June is in the books and it’s was another great month on the App Store.
Our list has something for everyone including a mutant soap opera and tons of puzzlers.
See the entire list here.
برچسب: games
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Google Play’s Indie Games Fund in Latin America returns for its 4th year
Posted by Daniel Trócoli – Google Play Partnerships
We’re thrilled to announce the return of Google Play’s Indie Games Fund (IGF) in Latin America for its fourth consecutive year! This year, we’re once again committing $2 million to empower another 10 indie game studios across the region. With this latest round of funding, our total investment in Latin American indie games will reach an impressive $8 million USD.
Since its inception, the IGF has been a cornerstone of our commitment to fostering growth for developers of all sizes on Google Play. We’ve seen firsthand the transformative impact this support has had, enabling studios to expand their teams, refine their creations, and reach new audiences globally.
What’s in store for the Indie Games Fund in 2025?
Just like in previous years, selected small game studios based in Latin America will receive a share of the $2 million fund, along with support from the Google Play team.
As Vish Game Studio, a previously selected studio, shared: “The IGF was a pivotal moment for our studio, boosting us to the next level and helping us form lasting connections.” We believe in fostering these kinds of pivotal moments for all our selected studios.
The program is open to indie game developers who have already launched a game, whether it’s on Google Play, another mobile platform, PC, or console. Each selected recipient will receive between $150,000 and $200,000 to help them elevate their game and realize their full potential.
Check out all eligibility criteria and apply now! Applications will close at 12:00 PM BRT on July 31, 2025. To give your application the best chance, remember that priority will be given to applications received by 12:00 PM BRT on July 15, 2025.
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Get ready for the next generation of gameplay powered by Play Games Services
Posted by Chris Wilk – Group Product Manager, Games on Google Play
To captivate players and grow your game, you need tools that enhance discovery and retention. Play Games Services (PGS) is your key to unlocking a suite of services that connect you with over 2 billion monthly active players. PGS empowers you to drive engagement through features like achievements and increase retention with promotions tailored to each gameplay progress. These tools are designed to help you deliver relevant and compelling content that keeps players coming back.
We are continuously evolving gaming on Play, and this year, we’re introducing more PGS-powered experiences to give you deeper player insights and greater visibility in the Play Store. To access these latest advancements and ensure continued functionality, you must migrate from PGS v1 to PGS v2 by May 2026. Let’s take a closer look at what’s new:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-6b_wWF96U
Drive discovery and engagement by rewarding gameplay progress
We’re fundamentally transforming how achievements work in the Play Store, making them a key driver for a great gaming experience. Now deeply embedded across the store, achievements are easily discoverable via search filters and game detail pages, and further drive engagement when offered with Play Points.
At a minimum, you should have at least 15 achievements spread across the lifetime of the game, in the format of incremental achievements to show progress. Games that enable players to earn at least 5 achievements in the first 2 hours of gameplay are most successful in driving deeper engagement*.
The most engaging titles offer 40 or more achievements with diverse types of goals including leveling up characters, game progression, hidden surprises, or even failed attempts. To help you get the most out of achievements, we’ve made it easier to create achievements with bulk configuration in Play Console.
For eligible titles*, Play activates quests to reward players for completing achievements – for example with Play Points. Supercell activated quests for Hay Day, leading to an average 177% uplift in installs*. You can tailor your quests to achieve specific campaign objectives, whether it’s attracting high-value players or driving spend through repeated engagement, all while making it easy to jump back into your game.
Hay Day boosted new installs with achievement-based quests Increase retention with tailored promotions
Promotional content is a vital tool for you to highlight new events, major content updates, and exciting offers within your game. It turns Play into a direct marketing channel to re-engage with your players. We’ve enhanced audience targeting capabilities so you can tailor your content to reach and convert the most relevant players.
By integrating PGS, you can use the Play Grouping API to create custom segments based on gameplay context*. Using this feature, Kabam launched promotional content to custom audiences for Marvel Contest of Champions, resulting in a 4x increase in lapsed user engagement*.
