Mobile Gaming 2019 | Mega Thread, Mega Backlog!

awp69 · May 23, 2019

Saucycarpdog said:
Heroine Anthem Zero by Winking Skywalker Entertainment Limited:
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/apple-store/id1274907797?mt=8

A 2D action platformer with pretty decent art going by the screenshots.

Yeah this came out months ago on an accidental release and I picked it up then. It's actually a console port (also have it on PS4 but decided to go mobile as I hadn't had time to play it).

I'd describe it as a side scrolling action RPG as opposed to a platformer. Full fledged story, wonderful art and plays well on mobile.

Pitta · May 23, 2019

One Deck Dungeon is super addictive.
Reminds me Elder Sign Omens (one of my fav solo digital boardgame)
The mobile port is perfect, glad they went for portrait.

TOO MANY GAMES.

And next week Wonder Boy The Dragon Trap will be out as well.

So much for premium is dead.

I'm playing at utterly enjoying at the moment:

Shards of Infinity
Terraforming Mars (beta)
Cultist Simulator
One Deck Dungeon

awp69 · May 23, 2019

Yeah, I was pleasantly surprised that they went portrait on One Deck Dungeon. Have it on my now abysmally slow iPad Mini 2 and it was landscape. Nicely redesigned for iPhone. And always happy to have another portrait game for playing in public especially.

Pitta · May 23, 2019

awp69 said:
Yeah, I was pleasantly surprised that they went portrait on One Deck Dungeon. Have it on my now abysmally slow iPad Mini 2 and it was landscape. Nicely redesigned for iPhone. And always happy to have another portrait game for playing in public especially.

It's ADDICTING AS HELL and BRUTAL.

awp69 · May 23, 2019

Pitta said:
It's ADDICTING AS HELL and BRUTAL.

Unless you're like me and play on the lower difficulties. :)

Now if we could only get Darkest Dungeon to go universal...

Pitta · May 23, 2019

awp69 said:
Unless you're like me and play on the lower difficulties. :)

Now if we could only get Darkest Dungeon to go universal...

Well, I'm playing at default everything so I'm not sure.
I always reach the first dragon in the first dungeon (3rd floor I think) but it always destroyed me in my first 3 games.
I'll play more later but I can see this one staying on my iPhone for a long time.

Molecule · May 23, 2019

Can anyone give me a quick overview of that one deck dungeon game? The description on the play store makes it sound cool. Would it be better on phone or tablet?

Mudo · May 23, 2019

I'm finally getting the new 12.9 inch IPad Pro I'm so excited!! So, I'm looking for new premium games that I may have missed in the last year.

I own KOTOR, FF, DQ, Baldur/icewind/Planescape umm have there been any great releases in the last year? RPG is by far my favorite genre but I like most everything but sports and FPS/shooters.

Also, is it worth buying this keyboard case thing they are trying to sell me? Seems like it would be great but it's pricey

awp69 · May 23, 2019

Molecule said:
Can anyone give me a quick overview of that one deck dungeon game? The description on the play store makes it sound cool. Would it be better on phone or tablet?

It's a dice based dungeon crawler. I think works well on both tablet and phone. Not sure about the Android version but love that the iPhone version is portrait. Plays great.

I could describe things further but this 5-star review would do it more justice.

https://www.pockettactics.com/reviews/one-deck-dungeon/

Pitta · May 23, 2019

Molecule said:
Can anyone give me a quick overview of that one deck dungeon game? The description on the play store makes it sound cool. Would it be better on phone or tablet?

As AWP said it's the digital adaptation of dice based boardgame.
I get the same vibes of playing Elder Sign Omens if you know that game, just deeper and more RPG-ish, but with less (or non existent) story.
It plays great on both iPad and iPhone really.

Mechanically....each character (you can enter the dungeon with 1 or 2 characters) has some dice that can use to overcome enemies (covering their color coded slots). The RNG factor is mitigated by the myriad of skills you have and acquire during the dungeons.

It's really addicting.

Molecule · May 23, 2019

Pitta said:
As AWP said it's the digital adaptation of dice based boardgame.
I get the same vibes of playing Elder Sign Omens if you know that game, just deeper and more RPG-ish, but with less (or non existent) story.
It plays great on both iPad and iPhone really.

