Welcome to the roundup of the best new Android games that went live in the Play Store or were spotted by us in the previous week or so. Today's list is broken up into several segments, ranging from best, average, to mediocre. So whether you're looking for the best games of quality or are simply looking for the latest free-to-play gacha titles, you're covered. This week I have an enjoyable and deep choose your own adventure, a testing release for a Hatsune Miku rhythm game, and the digital adaptation of a popular deck-building card game. So without further ado, here are the new and notable Android games released during the last week.

Looking for the previous roundup editions? Find them here.

Best Games

Titles that offer fair pricing, enjoyable gameplay, polished interfaces, or are intriguing

Steam Highwayman

Steam Highwayman is a text-based choose your own adventure where you'll choose your path through a steampunk-inspired world. There's a heavy emphasis on RPG gameplay, so rolling dice is a prerequisite. You can even purchase items from shops, making for an enjoyable game that offers a bunch of mechanics outside of the typical choose your own adventure gameplay. For the price, you can't go wrong if you're big into adventure games filled with lore and worldbuilding.

Monetization: $4.49 / no ads / no IAPs

Hatsune Miku: Colorful Stage!

Hatsune Miku: Colorful Stage is a testing release themed around the popular Vocaloid software voicebank, and as you can guess, this is a rhythm game. Since it's in testing until October 19th, you have a few weeks to check it out, and now is the best time to take it for a spin before it's stuffed with in-app purchases. Half of the group story is playable, so plenty of content is absent, but again, this is a testing release, so make sure to curb your expectations. What's offered is simply a taste of more to come later, perfect for a weekend spin.

Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs

Average Games

Titles that may not be the best-of-the-best, but still offer fun and interesting mechanics

Dominion

Dominion is a digital adaptation of the physical deck-building card game that goes by the same name. This is a game that supports 2-6 players, and you can play over a network connection. Plus, there is a pass-and-play mode, along with a solo mode, where you can learn the ropes against the AI. There are also thirteen optional expansions available through in-app purchases, which means there's a boatload of content when you get tired of the initial campaign. Like all tabletop adaptations, there's a lot to learn here, so this isn't a title that's easy to pick up and play, and the art leaves a lot to be desired.

Monetization: free / no ads / IAPs from $3.99 - $9.99

RPG Infinite Links

Kemco is still pumping out generic RPGs on the Play Store after all these years, and RPG Infinite Links is the latest release to receive an English translation. This is the premium version, though there is also a free version. Both contain in-app purchases, but like all Kemco games, these purchases are mostly unnecessary. As you would expect, this is a turn-based RPG, and it will be your job to save your friends along with the entire world from a growing conspiracy.

Monetization: $7.99 / contains ads / IAPs from $0.99 - $49.99

Slaughter School

Slaughter School is a typical social engineering mystery game akin to Werewolf and its many clones, though this is a single-player experience, and it lacks any coherent directions, so you better know how to play. It's a remaster of sorts, seeing that this is an upgraded version of Slaughter Horse sporting new graphics and an improved AI. While advertisements are present, they only play at the end of rounds, so they are primarily non-obtrusive. While it would be nice to see a way to pay to remove those ads, at least they don't get in the way.

Monetization: free / contains ads / no IAPs

Mediocre Games

Titles that are buggy, unpolished, or offer aggressive monetization

Soccer Manager 2022

Soccer Manager 2022 comes from Soccer Manager Ltd, a studio that's clearly chasing after Sega's coattails with a soccer management series. So far, reviews aren't good, as the game is extremely buggy, which is odd since these kinds of games are simply updates of the older versions under new listings, released each year. It would also seem some of the bugs from last year's game are also here, thus proving my point that the 2022 version is the same as 2021's. It simply offers an updated roster and few new modes. And if that's not bad enough, the game is also pay-to-win.

Monetization: free / contains ads / IAPs from $0.99 - $89.99

Chess Clash - Play Online

Chess Clash is the latest release from Miniclip, and even though this is a simple chess game, it's packed with in-app purchases, illustrating precisely why this game was developed. Since this is a new multiplayer release, most matches are against bots (there's no player base yet) despite this being a rerelease of an older game. A perfect opportunity to shove more ads into the title, which is exactly what Miniclip did.

