Time for our weekly round-up of the apps that have been grabbing my attention this week. From taking better photos and tweaking them to choosing your own fate in an interactive zombie apocalypse adventure, I’ve tried all of this week’s suggestions – in the interests of research of course.

Camera Extras

Cost: Free in the Marketplace
Availability: Various countries (check your Lumia)
In a nutshell: Get creative with your camera

Mentioned a few months back when it first came into being Camera Extras is something I’ve been meaning to include in the App News in detail for a while. So it seemed fitting when Izzi posted his video the other day that I weave it seamlessly into this week’s news. His demo of the Extras shows each of the four – Smart Group Shot, Action Shot, Panorama and Self Timer – for the uninitiated.

Bringing

‘more quality to the camera of your Lumia device’

Camera Extras is well worth exploring. Have you tried it yet?

 *****

Photo Shader

Cost: $0.99/£0.79
Availability: Everywhere – in the Marketplace
In a nutshell: Make your snaps sparkle

For those who want to add a little panache to their pics, Ryken100 has posted a review of Photo Shader

‘An excellent photo filtering app’

for those who want to try the all-pervading tilt shift technique or add a little glow to their holiday snaps. Give it a ‘try before you buy’, I did and enhanced some of my already excellent (due to the Lumia, not my skill) photos.

*****

Blackout Gamebook

Cost: Free in the Marketplace
Availability: Everywhere
In a nutshell: Choose your own interactive adventure

If you remember the Choose Your Own Adventure series of books from when you were younger (like me…I was a big fan), then Blackout should provide some nostalgic entertainment. I saw that Paolo had posted about the app on WMPoweruser, and I had to give it a whirl. Initially I selected the geeky character to play, but as he was still ‘in development’ I went for the ‘promising gymnast’. The story is quite compelling – a virtual page-turner, if you will – but this is one for the avid reader rather than game playing crowd. Purely text-based, but replayability is quite high (going back to where you made a poor decision and taking a different path), even though I’m still navigating my way to my first fail.

Tried any of the Camera Extras yet? Share links to the results in the comments or on Twitter for everyone to see! Seen or written any app reviews that you think should be featured here? Drop me a line.

[Image credit – The Verge]