Mechanically....each character (you can enter the dungeon with 1 or 2 characters) has some dice that can use to overcome enemies (covering their color coded slots). The RNG factor is mitigated by the myriad of skills you have and acquire during the dungeons.

It's really addicting.

Would you recommend I get this game when I have never played D&D games, tabletop or otherwise?

awp69 · May 23, 2019

Molecule said:
Would you recommend I get this game when I have never played D&D games, tabletop or otherwise?

No need at all to have played D&D. While deep, this is still far simpler than the rules of a D&D game (which I haven't played in like 35 years, lol).

Pitta · May 23, 2019

Molecule said:
Would you recommend I get this game when I have never played D&D games, tabletop or otherwise?

Sure!!!
It's not complicated at all!!!

Megasoum · May 23, 2019

Hey guys, the release of "American Wanted" reminded me of GTA: Chinatown Wars and looks like the only way to play that game nowadays would be on mobile... Is it still working on modern phone? I'm using a Pixel 3.

How's the mobile version?

awp69 · May 23, 2019

Megasoum said:
Hey guys, the release of "American Wanted" reminded me of GTA: Chinatown Wars and looks like the only way to play that game nowadays would be on mobile... Is it still working on modern phone? I'm using a Pixel 3.

How's the mobile version?

Not sure about on Android but Chinatown Wars just got updated with iPhone X support about a week ago. Haven't played much to see if it plays well but nice that they finally updated it for newer phones.

Killercow · May 24, 2019

Critically acclaimed sim Motorsport Manager 3 by PlaysportGames is free for what I think is the first time:
https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/motorsport-manager-mobile-3/id1346580540

Benjamin Rivers (Of Home fame) is coming back with a new terrifying adventure called "Worse than Death" coming to iOS on June 26th and you can pre-order now:

https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/worse-than-death/id1367616515

awp69 · May 24, 2019

Guessing at this point there won't be preorders for Wonder Boy?

Pitta · May 24, 2019

awp69 said:
Guessing at this point they won't be preorders for Wonder Boy?

Wondering the same.

Meanwhile....

Rodney McKay · May 24, 2019

What are some of the best mobile "clicker" idle games?

I started playing the new Godzilla Defense Force one. Never really played a game lime this before and I actually kinda like the gameplay concept of it, but the difficulty curve is definitely sqewed to make you pay money or grind forever.

jefjay · May 25, 2019

Rodney McKay said:
What are some of the best mobile "clicker" idle games?

I started playing the new Godzilla Defense Force one. Never really played a game lime this before and I actually kinda like the gameplay concept of it, but the difficulty curve is definitely sqewed to make you pay money or grind forever.

For idle/incremental games similar to Godzilla, Clicker Heroes and Tap Titans 2 come to mind and are both quite good. If you're looking to venture a bit further into these types of games, Realm Grinders is great and Time Clickers is my personal favorite. Though all these are F2P. I wasn't in a rush so I could let the do its thing without paying a cent, but experiences vary.

Otherwise there's SPACEPLAN which is really neat in that it has a story and an ending, and is a paid game.

Jarsonot · May 25, 2019

jefjay said:
For idle/incremental games similar to Godzilla, Clicker Heroes and Tap Titans 2 come to mind and are both quite good. If you're looking to venture a bit further into these types of games, Realm Grinders is great and Time Clickers is my personal favorite. Though all these are F2P. I wasn't in a rush so I could let the do its thing without paying a cent, but experiences vary.

Otherwise there's SPACEPLAN which is really neat in that it has a story and an ending, and is a paid game.

These are good recommendations, I'd just add Universal Paperclips for another great, though premium, clicker.

Cromat · May 26, 2019

What's a good one-handed game to sink my teeth in? Preferably one that works offline on subway rides. I'm still playing 2048...

Saucycarpdog · May 26, 2019

Cromat said:
What's a good one-handed game to sink my teeth in? Preferably one that works offline on subway rides. I'm still playing 2048...

Some casual one-handed games similiar to 2048:

-Six!
-Chilly Snow
-holedown
-twofold inc
-99 Bricks: Wizard Academy

Cromat · May 26, 2019

Saucycarpdog said:
Some casual one-handed games similiar to 2048:

-Six!
-Chilly Snow
-holedown
-twofold inc
-99 Bricks: Wizard Academy

Thanks! These look really interesting. Are there any RPGs or gacha games that work offline? I wouldn't mind going into something more substantial.

