, miles, nautical miles supported) to the starting point of your trip.
– maximum reached speed, altitude and distance to start point, for the current trip and all the trips your ever did.

Comparing with others HUD displays on the market – better look and more features for no price.

Tapping the “HUD” icon mirrors all the text, so if you position the iPhone horizontally under your car’s windscreen you can see perfectly readable half-transparent reflection of the picture displayed. We love this mode! We found it much more convenient compared to traditional car dashboards (especially on the roads of Western Europe, which are full of speed cameras and where you need to watch your speedometer all the time). And last but not the least – it just looks cool. 
Note: this mode works pretty well at night time and twilight, but on direct sunlight the screen brightness can be insufficient.

– “aSmart HUD” can keep track on 4 speed limits, giving a warning (sound and visual) each time you crossing it. Normally, it’s legal speed limits within cities, local roads and high-speed motorways. “Never exceed speed” is the speed you should not exceed under any conditions. For example, it can be a technical limit of your vehicle or the point where government can arrest your driving license.

– You can skip/rewind/play/pause your current iPod music track, select the playlist or set the Shuffle or Repeat iPod mode.

– Weather forecast time intervals and temperature units (C, F) are selectable in Preferences.

– You can quickly take a photo of what’s going on the road. Photo will be automatically saved into the Photos Album. The speedometer image, map and a some of other useful information will be placed over your photo.

– Landscape and Portrait screen layouts support.

– Three different compass styles, sound themes, colors, etc.

– 4 functionally different display themes.

– Speed history log chart.

– “Location Info” – longitude and latitude, GPS measurement precision and some more data.

– “Records” screen (left upper button on the “Location Info” screen), where you can see your maximum reached speed (during the current trip or all of your trips), maximum altitude and maximum distance from start.

– Tap the speed indicator to switch into speed fullscreen mode.

Download aSmart HUD

Larry the Lab – Animated Stickers

Normally $1.99.

Let this adorable Lab put more fun into your iMessage conversations! These beautiful stickers feature high quality, engaging animations created by artists of Inno Studio.

***HOW TO FIND STICKERS***
– After you download the stickers, they will show up in your iMessage app drawer, NOT on your home screen.
– iMessage app drawer could be found by going to any message with a friend and tapping on a ‘>’ button to the left of the text box, and then on a button which looks like ‘A’.
– Tap on the button in the bottom left which looks like four dots – you will see your Larry the Lab stickers there.

Download Larry the Lab – Animated Stickers

Zach Epstein
Zach Epstein Executive Editor

Zach Epstein has been the Executive Editor at BGR for more than 10 years. He manages BGR’s editorial team and ensures that best practices are adhered to. He also oversees the Ecommerce team and directs the daily flow of all content. Zach first joined BGR in 2007 as a Staff Writer covering business, technology, and entertainment.

His work has been quoted by countless top news organizations, and he was recently named one of the world's top 10 “power mobile influencers” by Forbes. Prior to BGR, Zach worked as an executive in marketing and business development with two private telcos.