AppStoreFreeze
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App Store freeze has ended
Most of the country still has lots of winter to go through, but one thing has already thawed: the Apple App Store. Every year, Apple freezes changes on iOS apps during the holiday, in part to give the team that does updates a little break, and because sales tend to be quite volatile as people unwrap iPhones, iPod touches and (this year for the first time) iPads on Christmas. But today marks the un-freezing of the store, so top paid and free charts will go back to changing at the whims of App Store shoppers, and app developers are free to submit updates and change app prices and descriptions again for the first time since last Thursday. So far, not much has changed. We'll probably see a few of those holiday sales end this week, though EA still hasn't ended its big sale (as of this writing, anyway -- the rumor was that as soon as it could, the company would jack up its prices on popular apps, but that hasn't happened yet). It's possible that some games have done so well at their 99 cent sale prices that they'll just stay there, and/or the developers will find other ways to make them a little more profitable. And I don't think we'll see any big new apps this week (most developers probably made sure to get their apps out before the holiday rush), but you never know -- with so many people making apps for iOS, there's usually always something ready to go.
Lots more iOS games on sale for just a buck
We're heading into the final day before the App Store freeze on Thursday, and so there are lots more price drops popping up on Apple's digital outlet for iOS apps. Here's a few of the sales we've heard about so far. Bulkypix is holding a 99 cent sale on its titles. Freeverse has dropped a few apps to just a buck, including Skee-ball and Flick Fishing, and it's giving away Moto Chaser for free. Sega has a big holiday sale going on, including Gunstar Heroes and Phantasy Star 2 for just 99 cents each. Telltale has a sale going on, including the excellent Puzzle Agent for just 99 cents. And don't forget the iOS indie games "bundle", offering up excellent deals on some of the best indie games on the App Store. Lots of terrific games available for cheap on the iOS store this week. Stay tuned -- we'll probably see some more drops tomorrow, and then on Thursday, as Apple freezes store releases, everything will be nailed in for the busy holiday weekend.
