Category: Opinion »

Fortnite has been the big hitter in mobile gaming this year, and it's not hard to see why. Thanks to some excellent marketing, and a polished experience that almost anyone can enjoy, it's really taken the App Store by storm.

But there are other battle royale experiences out there if you want to try something different. Some of them are terrible though, so we thought it'd be a good idea to round up what we think are the very best games like Fortnite for iPhone.

We've included links that will let you download the games as well, we're good like that. If you think we've got our suggestions wrong, then feel free to add your own in the comments at the bottom of the article. And don't forget to check out all the other lists on the site by clicking here. Now, without further ado, let's get on with the choices.

Pokemon GO is still the, if you'll excuse the pun, go-to game if you want some AR action on your phone. But it's not the only choice out there, and if you've got a hankering for something a bit different, then your eyes might already have started wandering. Which is why we've written this list of the best iPhone games like Pokemon GO.

Some of them follow pretty similar templates, albeit with different franchises or concepts wrapped around them. But we've pulled a couple from leftfield as well, to give you some different options if that's what you're after. Our aim is to make sure everyone downloads at least one game from this list. We're nothing if not optimistic.

You've probably got your own suggestions about what games should be on this list. If that's the case, make sure you toss them into the comments section at the bottom of the article. And if you click here you'll be able to check out all of our other awesome game lists as well. So that's pretty neat.

Starcraft sits at the top of the RTS tree for a number of very good reasons. It also isn't on mobile, again, for a number of very good reasons. But that doesn't mean you can't find a way to indulge your sci-fi, competitive, massive, or engaging RTS desires if you know where to look.

Luckily, we do know where to look. Essentially it's our job, so we've trawled the App Store to find the best experiences that we think are going to at least sate your Starcraft cravings before you get back home to your PC where you can play properly.

We've chosen what we think are the finest games, but it's entirely possible that you disagree with us. If that's the case, then feel free to chuck your own suggestions in the comments section and get some discussion going. And if you're interested in content presented in list form, make sure you click this link and check out all the rest of the lists we've written.

The Room has had a massive impact on the world of mobile gaming. Not only is it a brilliant adventure, it also shows how the touchscreen controls on your iPhone can be turned into something far more elegant and tactile than just a bunch of buttons. But what to do when you've finished playing through all four games in The Room saga?

That's why we've written this list. So that when it's time to put The Room down, you're not going to have to go cold turkey. The games on this list aren't just clones though, they build on the ideas of The Room and throw their own into the mix as well.

Obviously, if you've got your own suggestions, feel free to chuck them in the comments section at the bottom of the article. And if you want to read more of the awesome lists we write on a weekly basis, you can check them out by clicking right here.

Six months ago this week, Genshin Impact released on multiple platforms, promising a vast open world of adventure and element-based combat. The only catch was that all of this action would be monetized via virtual slot machines known colloquially as "gacha."

Gacha games have their advantages in that they have a low barrier to entry, allowing players to hop into an experience without having to spend any money. The dark side of this design is that all of the most desirable game items and characters are locked inside a storefront that uses myriad psychological tricks to convince you that spending money for more chances to use this slot machine is a good idea (it's not).

The folks behind the Rusty Lake games have just put a new title onto the App Store. Second Maze, Rusty Lake's collaborative publishing brand, has just brought this 10 year old adventure game from Gal Mamalya to mobile. The best part about all of this is thatMitoza is completely free.

The announcement that Dungeon of the Endless is making a return to the App Store via Playdigious as Dungeon of the Endless: Apogee is probably the most exciting mobile news to come out this month. Why? Because Dungeon of the Endless rules, it's perfect for mobile, and it's a shame that it ever got removed from the App Store to begin with.

Anyone who talks to me about games knows that I haven't been able to shut up about Genshin Impact since its launch this past fall. It's a game with a lot of faults--namely its predatory monetization scheme--but it also provides a vast (and interesting!) open world, a novel and nuanced combat system, and a surprisingly compelling story, all of which you can experience without spending a dime.

Since my initial burst of playing in September, though, my excitement to log in every day was beginning to wane. New events and characters were nice new additions, but they weren't entirely well-conceived or received. That is, until miHoYo pushed their 1.2 update which unveiled a new region of Teyvat: Dragonspine Mountain.