Saucycarpdog · May 26, 2019

Cromat said:
Thanks! These look really interesting. Are there any RPGs or gacha games that work offline? I wouldn't mind going into something more substantial.

Sure, when you mentioned 2048 I thought you wanted something similar to that. But there are still games with that one-handed gameplay that don't sacrifice depth.

Before I give some recommendations though, quick question, how small is your phone? Some of the RPGs that I can recommend only need one hand but require you to press different parts of the screen which might be difficult if your phone is very big.

Cromat · May 26, 2019

Saucycarpdog said:
Sure, when you mentioned 2048 I thought you wanted something similar to that. But there are still games with that one-handed gameplay that don't sacrifice depth.

Before I give some recommendations though, quick question, how small is your phone? Some of the RPGs that I can recommend only need one hand but require you to press different parts of the screen which might be difficult if your phone is very big.

Thanks for this! My phone is the Galaxy S7 Edge, fairly big but not crazy these days. I think it shouldn't be too much of a problem since I can use two hands when I really need to.

Saucycarpdog · May 26, 2019

Cromat said:
Thanks for this! My phone is the Galaxy S7 Edge, fairly big but not crazy these days. I think it shouldn't be too much of a problem since I can use two hands when I really need to.

Alright, in that case:

Teen Titans GO Figure - Not really a Gacha game since it's premium but you do collect figurines in it so it has that addictive nature to it.
King Crusher - A roguelike action RPG with swipe-based combat.
Night of the Full Moon - A single player roguelike card game with similarities to Slay the Spire.
The Greedy Cave(The first one) - Turn-based dungeon crawler with a heavy emphasis on loot.
Post Knight - A casual RPG that still manages to feel as satisfying as a full fledged one. I don't remember if I ever tried it or not but I don't think this requires a connection?
The Muscle Hustle - A westle hero collected with pool-like mechanics similar to Monster Strike.

awp69 · May 26, 2019

Cromat said:
Thanks for this! My phone is the Galaxy S7 Edge, fairly big but not crazy these days. I think it shouldn't be too much of a problem since I can use two hands when I really need to.

Since you mentioned RPGs, might also want to consider the Dragon Quest games which all play portrait. Dragon Quest VIII is a great one.

One Deck Dungeon (die based dungeon crawler) and Hero Emblems (match-3 game that is an incredibly deep and challenging RPG) are also good options.

Edit: Scratch Hero Emblems didn't realize that isn't on Android.

Fancolours · May 26, 2019

Cromat said:
Thanks! These look really interesting. Are there any RPGs or gacha games that work offline? I wouldn't mind going into something more substantial.

A magical high school girl if you want some mystery dungeon action.

RedNalgene · May 26, 2019

Is there a list anywhere of the top Era mobile games of the past, say, year? I just got a new iPad mini and want to check out some games I've been missing because I only had a phone. The old monthly threads were great for this type of question.

jefjay · May 26, 2019

So I got hooked on One Deck Dungeon. The app could use a little polish, but it's functional and the game itself is great. I managed to beat the Yeti, on novice, but I'm quite terrible at the game. Still, I'm contemplating grabbing the DLC...

Smiley90 · May 26, 2019

Any recommendations as far as music/rhythm games go?

awp69 · May 27, 2019

Smiley90 said:
Any recommendations as far as music/rhythm games go?

- Rayark's games - Cytus, Cytus II, and Deemo - are all great.
- Lost in Harmony is a beautiful rhythm game with an emotional story to boot.
- Muse Dash is a cool mix of runner and rhythm game.
- And one of my favorites is still Groove Coaster 2.

Killercow · May 27, 2019

Smiley90 said:
Any recommendations as far as music/rhythm games go?

I'd add Planet Quest, Dropchord and Beat Sneak Bandit to the list.

Smiley90 · May 27, 2019

Killercow said:
I'd add Planet Quest, Dropchord and Beat Sneak Bandit to the list.

Beat Sneak Bandit? That takes me way back... Wasn't that developed by someone on GAF back in the day?

Killercow · May 27, 2019

Smiley90 said:
Beat Sneak Bandit? That takes me way back... Wasn't that developed by someone on GAF back in the day?

