80
20 Android 'hidden gems,' i.e. excellent, mostly free, mostly lesser-known games. - lemm.ee
lemm.ee -
Asterius
[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=air.com.boopsgames.asterius] -
Terrific, sprawling, puzzle-ish roguelike, easy to play but with lots of secrets
to discover, and a long learning curve to win. (note: I’ve written a guide
[https://www.reddit.com/r/JohnnyEnzyme/comments/r7wz0x/notes_on_asterius_a_lovely_streamlined_roguelike/]
with hints, which I’d only recommend using as a last resort) - Bounty Hunter
Space Lizard
[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=stayinsidegames.com.SIG.BHSL] -
Ah, so delicious. It’s a fun roguelike, a bit like Pixel Dungeon, but with more
condensed runs, and loads of character. As with PD, you’ll move through
different stages and battle different end-bosses. - Caves Roguelike
[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=thirty.six.dev.underworld] - If
you’re a fan of Pixel Dungeon, but want a different roguelike experience, then
here’s one with huge amounts of variance upon each run, and devilishly
challenging foes the deeper one descends. More than just being a pure ‘RL,’ it
also offers RPG-style levelling up, meaning that even terrible runs can be
useful. Indeed, I feel pretty confident in saying that Caves is the most
detail-oriented RL that’s ever been created. - Choppa
[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.partagames.choppa] - This is
a ridiculously fun, hilarious, physics-style helicopter game in which you set
out to rescue disaster survivors amidst annoying obstacles and deadly
explosives. It’s got a nice leveling-up system so that you can build yourself
better whirlybirds over time, and features a small but excellent collection of
scenarios to try. Let’s face it, tho-- altho it’s a real challenge stringing
together a series of successful rescues, it’s just as much fun getting blown up,
drowned, or causing a chain-reaction of explosions, especially when carrying a
survivor, who hates getting wet or covered in soot, and will endlessly berate
you when that happens. ^ ^ - Daddy Was a Thief
[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.rebeltwins.daddywasathief] is
a highly-original, vertical-style, platform-runner mashup. The love & humor are
in the little details, in which you’ll be trying to avoid a mad scientist’s
shrink ray and an angry granny trying to kick you to the moon, meanwhile trying
to hop in to a bathtub, going for a short, smashing ride, collecting bits of
loot. The game is a wild-ride rush of dynamic comic sequences, which will
entertain you for a good while before eventually getting repetitive.
- Doug Dug [https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=co.electrictoy.dig] -
Probably the best action-drilling game I’ve ever played, but one that requires
both slow & fast decision-making, such as how to handle various rock formations,
risks & enemies, and what to do in an emergency. (costs US$1) - Enyo
[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.tinytouchtales.enyo] - And
here we have an absolute masterpiece, something of a chesslike game, but with
all new pieces, in which you battle the enemy across a paved lava pit (which
becomes progressively un-paved). It’s fortunate that your small army of enemies
aren’t very bright, because you only have one piece to play with, which features
a deadly grappling hook and (Captain America-style) a flingeable shield. Not
only is this a highly-inventive game design, but it’s fun, and endlessly
replayable. - Gurk 3
[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.larvalabs.gurk3] - This is a
tile-based RPG, roughly in the style of the classic Ultima
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultima_(series)] series, in which a three-person
party explores a vast map, upgrades & levels-up little by little, and ultimately
defeats the realm’s greatest of evils, i.e. Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, and
Ron DeSantis (just kidding, it’s actually just a generic evil villain). This
isn’t a ground-breaking game in any particular way, but it’s good, solid gaming
fun, in classic style, that for some reason doesn’t have many analogues in
Google’s Play Store. (it costs US$2, and is well worth the price) - Hoplite
[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.magmafortress.hoplite] - If I
was stranded on Gilligan’s Isle, allowed only one digital game to play, I think
I might just choose this masterpiece of a tactical/strategic roguelike. The idea
is to progress through a number of levels, past archers, bomb-tossers, assassins
and spellcasters, in order to grab the fabled Golden Fleece
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Fleece], then step through a portal,
returning home. Alternatively, one can choose to play on, encountering tougher
and tougher waves, before ultimately succumbing, leaving a huge swath of dead
bodies in your wake. At the same time, one can perform minor feats along the way
to unlock special abilities. It really is these abilities that you earn that
make the game so interesting and long-lasting. For example, stringing together a
series of special moves to defeat a gang of enemies can be an artistic,
movie-like, dopamine-rush feeling. No joke. - Life in Adventure
[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.StudioWheel.Bard] - I’m a fan
of the ‘choose your own adventure’ genre, and there are many fine ones out there
(such as the excellent Choice of Games
[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.choiceofgames.omnibus]
series). What makes LIA stand out from the crowd is how much one can customize
the experience, for example in choosing which subplots to mix in to your
character’s main storyline. That’s on top of choosing your profession, traits
and stats distribution. In addition to the usual text experience, this game adds
lovely, retro, 8-bit art to liven things up. All the tokens needed to do unlocks
can be earned through watching ads when needed, a perfectly fair deal, I’d say.
