You won't need a pocket full of quarters to play the best iPad arcade games, though you might find that some of the knockoffs are as good or better than the official versions. And if you want to get the adrenline pumping through your veins, there are plenty of great iPad action games available in the App Store.
This list of the top arcade and action games for the iPad includes high flying dog fights, intense gun battles, platforming monster survival games and old classics with a reinvented look. But most of all, it includes a lot of fun.
Walking Dead: The Game
Like the popular AMC television series, there's only one word to describe Walking Dead: The Game. Awesome. The game brings the survival horror and psychological thriller theme of the series into the game in an all new story told in five separate episodes. If you love the TV series -- or just love zombie games -- you'll love this one.
Dead Space
Dead Space is well known among console gamers. It came out of no where to be one of the biggest hits of 2008. And Dead Space for the iPad is just as good. With word of a sequel to the console game coming down the pipe, Electronic Arts created a unique story for Dead Space on the ipad,with a plot that will link the original Dead Space to its sequel. The game features cool new weapons and survival modes like 5 Minutes to Kill and an Endless Survival version.
Temple Run
Temple Run is the perfect throwback to old-fashioned arcade games. As a 3D platformer, it is simple to pick up and play, and yet it has an addictive factor that keeps you coming back for more. It's easy to learn, difficult to master, and it really pushes you to beat your highest score each time you play. Best of all, you can unlock powerups in the store and they stay unlocked for future games. It's no wonder the game has been downloaded so many times since it's release in mid-2011.
Death Rally
The type of game that is easy to pick up and hard to put down, Death Rally is for everyone that has ever wished Twisted Metal would come to the iPad. A vehicular combat game, Death Rally will have you racing around tracks and firing off missiles, machine guns and laying down mines in order to blow your way to the top of the race. And in between races, you'll use your hard-earned dough to puchase new cars, customize your ride and slap on some new weaponry.
Punch Quest
What do you get when you combine a side-scrolling game like Golden Axe with an endless runner like Temple Run? Punch Quest. It takes the endless running action and flips it on its side as you run and punch your way through the game, collecting currency and buying new abilities along the way. A great buy for anyone who loves the endless runner genre but thinks the last few games have just repeated the same old-same old.
Monster Dash
Meet Barry Steakfires. He likes to run. He doesn't like monsters. And therein likes the making for a great survival-horror-platformer action game from Halfbrick Studios, who also brought us Fruit Ninja. If you liked Pitfall Harry, but you wish it had a lot less swinging over swamp pits and a lot more shooting mummies with a shotgun, Monster Dash is the game for you.
Pinball HD
Pinball HD has just the right mix of cool tables, smooth design and nice controls to make you think you are playing a real pinball game. Sure, you can't pick up your iPad and shake it a little to get the ball to do what you want -- maybe they'll add that as a feature in the future -- but you can rack up a cool score on a very pinball-like scoreboard and then post it to online leaderboards for all your friends to see. The game comes with three different pinball tables with a Slayer-branded (yes, Slayer the heavy metal band) table available as downloadable content.
Rage HD
Having brought us such names as Castle Wolfenstein, Doom and Quake, iD Software is something of a legend in the gaming world. Their upcoming game, Rage, is a console game with FPS and RPG elements.
But we don't have to wait for its release to get a feel for the Rage world. Rage HD is an on-rails shooter that takes place in a post-apocalyptic game show where blowing away members of the mutant horde is a great way to rack up points. One of the most beautiful games on the iPad, Rage also has a non-HD version available.
Pizza Vs. Skeletons
Easily one of the funniest (and most unique) ideas on the App Store, Pizza vs Skeletons puts you in the shoes (if it had any shoes) of (you guessed it) a pizza. You'll go up against all kinds of skeletons as you battle through multiple mini games, customizing your pizza along the way with different types of toppings.
Rayman Jungle Run
Do you love platformers? While not quite as famous as Mario, the Rayman series is one of the most iconic series in gaming history. And Ubisoft has done a great job making the transition to the touch screen. Rayman Jungle Run features smaller levels strung together in a way that allows you to consume the content at a brisk pace, but for those who love to post perfect scores for each level, there is a ton of challenge hiding under the surface.
