iPhone: Location Games

I have been trying out a few of the location-based 'games' on the iPhone. (I think they are available on other devices, but don't quote me on that!) The 3 I have looked at are: Gowalla, FourSquare, and SCVNGR.

You use these apps as you check in to various locations as you either travel or just go about your daily life. The only people who see where you are your friends who are also on these apps and you have okayed. You can check in, take a picture, make comments on any sort of locations - parks, resturants, buildings, roads, stores, etc. At first the idea was lost on me, but after giving it a go, it is actually kind of fun to check in various places, read comments from others, and compete against others for most check-ins.

Over the weekend, I went up to Oxfordshire, so had a good chance to try all of these. First off, there is a nice comparison post on Gowalla vs FourSquare here, so I won't go into any specifics.

Now, on to what I found. My favorite of the 3 was Gowalla. It was visually interesting with great icons, easy to use, and my fav feature was that it updated spots as you moved so I didn't have to keep refreshing the screen. This was really handy while in the car as I could see places I could check in if I wanted.

FourSquare is fun as you can become the Mayor of each place. I think this works by whomever visits that loacation the most. I haven't become Mayor of anything, so can't really say if it works and how well. I like FourSquare as a friend is on it, but I had a hard time getting it to update locations as I traveled.

SCVNGR wasn't bad. It tried to pull in parts of both of the others, but didn't really have any outstanding features for me.

Gowalla was the best one for me and I will stick with it. FourSquare and SCVNGR seem best if you just want to check in while you are at a location, not moving about. If the Mayor idea sounds fun, then give FourSquare is your best option.

All 3 are free on iTunes, so pick them up and give it a go. Make sure you add me as a friend!