10 iPod games for those who don’t have the Touch

Recently I was reading Old iPods Have Still Got Game, an interesting post by Paul Govan at Wired’s GeekDad blog.

I am still toiling in the dark ages with my 30GB iPod Classic — what we used to call a “video iPod” Back in the Day. I even installed a new battery rather than upgrade when the shiny new iPhone and iPod Touch came on the scene. Don’t ask me why.

Paul’s post describes being pleasantly surprised at Texas Hold’em Poker. I considered simply mentioning it and linking to his story, but then I decided to take it a step further and highlight a bunch of additional iPod Click Wheel games for luddites like me. Each costs $4.99. Here are 10 that caught my eye.

Zuma — Fire red, blue, green, and yellow marbles into the chain advancing toward you and eliminate groups of three or more of the same color. Eliminate power-up marbles to get special bonuses, such as better aim or the chain moving slower, and clear the screen.

Monopoly — Monopoly on the iPod faithfully recreates the classic board game you’ve played many times around the dining room table, right down to those well-loved player tokens and the ability to create your own house rules. Compete against other players, including the computer.

Pirates of the Caribbean: Aegir’s Fire — Revisit the world of the hit movie trilogy as you search for the secret behind Aegir’s Fire. Sail around the world as you complete quests for characters from the films. Recruit crew members who grant bonuses and use your hard-won doubloons to buy better ships and cannonballs.

Crystal Defenders: Tactical Decisions –– Defend Ivalice against more than 200 waves of monster attacks. Deploy soldiers, archers, mages, thieves and other units that help you stop their assault. Power crystals boost the abilities of all nearby units. If too many creatures get past your defenses, it’s game over.

PAC-MAN — The object of the game is simple, but mastery of it is difficult. Eat all the dots and advance to the next level. You lose a life if a ghost touches you, but you can eat them for a brief period of time after munching one of the four power-ups found in the maze.

Bomberman — This classic game comes to the iPod with an exclusive final boss confrontation, along with 20 levels of bomb-planting mayhem and three mini-games: Bowling for Bombs, Bomb Buster, and Bomb Rollin’. Power-ups give you an edge as our eponymous hero seeks to escape.

SPORE Origins — You’ve evolved a species from single-celled organism to space-faring empire in SPORE. Now relive the first stage of that journey on your iPod. Travel through 18 levels of prehistoric predators and prey, chomping smaller creatures, avoiding bigger ones, and evolving your spore.

Mystery Mansion Pinball — Slip a pinball machine in your pocket and enjoy a rousing game of balls and flippers any time. Deep within this haunted house, you’ll find a variety of modes, including five mini-games, that you can activate by hitting certain targets in the right combination.

Song Summoner — You are Ziggy, a Song Summoner living in Melodica, where the Mechanical Militia has destroyed the peace and enslaved the population. Ziggy’s only hope for defeating them lies in your iPod’s music, which you turn into Tune Troopers that fill his mighty army.

Sonic The Hedgehog — Sega’s classic game Sonic the Hedgehog comes to the iPod with all of the original’s gameplay intact, including 19 levels full of rings and power-ups to grab, enemies to defeat, and showdowns against the evil Dr. Robotnik. Help Sonic run, jump, and spin his way to victory.