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Top 10 best Android games of August 2013

Arcade racers, long-awaited conversions, and a gorgeous 3D shooter

Top 10 best Android games of August 2013
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After last month's flurry of simultaneous iOS and Android game releases - and a few original Android games - we've been privy to rather more 'tardy' iOS-to-Android conversions this month.

Still, they're pretty good ones (including one from Sonic's dad). And we still got a whole bunch of fresh titles with which to play, too.

This has been a good month for lushly detailed 3D eye candy, whether you're into shooters, arcade racers or... bashing squirrels with a huge bumper. Boot the following ten games up and show your friends what your quad-core beastie is capable of.

Without any further ado, then, let's get on with the games...

Asphalt 8: Airborne
By Gameloft - buy on Android

The Asphalt series has never been the most sophisticated racing franchise on Android, but the maker of Asphalt 8: Airborne doesn't worry itself with being taken seriously.

This is a mad arcade racer with the emphasis on colossal crashes, hilarious AI mishaps, and oodles of straight-up automotive fun.

I Need A Hero
By Mad Hat Games - buy on Android

In this zany match-three battler, Mad Hat Games uses a clever chaining system, a charming art style, and a delightfully silly sense of humour to great effect.

Mad Hat even gets the unobtrusive in-app purchasing system spot-on.

Sine Mora
By Digital Reality - buy on Android

Who says that old school shoot-'em-ups have to look old school? The maker of Sine Mora certainly doesn't.

The action here might be straight from the '80s and '90s - albeit a very slick version of the side-scrolling shooters we all love - but those lush 3D visuals are straight from noughties-era consoles.

Momonga Pinball Adventures
By Paladin Studios - buy on Android

Pinball is a great game, but I've never understood quite why you'd want to simulate it on a games machine.

With Momonga Pinball Adventures, Paladin Studios shows that you can be far more creative with pinball, placing you in control of a Japanese squirrel and ditching tables for sprawling levels.

Mecho Wars
By Nine Tales Digital - buy on Android

Did you ever play Advance Wars on one of Nintendo's Game Boy handhelds?

In Mecho Wars, Nine Tales Digital follows a very similar pattern of accessible turn-based strategy, but sets its game in a gaudy fantasy universe rather than the usual militaristic environment.

Delta-V Racing
By Spacehopper Studios - buy on Android

Evoking the spirit of combat racers like Mario Kart and WipEout, as well as stirring in a little 2D shmup magic, Spacehopper Studios limits the racing action in Delta-V Racing to a side-on left-to-right perspective, leaving you to dip and dive between lanes and barriers.

Very effective it all is, too.

Ivy the Kiwi
By Prope - buy on Android

This oddball game from Yuji Naka, a.k.a. Sonic The Hedgehog's pops, couldn't be much more different from his most famous creation.

It's a slow, considered, gentle platformer in which you have to draw platforms and catapults for an autonomous - and mostly helpless - lead character.

Gurk III - the 8-bit RPG
By Larva Labs - buy on Android

No diluted surface re-imagining of a classic RPG here, my friend.

With Gurk III, Larva Labs does exactly what it sets out to do, recreating the prosaic graphics and unforgiving gameplay of those 8-bit RPGS of yore. This is for those who despair at IAPs and balk at reasonable learning curves.

Dots: A Game About Connecting
By Playdots - buy on Android

Everything about Dots is clear, economical, and finely honed: from its no-nonsense name to its unadorned central conceit.

You make connections between coloured dots, which then disappear and allow further dots to drop satisfyingly into place. Simple.

Buddha Finger
By Made with Marmalade - buy on Android

Beat matching-meets-beat-'em-up in the chaotic world of Buddha Finger, where tapping out a rhythm can lead to a knockout blow.

It's got a lovably hand-drawn art style, fittingly lo-fi ditties, and plenty of colourful miscreants to bash.


Top 10 best Android games: July 2013
Top 10 best Android games: June 2013
Top 10 best Android games: May 2013
Top 10 best Android games: April 2013
Top 10 best Android games: March 2013
Top 10 best Android games: February 2013
Jon Mundy
Jon Mundy
Jon is a consummate expert in adventure, action, and sports games. Which is just as well, as in real life he's timid, lazy, and unfit. It's amazing how these things even themselves out.