Star Wars: Knight of the Old Republic II just released on the App Store, and it's not exactly pretty. To be fair, this is over 15 years old, so bringing it to mobile likely has its challenges. That said, the second installment in the Knights of the Old Republic series comes to iOS with a janky control scheme and some bugs that disrupt combat.

Check out the video above where I get through the first real challenge of the game: fighting the mining droids on Peragus. In it, you'll see some struggles with movement, collision issues with combat maneuvering, and even a strange bug that locks your character in place after combat.

From there, you can pass over shelling out $9.99 for this game and pick something else up. This is not the port you're looking for.

Last week, the massively anticipated Genshin Impact released, and now it seems to be the only game anyone's talking about. There's a good reason for this, or rather several. It looks great, it's free, and it actually follows through as an experience that takes meaningful inspiration from Breath of the Wild.

In case you're looking at Genshin Impact from the outside wondering if it's all it's cracked up to be, you're in the right place. The short answer is yes, but here's some more things that might inform whether you should dive into the game.

Apple Arcade has persisted for just over a year at this point, and although that means I've been busy ranking and re-ranking every game on the service for just about as long, I haven't done much reflection on the service as a whole.

If you want the short version, I think Apple has done a decent job at providing a wide variety of titles on its service, and their near-weekly new releases and title updates give you a reason to dive back into the service on a regular basis. That said, the dedication to keeping Arcade feeling fresh alone doesn't quite justify the cost of subscribing, and it seems like Apple has to put in some more work if they want this service to flourish.

Yesterday, Bloomberg reported that Apple is disappointed in the performance of Apple Arcade and will be shifting their approach to the service by focusing on games that can retain subscribers and canceling other upcoming releases that don't fit this new vision.

Honestly, the only surprising thing about this news in my mind is the timing. Apple Arcade hasn't even been live for a year, and half of its existence has been admist a global pandemic, mass unemployment, and burgeoning civil unrest. If Apple was confident about its approach to its new games service, I would've thought they'd give it a little more time and leeway before shifting their approach.

I have been enjoying Apple Arcade and have been a loyal subscriber since it launched back in September. I've even given each game on the service a fair shake. But there's no denying that the service hasn't lived up to its promises.

Golf on Mars is a minimalist golf game and the follow up to Desert Golfing. In it, you traverse a seemingly unending Martian landscape by hitting a golf ball from hole to hole using the tried-and-true pull-and-release touch control scheme popularized by Angry Birds. But there are no birds here, much less any that explode. Nor are there powerups, enemies, menus, or even levels. It's just you, the ball, the holes, and the seemingly endless Martian landscape for you to navigate. Oh, and there's a counter at the top that's tracking your total stroke count, too.

It's hard to find good racing games on mobile. Most of them are free-to-play, and free-to-play racers generally suck. Even Nintendo couldn't put together a competent Mario Kart game, opting instead for a weird score chaser that resembles--but feels nothing like--actual Mario Kart.

So, when Nexon released KartRider Rush+ earlier this week, I had low expectations, but I decided to boot it up and try it out anyway. I played a few races, and then I played some more. Then I joined a racing club, found myself friending people, and racing even more. Before I knew it, my week was consumed with playing KartRider Rush+ because--somehow--it has managed to create a free-to-play racing experience that actually feels good.

There's no escaping the fact that everyone loves Dark Souls. If you've not heard of it, it's a super tough action RPG that punished your every mistake with swift retribution. It's the sort of game where you die a lot, and it can be pretty intimidating trying to get on board with the systems it throws at you.

But you can't play it on your iPhone. Well, there's Slashy Souls, but to be honest the less said about that the better. If you're looking to get some Souls-style action on the go though, there are plenty of options waiting for you on the App Store.

Rather than leaving you to find all of them for yourself though, we thought we'd do a list and round-up what we think are the five best games like Dark Souls for iOS. If you think we're wrong, or you've got your own suggestions to chuck into the mix, let us know in the comments at the bottom of the article.

And while we're at it, why not click here and check out all the other awesome lists we've created for your viewing pleasure. Right then, on with the games.