The best Android games this week - Game of Thrones, Roller Polar, and more
Winter is coming
Every Friday, Pocket Gamer offers hands-on impressions of the week's three best new Android games.
Roller Polar
By Nitrome - buy on Android (Free)
Sometimes, Nitrome makes massive, inventive, varied puzzle games like Icebreaker. And at others, it makes simple time-wasting freebies with all the depth of a paddling pool.
Roller Polar falls into the latter camp: it's a super simple game about a polar bear on a snowball, who must leap over the rocks and trees that his big boulder of ice happens to pick up.
But that straightforward set-up leads to a brilliant minimalist game that anyone can pick up and play for a few minutes, before swearing at their phone in a fit of rage when you trip over a snowman's stovepipe hat.
Sometimes, the best ideas are the simplest ones.
Game of Thrones - A Telltale Game Series
By Telltale Inc - buy on Android (£2.99 / $4.99)
I've never seen Game of Thrones. Everything I know about the show comes from GIFs and memes that people have shared on Twitter. And I know there's an episode called Red Wedding which sounds like a great colour scheme for a dress.
And now there's a video game, from the episodic adventure masters at Telltale. And according to reviewer man Rob, "it's clear that George RR Martin's world and Telltale's seminal adventure game mechanic make for a very promising partnership."
Yes, the voice acting is a little wonky. And the music is laughably generic, as if someone found a CD called "50 greatest medieval jams". But, as Rob says, "after a fumbling start, Game of Thrones finds the pulse of the show, and then sticks a dagger in for good measure."
We can't wait for part two to hit Android.
Electronic Super Joy
By Yazar Media Group LLC - buy on Android (£2.99 / $4.99)
I was nursing a cracking headache when I last played Electronic Super Joy, and the game's strobing lights, twitchy camera, and pounding dance soundtrack almost killed me off for good.
This time around, I was ready for it. And instead of a cacophonous, brain-busting death ray, I found a tough, silky smooth, and sharp-edged platformer that's filled with subversive little references and nods.
As Harry eloquently put it in his iOS review, "this is a brilliant example of touchscreen gaming done right. It's sharp, gorgeous to look at, and revels in its ridiculousness. If you're looking for something to waste the weekend on, this comes highly recommended."
