What with all the coronavirus-related panic buying and frantic news-checking this week, you’d be forgiven for falling behind on your mobile games homework. Fear not – Droid Gamers is here to get you up to speed.
This is a soft-launch-heavy round-up, with relatively few full-fat releases. There are some crackers, though, our pick of the bunch being Bullet League.
New Games
Shadow of Naught
Shadow of Naught is a multiple award-winning interactive story in which you have to gently steer three troubled characters through their lives, learning all about them as you go. It’s a novel premise, and the game looks great. It’s in early access, with a full release coming further down the line.
Path to Mnemosyne
Path to Mnemosyne is an artsy puzzle platformer that looks and plays like an awful lot of artsy indie games. That’s not a criticism, though – the cartoon visuals look stunning, and the game is worth checking out.
Legends of Runeterra
Legends of Runeterra is Riot’s answer to Hearthstone. Set in the League of Legends universe, it sees you taking characters from that game in the form of cards and using them to outmaneuver your opponents. It’s out now in soft launch, but only in Singapore.
Bullet League
Bullet League is a 2D, pixel-art battle royale, bringing the joy of massively multiplayer shooty action to those of us who don’t enjoy being humiliated in a 3D environment. It’s fast, frantic, and lots of fun.
Harvest Moon: Mad Dash
Harvest Moon: Mad Dash is an interesting proposition: a game set in the Harvest Moon universe that is almost entirely unlike Harvest Moon. Instead, it’s a bit like Diner Dash, with you running frantically around fulfilling orders.
Soccer Rally: Arena
Soccer Rally: Arena is a sequel to Soccer Rally. Obv. Apart from updated visuals and all that jazz, the main new thing it brings to the franchise is multiplayer. The game sees you playing football, but in a car rather than on foot. And now you can do it 3v3, but only in the US.
Four SteamWorld Games
The SteamWorld franchise is one of the best and most unusual to have cropped up in the last few years, featuring games in different genres that share a cartoony steampunk aesthetic. SteamWorld Dig, SteamWorld Dig 2, SteamWorld Quest, and SteamWorld Heist are all now available on Google Stadia.
Angry Birds Casual
Angry Birds Casual is a back-to-basics addition to the increasingly sprawling and ambitious Angry Birds franchise. Harking back to the good old days, it sees you flinging birds and rickety structures, though the pigs have been replaced by caged chicks. Currently US-only.
Snoopy Puzzle Journey
You know Toon Blast? The casual block-clearing game that Ryan Reynolds used to appear in the adverts for, pretending to be so absorbed in the gameplay that he couldn’t go to work or even look away from his phone? Well, that, but with Snoopy. It’s available in the US and Mexico in soft launch.
Updates
Pokemon Go
Ever keen to promote the welfare of its players, Niantic has tweaked its Pokemon-collecting juggernaut in several ways to help halt the spread of coronavirus. Incense is cheaper, habitats are larger, and incubators are more efficient. Stay safe!
Minecraft Earth
Minecraft Earth – the Pokemon Go-esque AR spin-off of Minecraft – has also been updated, but without reference to coronavirus. There are three new mobs to kill, and adventure chests to find.
Mario Kart Tour
At long last, the Mario Kart Tour multiplayer update is here. Now players can race against up to seven opponents, whether friends or strangers, from around the world. This is the week that Mario Kart Tour became a real boy.
