After Apple Shooter: Its Sequel and an Archery Game to Try

Apple Shooter is a narrow game: one bow, one target, a fixed arc and a distance that grows. If you have cleared it or just want the same skill in a new setting, two games are a natural next step. One comes from the same developer. The other is on this site.

Apple Shooter Balloons (Wolf Games)

Wolf Games made a follow-up called Apple Shooter Balloons. Its official page on OfficeGameSpot describes it like this. Each level is cleared by shooting all of its apples, not just one. Balloons are worth points but are not needed to pass. Coins give you extra arrows, and the icon on a coin shows which arrow type it holds. You choose your arrow from a bar at the bottom of the screen. The rocket, exploding and hammer arrows can break grey concrete balloons. The levels are bigger than the screen, so there are scrollbars and a zoom-out button to see the whole level. Like the original, it has 17 levels, and you click and hold to power up a shot.

The main change is that the arrow is no longer always the same. In Apple Shooter, angle and hold time are the only choices. Balloons adds a third choice, which arrow to fire, and a limited supply of arrows.

It is not hosted on this site. It is listed on the developer's portal: Apple Shooter Balloons on OfficeGameSpot.

Stickman Archers Waves (playable here)

Stickman Archers Waves keeps the bow and the arc but adds an opponent. We read the text built into the game, and it describes the basics. Its prompts say "Hold wherever to aim" and "Release to shoot", so, as in Apple Shooter, the press does not have to be on your character. The enemies shoot back, and another prompt tells you that you can knock away their arrows. It also has things Apple Shooter never had: health and shield pickups ("Take the health", "Take the shield!"), different bow types, burning and freezing effects, and a boss warning that reads "A boss is near!".

It also feels different. In Apple Shooter you can take as long as you like over each shot, because nothing happens until you let go. In Stickman Archers Waves the other side is aiming at you while you line up your shot, so you have to plan the arc quickly.

Which one to pick

• You want more of the same calm puzzle: Apple Shooter Balloons. It has the same developer, the same click-and-hold power, more targets and a choice of arrow.
• You want the arc under pressure: Stickman Archers Waves, which is on our games page and needs no download.
• You have not finished Apple Shooter yet: stay with it. The title screen sets the goal at 100 feet, and its result screens tell you exactly how each shot went.