Marvel Contest of Champions increased retention with targeted promotional content Start implementing PGS features today
PGS is designed to make the sign-in experience more seamless for players, automatically syncing their progress and identity across Android devices. With a single tap, they can pick up where they left off or start a new game from any screen. Whether you use your own sign-in solution, services from third parties, or a combination of both, we’ve made it easier to integrate Play Games Services with the Recall API.
To ensure a consistent sign-in experience for all players, we’re phasing out PGS v1.
All games currently using PGS v1 must migrate to PGS v2 by May 2026. After this date, you will no longer be able to publish or update games that use the v1 SDK.
Below you’ll find the timeline to plan your migration:
Migration guide
May 2025 As announced at I/O, new apps using PGS v1 can no longer be published. While existing apps can release updates with v1 and the APIs are still functional, you’ll need to migrate by May 2026, and APIs will be fully shut down in 2028. May 2026
APIs are still functional for users, but are no longer included in the SDK. New app versions compiled with the most recent SDK would fail in the build process if your code still uses the removed APIs. If your app still relies on any of these APIs, you should migrate to PGS v2 as soon as possible. Q3 2028 APIs are no longer functional and will fail when a request is sent by an app. Looking ahead, more opportunities powered by PGS
Coming soon, players will be able to generate unique, AI-powered avatars within their profiles – creating fun, diverse representations of their gaming selves. With PGS integration, developers can allow players to carry over their avatar within the game. This enables players to showcase their gaming identity across the entire gameplay experience, creating an even stronger motivation to re-engage with your game.
Gen AI avatar profiles create more player-centric experiences PGS is the foundational tool for maximizing your business growth on Play, enabling you to tailor your content for each player and access the latest gameplay innovations on the platform. Stay tuned for more PGS features coming this year to provide an even richer player experience.
* To be eligible, the title must participate in Play Points, integrate Play Games Services v2, and have achievements configured in Play Console.
* Data source from partner. Average incremental installs over a 14-day period.
* Data source from partner.
* The Play Grouping API provides strong measures to protect privacy for end users, including user-visible notification when the API is first used, and opt-out options through My Activity. -
How Mecha BREAK is driving PC-only growth on Google Play Games
Posted by Kosuke Suzuki – Director, Games on Google Play
On July 1, Amazing Seasun Games is set to unveil its highly anticipated action shooting game – Mecha BREAK, with a multiplatform launch across PC and Console. A key to their PC growth strategy is Google Play Games on PC, enabling the team to build excitement with a pre-registration campaign, maximize revenue with PC earnback, and ensure a secure, top-tier experience on PC.
Building momentum with pre-registration
With a legacy of creating high-quality games since 1995, Amazing Seasun Games has already seen Mecha BREAK attract over 3.5 million players during the last beta test. To build on this momentum, the studio is bringing their game to Google Play Games on PC to open pre-registration and connect with its massive player audience.
“We were excited to launch on Google Play Games on PC. We want to make sure all players can enjoy the Mecha BREAK experience worldwide.”
– Kris Kwok, Executive Producer of Mecha BREAK and CEO of Amazing Seasun Games
Mecha BREAK pre-registration on Google Play Games on PC homepage Accelerating growth with the Native PC program
Mecha BREAK‘s launch strategy includes leveraging the native PC earnback, a program that gives native PC developers the opportunity to unlock up to 15% in additional earnback.
Beyond earnback, the program offers comprehensive support for PC game development, distribution, and growth. Developers can manage PC builds in Play Console, simplifying the process of packaging PC versions, configuring releases, and managing store listings. Now, you can also view PC-specific sales reports, providing a more precise analysis of your game’s financial performance.
Delivering a secure and high quality PC experience
Mecha BREAK is designed to deliver an intense and high-fidelity experience on PC. Built on a cutting-edge, proprietary 3D engine, the game offers players three unique modes of fast-paced combat on land and in the air.