It's developed by Simogo, one of the finest 2-man indie team of the App Store.

Pitta · May 27, 2019

Really highly recommending One Deck Dungeon.

It's the child of Elder Sign Omens, Quarriors and Pathfinder Adventures (if you play with a party of 2).
Super addictive....when you pull it off after a series of '1' using skills and potions you feel like a real genius.
Just unlocked Gauntlet mode and trying to crack normal mode.....all with just two chars (warrior and mage).
I still have everyone else to play with.
And then the Forest expansion, which adds also the poison mechanic and many more bosses.....

exodus · May 27, 2019

Rodney McKay said:
What are some of the best mobile "clicker" idle games?

I started playing the new Godzilla Defense Force one. Never really played a game lime this before and I actually kinda like the gameplay concept of it, but the difficulty curve is definitely sqewed to make you pay money or grind forever.

If you don't mind a slower pace, Kittens Game will keep you busy for a good while. One time purchase.

Mudo · May 27, 2019

RedNalgene said:
Is there a list anywhere of the top Era mobile games of the past, say, year? I just got a new iPad mini and want to check out some games I've been missing because I only had a phone. The old monthly threads were great for this type of question.

I'd love to know this also. I asked a few days ago since I just got a 12.9 IPad Pro and haven't kept up with mobile in the last year or so. I ended up just googling "best IPad games and hidden gems" and ended up spending 2 hours poking around and bought like 15 games, so that may help you as well. Once I play some of these to make sure they are good, I can report back :)

Guppeth · May 27, 2019

Rodney McKay said:
What are some of the best mobile "clicker" idle games?

I started playing the new Godzilla Defense Force one. Never really played a game lime this before and I actually kinda like the gameplay concept of it, but the difficulty curve is definitely sqewed to make you pay money or grind forever.

I didn't know this game existed, and I love Godzilla so I had to try it. The difficulty curve is similar to other clicker games I've played. What I dislike is that there's no IAP to disable ads.

I've unlocked all the cities except the final one, and I used the Time Warp six times I think. I haven't paid any money. I think it's a good clicker, but I've reached that point where I think "what the hell am I doing with my life?" and the ads really are obnoxious, so it's time to delete it.

Speaking of obnoxious, I've been playing Trials Frontier. It's just as great as I remember, and the way it plays on a touchscreen is really impressive. But upgrading the bikes is such an awful, awful grind. They've added a lot of tracks since I played in 2014, but they all require premium currency to unlock. Time to delete for another 5 years!

Killercow · May 27, 2019

The Steam Link app has been updated with an option for relative touch controls.

Rodney McKay · May 27, 2019

Guppeth said:
Speaking of obnoxious, I've been playing Trials Frontier. It's just as great as I remember, and the way it plays on a touchscreen is really impressive. But upgrading the bikes is such an awful, awful grind. They've added a lot of tracks since I played in 2014, but they all require premium currency to unlock. Time to delete for another 5 years!

Ugh, Trials Frontier is so heartbreaking.

Looks great and plays amazingly well, but the timers, upgrades, resources, and currencies just ruin it. Worst for me was the resources required for upgrades being lo ked behind a roulette wheel. Unless you get good enough to perfectly spin it to what you want, you'd have to redo tracks over and over to get the materials you need. If they took out the random aspect of it, I could maybe deal with all the other bullshit, but having that ON TOP of the timers, upgrade waits, and currency just makes it took much of a hassle to deal with.

Back when it first came out I could at least cheat the timers with a helpful bug (once a timer starts you could just set your device's clock forward the hours/days you need to recharge or finish a timer). But eventually that was patched out.

Saucycarpdog · May 27, 2019

RedNalgene said:
Is there a list anywhere of the top Era mobile games of the past, say, year? I just got a new iPad mini and want to check out some games I've been missing because I only had a phone. The old monthly threads were great for this type of question.

