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Football Manager 2023 Mobile lands on Android with UEFA licensing
Unfortunately, the Touch version is now an iOS and Switch exclusive
As the saying goes, there are only three constants in life, death, taxes, and football games. Today marks the continuation of this tradition, with Football Manager 2023 out now for mobile. Like last year's launch, there's no separate Touch version for Android, although it has returned to iOS and Nintendo Switch. As of today, you can purchase Football Manager 2023 Mobile for $9.99 from the Play Store.
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.
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.
Diablo Immortal is out on Android, just ahead of PC beta release
The game is incredibly polished, but it's also pay-to-win
It's no secret that Blizzard has taken its time developing Diablo Immortal over the last four years. The 2018 announcement didn't go over very well, leaving a dark shadow over the game for some time. Still, in recent years Blizzard has been very upfront about the game's development, almost to a fault, as it was apparent the ARPG would be pay-to-win since the alpha, and the recent news the game is blocked in a few countries over its excessive monetization isn't a good sign either. Still, there's an entirely new world of PvE to explore that isn't held back by the game's many ways to pay, which means the story content is viable for all free players.
Catalyst Black is a polished competitive shooter from the team behind Vainglory
Will it be the next mobile hero shooter to sweep the nation?
Super Evil Megacorp has been working on a follow-up to Vainglory for some time now. Known as Catalyst Black, Super Evil Megacorp has taken many of the lessons learned from Vainglory to create something new and addictive. Gone are the towers, lanes, and mid-level upgrades popular in MOBAs, replaced with fast-paced real-time multiplayer shooting action, offering something a lot closer to a typical hero shooter, all within Super Evil Megacorp's in-house engine, bringing a fresh game to the table that performs well on any device. So if you're itching to get in early on a game that may very well blow up in popularity, today's the day.
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Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony is the latest entry in the murder-mystery franchise on Android
Bringing a new cast, new motivations, and new murders to solve
Back in 2020, we saw two Danganronpamurder-mystery games released on Android as part of a tenth-anniversary celebration for the quirky visual novels. Of course, the third game was also part of this plan but had been missing in action for the last two years. Well, as of this morning, Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony is now available on Android, completing the trilogy on the platform.
Apparently, someone at Square Enix remembered Chrono Trigger exists, and so a fresh Japanese trailer has dropped that outlines a substantial incoming update that's expected to land on mobile and PC this Friday. The sharp eyes at Gematsu reported on the trailer's existence early this morning, and the video covers what fans can expect when the update lands later this week.
Final Fantasy VI makes a triumphant return to Android, but it's far from perfect
This time as a pixel remaster
Earlier this month, we learned that Square Enix had finally listed its pixel remaster of Final Fantasy VI on the Play Store for pre-registration, gearing up for its February 23rd launch. Of course, with Square, you never really know if a release will hit an announced date, especially when the Final Fantasy pixel remaster website lists FF VI as a February 24th release in several places (quality coordination there, Square). Still, today's the day, and so one of the best JRPGs ever made is back on the Play Store after the previous remaster was delisted last July in preparation for today's launch.
Legend of Mana is a quality (and pricey) remaster finally available for Android and iOS
It's a great port, but $22 is a bit much
Legend of Mana is the fourth entry in Square Enix's popular RPG series, originally released on the PS1 in 1999. Well, Square has been busy making a slew of remasters, with many that are already available on the Play Store, but Legend of Mana was one of the holdouts. The game landed on consoles and PC this past June, so it's something of a recent release, and it was known it would come to mobile at some point, and that point is today. That's right; Square Enix has finally launched its Legend of Mana HD remaster on Android and iOS.
Here's the fix if you can't play Rocket League Sideswipe on the Pixel 6
Don't worry, it's an easy solution
Earlier in the month, we learned that Psyonix was planning to release its mobile sidescrolling interpretation of Rocket League on mobile across the globe. This rollout started with a few territories and has finally expanded to the US and EU, completing the worldwide launch for Rocket League Sideswipe. Amazingly, the game is great. I went hands-on with the title back in March when it was still in testing and came away pretty impressed, and I'm a diehard Rocket League player that plays on PC every night, so I'm not easily swayed. Not only does the core gameplay of hitting giant soccer balls into goals with cars hold up in its sidescrolling form, there's no monetization yet, which means the only way to earn in-game cosmetics is by playing the game. No matter how you slice it, Psyonix has hit this one out of the park.
That Final Fantasy battle royale shooter you never asked for is out now
Or maybe you did, since the servers are already overloaded
We've known about Final Fantasy VII The First Soldier since Square Enix announced the battle royale game back in February. In June, the first closed beta tests started rolling out, and despite minor tweaks to the typical gameplay setup, there's no doubt The First Soldier plays like any other battle royale. So yes, Square has hopped on the bandwagon to offer its very own PUBG clone for mobile, and today is the official release. So far, the servers are getting hammered, but Square is aware of the connectivity problem and is actively working on these network issues, which is why the game has just entered into a maintenance mode.
