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The 5 best iOS, Android, and VR games at E3 2015

Siblings! Toast! Archeologists!

The 5 best iOS, Android, and VR games at E3 2015
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| E3 2015

If mobile games had elbows, the ones at E3 2015 would be particularly sharp.

Mobile gaming was a key feature of this year's show, constructing booths right alongside console and PC giants with the same fervour that Columbus once colonised America.

Over 70 developers peddling games on mobile devices displayed their wares over the four-day event – all with the required dramatic flair expected from an E3 show floor stand.

It was the highest number of mobile games on show in E3 history, but there were a few in particular that stood out. After running up some extensive cardio round the LA exhibition center, we've rounded up five of them.

Lara Croft Go
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Lara Croft has been recognised by the Guinness Book of World Records as the "Most Successful Human Virtual Game Heroine" - a considerable achievement when you consider that she started life with polygon boobs so pointy that giving her a hug would result in two punctured lungs.

Fast forward to present day and Tomb Raider's consonant clipping heroine has fully embraced modern day gaming.

Lara Croft Go is a puzzle adventure game for mobile that was revealed at E3 by Square Enix. It follows in the footsteps of Hitman Go: a cleanly formed assassin simulator where Agent 47 stalked his prey across table-top boardgame landscapes.

The Tomb Raider version sees Lara navigating caves and jungle ruins, but without the flips and tricks of her console cousin. She'll leap off a ledge, but only by following a very strict linear path that plays into a wider puzzle that tasks you with getting her from A to B.

The art style is slick, and the soundtrack even slicker with melodies reminiscent of Monument Valley's dulcet tones. Lara Croft Go will be available on iOS and Android soon.

Fallout Shelter
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Not only did Bethesda pull the cloak off a new standalone mobile game at its E3 press conference, it launched it into the app store stratosphere at exactly the same time.

Fallout Shelter is a resource management game set in the same nuclear apocalypse that you may have played through on PC.

While many huffed the expected complaints over it being free to play, those grumbles quickly became grins as people discovered how well the mobile version pours bottles of traditional Fallout flavour into the mobile version.

Bethesda's Fallout Shelter draws inspiration from Tiny Tower and The Sims, tasking you with overseeing an entire nuclear disaster safe vault. That means managing the population, fending off attacks, and exploring the surrounding wastelands.

It's so far only available on iOS, but Bethesda has confirmed it'll be launching Fallout Shelter on Android in a few months.

Samsung Gear VR
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There were 22 virtual reality companies displaying their ware at this year's E3, but the Samsung Gear VR was a standout fan favourite.

Born of a partnership between Oculus and Samsung, the $199 headset currently boasts over 25 games playable on a Galaxy Note 4 or S6 smartphone.

Our demo at E3 involved ogling at a gigantic long-neck dinosaur courtesy of a cinematic Jurassic World demo. There's a plethora of other games however, including goblin slaying in Hero Bound: First Steps, telepathic puzzler Esper, and a VR version of mobile classic Temple Run.

I am Bread
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I am Bread tells "the beautiful story of one slice of bread's epic and emotional journey as it embarks upon a quest to become toasted."

Yes, that was said with a straight face. And yes, this iOS adventure puzzler has the potential to become the best thing since sliced… you know what.

Published by 505 Games, I Am Bread is actually the prequel to Surgeon Simulator and explains in depth how the man whose organs you fiddle with ends up on the operating table.

Expect the same tricky controls, physics-based controls, and bang-your-head-against-your-tablet levels of difficulty as you attempt to guide a slice of bread across a kitchen to the toaster.

Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons
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Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons first spilled on to PC in 2013 as the virtual, more compelling version of "hey, can you pat your head and rub your tummy at the same time?"

Two years later, it's now on mobile thanks to 505 Games. You control each brother with two on-screen joystick controls simultaneously, which can make traversing difficult puzzles a bit of a stickler.

It was critically acclaimed when it first came out, and the smoothness of the mobile version's controls alongside the same heart-wrenching story as before has already garnered similar praise.

From the craggy peaks of mountains to the dark depths of underground caves, A Tale of Two Sons plays beautifully on mobile and will debut fully at the end of this year.

Alysia Judge
Alysia Judge
After spending months persuading her parents that it's a valuable career path, Alysia is still not bored with writing about games. That's a good thing really, since skills like spaceship navigation and zombie slaying are pretty much non-transferable.