Mudo said:
I'd love to know this also. I asked a few days ago since I just got a 12.9 IPad Pro and haven't kept up with mobile in the last year or so. I ended up just googling "best IPad games and hidden gems" and ended up spending 2 hours poking around and bought like 15 games, so that may help you as well. Once I play some of these to make sure they are good, I can report back :)

Best games in past year:

•Oddmar
•Grimvalor
•Florence
•Rebel Inc
•Donut Country
•Gorogoa
•Photographs: Puzzle Stories
•Battleheart 2
•Room: Old Sins
•Brawl Stars

Guppeth said:
I didn't know this game existed, and I love Godzilla so I had to try it. The difficulty curve is similar to other clicker games I've played. What I dislike is that there's no IAP to disable ads.

I've unlocked all the cities except the final one, and I used the Time Warp six times I think. I haven't paid any money. I think it's a good clicker, but I've reached that point where I think "what the hell am I doing with my life?" and the ads really are obnoxious, so it's time to delete it.

Speaking of obnoxious, I've been playing Trials Frontier. It's just as great as I remember, and the way it plays on a touchscreen is really impressive. But upgrading the bikes is such an awful, awful grind. They've added a lot of tracks since I played in 2014, but they all require premium currency to unlock. Time to delete for another 5 years!

Rodney McKay said:
Ugh, Trials Frontier is so heartbreaking.

Looks great and plays amazingly well, but the timers, upgrades, resources, and currencies just ruin it. Worst for me was the resources required for upgrades being lo ked behind a roulette wheel. Unless you get good enough to perfectly spin it to what you want, you'd have to redo tracks over and over to get the materials you need. If they took out the random aspect of it, I could maybe deal with all the other bullshit, but having that ON TOP of the timers, upgrade waits, and currency just makes it took much of a hassle to deal with.

Back when it first came out I could at least cheat the timers with a helpful bug (once a timer starts you could just set your device's clock forward the hours/days you need to recharge or finish a timer). But eventually that was patched out.

You guys should check out Animal Super Squad if you want a racer similar to Trials but without the F2P shenanigans.

Mudo · May 27, 2019

Thanks! I own most of these so I guess I'm caught up! Only missing one is Florence

awp69 · May 27, 2019

Any list of the best of the last year also has to include Wonder Blade and Backfire. Both not only favorites of the last year for me but would even be on my all time iOS favorites.

Ordia, Suzy Cube and Pocket City also high up there. For ports, Teslagrad, Fidel Dungeon Rescue, Bendy and the Ink Machine and Stardew Valley.

For card/board games, Dimension of Dreams and One Deck Dungeon.

And the already mentioned Grimvalor and Oddmar are fantastic.

Edit: and a bit more recent but already am thinking the port of Zombie Night Terror is one of the best games I've played of late.

mjc · May 27, 2019

One Deck Dungeon is pretty cool, and a decent port of the actual board game itself. I've played both the app and actual game version quite a bit, both are good.

Guppeth · May 28, 2019

Rodney McKay said:
Ugh, Trials Frontier is so heartbreaking.

Looks great and plays amazingly well, but the timers, upgrades, resources, and currencies just ruin it. Worst for me was the resources required for upgrades being lo ked behind a roulette wheel. Unless you get good enough to perfectly spin it to what you want, you'd have to redo tracks over and over to get the materials you need. If they took out the random aspect of it, I could maybe deal with all the other bullshit, but having that ON TOP of the timers, upgrade waits, and currency just makes it took much of a hassle to deal with.

Back when it first came out I could at least cheat the timers with a helpful bug (once a timer starts you could just set your device's clock forward the hours/days you need to recharge or finish a timer). But eventually that was patched out.

They upped the heartbreak level by very occasionally putting a new track on the roulette wheel. Because they're so rare, you can't just replay the track to try again. You can spend a few diamonds to spin again, and then the sunk cost fallacy kicks in and you end up spending more than if you just bought a track for 40 diamonds.

Saucycarpdog said:
You guys should check out Animal Super Squad if you want a racer similar to Trials but without the F2P shenanigans.

Thanks, this looks really cool.

RM8 · May 28, 2019

Bike Baron is also a great Trials-like without the F2P garbage.

Guppeth · May 28, 2019

RM8 said:
Bike Baron is also a great Trials-like without the F2P garbage.

Yeah it is good. There are lots of tracks and it even has user-created tracks. The physics feel simplistic after playing Trials though.

Killercow · May 28, 2019

Short interactive experience KIDS by Playables (PLUG & PLAY) is out now on iOS:

https://itunes.apple.com/app/id1251330372