Throughout the course of gaming history, sequels have typically followed one of two conventions. Some are iterative, by building upon what came before it; a casual passerby might not be able to find much different between Pac-Man and Ms. Pac-Man, Sonic 1 and Sonic 2, or Mega Man and Mega Man 2 at a glance. 

More than just a mere update, SEGA's new release of Sonic the Hedgehog rebuilds the Genesis classic from the ground up to not only run on iPhone, but feel optimized for it as well. Fortunately for those who already purchased the original version, upgrading to this version comes at no extra cost.

It’s actually a pretty ingenious idea to develop a video game that can be cross-promoted with actual, physical products. Just look at the success/cash cow that console games like Skylanders have become, and it is kind of a no-brainer. It’s thanks to this concept that the fine folks at Nikko and Paladin Studios (Momonga Pinball) have released a new iOS racing game that not only provides plenty of fun for racing fans, but also reminds us that there’s still a lot to like about RC cars.

I’ve been mucking about with Dragon Bane for a while now; slaying undead, battling dragons, forging powerful new gear, and so on. In all that time I still haven’t managed to figure out how I feel about it. There are some interesting ideas here and a surprising amount of unique elements. Conversely it also uses a very bizarre freemium model that dilutes the fun a bit. It’s complicated.

I think that life around camp just got a whole lot more hairy! Jacob Jones and the Bigfoot Mystery borrows from the narrative-puzzle style of gameplay that’s seen in the Professor Layton series on the Nintendo DS, but has some cool ideas and concepts that are all to its own. In the first episode of a planned five, we see Jacob arrive for his first stay at summer camp, after passing by something that looks suspiciously like Bigfoot on the side of the road. What follows is a light adventure with some clever puzzling to be found, but a lot of dead air and wasted potential all around.

Turbo Racing League, based on the upcoming film Turbo, looks to rewrite the definition of “a snail’s pace.” Based entirely around surprisingly quick snails, Turbo Racing League is a kart racer whose focus is less on crazy items and action, and more on track design and speedy gameplay. It has a few painful faults, but its unique style is likely to entertain players of all ages.

Don’t ask me what the world is going to look like in 2020, because I was one of those kids who was certain we’d have flying cars by now. While we wait to find out, you can shape you own version of the near future by playing 2020: My Country.As a sequel tothe Facebook city builder My Country,this one goes mobile with some new ideas – but ultimately, not enough of them.

The Star Trek film reboots have successfully brought classic The Original Series back into mainstream popularity.  Updated Kirk, Spock, and McCoy are again blockbuster sensations, worthy of their own licensed iOS game.  Star Trek Rivals, the result of that gamification, is an aesthetically polished card battler that draws on another classic, Final Fantasy VIII’s Triple Triad.  Unfortunately, its issues overshadow its innovations, resulting in a game that could be great only if future updates give ‘er all she’s got.

Striking a balance between depth and accessibility has often been a hassle in strategy RPGs. Some games aren’t deep enough and others are too difficult. A select few games take the Goldilocks route and are just right. Rebirth of Fortune 2 comes close to finding that balance, but slow-paced battles and imbalanced multiplayer take away from what is otherwise a fun experience.

The squad-based tactical shooter is a familiar face on the PC, but iOS evangelists don’t often get to savor it on their platform of choice.  The recent release of the uniquely challenging Frozen Synapse on iPad proves that not only can tactics games exist on the portable platform, but they can also thrive there.

Like the song says, sometimes it’s prudent to “Run Like Hell.” Running is particularly advised when you have a passel of mad bulls chasing you, like in Running With Friends. Zynga’s entry into the endless runner genre gives you great motivation to tear through the narrow streets of Spain (these are some angry bulls), but there are few original ideas to speak of. To be fair, you’ll be too busy hopping across bulls’ backs to really notice.

Let’s just call Boom! what it is—a slightly different take on the Angry Birds formula. In the newest game from developer Happy Sprites, you play as some sort of green alien-like dude who must save his caged pal Pinky from the evil wizard Belzaar by riding his monocycle (yeah, monocycle) through various physics-based/platforming levels. 

What do you get when you cross Geometry Wars with one of those simple "fit-the-ball-through-the-hole" games? You get FallDown! 2, of course, a sequel to the wildly popular FallDown!Using tilt controls to guide your ball down the maze, you avoid a nefarious laser as you make your way through the nooks and crannies of each level. Collecting stars, avoiding bombs, and zipping through each stage is what makes FallDown! 2 so addictive, though we surmise the neon overhaul has something to do with it as well. 

When the man who created Civilization and a number of other notable computer games decides to devote his talent to designing a mobile game, it’s kind of a big deal. So it’s only right that Sid Meier’s Ace Patrol comes with some equally big expectations, and for the most part, the turn-based World War I aerial combat game delivers.

When it comes to endless runners, players are often made to feel afraid; after all, you're typically being chased by something or someone, and your objective is often to keep away from it for as long as you possibly can. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Rooftop Run breaks away from this dynamic, however, and is all the better for it.

It's difficult to get excited about licensed games, even when they belong to a proven genre. Not being familiar with the source material doesn't help, either. Yet, despite my lack of I am MT knowledge, I've found myself enjoying I am MT: Card Battle quite a bit.

When it comes to the video game realm, digging may be an oft-recreated theme, but that doesn't mean there's no room left for some awesome newcomers to enter the fold. Games like Digging and Glean are enough to pique your interest when it comes to the genre, but Dig! is a retro-flavored take on mashing through the ground and searching for treasure. Reminiscent of Qix and all the 80s-tinged adventures out there, Dig! is an arcade hit that's sure to please.

Gameloft is doing that thing again. This time it’s by bringing Blitz Brigade, the equivalent of a certain super-popular, cartoony, team-based PC first-person shooter to iOS devices. I made my peace with the developer’s methods a while ago and have since learned to love their games for what they are: high quality approximations we’d probably never see on iPhones otherwise. However, when making an online shooter, it’s extremely important to get the “online” part right.

If you've ever wondered why we've yet to see our battlefields dominated by soldiers in hulking two-legged tanks, the answer might lie in the gameplay of this new multiplayer arena battler for the iPhone and iPod Touch. Put simply, they're a royal pain to control. Moving forward and backwards isn't so bad, but when you find your big guns simply shooting off in the direction of Alpha Centauri when you're trying to blast the guy who's barbecuring you from behind with a flamethrower, you might find yourself realizing why the military's devoted its resources to less fantastical projects.

Remember Peach's Slide from Super Mario 64? Mario would go shooting down on his bottom, grabbing coins along the way, and making sure not to fall off the edges. However, if you could take a dive at the right moment, it was possible to fall onto another section of the slide below, and shave entire seconds off your time. This is the basis for Impossible Road, a new mobile game that will make you rip your hair out much in the same way that Super Hexagon did before it. It may be a little too based on luck for my liking, but that doesn't stop this minimalist game from being one hell of a rush.