Touch Arcade

The idea behind the TouchArcade Game of the Week is that every Friday afternoon we post the one game that came out this week that we think is worth giving a special nod to. Now, before anyone goes over-thinking this, it doesn't necessarily mean our Game of the Week pick is the highest scoring game in a review, the game with the best graphics, or really any other quantifiable "best" thing. Instead, it's more just us picking out the single game out of the week's releases that we think is the most noteworthy, surprising, interesting, or really any other hard to describe quality that makes it worth having if you were just going to pick up one.

These picks might be controversial, and that's OK. If you disagree with what we've chosen, let's try to use the comments of these articles to have conversations about what game is your game of the week and why.

Without further ado…

Deep Loot

A month ago almost to the day, Monster and Monster's Deep Loot [Free] was accidentally released in the App Store, and quickly pulled due to it being an unfinished version of the game. A shame, since I wasn't able to snag it before it was gone and I was really digging the look of it. Well, here we are four weeks later and Deep Loot has been finished up and properly released. And it was totally worth the wait. Deep Loot is almost shockingly good, and has dug its hooks into me deeply to the point that I'm sure my entire weekend will be consumed with diving and looting the ocean.

On its surface, Deep Loot is a game about a pixely little dude diving into the ocean, collecting treasures and coins, and discovering interesting new places. At its heart, it's more akin to a very, very light roguelike. The ocean depths are randomly generated each run, and everything is turn-based, meaning enemies don't move until you make a move first. This allows you to take your time and plan out your actions, adding a layer of strategy that you probably wouldn't expect from a cutesy diving game.

You also have a finite air supply, and everything you do in Deep Loot costs some amount of air. And I mean everything, from moving, to attacking, to even collecting the loot you come across. Again, this adds a crazy element of strategy to the game as you try to utilize your limited air supply in a way that lets you maximize your collected treasures. Once your air runs out, your run ends and you're brought back to the surface to see how much loot you've managed to get.

All the loot collecting isn't for nothing though. The coins you earn can be spent on permanent upgrades for your character, like increased air supply, more damage for your attacks and a better drill for digging through underwater blocks. There are also tons of different ships and diving suits that you can buy, all of which offer different types of benefits, adding even another layer of strategy as you choose the ones that best suit your play style.

In addition to earning coins, you can also come across special areas while diving and collect specific treasures that go into your collection. The collection features 18 different sets of themed special treasures to discover, like a set of Egyptian items or all the bones of an ancient dinosaur skeleton.

Between all the upgrading, ship and suit buying, and special treasure collecting, there is TONS of stuff to keep you busy in Deep Loot. Which is perfect, because the core gameplay is a total blast and everything just gels together into one big, fun experience. It's strange, because I almost can't put my finger on exactly what it is, but I can't help but play Deep Loot over and over. It definitely has that "just one more go" factor. Also, for such a simplistic game, it really nails that exciting sense of adventure and exploration as you play. It's almost like a super condensed, bite-sized Junk Jack X.

So if you like adventures, and especially if you like collecting cool loot, you've got to get in on Deep Loot. Everyone in our forums has been loving it, and while there was several really strong releases this week, Deep Loot is the one I just can't put down.