PUBG: New State is finally available for Android, off to a pretty rough start
Release day woes mar the launch of Krafton's latest battle royale
At the beginning of 2021, Krafton announced that it was working on a mobile version of PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds called PUBG: New State. After much testing over the last year, we learned last month that the battle royale was finally ready for prime time, with the official release set for November 11th. Well, that day is today, and so PUBG: New State is now available on the Google Play Store as a free-to-play download. So far, player reviews are middling, with plenty of complaints sprinkled throughout the current 3.7 rating, covering issues like random server disconnects and lag, though to be fair, it is release day, as these kinds of problems tend to be expected.
The Final Fantasy V pixel remaster is out now on the Play Store
Coming to mobile and PC on November 10th
Square Enix has been slowly releasing remasters of the first six Final Fantasy titles across mobile and PC for the last few months. The last game to be released was the fourth in the series, which landed in September. This means the fifth game is next, and Square has confirmed the release date. The Final Fantasy V pixel remaster is set to arrive on Steam and mobile early next month. On November 10th, to be exact.
Tales of Luminaria is a new gacha RPG from Bandai Namco that explores several distinct storylines
But it's off to a rough start
This past September, Tales of Arise landed on PC and consoles, reinvigorating interest in Bandai Namco's long-running action RPG series. So, of course, a mobile game has been released to capitalize on this success. That game is Tales of Luminaria, officially launched today. Unlike the core Tales games that exist as premium experiences, Tales of Luminaria is a free-to-play gacha RPG that doesn't deviate much from Bandai's other F2P anime games. The graphics are superb, but the controls stink, the UI is atrocious, and the performance is fairly lackluster thanks to endless loading screens. So far, Play Store reviews are relatively low for a new gacha release, but it would seem these low scores are deserved.
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Back in March, we learned that Nintendo had teamed up with Niantic to create a new augmented reality game for mobile, Niantic's bread and butter. Pikmin was chosen as the skin for this Niantic game (though there was no offical title at the time), and at the end of March the first public test was launched in Singapore. This AR game is now known as Pikmin Bloom, and its global release has already started rolling out in Australia and Singapore, with a wider rollout planned for the coming days. Despite the fact those of us in the West still can't play, it's clear that Pikmin Bloom's design revolves around the act of walking (much like a step counter) in order to grow Pikmin by making flowers bloom as you walk. In classic Niantic fashion, the company has created a free-to-play game with in-app purchases that range up to $99.99 per item, all without ever describing what these purchases are for.
The best Android adventure game you never heard of receives a director's cut
A complete overhaul of the 2016 point and click detective game Kathy Rain
Raw Fury has been on a roll with the recent release of its excellent sandbox city builder Townscaper, and today marks the launch of Kathy Rain: Director's Cut. This is a reimagining of the original point and click adventure from 2016, and it offers performance improvements along with additional features. At its core, Kathy Rain is a detective story where you'll hunt down clues surrounding your grandfather's mysterious death. You'll solve puzzles to advance this story as you dig through a mysterious town's secrets. The game was a delight in 2016, and now that it's updated for play on modern devices, it's that much more enthralling, perfect for a Halloween playthrough.
There's a new The Lord of the Rings game on the Play Store, and it takes place in the movie universe
IAPs are back on the menu, boys
At this point, you'd think free-to-play developers like NetEase would have run out of brands to slap on top of the typical free-to-play genres we're all familiar with, and then a new disappointing announcement comes rolling in. It would appear that NetEase is working on a licensed The Lord of the Rings game, which just popped up on the Play Store for pre-registration. It's called The Lord of the Rings: Rise to War, and even though neither the Play Store trailer nor the screenshots show a lick of gameplay, we already know this title will land as a typical free-to-play kingdom builder.
Square Enix just launched a collection of Final Fantasy titles on Android
Final Fantasy Legend I, II, and III are now available on Android
Square Enix is notorious for its awful naming schemes, and Collection of SaGa Final Fantasy Legend is one of the worst names yet. Luckily the games within this collection are pretty good. All three RPGs were released on the Game Boy back in the day, known as Final Fantasy titles in the US. But this was back when Square didn't have consistent branding globally, so these games are actually part of the SaGa series. Still, they are great turn-based RPGs in their own right, and they hold up to this day (though these games are pretty challenging). We already know this collection is slated for release on Android on September 22nd, with pre-registration now available for the brand-new Play Store listing.
The Final Fantasy IV pixel remaster lands on Android, but it will cost you
This 30-year-old JRPG retails for $17.99. Ouch!
Last month Square Enix released the first three pixel remasters for the Final Fantasy series on the Play Store. These remasters aren't cheap, and seeing that the first two replaced games many of us had already paid for, these pixel remasters are difficult to get excited for. In Final Fantasy IV's case, the only way to play on Android is through the 3D remake ported from the Nintendo DS, which is still available but does not offer the pixel design of the original SNES game (known as FF II in the US). This is why many are patiently waiting for IV's pixel remaster to land on the Play Store. Essentially, a pixel version has been a long time coming, and the wait is almost over now that we know Square plans to launch IV's pixel remaster on September 8th.
Dragon Quest The Adventure of Dai: A Hero's Bonds launches on Android today
Servers set to go live later today
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Square Enix revealed Dragon Quest The Adventure of Dai: A Hero's Bonds last year, but at the time, the game was only slated for a Japanese release. As of this morning, we now know the game is coming to the West with an English translation in tow. It's already listed on the Play Store for pre-registration, and a closed beta will kick off on April 7th, which you can sign up for on the official website.