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CD Projekt just released Cyberpunk 2077's Roach Race mini-game on Android for free
Much like Google's Dinosaur Game, this is a cute auto-runner anyone can play
If you've played Cyberpunk 2077 recently, you may have noticed that patch 1.6 added playable arcade games, including a title called Roach Race. Well, the auto-runner has made its way from the virtual world of Cyberpunk 2077 to the Google Play Store, which means you can now install the mini-game game on your Android device, and best of all, Roach Race is free, as in totally free, no in-app purchases or advertisements to be seen. So if you've been itching to play a simple yet enjoyable auto-runner that offers similar fun to Google's Dinosaur Game, then you're in luck with CD Projekt's latest mobile release.
Grab these affordable Amazon Fire TVs on sale for Labor Day
Amazon's Fire TV line is currently discounted for the holiday
Today's Labor Day, and whether you celebrate it by working the entire day like I do or prefer to lounge around on such a momentous occasion, one thing is for sure. If it's a holiday, somewhere, there are sales going on, and today Amazon joins the fray with a slew of sales for its 4K Fire TVs, including its excellent Omni models. The selection ranges from 43-inch models to the 75-inch big boy, making up some of the best Fire TVs available. So if you're looking to get in cheap on a new TV for the bedroom or are looking to splash out on something large and in-charge for the living room, Amazon has quite a few solid sales going today for just about any TV size you may require.
Eero 6+ review: The best entry point for a mesh network
Easy to set up and affordable, the Eero 6+ is a perfect replacement for your ISP's router
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Taking control of your Wi-Fi doesn't have to be a painful experience of endless phone calls with your provider now that mesh networks are very much a thing. Almost every manufacturer offers an expandable mesh network system, including Amazon, now that it owns Eero. So I've taken the Eero 6+ routers for a spin to see how they stack up to some of the best routers for your home, including Amazon's other Eero routers.
Torchlight: Infinite is in open testing on the Play Store for the next two weeks
Diablo Immortal better watch out; there's a new ARPG vying for top-spot
We've known for some time that Torchlight: Infinite would make its way from TapTap to the Play Store for pre-registration in the buildup to the game's global launch. Lo and behold, there's a fresh Play Store listing for Torchlight: Infinite, complete with pre-registration so you can receive a release announcement the day it launches, but there's also a second Play Store listing that offers access to an open beta that's rolling out right now. The beta is expected to last for two weeks ahead of the game's October launch, so if you've been curious to see how Torchlight: Infinite is shaping up and whether it will be a worthy competitor to Diablo Immortal, today's the day, you can install the beta directly from the Play Store right now.
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GameSir X2 Pro hands-on: The biggest problem with GameSir's controllers is finally fixed
Analog triggers are here, plus a free month of Game Pass with official branding included
GameSir has been on a tear coming up with some of the best mobile controllers on the market, where I last took the excellent GameSir X3 for a spin, but since the company has an all-new device launching today, I've spent three last couple of weeks running it through its paces to report my findings. The GameSir X2 Pro hits store shelves starting today for $80, offering a similar design to the original X2, but with the upgrades found in the X3 (sans its fan), and a few unique features all its own. So if your original X2 is starting to feel dated with its tiny face buttons and lack of analog triggers, GameSir is back with a refinement that damn-near perfects its best mobile controller design. Let's dig in.
Ubisoft just released a 40-player battle royale on mobile
Late to the party, Ubisoft has finally jumped on the mobile battle royale bandwagon
To zero fanfare, Ubisoft has launched Wild Arena Survivors, a fresh battle royale from the company designed for mobile. It would seem the game saw some press back in June with a beta that ended in July, as the title ramped up to its global release. Well, today's release day, which means this isometric 40-player battle royale is ready for the masses. As you'd expect, collectible characters are very much a thing, and you'll get to grind your days away as you upgrade them one by one. There's also a heavy focus on survival gameplay, with a multitude of modes available, including a solo mode for all you hardcore survival fans out there. Still, the lack of marketing for this game and its silent release is pretty telling, so tread carefully.
