The free iPhone game Trawler Report: Car Jack Streets’s cars and The Oregon Trail’s trailers battle against Blimp: The Flying Adventures’s, well, blimps

The rum’s all finished, trays of canapés lie festering on tables and the Trawler’s deck is littered with broken champagne flutes. Yes, it’s back to work as usual after last week’s awards celebrations. There’s no stopping for a landlubber’s holiday when you’re aboard the freebie vessel.

There seems to be an automotive bent to this week’s picks. It’s not quite planes, trains and automobiles, but we do seem to have gone a bit transport obsessed. We’ve got cars, caravans, blimps and sunken ships on offer, although the latter probably wouldn’t get you very far.

A few of the picks are even iconic iDevice classics in one way or anothe. We’ve got a Gold Award winner, the iPhone’s most famous GTA-a-like released so far, and another instalment in a highly popular casual gaming series.

The best free iPhone games on the App Store

The Oregon Trail Free
By Gameloft
What is it? It’s the early days of the US, in mini-game form
Type Demo

Although here in the UK The Oregon Trail was never quite as big a deal as it was in the US, the quality overhaul this classic game has been given by Gameloft means that it’s worth a look even if you’ve got your feet firmly rooted to blighty.

The Oregon Trail sees you trying to keep a procession of settler caravans alive and rolling along as they make the long journey to America’s greener pastures.

Broken up into mini-games, the game lets you fish, hunt and manage the speed of your procession as the little ‘uns ask the eternal question, ‘Are we there yet?’. The free version lets you get right into the thick of it with the instant action mode, which features some of the mini-game sections from the full version.

Otto Matic Lite
By Pangea Software
What is it? It’s an alien invasion action adventure… with robots and walking brains
Type Demo

With a platform like the iPhone, it’s easy for games to become de-railed by their own ambition. Otto Matic lets the sparks fly as it furious tries to decouple itself from the tracks thanks to its full 3D environments and tricky controls.

However, it hangs on enough to wear on through the ride. You play as Otto, charged with defending the Earth from the invading Brain Aliens.

This Lite version features the first level from the full version’s roster of ten. It’s a game we heartily recommend checking out because it’s got something of a Marmite effect. You’ll either cringe at the challenging controls or hold it to your bosom, having found one of the best adventure games on the iPhone.

Titanic: Hidden Expedition
By Big Fish Games
What is it? It’s an underwater hidden objects game
Type Demo

Hidden object games like Titanic: Hidden Expedition tend to divide opinion. While some think of them as dull and repetitive, others see them as the perfect casual solution to make full use of the iPhone’s sensitive touchscreen.

If you’re of the former opinion, Titanic: Hidden Expedition probably won’t do all that much to change your mind, but it’s a great download for fans of the genre.

Themed around the world’s most famous sunken ship, Titanic: Hidden Expedition sees you searching for treasures and trinkets as you sift your way through the wreckage of the great ship itself. This Lite version gives you a pair of scenes from the full version’s 17 as a taster of its briny goodness.

Blimp: The Flying Adventures Lite
By Craneballs Studios
What is it? It’s what happens when hot air balloons get angry
Type Demo

If you had to choose a vehicle to take on the world in, it might be a jet fighter or a tank. Either way, it probably wouldn’t be a blimp.

We’ve all seen what happened to the Zeppelin – waging war in an inflatable just doesn’t work too well, especially if you’re the one driving it. Still, Blimp: The Flying Adventures makes the most of it.

You are captain Zed Pelin, pilot of said inflatable, ready to drop bombs on all who would get in your hot air-filled way. You control your blimp using the accelerometer to steer and the touchscreen to move yourself upwards.

With strong production values and a charming visual style, Blimp: The Flying Adventures could well be the best blimp-flying game you can get for your iPhone. Okay, so maybe that’s not as grand a statement as it initially sounds, but it is fun.

Pick of the week

Car Jack Streets Free
By Tag Games
What is it? It’s an open world driving game
Type Demo

Although things in the GTA-a-like stable have moved on since Car Jack Streets was released, namely because we got to clap our eyes on Gameloft’s eye-watering Gangstar: West Coast Hustle, the game’s still currently about the best open world driving game on iPhone.

You have a huge debt to repay, and instead of taking a second job stacking shelves on the weekend you decide to make your moolah by jacking cars, getting in with gangs and involving yourself in all sorts of shady activity.

Even before you think about the cost of buying Car Jack Streets, actually playing it is a substantial investment - it’s much longer than your average iPhone game. The free version will give you a taster and let you see if you’ll be able to get along with the controls, offering a chunk from the beginning of the main game.

Crap Apps Box of Shame award

Gothlolimaids
By Schkolne
What is it? It’s an existential crisis for your iDevice
Type Full

Gothlolimaids is a very strange app. We normally deal with the frivolous and tasteless here in the Crap Apps slot, but from having a go on Gothlolimaids you might expect that its creator would invite you in to check out his collection of fingers in brine if ever you were to meet him. An impressive collection I’d expect it would be, too.

Gothlolimaids lets you zoom in and around an odd picture of two girls dressed up like what is apparently the Lolita anime character. As if that wasn’t weird enough by itself, you can also change the view so that you’re looking at a painted-over version rather than the original.

Okay, so there’s probably some artistic intent behind Gothlolimaids, but this is genuinely creepy stuff. Fancy stroking a pair of young children dressed up, cosplay style? Thought not.