Top Android Games

Turn your smartphone into a handheld console with the best Android games out there. We weeded through the thousands of titles to bring you the cream of the crop.

For a long time, the Android Market was a gaming ghetto, full of ripoffs and incomplete games. It paled in comparison to Apple’s thriving iPhone game selection. Mostly, this is still the case, but in recent months a number of developers have begun bringing their works to Google’s smartphone platform. Things are beginning to change for gamers on Android. As such, we’ve listed out more than 15 of the best Android games currently available on the platform. Some are free and some cost a couple bucks, but all provide a good time.
There are thousands of Android games. If you think we missed a particularly awesome one, comment and tell us about it!
Looking to buy an Android phone? Check out our picks for The Best Android Phones.
Also check out our Best Android apps article for a look at all the top applications for Android phones

Arcade & Action

Battleheart ($2.99)

This is the first RPG we’ve recommended, but it’s really only half an RPG. While most RPGs have you roam around an overworld and talk to NPCs between battles, Battleheart gets right down to the action. You go from battle to battle, leveling up, purchasing upgrades, and changing your team as you go. It sounds less fun than a traditional RPG, but Mika is on to something. With a real-time touch battle system that is simple enough for anyone to learn, Battleheart manages to keep battles fresh and interesting. It doesn’t skimp either. The game has casters, healers, tanks, and most basic classes you’d expect from a game of its kind. There are a healthy number of upgrades and weaponry available and the fun, flashy art style definitely helps as well.

Angry Birds Space (Free)

Just when you thought Angry Birds had left the nest, Rovio brings it back. Angry Birds Space is the first true sequel to Birds and comes packed with classic bird-slinging action, but entirely new types of puzzles. The space setting allows the game to toy with gravity and planets. Now, birds fly in whatever direction the gravity goes, adding a whole new dynamic. Since each planet has its own gravity field (like a halo around the planet), you can make birds spin around planets and fly in all sorts of directions. Read our full Angry Birds Space review.

Toki Tori ($2.99)

Toki Tori is a puzzler in the vein of Mario vs Donkey Kong with a little Blinx: The Timesweeper mixed in for good measure. Haven’t played either of those games? Well, that’s okay. Here’s what you need to know: you’re a hatched chicken and you need to save your trapped friends. In your way are a host of mean creatures and dangerous obstacles! Fortunately, you’re no ordinary chicken…guy. You’re a chicken…guy with telepathic powers and guns.
Toki Tori looks and controls much better than most current Android games, likely because of its iOS origins. You can blame its price on the iPhone too. However, if you have three bucks to spend, you’ll find few games as thought out and put together as Toki Tori.
(Similar games: Abduction, Abduction 2, Abduction: World Attack, Doodle Jump)

Air Attack HD Part 1 (Free)

Air Attack may be the best looking Android game yet. It’s a top-down arcade shooter in the style of Space Invaders and a thousand other arcade games, though it does have a moving background. The controls are simple, letting you move your finger around the screen to dodge enemy fighters and destroy them. This isn’t an innovative game, but it’s incredibly polished, delivering some solid action. Downloading the game is kind of strange. It comes in three parts on the Market. You can get Part 1 for free, but if you do that, you’ll have to buy Part 2 for $2. However, you can also download the full game (it takes up some space), for $3. Check it out!

Cut the Rope ($1.02)

Cut the Rope is, hands down, the best puzzle game we’ve played since Angry Birds. It will never reach the heights of popularity that Rovio has, but it’s certainly just as fun. Following the winning formula of combining universally cute graphics with an addictive puzzle element, Cut the Rope has you attempting to collect stars as you feed the hungry baby monster “Om Nom” some candy. You do this by selectively cutting ropes with a swipe of your finger. The concept isn’t the winner here, it’s the level design. Even as Cut the Rope’s near endless number of levels get more difficult, the game always makes it incredibly easy to retry and never puts a time limit on you. This makes the game a somewhat stress-free experience, even compared to Birds and other games that give you unlimited lives. Because of its no pressure approach, we found ourselves striving for higher scores as much as we were trying to beat the levels. Give this one a buy. You won’t be disappointed.

NinJump (Free)

NinJump comes to us from the iPhone App Store and is a new entry in a genre that was pioneered on mobile phones. Entirely based on timing, the game only needs a single button. You play as a ninja  who must fight off killer squirrels, throwing stars, and exploding bombs.
Here’s how it works: You can’t fly, but you can run straight up buildings. Your goal is to get to the top of a high rise apartment complex. Unfortunately, this is the most dangerous apartment complex we’ve ever seen. Like the classic mobile games NOM and Super Sketcher, your character is always running. By tapping the screen you hop from one building to the other (left to right). You must avoid running or crashing into obstacles and your only weapon is your sword as you jump from side to side. Points are awarded if you destroy things in mid-air.
Like many current Android games, NinJump is not a wholly original concept, but it is well-executed and free. It’s a good way to kill five minutes. Check it out.
(Similar game: City Jump)

Fruit Ninja ($1.24)

Fruit Ninja has been out a while, but we never leave it alone for too long. The game is simple: fruit flies into the air and you must slice it before it falls. You do this by swiping across it with your finger. If it sounds too simple or boring, don’t knock it till you try it. Fruit Ninja has become a staple on almost every casual games platform, from the iPhone to the Xbox Live Arcade. It’s a high score game like Tetris, where you play until the game gets so difficult that you die. And it’s a good one.
(Similar games: Slice It!)

Defender (Free)

The Android world is still scarce on famous games, so we sometimes have to put up with ripoffs. Defender is a defend-the-castle game that’s been done a hundred times, but simple games like these never get old, especially if they come with a bit of polish. Robots are attacking your castle and you have to tap on them to shoot ‘em with your giant ballista. The addition of spells and mana is a nice touch, allowing you to take out a group of robots at once when things get tough. Best, it looks good on tablets and phones.

Tank Hero (Free)

Ever play the tank game in Nintendo’s Wii Play collection? It’s pretty addictive, and so is Tank Hero. Your goal is to destroy the other tanks. It’s simple and fun. Some tanks are faster, some shoot missiles, some drop mines, and some are just plain crafty. The controls take a minute to get used to, but work very well. Using your left thumb, you steer the tank like a D-Pad. To fire, you simply tap on the screen in the general direction you’d like to fire in. The graphics are gorgeous, especially for a free Android game and it plays without a hitch on older devices as well (we played on a Motorola Droid).
(Similar games: BattleTanks)