Google Keep, Ravensword: Shadowlands, Sky Movies, UP by Jawbone, Doodle Jump, Al Jazeera, Order & Chaos Duels, iRig Recorder and more
It's time for this week's roundup of new and notable Android apps, covering smartphones and tablets.
The apps and games included came out for the first time in the last seven days. The prices relate to the initial download only, so (Free) may mean in-app purchases are used within the app itself.
The weekly iOS roundup will follow later in the day. For now, here's the latest Android apps worth checking out.
Google Keep (Free)
It may be a transparent attempt by Google to compete with cloud-memory service Evernote, but Google Keep is still attracting plenty of attention. It's an app for entering and storing text, voice notes and photos, colour-coding notes for later reference, and storing them on Google's servers to access from web browsers.
Ravensword: Shadowlands (£4.63)
Crescent Moon Games has won plenty of fans for its Ravensword RPG games. The latest has now made the leap to Android, merrily swinging its blade as it goes. The game sees you exploring a vast fantasy world fighting and questing.
Sky Movies (Free)
BSkyB's Sky Movies app is a way to see what films are available on the Sky Movies channel and the company's download store, and remotely set recordings for the former. If you have certain devices and are registered for the Sky Go service, you can also stream films directly to the device.
UP by Jawbone (Free)
Jawbone's UP wristband is one of a plethora of fitness gadgets available to track your activity and sleep patterns (see also: Fitbit, Withings, Nike FuelBand etc). Now its companion app is available on Android, enabling UP owners to dig into their data, while also logging their eating and drinking, setting sleep alarms and see what friends are up to.
Doodle Jump (Free)
Doodle Jump? New? Well, a version of the hugely-popular upwards-platformer has been available on Android before, but the game's original developer Lima Sky has now replaced that with its own version ("finally properly optimised for Android" as they put it). As before, the game involves jumping up a sheet of graph paper, avoiding enemies and big drops. Still as addictive as when it came first out.
Al Jazeera English for Tablets (Free)
News and current affairs channel Al Jazeera already has an Android smartphone app for its English-language service, but now there's a separate tablet version. It includes a live stream of the channel, as well as video clips, news and blog posts, photo galleries and social sharing features.
Order & Chaos Duels (Free)
Gameloft's Order & Chaos games have found a wide fanbase on iOS and Android alike. Now the company has used its fantasy franchise to leap on board the card-battler bandwagon. This game involves collecting more than 250 cards, sorting them into decks and then fighting other people online. The publisher promises "Accessible gameplay. Deep strategy". Hopefully it'll nail both – many mobile card battlers, although popular, aren't as accessible as they might be.
iRig Recorder (Free)
IK Multimedia has made a number of high-quality music apps for iOS, but now it's on Android too. iRig Recorder is a recording app, which offers a number of editing effects as in-app purchases for musicians (or, indeed, anyone who needs this kind of app – podcasters for example) to upgrade to.
Mini Golf MatchUp (Free)
Hundreds of thousands of people have already downloaded the Android version of this social mini-golf game in a couple of days since its release. It sees you playing 70 holes over five courses, negotiating dinosaurs, pyramids and sharks along the way, while challenging Facebook friends and bragging on Twitter.
Manuganu (Free)
A fair few developers are exploring the idea of blending endless-runner games with traditional platform gameplay, with Manuganu the latest. It gets you – in the form of a boy named Manuganu – running, jumping and swinging through colourful 3D levels, while occasionally indulging in a spot of rope-climbing.
Dynamite Jack (£1.97)
Made by the developer of excellent space-strategy game Galcon, Dynamite Jack is a neat top-down action-puzzler that involves sneaking around some mines detonating bombs and evading enemies. 28 levels are included, plus a level editor to make your own and share them with other players.
Traxsource (Free)
Google may have its own music downloads store nowadays, but alternatives are available. Traxsource focuses on a specific niche: underground dance music for "DJs, clubbers and music lovers who desire to dig deeper and discover what lies beyond the mainstream". I don't think they have the Olly Murs album, then. The app enables you to browse Traxsource's catalogue and add songs to your purchase cart.
Raft Pirates (Free)
"Finally! What we've all been waiting for... a robot pirate-themed MMO!" chirps the Google Play listing for 6waves' latest freemium game. Well, quite. The game sees you building a ship, recruiting a crew and sailing off to fight other players over the network. Some early reviewers have had technical issues getting the game to work, but the premise is fun.
Astraware Crosswords (Free)
Crosswords are certainly big in the print-media world, but are they set to be popular as apps too? Astraware is one of the developers hoping to find out: its game offers 45 crossword puzzles and three difficulty levels, with the promise of another new puzzle every day – which players around the world will compete to be the fastest at solving.
Wilton's Mystery (£1.49)
This is a very nice idea: an app based on the Wilton's Music Hall venue in London, where you explore a virtual version solving puzzles and cracking codes. Proceeds will go towards the real-world hall's Capital Project, which is raising £2.5m to repair the houses at the front of its auditorium. "We thought making an app packed with history, ghosts and games would be a wonderful way of launching the Public Appeal," explains the venue. And so it is.
Abalone (Free)
6m copies of the Abalone board game have been sold, but now it's available in digital form for mobile devices. The game, which involves pushing marbles around, can be played against a friend (locally) or against AI opponents, with a 60-level challenge mode to refine your skills.
The Jump: Escape The City (Free)
If 3D racing games are your bag, The Jump may be the latest to flex your fingers on Android. One nice touch: it's designed around "bitesize" play as you try to escape a series of challenges in five minutes or less. There's also music from DJ Poet – a Grammy award-winner, no less.
Plasticine Jungle (£0.87)
This week's Live Wallpaper That Isn't Rubbish (a thankfully-growing category) sees a collection of colourful plasticine animals messing about on your Android homescreen. It changes as the day progresses, and is the first Android app I've seen with "Flying monkeys on the rope" listed as a feature. Marvellous.
Elves Quest (Free)
More fantasy gaming here in this location-based RPG from Cellap. It sees you battling monsters in traditional style, with the twist being that you scan the real world around you for treasure and loot. An interesting spin on location-based gaming.
Rethink (£1.35)
Finally this week: Rethink, which bills itself as a "revolutionary way of keeping track of your tasks". A To-Do list app, then – of which there's no shortage on Android. Here though, you're able to create what its developers describe as "context-specific tasks", setting triggers to remind you of a task based on location, time and specific contacts. An interesting idea.
That's this week's selection, but what Android apps are you enjoying? Make your views known in the comments section.
Android
Apps
Smartphones
Tablet computers
Google
Games
Mobile
Mobile phones
Stuart Dredge
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