Bigme inkNote Color review: An unrefined and expensive workhorse
The Bigme inkNote Color delivers a high-end experience, though a few rough edges and high price keep it from greatness
Bigme may not be the most well-known name in the e-reader market, but the company offers many e-readers that range in size and screen capabilities. Its latest device is making waves through a successful Kickstarter campaign, eyeing to take the top spot as one of the best e-readers. Bigme is marketing its inkNote Color as the first color e-reader designed for taking notes that includes two, count them two, cameras.
Can gaming phones compete as a photographer's delight?
Are the cameras built in the Asus ROG 5 and RedMagic 7 worthy of artistic photography?
Gaming phones are great for chewing through the most demanding mobile games. However, cameras are where manufacturers often pinch pennies to keep hardware costs down. You'll be hard-pressed to find a gaming phone that offers anything beyond "acceptable" when it comes to its photographic abilities. We took the RedMagic 7 and Asus ROG 5 around the city to decide once and for all whether gaming phones can cut muster as a photographer's delight. Let's dig in.
First look at How to Say Goodbye: A gorgeous narrative puzzle game that explores life and death
I don't know why you say, goodbye, I say, hello
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Over the years, we've covered more than a few ARTE Experience titles in our gaming roundups, including Homo Machina and Type:Rider. ARTE may be better known for its public cultural television channel, but seeing that its games created under the ARTE Experience banner align with the cultural themes of its televised content, we're excited for the upcoming launch of the studio's latest title, How to say Goodbye. As a matter of fact, since today is the start of Gamescom, we had the chance to go hands-on with the narrative-based platformer on the show floor. Let's dig in and see what ARTE Experience has up its sleeves before How to say Goodbye launches.
Netflix's version of Ellen's Heads Up guessing game is all about Netflix shows
It's time to put your Netflix knowledge to the test
Apparently, Ellen DeGeneres implemented a spin on charades with a game that's since inspired the mobile title Heads Up, which has gone on to itself inspire a televised game show. Well, seeing that this is a popular Android title, Netflix Games has acquired access to a spin-off known as Netflix Heads Up. Of course, this offshoot offers tons of new content centered around Netflix shows, like Stranger Things. So if you'd like to put your Netflix knowledge to the test with a fresh party game to liven up your social gatherings, Netflix Heads Up is available starting today; just remember you need an active Netflix subscription to gain access to all Netflix Games titles.
GameSir X3 hands-on: Big on cooling and big on price
The GameSir X3 offers active cooling suitable for just about any phone, but it comes at the cost of portability
Side-by-side controllers that you can slap your phone into have been all the rage ever since Gamevice made waves with its iOS controllers for iPhones and iPads back in the 2010s. Soon after that, Gamevice partnered with Razer to create and launch the Razer Kishi, which now offers a successful follow-up that looks a heck of a lot like the Backbone, another iOS-specific side-by-side controller (coming to Android this winter).
Wordle may soon contain advertisements
The New York Times is looking to aggressively expand advertising across its products
Ever since The New York Times acquired the hit internet game Wordle, everyone's been waiting with bated breath to see how the newspaper would ruin the game by aggressively monetizing it or filling it with advertising. After all, the paper didn't pay seven figures to the game's creator Josh Wardle just to continue offering the game for free. Well, thanks to a new report from Axios, we now know The New York Times plans to expand its advertising aggressively across its products, with games as a focus, which means Wordle may soon see advertising added to the title beyond the NYT games that started popping up in small banner ads in April, with the only saving grace being that the paper acknowledges it will have to tread carefully while testing its new advertising push.
Gamevice's next controller looks just like a Kishi with a few upgrades
Full-size thumbsticks are included, a worthy upgrade indeed
Gamevice isn't a name you often hear, but this is the company that partnered with Razer to create the Kishi controller, which has found tons of success as one of Android's best controllers. Well, now that Gamevice and Razer have amicably split, Razer has already released its Kishi follow-up by leaning heavily on Backbone's design (who has already announced their own controller for Android, slated for a winter release), and Gamevice, in turn, basically rebranded excess Kishi stock as the Gamevice for Android and Gamevice for iOS. Today Gamevice has announced a follow-up to its rebranded Kishi, known as the Gamevice Flex, and it's available for pre-order starting today, with the release window set for this fall.
