Celebrating 4th July with the iPhone: the top 10 independent iPhone games

The fourth of July is known for three things: barbeque, burns, and independence. While you'll need to take care of your own grill and we'd advise against having sword fights with lit roman candles, we're all for celebrating the independent spirit. As Uncle Sam blows out 223 candles on his birthday, we're counting the top 10 indie-developed iPhone games.

No other handset has provided such a welcoming space for new talent and fresh ideas. There are too many to list here, but these ten games represent not just some of the best independent efforts, but some of the funnest on the platform period. Indie developers may have struggled to make great games on consoles and handhelds, but they're having no trouble crafting compelling games on iPhone.

There are a lot more cool indie games that we couldn't mention, so give your favourites a shout out on the forums.

Top 10 indie iPhone games

The obsession over touch-enabled strategy gaming has only been fuelled by Phil Hassey's phenomenal Galcon. Opting to do away with story and other intricate details, the game focuses on intuitive play that has you sliding a finger to send geometric fighters in sorties.

Defending your planets is only part of play, since winning is a matter of overwhelming your opponents and seizing their properties. The recent addition of network multiplayer, which joins local wireless play, also gives this colourful strategy game a boost.

Make no mistake: any real-time strategy game that hits iPhone needs to look at Galcon to know where the bar has been set.

An early darling of the App Store, Trism was available right at launch and established early on expectations for quality iPhone gaming. This colourful puzzler turns the basic match-three formula upside-down. Literally.

Use of the accelerometer to clear the screen of triangular puzzle pieces means constantly rotating your handset to make the most of matches and multiply points earned. Network leaderboards paved the way for demands that other games carry online high score tracking.

Even a year after release, Trism manages to captivate with a great balance between skill and luck that makes it a phenomenal puzzle game.

This isn't the first time chaos management has pulled into port. Harbor Master knowingly leverages the gameplay of Firemint's platinum-selling hit Flight Control, though manages to make a splash with its own unique charm.

Multiple levels with an array of different vessels provide plenty of challenging gameplay. Speedy ships have to be brought into dock with skill, but the fundamental swipe mechanic for navigating ships is so simple that anyone can pick it up and become a master of the docks.

Updates adding new levels and vessels to contend with promise to build on the game's value even further. Harbor Master is cheap, effortless summertime fun.

Look beyond the campy exterior of Bionic Surfer and you're destined to find a surprisingly sophisticated physics-based platformer that delivers fun gameplay along with its laughs.

Slipping on the flip-flops of a surfer tasked with saving humanity from an alien scourge, you tackle 20 levels on Earth, Venus, Jupiter's moon Europa, and other galactic destinations beating insect-like enemies.

There's a nice arsenal of weapons, including a gravity gun that enables you to pick up and throw objects realistically. The visuals are a bit cheesy, but the gameplay is so gratifying that we can't help by ride a wave of enthusiasm for this indie summertime thrill ride.

Mecho Wars comes heavily influenced by Intelligent Systems's Advance Wars, but it introduces a number of creative twists that ensure its uniqueness.

Wonderfully original units and maps provide the game with an unusual sense of style matched by inventive tactical elements. Time plays a critical role, transforming bodies of water into ice in the late hours of the night. Frozen lakes and streams can be traversed by units of both sides to execute battlefield strategies.

While multiplayer support is lacking in its current state, updates have been promised that will add online competitive play and bring a slew of enhancements that look to improve this already solid game.

Route Candle is one of the most severely under-appreciated titles on the App Store. Not only does this adorable indie title exude cuteness and charm, but it colours its crayon-scribbled style with compelling gameplay.

Your objective is to set ablaze candles situated about the screen by guiding a flaming matchstick. Since you're unable to control the fiery fellow directly, you tap the screen to plop down flags. These act as waypoints, though you're limited to the number of flags that can be placed on the screen at any given time.

It's a combination of simple strategy and puzzle-solving that is completely engaging.

Contemplative puzzle-solving doesn't get any more sophisticated than Primrose. Indie developer Jason Rohrer has crafted a beautifully simple puzzle game that involves placing coloured squares onto a 7x7 grid.

Surrounding one type of tile with another clears the surrounded tiles from the screen, netting you points. The emphasis lies on colour, though the game includes a colourblind mode too.

While light in modes, the core gameplay is so compelling that it's enough to warrant download. At the very least, online high score tracking provides a nudge to keep gunning for the best score possible.

Rasta Monkey
Publisher/Developer: Nitako

The quest for delicious tropical fruit smoothies has you swinging through the jungle canopy in plucky platformer Rasta Monkey.

Touching the corners of the screen enables you to leap from branches, collecting fruit along the way. Much of the game is geared toward item collection, what with a quota of fruit having to be grabbed to complete each level. However, tricky obstacles and dangerous jungle creatures add a little more to the mix.

Of course, Rasta Monkey earns a nod for its Rastafarian style. From the green, red, and yellow striped cap of the primate protagonist to the too-cute-to-be-frightening scowling foes, the game is as entertaining to look at as it is to play.

By packing in three games into one, Smiles draws the corners of our mouth up. A match-three puzzler at the most basic level, the game brings several innovations to the concept that make it far more appealing than your run-of-the-mill title.

Zen mode gets things started with a cerebral take on match-three that requires not clearing tiles from the screen, but arranging them so that every tile lies in a chain. Drop and Avalanche modes have you eliminating tiles in scores of three or mode, both modes opting for more action with falling blocks and difficult pieces of ice complicating matters.

Online high scores would be nice, though the strength of its puzzle play and over 140 achievements should keep you busy.

Often the best games are the simplest and Moonlights is a shining example of just that principle. Using a bundle of struts, your goal is to construct towers that touch moonlights set at different spots on the screen.

Each stage brings a new set of lights that require different building strategies, the challenge being to efficiently construct your way to each light. Height is only the first obstacle to overcome, though. As you progress, lights are situated awkwardly on the screen and force you to build odd structures that test your creativity. The fine balance between accessibility and difficulty makes it highly enjoyable and thoroughly recommended.