Tangram Deluxe is based on an ancient Chinese puzzle game. It consists of placing differently sized and shaped puzzle pieces onto a silhouette of a larger image in order to create that image. The game boats over 700 silhouettes spread across eight different categories, and is able to be played in six different languages in adventure mode or quickplay. If you sincerely enjoy puzzle games, then this is for you.

If you are looking for a game that really forces you to think, and if you love word puzzles, then World Flow is for you. This “fast paced word game” involves the user in a tile board of letters that have the ability to be shifted, either up/down or left/right. With a large amount of letters available at once, it appears as if the game would be pretty easy, but it definitely makes you think.

This week saw a surprising amount of quality 3D games hit the App Store. Plus, Apple loosened up on the internet browsers, though you likely already have Google’s fake Chrome that they snuck in a while ago. This week: Instant Motivator Free, Burning Tires 3D Lite, Action Bowling Free, Toy Tanks 3D Lite, Edge Browser and Wellness.

It’s Macworld week, possibly one of the worst weeks ever for a developer to try to get an app released during. But, as always, some made it through.

• FaceDouble Celebrity Look Alike Lite
• Cubes Free
• Ski and Snow Reports
• Mancala: FS5 (FREE)
• Jew’s Harp
• Backgrounds
• Pandora

Happy New Year! I think this year I’ll resolve to keep my iPhone’s home screens a little more organized, though, like most New Year resolutions, I doubt it’s really going to happen. And more free apps probably aren’t helping. Here’s my list to feed the habit.

• The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
• Wordplay Lite
• Travelo mini – San Francisco ‘09 featuring SOMA
• GW Helmet
• Polarize
• iSteam

We’re coming up on the end of 2008, and what a year it has been. Thanks to the introduction of the App Store, and some amazing developers, I’ve been able to provide a list of noteworthy free apps ever week. For this, I am thankful.

And just like clockwork, here is this weeks list, the last for the year 2008.

Thanks for reading.

This week, I refrained from picking any apps from the overwhelming number of flatulence related apps that all of the sudden burst onto the App Store. You’ll thank me for this later.

• iMacworld
• HP iPrint Photo
• BilliardsLite
• Chase Mobile
• Awkward Silence
• DynoBox
• Google Mobile App

Here are your new, fun, and free apps to hit the App Store for December 12, 2008. It’s definitely worth your time to check out at least a few of these.

• SlyDial
• Fuzzle Christmas
• Remote Pad
• SPACE DEADBEEF
• Rhyme
• Lie Detector
• Quick Block

When it comes to chess games for the iPhone, there is a plethora from which to choose. 99games contributes two games to that collection with Chess Lite and Chess Pro. Chess Lite is targeted at beginners, while Chess Pro is, well, for professionals and those of us who hate knowing there’s a better version available…you know who you are. But are either of these games worth the money?

Here are the free apps worth mentioning on the App Store that made their appearance during the past week:

• CompassApp
• Easy Wi-Fi for AT&T
• Voice Dialer
• Dot LITE
• Chess O
• Joost
• Amazon Mobile
• MotionX Poker Quest Lite