Despite the fact that the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max just debuted yesterday, developers are already coming up with creative and intriguing uses for Apple’s new Dynamic Island interface. Consider Christian Selig, the man behind Apollo. He added support for “Pixel Pals” in his Reddit client update on Friday. While Apollo is open, the function adds a charming creature that acts like a Tamagotchi on top of Dynamic Island on your phone. Even more options are available, including a cat, dog, hedgehog, fox, or axolotl.
Don’t worry if you don’t own an iPhone 14 Pro or Pro Max. If you have iOS 16 installed, you may also add the animals as lock screen widgets to your phone. Google hinted at an iPhone widget that will act as a shortcut to the Dino game on Chrome.
The Dynamic Island on the iPhone 14 Pro is being used creatively by others besides Selig. Creator of WaterMinder Kriss Smolka demonstrated Hit the Island, a game that makes use of the UI element for a Pong-style game, in a tweet seen by The Verge. It is available for download from the App Store. I can only speak for myself, but I’m a little envious that I still use an iPhone 12.