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 a fantastic top-down rally racing game, a new horror shooter from Ray Spark, and a Mega Man X gacha game that looks the part but hardly delivers on the promise of fun. So without further ado, here are the new and notable Android games released during the last week.
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Looking for the previous roundup editions? Find them here.
Best Games
Titles that offer fair pricing, enjoyable gameplay, polished interfaces, or are intriguing
Rush Rally Origins
Android Police coverage: Rush Rally Origins forgoes the typical mobile junk to offer one of the best racers on Android, and it's out today
Rush Rally Origins is a premium racing game that forgoes the typical greedy monetization mobile games are known for, all to offer a rally racer that's both challenging and a joy to play. Controllers are supported out of the box, and the touch controls are plenty serviceable. There are three racing modes to choose from, Time Trial, Championship, and Race. Leaderboards and ghosts are included, and the more you race, the more you can upgrade your cars while unlocking new tracks. You can expect to race through different weather effects as well as night and day races, and you better bring your driving skills, as this is a game you're not going to master in a single sitting. All around, Rush Rally Origins is a racing game built for gamers, so don't miss out.
Monetization: $4.99 / no ads / no IAPs
Wall of insanity
Wall of insanity is the latest shooter from Ray Spark, the same people behind the Slaughter series. If you couldn't tell by the name, Wall of insanity is a horror shooter reminiscent of the Dead Space series. Controllers are supported, and the game is optimized well, so it offers solid performance. If you dig horror-based third-person shooters, $5 will get you hours of fun in one of the best releases from Ray Sparks yet.
Monetization: $4.99 / no ads / no IAPs
Trainz Simulator 3
Trainz Simulator 3 doesn't come cheap at $8, but luckily this is one of the better train simulators on the platform. Keep in mind that this is a demanding game, so weaker hardware will struggle, which can look bad on larger screens like tablets. There's no free-play available, so you are locked into the game's mission structure, and the initial loading time of the game can be lengthy. Still, hopefully, the dev will continue to polish this release as what's currently available is pretty dang solid, if a little too demanding and crash-happy.
Monetization: $7.99 / no ads / IAPs from $0.99 - $4.99
Unimime
Unimime is a slick yet challenging unicycle game where you'll play the part of a unicycle mime, combining two much-hated street performances into a single game theme. This is a physics-based title, and it's tough to master, but it's still a joy to play, and that's thanks to the spot-on controls. So if you're looking for something that's simple to pick up but will still offer hours of casual fun across 50 levels, Unimime is a good choice this week.
Monetization: free / contains ads / IAPs from $0.99 - $8.49
Cards of Terra
Cards of Terra is a solo card game that plays like solitaire, but it offers a fantasy theme as well as collectible cards, combining a CCG with classic solitaire for something unique but familiar. So think of Cards of Terra as a puzzler than a typical CCG since you'll have to figure out the best strategy for laying down your cards to find success. So if you enjoy solo card games, Cards of Terra offers a gameplay loop that's worth checking out.
Monetization: free / contains ads / IAPs $2.99 apiece
Average Games
Titles that may not be the best-of-the-best, but still offer fun and interesting mechanics
Words of Fortune: Word Games, Crosswords, Puzzles
Words of Fortune appears to be a spin on the classic Wheel of Fortune gameplay. It offers gameplay similar to that of Boggle, where you'll create words out of the letters provided. Of course, the Wheel of Fortune skin means you'll be spinning for prizes that can be used to unlock new content. You can play offline, and so far, the monetization isn't that bad, which means if you enjoy word games, then you may want to give Words of Fortune a look. Keep in mind now is the best time to play before Sony decides to stuff more IAPs into the game like its other brand-based word games.
Monetization: free / contains ads / IAPs from $0.99 - $6.99
RPG Sword of Elpisia
RPG Sword of Elpisia is the latest release from Kemco. No, scratch, that, this is the latest English release from Kemco, and this is the premium version, so if you'd like to check out this RPG without going out of pocket, there's also a free version available that's perfect for testing purposes. Like all Kemco games, the graphics are simple, and the story is typical, but if you enjoy turn-based RPGs and don't mind generic gameplay and stories, perhaps parting with $8 will be worth the experience.
