Grab these 14 classic iOS App Store games before they're gone for good

Apple has given notice of a cull for old and infirm games from its overstuffed App Store. It looks like things are going to get brutal in a month or so.

It seems Apple doesn't want any apps hanging around that "no longer function as intended or follow current review guidelines," nor does it want those that "have not been supported with compatibility updates for a long time".

Unfortunately, the company hasn't been any more specific about its list of requirements for an app to not be considered "problematic" or "abandoned," though there seems to be an emphasis on full compatibility with iOS 10. It seems likely that any app that hasn't been actively updated for a couple of years or more is being threatened.

What we do know is that some developers have reported being told that their apps will be gone in 30 days if they don't update them. While some are vocally standing their ground, and plenty more are working frantically to bring their efforts up to scratch, we thought we'd highlight some forgotten iOS gaming classics that could, barring a late intervention from the developers, be set for the trap door.

Download them while you still can!

Also, if there are any more forgotten classics you think might be headed out of the App Store, do share in the comments below.

Given half a chance on PG, I'll often declare my love of Sword & Poker 2. It's nothing less than a masterpiece.

This was a novel card battler years before novel card battlers became cool. It also hasn't been updated since May 2010, so revel in its low-res, squashed aspect ratio glory before it's too late.

[Download Sword & Poker 2]

Another early favourite (and another brutal 8 out 10 assessment), MiniSquadron remains a quite wonderful casual arena combat game despite its blurry edges and black borders - an indicator that Supermono's game is probably set for the chop.

It may have sat dormant since February 2013 (and it originates from 2009), but the game's finely honed flight physics-based combat still shine today. But not for much longer, I fear.

[Download MiniSquadron]

Oh no. Not DrawRace 2. Anything but DrawRace 2. Five years on from its original release, and three years on from its last update, RedLynx's novel line-drawing racer remains one of a kind.

This form of sketching out a path for your little cars to follow is as relentlessly entertaining as it ever was. It'd be a crying shame if the App Store lost it.

[Download DrawRace 2]

100 Trials was the sequel to 100 Rogues, which was one of the early pioneers in the mobile roguelike market. We say 'sequel,' but it was really more of a spinoff, taking the original's core mechanics and Challenge mode and creating a wonderful bite-sized dungeon crawler out of it.

Alas, 100 Trials hasn't received any attention since February 2012. It seems that the next trial will probably be its last.

[Download 100 Trials]

You might think that the fact Space Invaders Infinity Gene still looks and plays so good seven years on from its release is an indictment of the 2D shooter on mobile. But we know there have been some absolute corkers in the years since.

No, it's just a very smart, one-of-a-kind game, with the gameplay literally evolving from level to level. Having last been updated in July of 2013, we fear it may have reached an evolutionary dead end.

[Download Space Invaders Infinity Gene]

An App Store without World of Goo will be a measurably inferior App Store. But that may turn out to be the case if 2D Boy doesn't update it, having last done so in August 2013.

World of Goo, lest you forget, is a deeply affecting physics puzzler that has you building bridging structures out of strings of blobs. It's brilliant. Won't somebody save it from toppling?

[Download World of Goo]

A true physics puzzler classic from a time when developers felt obliged to stick 'HD' on the end of a game's name to show that it supported Apple's then-new Retina display technology. Yep, it's old alright.

iBlast Moki 2 - last updated October 2012 - sees you setting explosives to propel a cute blob to the level exit. It's a template that's been much copied since the 2009 original.

[Download iBlast Moki 2]

Will Incoboto be for the chop? We don't know for sure, but it hasn't seen an update from Fluttermind in over three years.

Which is a shame, because its features a timelessly gorgeous art style and well-executed gentle platform-puzzler gameplay.

[Download Incoboto]

We've seen plenty of 2D stunt games over the years, but few have been as confidently and comprehensively executed as Dream Track Nation.

Featuring a generous multiplayer provision and a full-on track editor, it's the kind of pre-freemium experience that might make you pine for the old days. Perhaps not for much longer though, as it was last updated in May 2012.

[Download Dream Track Nation]

Surely the developer won't let this super-slick 2D skateboard stunt game perform a face plant? Having last been updated in May 2012, it's quite possible.

Penny Time is a fine blend of endless-runner, rhythm-action, and platformer, and we're holding onto the leg of its baggy jeans to stop it from leaving.

[Download Penny Time]

It used to be that you couldn't move on the App Store for match-three puzzlers. In fact, you still can't, but most of them are quite old now.

Piyo Blocks 2 is a curious case because it doesn't really do anything interesting with the match-three template, but it feels SO good to play. It was last updated in August 2013 though, so pretty soon you'll just have to take our word for it.

[Download Piyo Blocks 2]

We're amazed that no one picked up on Slingshot Racing's idea and ran with it. Perhaps they did, and we didn't notice because we were still playing Slingshot Racing.

Last updated in September 2013, it's a brilliant twist on the top-down arcade racer whereby you take corners by hooking onto a grapple point and slingshotting your way round.

[Download Slingshot Racing]

I like to think that the recent Mini Metro took a few tips from Trainyard. Not in the way it plays, as such, but in the way it turns the matter of public transport management into a stylised puzzler.

Trainyard remains a brilliant puzzler, but we can see it being derailed in the near future. After all, it was last updated in September 2011.

[Download Trainyard]

Denki was formed in 2000 by a bunch of key DMA Design employees. That's the DMA that created a certain Grand Theft Auto franchise, and would go on to become Rockstar North.

Denki Blocks has got nothing in common with that crime sim franchise - but it is a very well crafted puzzler that still feels fresh today. Shame it hasn't been updated since July 2013, really.

[Download Denki Blocks]