Latest entries - 25 April, 2025:

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Introduction

(scroll down for the actual list)

I recently realized there are still, to this day, some actual “hidden gems” in the Play Store. Not the fake ones everyone talks about which, in a way or another, often have a catch or aren’t very “hidden”. I mean free games with no ads or IAPs of any kind that are fun to play.

So I was thinking maybe it’s time to compile a list of them. Please suggest the ones you’ve found and enjoyed!

Edit: I'm now including free games (no piracy) from other sources beside the Play Store (which will be specified within brackets), such as github or F-droid. If they're also FOSS, like all F-droid games, they'll have this green checkmark ✅️. For the games that have both F-droid and Play Store versions, the green checkmark is for the F-droid version.

I won’t try them all as I did with my premium games list, because you could simply download and try them for yourself without spending a dime. I’ll simply list them.

‼️Also, please do checkout MiniReview - Game Reviews for more free games that match the following criteria (use the “Browse” tab and select the correct filters). The same app for iOS - App Store - is here.‼️

I’ve saved this post so to keep it updated over time, for my own reference and for your benefit. So feel free to save it and check out new entries every so often.

Entry Criteria
  1. FREE
  2. NO ADS
  3. STRICTLY NO IAPs (except donation buttons, but I’ll have to check first)
  4. NO PIRACY
  5. it has to be a legit, full game you’ve played and liked. No demos, no emulators (everyone knows RetroArch anyways)
  6. no entire repositories. You can recommend them in the comments if you really want, but this list is for games you’d like to recommend
  7. if it’s a Play Store game, it should be compatible with the latest Android version at the time of entry
  8. must include a link to the game, especially if from sources outside the Play Store. Not direct-download links, just links to the page
  9. sketchy sources won’t be considered. Play Store, GitHub, and F-droid are welcome

[If you want to recommend paid games, without ads or predatory microtransactions, here is the list for you.]

THE LIST

 

Legend

✅️ - FOSS (Free and Open-Source Software). Listed on top in their respective categories

☕️ - includes option to donate, with or without minimal cosmetics only

[Game title] - delisted

 

Shooter

 

Stealth

 

Platformer

 

Rhythm

 

Arcade

 

RPG

 

Roguelike dungeon crawler

 

Deck builder

 

Adventure

 

Puzzle

 

Tower defense

 

Strategy

 

Management

 

Racing

 

Simulation

 

Casual

 

Visual novel

 

Delisted or outdated

 

Happy gaming ;)

ps: please let me know if there’s any wrong information about the games included in this list (especially regarding the ones with free donations) so that I’ll fix the post, if necessary.

  • char_stats@lemm.eeOPEnglish
    5·
    7 days ago

    Hi everyone!

    I’m moving my two lists of games from Reddit to Lemmy, as I’m planning to jump platform and totally abandon Reddit in the future. The reason is well, Lemmy is better, and Reddit’s admin have suspended or shadowbanned my account without reason, deleting all my contributions to the community (Android Gaming) there.

    Most notably my two lists of games which I’ve curated for over 4 years: “100% free games” and “Favorite PAID games”.

    Lemmy’s still young and, unfortunately, there isn’t a relevant or active Android gaming community yet, so I’m uploading here hoping I’m not doing anything wrong!

    I’ll probably cross-post the two lists on !android@lemmy.world too.

    I’m very new to Lemmy so ANY feedback is appreciated. Thank you!

    • SatyrSack@feddit.orgEnglish
      2·
      1 month ago

      Some small markdown suggestions:

      • Headers require a space after the number signs, like:
        ## **THE LIST**
      • I think “Introduction” and “Entry Criteria” should both be headers as well
      • Each of your genre headers should get three number signs, since those are each subsections of the “THE LIST” section
      • char_stats@lemm.eeOPEnglish
        1·
        1 month ago

        First of all, thanks for your observations and suggestions. I love to be precise with my posts and learning more about markdown formatting.

        Headers require a space after the number signs

        A question about this: does it change the way it actually looks? I’ll fix it, but I’d love to know if there’s a practical difference in using space vs no space?

