20 best new iPhone and iPad apps and games this week

Welcome to this week’s roundup of the latest, greatest new iPhone and iPad apps and games. All prices are correct at the time of writing, with “IAP” indicating use of in-app purchases.

You can read the previous Best iPhone and iPad Apps roundups for more recommendations, but if Android is your platform of choice, check the Best Android Apps roundups. On with this week’s selection.

APPS

Clangers - Playtime Planet (£2.29)
Children’s TV show Clangers has returned in a remake, but this being 2015, there’s also an app along for the ride. It’s a characterful collection of mini-games for pre-school children taking in music, constellations and bouncing peas, among other activities.
iPhone / iPad

Enlight (£3.99)
This slick photo-editing app has been a hit on iPhone, but now it has been released for iPad too – arguably the better device for longer bouts of pic manipulation. It has lots of features and tools to improve your photos, but it’s easy to use too.
iPhone / iPad

Mapstr (Free)
With Google, Apple and more offering maps apps, does anyone need a new one? Well, the twist here is that Mapstr helps you make your own map, tagging the places you visit most (or want to visit) to create something more personalised. An intriguing idea that could develop well.
iPhone

Annabel Karmel Family Cooking (£3.99)
If you’re a parent, you quite possibly already know about Annabel Karmel and her recipes for babies and toddlers. This is a bit different though: an app that’s as much about getting slightly older children cooking with you in the kitchen through a series of “recipe challenges”. Meanwhile, more than 120 recipes provide plenty of ideas for adults too.
iPhone / iPad

Newsmart! (Free)
This is the work of the Wall Street Journal, but it’s not your average news app. This is actually for people who want to learn business-English through a mixture of daily WSJ articles, and comprehension, grammar and vocabulary exercises.
iPhone

The Cat in the Hat - Read & Learn (£3.99)
US publisher Oceanhouse Media has been diligently turning the entire Dr. Seuss back-catalogue into book-apps over the last five years. This is a brand new take on The Cat In The Hat though, with the familiar story accompanied by learning activities for children to practise phonics, spelling and reading comprehension.
iPhone / iPad

Witness (Free)
Subtitled “the panic button for the smartphone age”, Witness is the kind of app you hope you won’t ever have to use. It’s a mobile panic-button which calls and texts your pre-set emergency contacts when triggered, as well as broadcasting your location and live video and audio.
iPhone

HeadTrainer (Free + IAP)
This is an interesting idea: a brain-training app that aims to improve your sporting abilities. That means a series of mini-games testing your focus, visual-spatial awareness, decision-making, memory and processing speed, with sporty themes and social features.
iPhone / iPad

FailPop – Essential Travel Tips (Free)
This could be useful if you often find yourself travelling to countries you haven’t visited before: an app promising to fill you in on “essential local customs” including how to eat, what to wear and meeting people. Soon, it’ll add a premium tier with more tips.
iPhone

Loyalive (Free)
Finally, an app for storing details of your loyalty cards, so you can quickly check how many points you’ve racked up and whether you’re eligible for a reward. It’s fully UK-friendly, with more than 70 cards eligible from Starbucks and Boots to Nectar and Tesco Clubcard.
iPhone

GAMES

This War of Mine (£7.99)
War, but as experienced by civilians rather than soldiers. This game has picked up rave reviews on other platforms, and deservedly so: it’s a gripping adventure as you try to help your group survive in a war-torn city, avoiding snipers and foraging for supplies. It’s a wonderful game.
iPad

Warhammer 40,000: Deathwatch - Tyranid Invasion (£3.99 + IAP)
The latest game for Warhammer 40k fans looks like it could be the best yet: a turn-based strategy game that sees your troop of Space Marines battling it out with vicious Tyranids. Collecting and upgrading your warriors is the prime attraction.
iPhone / iPad

SongPop 2 (Free + IAP)
Remember SongPop? The ‘name that tune’ game was a mobile craze for a while, but then died down. Now it’s returning with a sequel that includes new ways to test your song-ID skills against friends – including a massively-multiplayer party mode.
iPhone / iPad

Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation (Free + IAP)
A new Mission Impossible film is on its way to cinemas, and publisher Glu Mobile is anticipating it with the official game. The company knows this territory (guns, action, big film brands) well, so this looks a polished adventure blending shooting and strategy.
iPhone / iPad

Dexter: Hidden Darkness (Free + IAP)
Everyone’s favourite serial killer Dexter has made his way onto iOS with a game that puts you in the titular role, solving crimes while “planning out your own secret agenda” – which is a tactful way of putting it. It’s good fun if you’re a fan of the show.
iPhone / iPad

Mountain Goat Mountain (Free + IAP)
There’s definitely some Crossy Road DNA in this latest game from Zynga, although it’s no straight copy. Here, you control a goat leaping up a mountain while avoiding hazards, and collecting “goat hats” (goat hats are a thing?) that can change the environment. It’s good fun.
iPhone / iPad

Forest Home (Free + IAP)
This has a cutesy look, but the gameplay is pleasantly challenging. You have to lead a series of forest animals to safety by tracing lines on the screen, in a fun puzzle game that tests your lateral-thinking skills.
iPhone / iPad

Barcode Knight (Free + IAP)
There is an amazing mobile game to be made out of scanning real barcodes to create monsters. Barcode Knight isn’t quite it, but it’s interesting: you go dungeoneering with more than 60 monsters created with scans of your fish fingers / cider multi-packs / Cillit Bang packaging (delete as appropriate).
iPhone / iPad

Dragon Ball Z Dokkan Battle (Free + IAP)
If you’re new to Bandai Namco’s Dragon Ball Z franchise, this might be a good way in. It’s a colourful battling game that’s only been available in Japan until now: you build teams of fighters and send them off to scrap, with a boardgame feel wrapped around the action.
iPhone / iPad

Million Arthur (Free + IAP)
Here’s a nice twist on the card-battling genre: a game based on the legend of King Arthur. Who, thanks to Disney, I can’t imagine without a talking owl named Archimedes. None of that here though: this blends Arthurian myths with anime visuals, as you follow your destiny to become king.
iPhone / iPad

Those are my choices, but what have you been impressed by on iOS in the last couple of weeks? The comments section is open for your recommendations.