Welcome to the weekly iPhone Quality Index (Qi) games round-up, giving you the LOWdown on the HIGH scorers every Friday on these hallowed pages.

As you may already know, Qi trawls the web for iPhone game reviews from the world’s most respected online and print sources.
Qi then applies its own magic formula to each site (such as 148Apps, Macworld, and Pocket Picks) to establish a single definitive Qi score for each iPhone app and game.

Hot stuff

Burning up the Qi games chart this week to secure the highly desirable #1 seat is Hot Springs Story, the second iPhone release from publisher Kairosoft following its engaging management sim Game Dev Story.

Four sizzling critiques for the hot springs inn build-‘em-up equates to a blistering 9.0 Qi rating, a tally certain to impress the VIP patrons of your traditional Japanese establishment.

Starting out with nothing – well, okay, a plot of land and a reception desk – you must create and manage the most hospitable, attractive, and lucrative spa this side of Tokyo in the hope of gaining valuable column inches in the national press.

And whilst only lanterns, azaleas, and rooms can be initially called upon to achieve this goal, Slide to Play observes that “as you progress through the game, investment opportunities and special clients will show up and bring along new services...It’s quite rewarding to build up your spa to a massive complex and watch as customers wander around it.”

Brutal victory

More than two decades after making its Atari debut, Speedball 2 Evolution has blasted up the iOS tunnel, injuring a number of opponents on its route to Qi eminence.

Tower Studios’s vision of a violent cyberpunk sport borrows liberally from handball, rollerball, and ice hockey, rewarding as it does a hard hitting approach and a shoot-on-sight policy.
Speedball 2 Evolution’s own reward for the well executed gameplay, intense competition, and responsive virtual controls is a match-winning 8.6 score, though try telling that to your broken-in-half striker.

There’s no time for dilly dallying on this court, says TouchGen, especially when local pride’s at stake: “Playing a friend in Speedball 2 has always been a highlight both due to the simple to get into game play and the fact that smashing players is an integral part of the game.”

You can get the up-to-date information about which games are reviewing best over at the Quality Index.