        I think “Introduction” and “Entry Criteria” should both be headers as well

        You’re probably right, as general rules go, but the reason why headers in my list are formatted this way is because I wanted to draw attention to the actual list and genres, rather than to the introduction/criteria. As I’m expecting most users to browse this list when they want to checkout some games.

        Each of your genre headers should get three number signs, since those are all headers that fall within the “THE LIST” section

        I’ve actually tried that recently, but didn’t like the way it looked. I think something was off with the spacing between genre headers and first line when using three hashtags. Might give it another try soon.*

        *fixed the genre headers with three hashtagas

        • SatyrSack@feddit.orgEnglish
          1·
          1 month ago

          A question about this: does it change the way it actually looks? I’ll fix it, but I’d love to know if there’s a practical difference in using space vs no space?

          Without the space, they don’t render as a header at all.

          No space:

          ##THE LIST

          With space:

          THE LIST

          • char_stats@lemm.eeOPEnglish
            1·
            1 month ago

            They both always looked the same for me, but once I tried on Obsidian I could see the difference! I think it depends on what app the formatting is displayed on. Thanks, I’m gonna fix all headers

      • char_stats@lemm.eeOPEnglish
        0·
        1 month ago

        Thanks! Would this be helpful for cross-posting to that community? My goal is to have a post showing in these 2 communities, and when I update the original one in this instance, the update will automatically carry on to the community in the other instance.

        I tried cross-posting using a function in the Summit app, but the updates don’t carry on… Do you know how I could achieve this?

        • smeg@feddit.ukEnglish
          1·
          1 month ago

          I don’t think there’s any formal concept of a cross-post in Lemmy, the button in Summit will just create a new post with a link to the original and the description text quoted. They are essentially just two different posts.

  • Brainsploosh@lemmy.worldEnglish
    1·
    10 days ago

    Underhand seems to be outdated.

    Can I suggest Drill Down as an automation game? I’ve lost so very many hours to that game.

    • char_stats@lemm.eeOPEnglish
      1·
      10 days ago

      Underhand seems to be outdated

      What does it say? It looks good on my end, with Android 14.

      Can I suggest Drill Down

      Yes, I’ll add this as it’s also FOSS. Thank you!

      If you have other suggestions, next time please also provide a link to the game. This one has been delisted fron the Play Store so I found it on itch.io

      • Brainsploosh@lemmy.worldEnglish
        1·
        10 days ago

        Says it’s made for an older version of android, and won’t let me download.

        Happy you liked the suggestion, I’ll make sure to provide a link in the future.

        • char_stats@lemm.eeOPEnglish
          1·
          10 days ago

          Says it’s made for an older version of android, and won’t let me download

          That’s odd, but also it isn’t the first time someone tells me that a game is outdated while seeming to be fine on my end. May I ask what device and Android version you use?

          Thanks for reporting this by the way!

          • Brainsploosh@lemmy.worldEnglish
            1·
            10 days ago

            I’m on a Samsung S21FE, android 14, One UI 6.1.

            But if it works for you, feel free to keep it on the list until you get others’ reports to confirm?

            • char_stats@lemm.eeOPEnglish
              2·
              10 days ago

              Thanks. It seems like the message you see might be due, while misleading, to the device hardware rather than it’s OS version. At least that’s what came up as one of the possible reasons after a web search.

              One more reason to keep “outdated” games still on the list, as they might work for someone!

  • Davel23@fedia.io
    1·
    1 month ago

    Welcome to Lemmy! Love the post and I look forward to more, just one small suggestion. The title reads a little bit spamlike, I almost dismissed the post as some sort of ad.

  • Pamtomaka@lemm.eeEnglish
    1·
    1 month ago

    Glad to see you here! I hope this helps getting traction towards a critical mass on Lemmy!

  • SatyrSack@feddit.orgEnglish
    0·
    1 month ago

    Anything on F-Droid should fit your criteria, but here is what I have installed: