Mobile gaming is known for being affordable, and publishers love to put games at a low price. Unlike Steam, PlayStation Network, or even the Nintendo eShop, mobile games traditionally go on sale for low fees to convince interested app store users to put down money on a game. While there are plenty of free games you can download and give a try, those titles usually have a great deal of monetization hidden away. For the following titles, you pay the price one time, and you can enjoy everything the game has to offer. Here are the best games (in alphabetical order) you can get on either Android or iOS for 99 cents.
Evertale
Evertale is an RPG in the style of a Pokémon game. You jump into a world filled with monsters that you capture, train, and evolve to battle down the line. While Pokémon Go mixes up the Pokémon formula, Evertale is a classic monster-catching experience for the mobile crowd. It also is no small game, as it contains over 180 monsters, six regions to explore, and both offline and online functionality.
Hitman Sniper
If you are so obsessed with Hitman 3 that you need to bring Agent 47 with you wherever you go, we recommend giving Hitman Sniper a try. While based on Hitman Absolution from back in the day, the game is a great tactical game that is wholly unique from any other mobile game you can purchase on app stores. With over 150 missions, online leaderboards, and even a zombie mode, you will continually find reasons to come back to the game.
Infinite Flight
Do you look at Microsoft Flight Simulator and wish your PC could run the behemoth of a game? We are not saying Infinite Flight will give the same experience as that title, but if you enjoy flying around, it will not let you down for merely a dollar. You have access to dozens of planes and multiple locations that have been scanned by satellites to be accurate renditions of that area, like Microsoft Flight Simulator. If you fall in love with the game, you can sign up for a subscription model to get even more out of the game.
Lifeline
Lifeline is a story game molded by the writer of the acclaimed comic, Fables: The Wolf Among Us. This is a survival story where you are in direct contact with Taylor, who has been stranded on an alien moon. The game plays out in real-time, with Taylor sending you message notifications out of the game, giving you context clues that can send the story in various directions. If you emphasize the narrative of a game, Lifeline is one of the best you will find on mobile devices.
Mini Metro
Mini Metro is a subway simulator that has gained recognition from critics and fans for being one of the better mobile games available. Your job is to plan out the subway’s track across a randomly growing city. The game may look simple from the outside, but the complexity of making your subway run the most efficiently is an addictive hook that will have you spending a lot of time on Mini Metro.
Pirates Outlaws
Pirates Outlaws features card-based battling that will require you to continually better yourself as you search for treasure and battle enemies. There are multiple game modes available focused on combat and exploration, so if you are looking for a pirate game to get into, give this one a try. Roguelike fans in particular will like the mechanics and gameplay of this title.
Plague Inc.
After the COVID-19 pandemic, the last thing you want to think about is any form of spreading illness. That being said, Plague Inc. is an absolutely brilliant game that you can sink a ton of time and attention into. You create your own illness and need to infect and eradicate all human life before humans can create a cure. It’s simple, challenging, and surprisingly deep.
Rovio Classics: Angry Birds
The original Angry Birds game was one of the original driving forces for mobile titles in the 2000s. If you were having a conversation about cell phones at the time, there was a good chance you were talking about this game. Years later, Rovio has revived the title with a full remake that includes nearly 400 levels.
Scribblenauts Remix
Based heavily on both Scribblenauts and Super Scribblenauts, Scribblenauts Remix takes 40 levels from the first two games. It brings new additions into the mix, letting players solve puzzles by spawning objects with adjectives and nouns. Enormous in size and incredibly hilarious, Scribblenauts Remix makes a great addition to any gamer’s mobile library.
The Impossible Game
Unsurprisingly, The Impossible Game is not an easy game to beat. You control an orange square as it travels on a path filled with black squares and triangles. The black squares act like safe boxes to give you a little boost for jumping. If you come into contact with the triangles, you die and have to start over. The Impossible Game takes a great deal of patience and coordination for a game with one control input.