- Diverse combat styles: Engage in six-on-six hero battles, three-on-three matches, or the unique PvPvE extraction mode “Mashmak”.
- Free customization options: Create personalized characters with a vast array of colors, patterns and gameplay styles, from close-quarters brawlers to long-range tactical units.
Mecha BREAK offers a high-fidelity experience on PC The decision to integrate with Google Play Games on PC was driven by the platform’s robust security infrastructure, including tools such as Play Integrity API, supporting large-scale global games like Mecha BREAK.
“Mecha BREAK’s multiplayer setting made Google Play Games a strong choice, as we expect exceptional operational stability and performance. The platform also offers advanced malware protection and anti-cheat capabilities.”
– Kris Kwok, Executive Producer of Mecha BREAK and CEO of Amazing Seasun Games
Bring your game to Google Play Games on PC
This year, the native PC program is open to all PC games, including PC-only titles. If you’re ready to expand your game’s reach and accelerate its growth, learn more about the eligibility requirements and how to join the program today.
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5 Great Lengthy iPhone and iPad Games
The retro, 2D pixel art style in Dandara is a blast from the past and looks like it came straight out of the ’80s, especially with all of the bright, vivid colors. Even though it’s pixelated, everything in the game is incredibly detailed, from shading to textures. Animations are smooth and fluid with no lag on my iPhone 8 Plus. Since the game relies heavily on quick thinking and reflexes, the steady frame rate is necessary. The ambient, atmospheric soundtrack is subtle and adds another layer of depth to the game, and it’s quite enjoyable to listen to. Overall, Long Hat House did an excellent job with the visual and audio design of Dandara, making it a sure keeper.
Since Dandara is a metroidvania style game, that means players progress through a series of connected rooms. These rooms contain plenty of traps, obstacles, and enemies that you’ll have to get past in order to explore and move on to the next room. In the case of Dandara, players will be traversing through one giant world called Salt.
You can download the game for $3.99. It’s for the iPhone and iPad.
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Best New Games of May 2025
As we head into summer, it’s time to take a look back at the best games that arrived in May.
Our top award goes to the long-awaited World of Goo 2.
Take a look at our entire list here.
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5 Best Games to Play Over the Long Weekend
Many iOS games are designed for quick action gameplay that is best suited for the few spare moments in your day. There is a small subset of games that can be played for hours on end. In fact, these games are ones that you set aside time to play to truly savor.
Death Road to Canada
Get ready to do whatever you can to survive a road like no other. The game begins by letting you team up, and then its off to your destination. Along the way, you will run into other bands of survivors, car troubles, and of course zombies. Your crew will need to scavenge for resources, battle back zombies, and face the consequences of a crisis in psyche due to the trying circumstances.
The game does a great job of balancing variety, challenge, and humor. You will die often, but the game still entices you to retry to make it to your destination. There are multiple ways to change how you play to survive as long as you can. The game is filled with different circumstances and situations to contend with along the death road.
Kalimba
Kalimba has players controlling two characters at the same time to help restore light to the island. Are you up to the task in this beautiful puzzle platformer?
Visually, Kalimba is gorgeous. The game features an aesthetically pleasing minimalist design that is full of geometric shapes that come to life. Everything is rendered in 2-D with bright and vibrant colors and amazing textures. The totems and narrator have distinctive appearances so it’s always easy to tell each character apart from one another. Environments dynamically change once the toggles get activated, and it’s all done in a seamless transition that’s rather mesmerizing with particle effects.
Animations in Kalimba are buttery smooth and fluid, with zero lag on my iPhone 7. There’s also voice acting through the narration, and it’s incredibly well done. A quirky soundtrack plays in the background, which fits in with the overall quirky theme of the game. Overall, Kalimba is beautifully designed inside and out in terms of visual and audio.
Thimbleweed Park
Thimbleweed Park is a point-and-click adventure game that’s dark, mysterious, and packed full of humor.
