It’s time for our weekly roundup of the best new Android apps and games to have emerged on the Google Play store.
As ever, prices are correct at the time of writing, but may have changed by the time you read this. (Free + IAP) means in-app purchases are used within the app.
Want more apps? Browse previous Best Android Apps roundups on The Guardian. And if you’re looking for iOS apps, browse the archives of Best iPhone and iPad apps roundups instead.
APPS
Rove (Free)
Rove is pitched as an “automated journal” that tracks your daily movements, then adds in your photos for a record of what you’ve been up to. Well, at least the parts you’ve photographed. Its developer promises it’s “100% private” but as a free app, you might wonder how it’ll make money in a way that doesn’t clash with that ethos.
Fantasy Soccer (Free)
Or “football” as we Brits like to chippily call it. Yahoo’s new app is a fantasy football game that breaks the mould by looking beyond the (English) Premier League: the top divisions from Spain, Italy, Germany and France are also included. It ties in to Yahoo’s web-based fantasy competition.
Unclouded (Free + IAP)
If you use Google Drive and/or Dropbox for cloud storage, Unclouded might be a really useful app to have installed on your phone. You can browse either service to see which folders and file types are hoovering up your storage space, then (if you upgrade to the premium version) clean them up.
Over (£0.59 + IAP)
There are plenty of rubbish apps out there for adding text to your photos before sharing them on social networks. Over is one of the few good ones: created with an eye for design, its fonts are attractive, and its user interface gives you lots of control over your final image.
Peppa Pig Theme Park (£3.99)
Peppa Pig remains hugely popular among children, as you’ll know if you’ve trailed round her theme park (and its shop) with a hyperventilating toddler. This is her latest app for Android: a collection of 10 mini-games and creative activities for young fans, with – shock! – a theme park theme.
The Art of Thinking Clearly (£1.49)
In its book form, The Art of Thinking Clearly has sold more than a million copies. Now it’s an app, promising no-nonsense advice on your real-life decisions, from money and work to people. You answer questions to uncover “cognitive biases” that may lead you down the wrong path.
Zoe (Free)
Zoe is the work of handset maker HTC, although it’s not restricted to its own Android devices. It’s yet another app for adding filters to photos and videos, then sharing them to social networks. Its features look good, but with the likes of Instagram out there, it may face a challenge catching on.
Shoot in the 70’s (Free + IAP)
Very much an app for football fans in their 50s, reproducing as it does issues of Shoot magazine from the 1970s. That said, there’s plenty of interest for younger fans with an interest in football history too – or in the history of footballer haircuts, which is frequently a hoot.
Snap Clap (Free)
Finally, a one-shot (literally) app that takes a photo when you clap your hands. The idea being that you can use it instead of a timer to take shots where you’re in the picture too – group photos, for example. A novelty, but perhaps useful too.
GAMES
Surgeon Simulator (£3.99)
Bossa Studios had a big hit with its blood-spattered medical sim on other platforms, but now it’s on Android – and as messy as ever. Your job is to operate on “the world’s unluckiest patient” transplanting teeth, eyes and double-kidneys while trying not to kill him off on the operating table.
Crazy Taxi City Rush (Free + IAP)
Some players are reporting crashes (not the on-road kind) while others are grumbling about the free-to-play aspects of Sega’s reboot of its Crazy Taxi game. But I’ve found it pretty fun: you barrel around town picking up and dropping off fares. Veterans of the Dreamcast edition may be turned off, but it could pick up newer players.
Dragon Quest IV (£10.49)
Talking of old console games, here’s publisher Square Enix with its latest retro reboot: roleplaying game Dragon Quest IV. If you harbour fond memories of the original game, you’ll love wallowing in nostalgia: it’s a faithful port. Its high price (for mobile games) may put off newer adventurers, though.
Dungeon Defenders Eternity (£5.85)
The original Dungeon Defenders game was great on iOS: a combination of tower defence fending off hordes attacking your dungeon, and action-RPG as you waded in to join the battle. This is the “definitive version” with more missions and gameplay improvements, complete with a four-player online co-op mode.
Manuganu 2 (Free + IAP)
The first Manuganu game was a treat on Android, with its mixture of endless-running and traditional platform gaming. Now it’s got a sequel, with its hero now able to fly and swim. The presentation looks as impressive as the first game, with 40 levels and four bosses to work your way past.
Ride ‘Em Rigby - Regular Show (£0.59)
My children can’t get enough of Regular Show on TV, so I suspect its spin-off game will find a fair few fans young and old. It’s a not-quite endless (there are 20 levels) racing game that sees hero Rigby hanging on to a rampaging Muscle Man in the local park, picking up power-ups to stay attached. Great fun.
Unpossible (£1.17)
Already a critically-acclaimed hit on iOS, Unpossible looks just as good on Android. It sees you dodging your way through neon-splashed levels, tilting or touching according to your preferred controls. Survive long enough, and you unlock new levels, but be warned, it’s very tough.
Ice Age Adventures (Free + IAP)
Be warned, parents, this game based on the Ice Age films has sky-high in-app purchase, so make sure your restrictions are turned on before letting a child play. It’s an adventure game starring Sid, Manny and Diego that wraps in Candy Crush-style match-three puzzles to unlock animals to use as power-ups.
Bik - A Space Adventure (£0.58)
Bik is the latest Android game inspired by the heyday of point’n’click adventures on PC, with charming pixelly visuals, an alien theme and plenty to see and do. If you grew up with the Monkey Island and King’s Quest games, it may bring the memories flooding back.
Talisman (£4.79 + IAP)
The digital edition of the classic Games Workshop board game has been available on Android in “Prologue” form since last year, but now the full thing has been released. It sees you choosing a fantasy character then exploring a world – as represented in board-game form – slapping down monsters and levelling up as you go. Expansions will be sold as in-app purchases.
Sumico - The Numbers Game (Free + IAP)
Finally, something for anyone who’s been enjoying number-puzzle games like Threes! in recent months. Sumico gets you swiping on a board of numbers and mathematical symbols, clearing each level to progress to the next. A simple idea, but with truly brain-stretching gameplay once you get into it.
Those are our picks, but what have you been enjoying on Android this week? Post your recommendations (or feedback on these) in the comments section.
• 40 best Android games of 2014 (so far)
