GAMES OF THE WEEK - The 5 best new games for iOS and Android - September 19th
Not including Apple Arcade or games from subscription models.
Well, it's happened. Today is the day of Apple Arcade's launch and so the face of our GAMES OF THE WEEK series has had to change a little bit to accomodate it.
The new format will look exceptionally similar to the previous - the reason for that is because going forward we're going to be using this segment to discuss new games which are not included in subscription models including Apple Arcade.
So, if you're looking for five great new games that don't require a subscription model then here's the best place to look.
That's why we're here, after all. To talk about great games which we can all grab right now, and while the pickings were certainly a little bit lighter for us this week there's still an amazing variety in the selection of games which we have plucked out for you. It ranges from jRPG through to a fun sliding-puzzler game about dungeon descendance in a fight against physics and time.
Remember, if you're looking to check through some of our previous selections then you can always do that at our Games of The Week Hub, it's a great way to find games to fill out that empty storage space on your phone. Or, if you like your news in bitesize chunks, delivered straight to your palm then maybe follow us on Twitter.
Anyway, without any further delay, click through on the big button below to find out more about the 5 best new games for mobile this week.
1
Ambition Record
Kemco have become a cornerstone in the jRPG community of late. Even though they originally launched back in 1984, it's the last two years where they've really come to a place where its hard to not know their name — they're now releasing quality JRPGs at a faster pace than many people can complete the games. Ambition Record is their latest output, and its just launched on Google Play and the App Store.
Ambition Record follows the story of a mercenary band who are enlisted to the king's side after a count rises up in rebellion, however it soon turns out that there's much more than the rebellion to deal with as intrigue fills the court. Dragon stones and a job system combine to cover the standard RPG leveling-up system, but there's also a very cool 3D battle system which is reminiscent of PS2/Gamecube era titles.
Ambition Record is available now on Google Play and the App Store
2
Football Drama
A satirical take on both management games and the football industry as a whole, Football Drama has you take over the helm at Calchester Assembled after a seven year break. From there Football Drama sweeps you between a character backstory, which can flood with controversy if you allow it, while the battles on the pitch are played out through a card-based system.
Our News Editor, Stephen, wrote about it earlier in the week and used terms like 'Tiki-taka' and 'possession' while describing it, which certainly made football sound more like voodoo than I remember it.
Football Drama is available now on Google Play and the App Store
3
Squares
Squares is the little wildcard for this selection. It's a minimalist puzzle game free of advertising and in-app purchases. The goal of each of its levels are to simply paid each of the titles on screen the same colour. Its similar to that whole 'Draw a house without crossing lines' thing that were everywhere a few years back - an interesting puzzle in that it challenges you to backward-figure how to get the end result.
Squares is available now for Google Play and the App Store
4
Dungeon Drop
Is it a dungeon crawler? Sure. Is it a sliding-tile puzzler? Sure. It's both. Dungeon Drop is both.
Traps, enemies and loot await down the column-like dungeon which you'll attempt to descend in Dungeon Drop. You play it through sliding along different rows to drop your hero down through the different floors - if you are quick then you can pull them further along the levels to pick up extra items, or maybe it's too dangerous and trap-laden for you to do that. Due to the pace of it you feel compelled to try and rush forward, however its definitely wise to play it at a slower pace, for both your sanity and your heroes life.
Dungeon Drop is available now on the App Store
5
99 Dead Pirates
99 Dead Pirates was a complete surprise for me. It's essentially a carefully timed combat sequence with each life intersected with a choose-your-own-adventure style. You control an over-dressed, lumbering pirate who must - it would seem - fight his way through the titular band of deceased deck-swabbers. Controls are incredibly simple, jump forward, jump backward, tap to attack and hold to charge a big attack. A few items are added into the mix - which do persist between runs - but it's purely down to timing and dodging.
It's incredibly dark and moody, and combined with that clunky movement and dodge-attack timing it's hard to not draw comparisons to Dark Souls. But, regardless of that feeling, it's a really solid little title to play in short bursts. As you progress further and further you'll start to find story scrolls which give you a little bit of backstory about what has happened - but, best of all, this has interactive fiction options meaning that you can change the way the story unfurled to get you to this undead-bashing carnival.
99 Dead Pirates is available now for Google Play