Indie puzzler Papers, Please brings its thought-provoking border control gameplay to Android
As an immigration inspector, you'll get to choose if you're loyal to the state or willing to use your position of power for your own means
Papers, Please started as a PC release in 2013, coming from Lucas Pope, the same indie dev behind Return of the Obra Dinn. Eventually, the dystopian puzzle game found its way to the iPad and PlayStation Vita, but a smartphone version was always missing from the lineup. Thankfully the developer recently revealed he would be bringing the game to Android and iOS on August 5th, which is today, so just as promised, Papers, Please is finally available on the Google Play Store.
All six Final Fantasy Pixel Remasters are on sale for 20% off
If you've been waiting for a sale to pick up the Final Fantasy 6 Pixel Remaster, today's the day
Square Enix remastered the first six titles in the Final Fantasy RPG series, with the first three rolling out this past November and the sixth title finally landing this past February. Well, since these are all titles that are fairly new, they've yet to go on sale since their release. This ends today as all six games are currently 20% off their retail price. So if you've been patiently waiting for a sale to pick up a few of your favorite JRPGs now that they've been remastered with a fitting 2D pixel art style, Square Enix has your back with today's Play Store discounts.
Card Crawl Adventure is a new solitaire game from the developer behind the hit Card Thief
Check out the latest deck building game from Tinytouchtales
Tinytouchtales is probably best known for its game Card Thief, which was a follow-up to Card Crawl, both solitaire-style dungeon crawlers, the developer's bread and butter. Well, seeing that Tinytouchtales has found a good bit of success with its niche of solitaire deck building card games, there's a new release in the series available on the Play Store starting today, known as Card Crawl Adventure, which combines the dungeon crawling of Card Thief with a puzzle mechanic where you'll connect cards to take down your many foes.
Waterfield's Analogue Pocket cases are your portable game console's secret weapon
Premium US manufacturing with a price to match
As the resident gamer dude at AP, I've been lucky enough to cover mobile gaming for years, going hands-on with a plethora of products, from the best games to controllers, and even the occasional handheld streaming device. While the Analogue Pocket may not run Android, my life-long love of all gaming portables means I had to buy one, and so I was lucky enough to get into the second round of sales, which is precisely how I was able to review the elusive device earlier this year.
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Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent hands-on — Inferior in every way
It may look the part, but something's certainly missing
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Square Enix's latest gacha game is Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent, styled after the Nintendo Switch game, but now offering all of the free-to-play mechanics most gamers hate. That's right; Square thought it wise to cash in on the popularity of Ocotpath Traveler with a monetarily abusive gacha game on mobile, offering a familiar amalgamation of its popular HD-2D art style, but it's severely lacking in polish, almost as if the bare minimum is a perfectly sound business strategy when developing and launching free-to-play mobile games, clueing everyone into precisely what Square Enix thinks of its fans.
Nova Launcher 8 beta hands-on: Branching out in new directions
One of the best launchers on Android is getting even better
Nova Launcher's recent acquisition has seen the app in the news the past few days, but we're not here to discuss the business side of things. Nope, we're here to report on the latest betas for Nova Launcher now that 8 is in testing. After all, development is still moving forward, and thanks to betas being available to anyone who joins the app's discord, we sideloaded the launcher to see what's new. And oh boy, are there some noteworthy changes with 8.0.2 in the mix. Let's dive in for a closer look.
Nintendo Switch Online finally adds friend requests... after five years
But you still have to accept requests on the Switch, the app can only send them
Nintendo has done the unthinkable, the gaming giant has finally added friend requests to its Nintendo Switch Online app, and it only took the company five years to see this basic feature come to fruition. Thanks to the latest update, users can now send friend requests directly from the Nintendo Switch Online app, but to accept any requests, you'll have to do so from the console. After all, did you seriously think Nintendo, of all companies, would actually implement a basic online feature without hobbling it somehow? To accept any request, you're forced to jump over to your console for invites sent from the very app that can't accept them. It's a head-scratcher for sure but lines up with Nintendo's long history of pitiful online support.