Monetization: free / contains ads / IAPs from $0.99 - $99.99

Sky Warriors: Airplane Combat

Sky Warriors sure looks like a quality flight combat game, but sadly it's free-to-play, filled with in-app purchases, not to mention timers and all of the other junk mobile F2P games are known for. There is barely any content, everything revolves around PvP, and since the game is new, you mostly fight against bots. Advancement is slow, and it's entirely dependent on timers, which is why pay-to-win mechanics are in full force if you'd like to advance at an acceptable clip. All in all, it's a nice-looking flight combat game ruined by greed.

Monetization: free / no ads / IAPs from $0.99 - $99.99

Go BIG! Feat. Godzilla vs Kong

Someone should probably let the developer of Go BIG! Feat. Godzilla vs Kong know that the Godzilla vs. Kong movie was released on video seven months ago. Late to the party is an understatement. As expected of any branded release, this brawler is chock full of in-app purchases, and that's because this is a gacha game. You can unlock characters with the in-game currency you earn while playing, but paying cash for your monsters is encouraged, thanks to the horrid grind.

Monetization: free / contains ads / IAPs from $0.99 - $99.99

NFL Clash

Somehow Nifty Games has secured access to the NFL license, and so NFL Clash offers 120+ known NFL players playing under their team brands. More or less, this is a fast-paced management game where you'll build your team to then take on 5-minute matches against other players. This is a free-to-play release, and since the game revolves around PvP, it's chock full of in-app purchases, some of which will provide an advantage to paying players. After all, nobody gains the rights to the NFL license for free, so Nifty Games assuredly wants to recoup the costs, and so NFL Clash is pay-to-win. Plus, the graphics stink. NFL Clash is no better than some low-quality flash game, which is what makes the heavy monetization so laughable.

Monetization: free / no ads / IAPs from $0.99 - $99.99

Final Gear

Final Gear is billed as a strategic RPG, but really this is a gacha game filled with waifus to collect, with the added bonus of slotting those waifus in an assortment of mechs that you'll use in battle. This is a free-to-play release, and so it's stuffed with in-app purchases that will be useful for buying those waifus I mentioned. So far, the game crashes a lot, the art is animated stiffly, but the robots do look cool. The grind is heavy, and online play is pay-to-win. All in all, it's everything you'd expect from a free-to-play gacha game.

Monetization: free / no ads / IAPs from $1.99 - $99.99

Castle Craft - World War

Castle Craft is described as a PvP strategy game, but really it's a Clash Royale clone. So far, balancing is way off, where new players are matched with seasoned wales, which surely explains the game's expensive in-app purchases. That's right, Castle Craft is pay-to-win, hardly surprising for a no-name mobile game. There's simply no way to advance at an acceptable clip if you are playing for free, and since the whole game is built around PvP, it means you're not having any fun most of the time.

Monetization: free / contains ads / IAPs from $0.99 - $104.99

Horror Brawl: Terror Battle Royale

Horror Brawl: Terror Battle Royale comes from Keplerians Horror Games, a studio that pumps out scary games. As you can tell by the title, Horror Brawl is a battle royale game. Basically, it's a Fortnight clone, offering similar cartoony graphics, but there's no building. What's nice is that the horror theme is appropriate for Halloween, though the title is stuffed with in-app purchases. At least it appears most store items are cosmetic. Still, the greed is very evident, and seeing that this is a developer pumping out low-quality horror games to kids, there's something very off-putting with the way this game is monetized. Last I looked, generic Fortnight clones are rarely worth spending $119.99 on IAPs.

Monetization: free / contains ads / IAPs from $1.49 - $119.99

Trivia Deluxe

Etermax is best known for its Trivia Crack games, with an entire catalog that revolves around trivia, so it's hardly surprising to see that its latest release is also a trivia game. This particular title plays a bit like a board game, where you'll roll dice to move along the board's path, all while answering trivia questions. Sadly the primary mechanic for advancement revolves around betting currency on your chances of answering questions correctly, putting a damper on the game's $20 in-app purchases, which are conveniently for purchasing more currency. It's gambling without any way to pull your winnings out of the system, which is actually worse than gambling. The game is also stuffed with annoying ads. All around, Trivia Deluxe is the worst of the worst.

Monetization: free / contains ads / IAPs from $0.99 - $19.99

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• the app's launch date has to be no longer than 2 weeks ago
• it has to be original, ground-breaking, well-reviewed, interesting, fun, etc - the cream of the crop

Now, if and only if the above requirements have been satisfied, fire up an email to this address: oh.no.its.the@androidpolice.com.

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