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What you should play this weekend: Tengami

Occasionally you’ll find a game that’s so beautiful you want to play it slowly and intentionally, savoring the developers’ work. Tengami (US$4.99, universal for iOS) is one of those games.

It’s an adventure puzzler that has your character exploring his world, one scene at a time, unlocking secrets and moving ever forward. There’s no clear objective other than discovery itself, and that’s a big part of Tengami’s appeal. Walk, look, and see what’s next. Here’s our look at Tengami.

Looks

To call this game pretty is a laughable understatement. The premise is that you’re in a Japanese pop-up book come to life. Each “page” unfolds to reveal charming cut-outs and intricate folds. Paper petals flutter from tree tops. Water “shimmers,” a paper moon glows faintly in the sky and hidden bridges, staircases and more unfold before you…if you figure out how to trigger them.

The music completes the theme with a calming melody that encourages quiet inspection. Wear headphones for this one.

Dead Man’s Draw (universal, free with in-app purchases) is a push-your-luck card game with an enjoyable pirate theme. A lot of people are turned off by games that feature luck as a main mechanic. If that’s you, move along. As for the rest of you, read on to learn more about this simple, fun game.

Looks

It’s not easy to depict a card game on an iPhone. Trying to fit the cards, scoring and other necessary components on that small screen isn’t easy. Blizzard’s Hearthstone is a shining example of the genre done well. The developers and designers at Stardock have also done a great job with Dead Man’s Draw. It can feel a little cramped, but not to the point of interfering with gameplay.

Each player’s hand is displayed at the top and bottom of the screen, leaving a wide-open play area in the center. The pirate theme is consistent throughout, from the music to the art on the cards that look like woodcuts to the beautiful player avatars.

Game play

Dead Man’s Draw is super simple to learn. There’s a draw pile of cards and two players. The deck consists of 10 suits, numbered 2-7. To begin, the active player flips a card and observes its suit and value, or number. She then flips a second card, a third and so on, accumulating points. Each card’s value will be added to your collection and, subsequently, your score.

Read: previous selections for “What you should play this weekend.”

Scoring depends in part on what’s in your collection. Only the highest card in your collection is scored. For example, if you draw a 4 Chest, but already have a 7 Chest in your collection, the 4 is not scored.

Keep drawing cards until your satisfied with the score you’ve accumulated by doing so, or until you “bust.” A bust means you’ve drawn the same card twice in a single turn. If this happens — and it will — all of those cards are discarded and you score nothing. Good day, sir!

It’s time to save some of your hard-earned money with our Daily Deals, featuring highlighted deals for AWT readers, hardware discounts and our own handpicked iOS and OS X sales. All prices are USD and subject to change. Please check prices before you purchase as some deals may expire quickly.

AWT Featured Deal

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Hardware and Accessory Deals

iOS Software Discounts

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OS X Software Discounts

  • Paint – Draw With Customizable Brushes [Now free, down from $2.99] Paint is a painting app designed for OSX.

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Steve Sande
the authorSteve Sande
Steve is the founder and former publisher of Apple World Today and has authored a number of books about Apple products. He's an avid photographer, an FAA-licensed drone pilot, and a really bad guitarist. Steve and his wife Barb love to travel everywhere!