Monetization: $7.99 / contains ads / IAPs from $0.99 - $49.99
Neko Dungeon: Puzzle RPG
Neko Dungeon: Puzzle RPG is just that, a puzzle-based RPG where you'll move from one level to the next as you solve grid-based puzzles that also contain bad guys you'll have to fight. It's basically a roguelike where you'll slowly upgrade your character in order to take on more challenging levels. This isn't a bad game, but it doesn't really command much awareness either. It's forgettable, but if you enjoy roguelikes, there are worse options out there.
Monetization: free / contains ads / IAPs from $0.99 - $9.99
Drift & Draw
Drift & Draw is a simple casual game where you'll trace track routes with your car by steering left or right. As you can imagine, it's not easy to trace every path, so some skill is required to get the top score in each level. So far, the game isn't monetized, and there are no ads either, and this lines up with the rest of the developer's catalog, so there's a good chance this game will remain free, which means it's an excellent casual game to pick up this week even when the gameplay grows stale with extended play.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
Mediocre Games
Titles that are buggy, unpolished, or offer aggressive monetization
MEGA MAN X DiVE - MOBILE
Android Police coverage: Mega Man X blasts his way onto Android in the latest chapter of the classic platforming series
As much as I hate to say it, Mega Man X DiVe isn't a very good game. The tutorial is pure torture, constantly interrupting your button presses thanks to text windows that are horribly timed. Things get worse once you're out of the tutorial, where you'll constantly run into invisible walls as you are forced to kill groups of enemies before you can advance. And then there are the gacha mechanics and the repetitive grindy gameplay, which only exist to coerce people into paying to avoid these inconveniences. Sure, co-op play is included, and there's even PvP, but the gameplay is slow, stale, and repetitive, making for a title that hardly feels like a proper Mega Man game in the X series. All in all, Mega Man X DiVe is a cash grab, and it's a lazy one at that.
Monetization: free / no ads / IAPs from $0.99 - $99.99
KonoSuba: Fantastic Days
KonoSuba: Fantastic Days is, of course, themed around the light novels, manga, and anime of the same name, offering a slight harem setup where a goofy boy is accompanied by some powerful ladies in what is essentially a standard free-to-play mobile RPG. As you can guess, this is a gacha game, and of course, you'll collect a bunch of waifus. The gacha is rather predatory since you can only roll with real money, and so KonoSuba: Fantastic Days is a blatant cash grab utilizing a popular manga/anime property to soak up cash from a bunch of suckers the player base.
Monetization: free / no ads / IAPs from $0.99 - $79.99
Comix Breaker
Comix Breaker is billed as a deckbuilding-roguelike, and it's a multiplayer title that contains PvP. It's also packed with in-app purchases. The tutorial is frustrating, thanks to the way it holds your hand, and like most free-to-play games, the actual monetization is hidden from you until you complete the tutorial, which metrics show is the easiest way to retain players, by getting them addicted before they uncover the actual purpose of the game's design. So yeah, Comix Breaker is yet another generic collectible card game cash grab, easily skipped.
Monetization: free / contains ads / IAPs from $0.99 - $94.99
Mystic Gunner: Roguelike Shooting Action Adventure
Mystic Gunner is the latest release from Buff Studio, but this shooter isn't ready for prime time. More often than not, the game is outright annoying. The controls stink, and you are forced to play in portrait, yet the designer chose to add multiple buttons on the bottom left that require a second hand to operate since you can't take your thumb off the thumbstick or else you're a goner. This means this one-handed shooter has to be played with two hands, in portrait, and on top of that, the gameplay is extremely grindy and repetitive. It just takes too long to kill anything, and seeing that you have to work through the same stages repeatedly, it all grows old in a single sitting. In total, Mystic Gunner is tedious and frustrating, thanks to the glacial pace of advancement and the horrible controls. Worst of all, check out those in-app purchases. Disgusting.
Monetization: free / contains ads / IAPs from $0.99 - $299.99
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