But are these games -- priced at $4.99 each -- any good? There are certainly some fun concepts in the mix and the iPod screen, as clear and brilliant as it is, makes the graphics really pop. But the click wheel was never designed as a controller for video games, and it really shows in a few of the nine titles that launched with iTunes 7.
iPod games have a few neat features that you'll really appreciate. Since the iPod is a music player first and foremost (or is it anymore?), you can listen to that Morrissey playlist that reminds you of 10th grade while playing these dedicated games. You can also save your spot at any time and instantly rejoin the action later on. That's a friendly feature not found in barely any Nintendo DS or Sony PSP games.
However, my biggest gripe associated with these games -- beyond the click wheel controls that aren't suited for some games -- is that you can only play them on your iPod. Yep, even though you can listen to music and watch video from iTunes, you cannot play these games on your desktop or notebook. That's Apple putting the screws to content ownership again, and it's unfortunate. So, just know going into it -- and Apple does say this right up front -- that you can only play these games on the iPod itself.
That said, here are the first reviews of four of the nine iPod games. Look for the remaining five reviews next week and continued coverage of iPod gaming on IGN Wireless.
Texas Hold'em
Vortex
Bejeweled
Pac-Man
Tetris
Mini Golf
Zuma
![Vortex [Mobile]](https://cdn.statically.io/img/web.archive.org/web/20240923064816im_/https://assets1.ignimgs.com/2006/09/18/vortex-20060918042731559-1673663.jpg?width=114&crop=1%3A1%2Csmart&auto=webp)