The classic style of point and click adventure games of the past like Secret of Monkey Island, Maniac Mansion, and others are on full display in Thimbleweed Park. You get to play as two FBI Agents who are faced with a small town murder to solve. There are numerous quirky characters to interact with as you play through a storyline that is about a dozen hours.
Cat Quest
Cat Quest is a fantastic open world RPG dungeon crawler that’s filled with dragons, cats, and epic loot.
Since Cat Quest is an adventure game at heart, players discover and unravel the story of a cat hero who carries the mark of the “Dragonblood” on his head. Once the premise of the plot is revealed, you’ll embark on a journey of getting strong enough to defeat the dragons. All of your traveling is done on the overworld, as well as combat. Villages and NPCs reveal themselves to you as the story unfolds. Everything is told through quests, whether they’re main quests relating to the story, or side quests that you can do for experience, loot, and rewards.
The biggest draw of Cat Quest is the fact that everything is done in real-time, so there’s no waiting around. As you move around on the overworld, you’ll see enemies scurrying about around you. You can engage in combat with them on the overworld, or just avoid them altogether if they’re too tough.
Space Marshals 2
Space Marshals 2 is the sequel to the original Space Marshals. It’s an immersive tactical combat stealth game where you lay down the law.
The sequel continues the style of the original with a top down shooter adventure that gives you dual stick controls, and a story based adventure to play through. Both editions emphasize tactical combat to allow you to take out enemies from behind with stealth, as well as flank enemies and take cover. The new version seems to have more happening at once, and yet it’s easier to manage all that’s going on. Space Marshals 2 presents relatively expansive mission maps with numerous pockets of enemies. There are also blockades, transitions, and bosses to contend with across the 20 deluxe missions.
Space Marshals 2 is beautiful and packs in a ton of action. You’ll have a hard time putting this one down once you get going.
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5 Great Local Multiplayer Games
Heads Up! is the perfect party game! If you’re a game-nighter, you need this game installed and ready to go. It’s a ton of fun, and you won’t waste a bunch of time trying to explain the rules to everyone since it’s so simple.
Created by Ellen DeGeneres, this riotous game-night challenge reinvents charades for the app generation. Pick a category, then hold your device up to your head, screen facing outward, and guess the words using your friends’ clues. It’s a riot to play, and you’re sure to have a great time with your friends enjoying this party game.
The game can be played with only one other person, but where’s the fun in that? If you don’t have a large group, you can most likely skip this one.
For the iPhone and iPad, the game is $1.99.
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5 Best High-Speed Games
Unpossible is a fast paced, sci-fi obstacle avoidance tube racing game. It challenges you to avoid obstacles as you traverse a “Tron”-esque tube from a first-person perspective. As you go, the game effectively tests your skills, your reflexes, and even your memory.
The aim in Unpossible is to control a futuristic vehicle that’s traveling along a track which continually twists and turns. Along the way, countless barriers will block your path, and you’ll need to tap or tilt left or right in order to steer your machine around each obstacle.
Unlike other twitch games, though, Unpossible is designed to be fun for players of all skill levels. It features a range of game modes with levels that are designed to be fun and fair in their challenges. It also offers gaming flexibility as it’s playable with touch, tilt or external controls.
For the iPhone and iPad, the game is a $1.99 download.
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5 Best Choice-Based Adventure Games
A card-based adventure in which you swipe either left or right to make various decisions that a king could come across. With every decision that you make, you need to be cognizant of the impact on the church, the people, the army, and the treasury. The goal is to constantly balance the four aspects of your kingdom, as if any of them reach the bottom or top, your reign will end. You get to play through the timeline of modern history with each strategic decision determining how long each given reign will last.
The graphics are great, the music and sound effects are fun and soothing, voiceovers are humorous, and the modern gameplay makes you think.
For the iPhone and iPad, the game is $2.99. It’s also available on Apple Arcade.
