Every day, close to 500 new games enter the App Store. Not all of them are worth playing, which means finding the ones that are can prove to be a daunting task. Luckily, we’re here to help. Whether you’re looking for a mindless way to pass the time or a story that you can really sink your teeth into, all you have to do to find the perfect game is reach into your pocket.
November saw a lot of action for the world’s most popular titles. For instance, players are currently enjoying the return of Pokémon GO’s community day and Friend Fest, which both feature higher spawn rates and a chance to catch rare Pokémon like shiny Nidoran. Terrakion, a legendary rock/fighting-type Pokémon, was also just added to the game. Clash Royale fans are celebrating the holidays a little early with Clashmas and the addition of Battle Healer, a new card that heals nearby troops.
Bad North
Real-time strategy game Bad North is a rogue-lite tactics game that gives players an opportunity to defend their island kingdom against waves of Viking invaders. Attacks will spawn from any direction, and your job is to organize, train, and weaponize your warriors in a way that best helps them defend the island from enemy forces. Bad North had a life as a PC game before transitioning to mobile platforms at the end of last month. Bringing simple game progression and elegant design to the table, Bad North capitalizes on all of the essential components of a successful RTS game. Islands are also procedurally generated, which means each playthrough serves up a unique experience.
Price: $4.99
Genre: Real-Time Strategy
Ordia
The intuitive nature of one-finger action games offers them the potential to immediately captivate audiences. In fact, some of the most popular mobile games of all time fall into this category (Doodle Jump, Flappy Bird, etc.). Ordia builds off of the genre’s winning formula, delivering a game that appeals to anyone with a phone and a thumb. You’ll play as a primitive life form that ventures out into the world for the first time. Jump, stick, and slide your way through hazardous environments as you fight your way through 30 unique levels!
Price: $3.99
Genre: Action
Stardew Valley
There’s something soothing about the pastoral lifestyle of a farm-hand, but there are few games that can distill that bucolic charm into one seamless experience. Stardew Valley, the 8-bit answer to all of your farming needs, does just that. ConcernedApe’s hit farm game is finally available on mobile devices. Players inherit their grandfather’s farm and are welcomed into the community with open arms. Date the townsfolk, dig up treasure, raise your livestock, and enjoy building your dream farm from the ground up!
Price: $7.99
Genre: Role Playing
Game Of The Month: Old Man’s Journey
Most mobile developers simply don’t have big-studio resources. Instead of reaching for lifelike graphics and dragged out storylines, the best mobile games are aware of their limitations and work within their means to produce elegant solutions. Old Man’s Journey is a shining example of this. Instead of coming up with a half-baked version of an RPG that might work on PC or console, Old Man’s Journey is a game that is a product of the platform it was designed for. Challenge is a result of well-designed puzzles, not length. Beauty is found in artfulness, not realism. The game is advertised as a soul-searching puzzle adventure about life, loss, and hope, but really serves as an answer to the question, “What are mobile games capable of?”
Price: $4.99
Genre: Puzzle
What To Look Forward To
As mobile games continue to claim more and more territory, the games will only get bigger and better. Minecraft Earth is still slated for global release sometime in the early part of 2020. League of Legends: Wild Rift will join the fray in 2020 as well. Neither game’s official release date has been added to the calendar yet.
December’s Pokémon GO community day will take place on December 14-15th and give players a chance to catch Totodile, Treecko, Trapinch, Turtwig, Bagon Chimchar, and more.