If you're not out there skirmishing with your airsoft mates or at the shooting range firing off real steel or airsoft guns, and still have that itchy trigger finger, you might be interested in this iOS app called "Real Strike" which is an Augmented Reality  First Person Shooter (FPS). Though I have to admit that the FPS part of the app's title might be stretching the truth.

For the nifty part of this app, you can use your iPhone or iPad to turn any place into a simulated battle area. Just power up the app since it will use the built-in camera then augment the scene shown by the camera with a weapon and HUD.  Using the usual finger swipes, you can fire, zoom in/out, select weapon, pinch to aim, and by shaking it, to reload. There are 25 weapons in your arsenal, ranging from pistols, shotguns, to LMGs each with its own realistic firing sound. With this, your living room, bedroom, bus stop, and office can offer some "tactical" scene which you can record videos or take photos of.

Other features of this app is that you can have night vision, thermal vision, or a tactical light to change the ambient light settings and have some "tactical environment" effects.

Now for the not cool part of this app. First try to see what's wrong in the video promo of the app:

The targets in the video are real world targets and not super-imposed graphics by the AR app. Just wonder how those real world targets fall when are fired at.  This made me think that the video is more of a gimmickry and the app is just one of those free gun apps available at the app store, you can make some cool firing simulations with these and Real Strike just offers a bit more by using the device's camera to create more sceneries to make it look like you're operating in a tactical environment. There are no AR opponents or targets to shoot at. You can point the camera and app at some "targets" such as cans, inanimate objects and fire at them, but they won't fall even if they're in your crosshair and we wouldn't even recommend point such app at people and animals even if for fun.

The video promo almost got me to openthe Apple App Store to purchase it for US$2.99. But after reading a review here and there, and double-checking the video again, I decided to forego the purchase. If you’re really interested in the FPS part of the app, then you will be in for a disappointment, but if you have a creative side, you can use the app effects to create some very short movies with your friends by making them act as targets for your next viral video on YouTube.