With the ever-growing number of apps and games in the Windows Store, it is becoming increasingly difficult to keep up with what's out there.
For that reason, every Friday we showcase some apps that have piqued our interest. They may have been in the news recently, they may be new to the Windows Store, or they could simply be old apps that we just stumbled upon.
They are the 5 Intriguing Apps of the Week.
Clouder!
Clouder! is a SoundCloud client for Windows. With Clouder!, you have the ability to search, browse and listen to almost any track in the SoundCloud universe.
It minimizes to play in the background, so you can listen to tunes while multitasking. Want to listen to a track offline? No problem. You can download it right to your device.
If you have a SoundCloud and/or FaceBook account, you can log into Clouder!, which allows you to follow artists, mark songs as favorites, and interact with the community. Clouder! also gives you access to your personal dashboard.
You can even share tracks with your contacts.
Clouder! is a free and easy way to access SoundCloud on your Windows device without having to use your browser. There is a paid pro version, which opens up even more functionality, like creating playlists and uploading tracks.
- Download Clouder! for Windows 8.1 (Free; $9.99 for the pro version)
RAWConverter
RAWConverter is more than just a run of the mill photo editor. Though it does contain a handful of basic editing tools, the real purpose of this app is to transform your RAW image files into more user-friendly formats, like JPG, TIFF, and PNG.
RAWConverter can open and convert over 550 different kinds of RAW inputs from well-known companies like Adobe, Canon, Epson, Fuji, Kodak, Lecia, Minolta, Nikon, Olympus, Panasonic, Pentax, Sigma, and Sony.
And even though it is not a comprehensive photo-editing solution, RAWConverter can do enough to touch up your photos before you export them to a different format.
It won't replace a heavy-duty program like Adobe Photoshop, but it is worth a look if you are a casual photographer with RAW capabilities.
- Download APPNAME for Windows 8.1 ($3.99; Free trial)
Phantom Photo HD
Another niche photo app that is worth a look is Phantom Photo HD. It has a very specific purpose, which is to blend two photographs to create a single artistic image. You can use your own existing photos, nap a picture within the app, or use one of the many including stock images.
Phantom Photo HD has a built-in editor that lets you tweak your pictures individually, cropping, flipping, rotating, etc. You can also change the brightness, temperature, contrast, and filters.
Once you've perfected your images, you can overlay them onto each other and fiddle around with how they blend together. The result is a trippy artistic concoction that can be saved to your device.
Crossy Road
Crossy Road is a phenomenon that has had iOS and Android users simultaneously giggling and pulling out their hair for some time. The "endless hopper" has finally made its way to Windows as well.
If you aren't familiar, Crossy Road is sort of Frogger meets Temple Run. The object is to hop your chicken across roads, rivers, and other chicken-unfriendly environments, collecting coins along the way. But just because you stop moving, it doesn't mean that the screen does. If you stop too long, the chicken gets it.
Crossy Road uses simple arrow key movement, which is more than enough of a challenge. Anything more complicated would make the game infuriating.
With retro-style graphics and funny sound effects, Crossy Bird is fun for a minute or forever. Crossy Road is free for Windows and Windows Phone.
- Download Crossy Road for Windows 8.1 (Free){.cta}
- Download Crossy Road for Windows Phone 8.1 (Free) {.cta}
Cover
Cover is a versatile app for reading comic books and manga that wrapped in a crisp, easy-to-use interface. It's capable of opening CBZ/ZIP, CBR/RAR, 7Z/CB7, PDF (beta), EPUB (images only) files, which can be opened directly from the Files app. You can select entire folders or individual files. Comics are also indexed so you can search them.
Choose either in a single-page or two-page view, complete with pinch-to-zoom functionality. Reading direction can be set to left-to-right, or reversed for manga.
One thing that makes Cover stand out is its integration with both OneDrive and DropBox. Files can be opened directly from either and can be downloaded for offline access.
Cover is free to use on Windows and Windows Phone, but limits the number of books you can add to your library to 25. You can increase the number to 250 for $1.49 or go unlimited for $2.99
- Download Cover for Windows 8.1 (Free; With other paid options available)
- Download Cover for Windows Phone 8.1 (Free; With other paid options available)
Be sure to check out our other selections from previous weeks. Have a great weekend!
Do you have an app you want us to highlight? Drop us an email at tips@windowscentral.com with "5 Intriguing Apps" in the subject line.