- Mind Wall
[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.rtsoft.rtmindwall] - Another
simple, original, action- gaming idea, flawlessly executed. In this one, you’re
holding a Tetris-like shape, and can choose one (and only one) block to punch
out of a fast-approaching wall, in order for your shape to fit through. That may
or may not sound like an interesting concept, so I’ll let these guys
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zL4HSk4MUUw] have their say. There’s a good
number of options and modes to keep this one fresh for a long time. - Miniature
Land 3
[http://web.archive.org/web/20201115121221/https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.WarmingApp.MiniatureLAND3]
[iOS link
[https://apps.apple.com/us/app/escape-game-miniature-land-3/id1430638002]] - A
pleasant, atmospheric little outdoor adventure, but this one uniquely features a
doll-house sized landscape. The puzzles are of medium-difficulty and satisfying
to solve. Unfortunately, looks like this just got pulled from the Play Store, so
you’ll have to look for an APK or play it on iOS. - My Friend Pedro
[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.devolverdigital.myfriendpedro]
- Yet another cool, stylish game I’ve never seen the likes of before. In this
mafia/assassin-style platformer, you swipe and press to perform n-style
(remember that classic Flash-platform ninja game?) acrobatic leaps, but in this
case it’s in bullet-time [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bullet_time], which adds
a strategic element to the fight. - One Epic Knight
[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.simutronics.oneepicknight] -
Sure, there are plenty of RPG-style endless runners out there, but the
personality of the main character really makes this one stand out. He’s a Valley
Boy (think “Snake” from The Simpsons) dressed in Knight’s armor, running through
a dungeon, dodging the usual enemies & traps, all the while keeping up a
hilarious commentary. But more than just that, the game is nicely balanced in
the powerups & upgrades category. It’s tough, but fair. - Retro Highway
[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.nicolaigd.retrohighway] -
Smooth, fun, RPG-ish racing game with lots of challenges to beat over time.
Also, there’s an impressive amount of technique to be learned, such that simply
upgrading bikes won’t instantly make you better. - Rust Bucket
[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.nitrome.rustbucket] - Aaron
Steed has dressed up his minimalist-classic Ending
[https://robotacid.com/flash/ending/] puzzle-roguelike with snazzy new graphics
& characters. Features all new puzzles with each playthrough, and gets
progressively harder. There’s endless gameplay here. - Seedship
[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.johnayliff.seedship] - You’re
a sentient AI in charge of navigating a colony ship to a new world on behalf of
a crew of frozen colonists. You have an array of sensors to examine each new
world, trying to find the best possible one (they all have flaws). Meanwhile,
your systems are slowly dying, and the ship will eventually stop functioning one
day. What to do, what to do? Finally, after you choose your new planet, time
will flash-ahead, and you’ll be given a score and a long assessment of how
things worked out in the new civilisation. - Tactikon 1 & 2
[https://www.google.com/search?q=google+play+store+%22Tactikon%22+-tacticon&tbm=isch]
- These are some great remakes of the classic Empire
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empire_(1977_video_game)] strategic wargame. If
you’re familiar with the Advance War series, these are similar, but without all
the talking heads. Note: As usual, Google seems up to its old tricks, so you’ll
have to hunt down the APK if you want to play. - Total Party Kill
[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.adventureislands.totalpartykill]
- Very clever puzzle-platformer, in which you coordinate the actions of a
warrior, an archer and a wizard in order for one of them to escape each level.
That’s right-- everything’s fair in love, war & “TPK,” including ruthlessly
snuffing your buddies if it helps one character make it to the exit. For
example, in which the warrior kills a buddy and kicks him on to a switch that
otherwise isn’t accessible, or the archer shoots & pins a buddy against the wall
so as to help him climb up. Etc, etc. It’s a delightful naughty concept, perhaps
best played with a game controller instead of touch screen. *** - Lemmings
[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.sadpuppy.lemmings] - This one
differs in being fairly well-known, but offers a tonne of casual gameplay via
thousands of puzzle levels inspired by classic Lemmings
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lemmings_(video_game)]. In this version, the
levels are very easy at first, but become much harder as one progresses. There’s
also special challenge levels that can be played at any time. HINTS: I strongly
advise hoarding coins & resurrection powerups (you’ll eventually need these for
near-impossible levels), and avoiding offers of free lemmings. The whole
‘collectible Lemmings’ concept can similarly be ignored. Drawbacks? Well,
there’s a micro-transaction system that’s completely optional, and voluntary ads
for extra items. All in all, there’s a load of long-playing value here for the
cost of nothing more than letting an ad play when you want a free perk. –Johnny
-
Asterius - Terrific, sprawling, puzzle-ish roguelike, easy to play but with lots of secrets to discover, and a long learning curve to win. (note: I’ve written a guide with hints, which I’d only recommend using as a last resort)
-
Bounty Hunter Space Lizard - Ah, so delicious. It’s a fun roguelike, a bit like Pixel Dungeon, but with more condensed runs, and loads of character. As with PD, you’ll move through different stages and battle different end-bosses.
(thanks for reading; the other 18 are in the link)
Can confirm Hoplite is absolutely fantastic, been a near constant install since 2015, great way to kill 10 minutes.