Best iPhone Game Updates: ‘AFK Arena’, ‘Pako 3’, ‘Bacon – The Game’, ‘Grindstone’, and More

Hello everyone, and welcome to the week! It’s time once again for our look back at the noteworthy updates of the last seven days. Well, I won’t lie to you: I spent two hours today video chatting with my dear brother in Canada, and that has left me criminally short on time today. I shall not give up, but the vague attempts at comedy will either be better or worse than usual today. Of course, you can keep an eye out for updates yourself by participating in the TouchArcade forums. This weekly summary is just here to fill you in on the things you might have missed. Let’s go for it!

ANOTHER EDEN, Free Let’s start things off modestly, with a look at the latest update from the good folks behind Another Eden. There’s a new Mythos called The Apex of Logic and Cardinal Scales Chapter 3, which is quite a name. Quite, quite a name. There’s also an Ally Encounter in the form of Red Clad Flamemancer: Fire Force Edition and Blunt Force Edition, with the new ally Red Clad Flamemancer available. Quite the names. Quite, quite the names. Well, I can’t think of anything funny or interesting to say about this one, let’s move along.

Matchington Mansion, Free Let’s do that obligatory free-to-play matching puzzle game update early today, okay? I have not selected Toon Blast. Yes, I got you there. No, I’ve picked Matchington Mansion this time, which is a completely different game. This latest update brings in the EMMI… what? Oh, I see. Not EMMI. EMM-E. Phew. I could almost hear the clicking and chirping that haunts my nightmares. Anyway, she brings a limited-time room called Tech Town, plus a new Cyberpet Themed Season. Another new room is here, the Bridge Part 2, and you get a whopping 54 new levels of matching fun to play. No killer robots. Probably.

Dan The Man, Free Dan the Man. Every time I write about this game I always start it off by typing Dan the Man. It is a pleasing thing to type. The finger-feel on the keyboard is exquisite. Dan the Man. This latest update has a new multiplayer event, some new arenas, an exclusive Princess and the Enchanted Frog fighter to unlock, and some new icons and emotes. Dan the Man. Dan the Man. Roy the Boy. Earl the Girl. Boman the Woman. Dan the Man.

Bacon – The Game, Free Yeah, I still enjoy this stupid game. Trying to land the bacon on various oddly-shaped objects is tricky and hilarious. This update gives you twenty-five new things to land your bacon on. It also adds in support for Dark Mode, so you can enjoy Bacon – The Game in an easier-on-the-eyes format. Mmm, dark bacon. More bacon. Bacon hats for everyone. Bacon hats for all.

Grindstone, Aw heck, this is one of those games that likes to get cute with its update notes. It’s always an extra step to decipher the actual new content with these ones. Something about the Carnival of Creeps? Probably new levels. Almost certainly new rewards. All done up in a scary carnival theme, which is largely redundant as all carnivals are scary. All of them, down to the last. I apologize to any readers who work in a carnival, but look: you know what it’s all about.

Jetpack Joyride, Free I guess there was a gap between holidays and licensed tie-ups, because Jetpack Joyride‘s latest update is a bit of a bland one. Themed around the Profit Bird, this is a limited time event where you need to dodge those pesky zappers to earn some rewards. What kind of rewards? Looks like a Bomber Jacket and Flying Goggles. Admittedly, Barry rocks that style. Some of his customizations look goofy, but this is a good style for him. As usual, you have a limited amount of time to wrap this one up. If you’re just reading about it now… it might actually be too late. Give it a shot anyway. Prove me wrong. You know you want to.

PAKO 3, Free Pako 3 hasn’t shown up here since its launch a few months, but that’s because its update notes haven’t had a lot to say so far. Well, that ends now. Here and now. Because this latest version has a whole new mode to play: Getaway Driver. Exciting stuff, to be sure. You also get some new levels to play and some new cars to collect, which is basically all we really need to see to give an update to this game the ol’ thumbs-up. In fact, I’m going to go ahead and give this the coveted UMMSotW award for this week.

Disney Heroes: Battle Mode, Free Most of the time, new updates to Disney Heroes involve new characters. Typically two. One of them tends to be well-known, the other more obscure. This latest version does indeed have some new playable heroes, and there are two of them. But in an unusual turn, they’re both from the same rather well-known IP. Two familiar faces from The Jungle Book join the roster this time around. We all know Bagheera, the helpful ally of Mowgli who doesn’t constantly put him into danger. As opposed to the other one. Speaking of danger, the other character is the serpentine master of hypnosis himself, Kaa. I could see them both being interesting from a gameplay standpoint.

Genshin Impact, Free Good old Genshin Impact. This game has sucked so much oxygen out of the room for mobile gaming thanks to just how much it has to offer. And it will continue to do so, because this train doesn’t stop. When the Sakura Bloom is the latest version, adding the new character Yae Miko, a new event called Three Realms Gateway, a new story quest, and a new weapon called Kagura’s Verity. Truth be told, this update is a little older than a week. I missed it, and now I am correcting that error. Also, I just noticed the date on it now and I don’t have time to find a replacement. Honesty: the best policy?

AFK Arena, Free And I’ll wrap things up with a look at the newest version of AFK Arena, which brings the usual bevy of fresh content. There is a new Graveborn hero named Fane – The Wicked Warden, and a Bountiful Trials event and test play to go with them. The Fight of Fates mode has been revised and improved, and the Voyage of wonders gets a new adventure called The Arid Lands. The new Poetic Pop Quiz puts your AFK Arena trivia skills to the test with some rewards going to savvy solvers. There are a few other tweaks, optimizations, and balance adjustments in here. Like there always is. These developers are busy beavers.

That about wraps it up for last week’s significant updates. I’m sure I’ve missed some, though, so please feel free to comment below and let everyone know if you think something should be mentioned. As usual, major updates will likely get their own news stories throughout this week, and I’ll be back next Monday to summarize and fill in the blanks. Have a great week!