Google Play hosts over 478 million games. Unfortunately, for mobile game enthusiasts that is what is known as glut. The reasons for this plastic sea of games are myriad but the end result is about 90% of said titles are trash. Still, we remain hopeful about the platform and its possibilities. Possibilities occasionally realized with great ports, cross-platform titles, indies and every once in a blue a great freemium title like Genshin Impact. With all of the above firmly in mind, let’s take a gander at the prospect of mobile gaming in 2024.
The Good
Into the Dead 3
We absolutely loved PIKPOK’s Into the Dead 1 and 2, and while both FPS’s were suffuse with microtransactions. The premise, the concise, sharp gameplay outshined the constant requests for more dollars. We remain hopeful about this one.
Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition
Yes, the translations to mobile did not equate to the most ideal iterations of Grand Theft Auto. But, with your phone strapped to a controller, you can have an absolute blast with each one of these sublime bad boys. What’s more, mobile GTA players have long been chomping at the bit for updates for these great core titles.
Final Fantasy VI Ever Crisis
This one looks gorgeous and promises to be a fully remade contemporary version of what is arguably Square’s greatest iteration of the Final Fantasy franchise.
So, while it is sadly being offered piecemeal and for free with IAPs, we believe and hope that overall Square will not let freemium mechanics interfere with the brilliance that is Final Fantasy VII. And certainly the final release of Final Fantasy VI Ever Crisis could prove us wrong.
Little Nightmares
We are thrilled that horror game and puzzle-platformer Little Nightmares is making its way to mobile
While we found Very Little Nightmares and absolute blast, we are looking forward with great interest to the full, original version of this superb indie title.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Mobile
Well, COD Mobile was a solid freemium title by any measure. So, there’s that. What’s more, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Mobile promises both cross-platform progression and up to 120 players per match. Overall, very promising.
The Bad
Plants vs. Zombies 3
We loved Plants vs. Zombies 2, in 2013. Since then, however, the idea that this once great IP has been littered through with microtransactions makes us ornery. We do not love the microtransactions in PV2, so we remain highly skeptical about Electronic Arts making Plants vs. Zombies 3 mobile only.
The Ugly
Warcraft Rumble Arclight
“Say it aint so, Joe!” purportedly yelped at superstar Shoeless Joe Jackson by a young baseball fan on the occasion of the former throwing The World Series for a big stack of cash. Much like good ole Joe, Blizzard, once a beacon of light in the gaming world, has clearly sold its soul to Mammon (the demon of greed) and the coin-op paradigm that is corroding contemporary gaming. We don’t mean Hearthstone, nor most of Blizzard’s other products. We speak of high-end cash grab Diablo Immortal. We’ve come to the solid conclusion that free-ablo is an absurd hunk of jet trash. And now, Blizzard’s latest mobile strategy title will be loosely based on Supercell’s pay-to-win Clash Royale. Say it aint so.
The WDK
Rainbow Six Mobile
The Rainbow Six franchise goes back to the heyday of gaming, and has over the years provided a handful of legendary titles to eager tacticians. What’s more, Ubisoft’s Rainbow Six Siege was a rather cool and relatively unique tactical shooter. While it was a paid game with microtransactions, its IAPs were all cosmetic. However, we remain wary. Too many times we’ve seen the mobile versions of AAA titles go south into pay to win land. For now, we are hopeful, but overall will remain on the fence about Rainbow Six Mobile until we play it.
Assassin’s Creed Codename Jade
Looks brilliant: an open world Assassins Creed game, but, as above, we are concerned about monetization. In short, both the Assassins Creed IP and Ubisoft have a checkered history on mobile. So, the best we can say is we’ll see about Assassin’s Creed Codename Jade when it releases.
Mortal Kombat: Onslaught
Mortal Kombat on mobile is a place where hope goes to die. Yet we haven’t abandoned all hope yet. NetherRealm Studios has done some fine work with MK in the past. On the other hand, Mortal Kombat has consistently proven a bone fide outhouse on mobile devices. So, we are just going to hope, for now, that Mortal Kombat: Onslaught proves our last point wrong.
