15 Android Sports Games

9 Innings: Pro Baseball 2013

Download

9 Innings: Pro Baseball 2013 by Com2uS does a fairly deft job at blending together simulation, arcade, and fantasy sports elements into a single coherent free-to-play baseball game. Choose from a set of MLB teams with full 25-man rosters updated to 2012 and mapped out to match their real-world performance and stats. The actual gameplay is a highly configurable experience, with the option to play only offense, defense, half-innings, or full games. An additional fantasy element is introduced with an achievement and trading card mechanic that allows players to unlock special abilities, upgraded versions of players, or players from different teams, allowing you to create a custom, all-star lineup.
Verdict: A good baseball game that's got something in it to please arcade, sim, and fantasy baseball fans alike.

Baseball Superstars 2013

Download

For a more lighthearted fantasy take on baseball, try Gamevil's latest iteration of their anime-inspired Baseball Superstars series, a free-to-play baseball game with a very RPG-like character progression system. Create your own character and take to the field as a pitcher or batter in fictional baseball teams, earning coins and stars to unlock vanity items, stat buffs for your player or team, and more. Off the field, partake in various sidequests, challenges and RPG elements to advance your character.

Verdict: Don't let the cute anime graphics fool you, this game has some surprising depth and progression built around an arcade pitching and batting core. We only wish it had more tutorials so as not to drop you in the deep end almost immediately.

Flick Baseball

Download

Flick Baseball is a nice, arcadey baseball pitching game that puts you in the shoes of a pitcher trying to strike out as many batters as possible. Simple flick controls allow you to aim and spin your pitch, while a stamina bar serves as your life meter (with every ball and hit reducing your stamina). Coins and powerups are strewn across the strikebox, and can be collected by tossing your ball in the appropriate direction. While the blocky graphics and art style aren't anything to write home about, the gameplay itself is pretty amusing. Sadly, the game has the propensity to crash unexpectedly.

Verdict: A fun, light-hearted arcade pitching game with unfortunate stability issues.

Real Racing 2

Download

EA's Real Racing series features some jaw-dropping graphics and smooth controls for a mobile racing game. While we wait with baited breath for the free to play Real Racing 3, have a run with Real Racing 2, the latest iteration of the franchise. With 30 licensed cars, 15 tracks, a solid career mode, quick races, and time trials, Real Racing 2 delivers some pretty awesome racing eye candy.

Verdict: Awesome graphics and slick controls make for a great mobile racing game.

Reckless Racing 2

Download

For a more arcade racing experience, try top-down driving game Reckless Racing 2, which dials down the redneck attitude in exchange for a deeper and more content filled game. Compete in Career mode to unlock new cars and upgrades, have a blast with Arcade mode's challenges, or indulge in some multiplayer racing fun. An extensive customization system, adaptive difficulty, and local and online multiplayer round out the game.

Verdict: Frenetic, fun and graphically impressive arcade racing.

Riptide GP

 

Download

Riptide GP is a graphically impressive jet ski racing game from Vector Unit, the same minds behind the hit Hydro Thunder Hurricane game for Xbox Live Arcade. Featuring sleek, futuristic courses, 7 different jet skis to master, as well as Race, Hot Lap, and Championship modes, Riptide gives you loads of adrenaline pumping racing action. Unfortunately, it doesn't sport multiplayer. The hardware requirements mean older devices won't run it, and the tilt-based control scheme might not be to some players' liking.

Verdict: The graphics quality is a joy, as is the racing itself. Too bad there's no multiplayer, or we might score it higher.

 

Madden NFL 12

 

Download

Electronic Arts' Madden NFL 12 is a solid if pricy continuation of the Madden NFL franchise. This Android port brings over some slick graphics, as well as controls and gameplay that can satisfy the American Football aficionado and newbie alike. Slow-time and mechanics such as "Total Defensive Control" "Action Control Time," and the ability to draw "hot routes" on screen allow for as much or as little control over plays as you need. Seasoned football junkies can take command of every aspect of the play, while less seasoned players can let the Gameflow system automatically recommend plays so that they can focus on the action.

Verdict: A worthy standard-bearer for the Madden franchise on the Android, with something for skilled and new players alike.

 

NFL Pro 2013

 

Download

Gameloft's NFL Pro 2013 is a free-to-play American Football title that aims to bring a deep but accessible NFL title to the Android platform. Much like the Madden series, players choose between various play formations when on the attack and defense, with players than taking command of the execution. Unfortunately, NFL Pro 2013 is saddled with the limitations of free-to-play, with players starting out with an extremely limited playbook. New strategies are unlocked by grinding for in-game currency or paying up-front with real cash. Still, it is free-to-play, and if you're looking for a good American Football games on Android, this one's a pretty good call.

Verdict: A good American Football game even with the limitations of free-to-play.

FIFA 12

 

Download

Electronic Arts' FIFA 12 is a single-player football game that puts players in the shoes of some of the most famous football teams and leagues worldwide. Controls and gameplay are pretty slick, the animations are well rendered and the numerous gameplay modes such as League, Cup, and Kick Off modes are neat, but the game does lack multiplayer (which may have to wait until EA ports over FIFA 13 it seems).

Verdict:A well made slick football game for the Android.

 

Real Soccer 2013

 

Download

Gameloft's Real Soccer 2013 is an okay attempt at making a freemium football game. Players take command of a club, build up and manage their roster, and then take to the field against their rivals. Gameplay is a mixed bag, with pretty good graphics quality, but rather disorienting in-game player selection that either sees the computer forcing you to leap willy-nilly from one player to another, or have you fumbling with the manual controls to get to the player you want. In addition, the freemium model is particularly jarring, with players having to grind large amounts of time and effort for paltry rewards, and a club management system that is pretty much designed to part you with your money through microtransactions.

Verdict: You can't fault Gameloft's production values, but you can fault the wonky controls and the grindy economy that really prioritizes microtransactions.

Flick Soccer

 

 

Download

A more arcade-like, pick up and play sort of game, Flick Soccer focuses on the good stuff: Kicking the ball at targets. Flick Soccer takes the "flick a ball at a target" genre and gives it loads of spit, polish, and production value to present a surprisingly addictive arcade experience. Quickshot mode challenges you to hit a moving bullseye being defended by the keeper with a time attack countdown, while Endurance mode gives you three balls, taking one away for every missed goal. Challenge mode rewards precision shots, and a surprisingly satisfying Smash It mode where you have to smash panes of glass positioned around the goal mouth.

Verdict: A simple, addictive pastime for under a dollar. Great fun, if not particularly deep.

 

Football Manager Handheld 2013

 

Download

On the absolute opposite end of the spectrum is Sega's Football Manager Handheld 2013, a game that eschews action for the strategic savvy needed to take a prestigious club to the top of the rankings. A fantasy sports management game on steroids, Football Manager Handheld 2013 takes the franchise's well honed formula and adds polish to it. Featuring an updated player and team lineup, new playable leagues, and other tweaks, Football Manager Handheld 2013 isn't so much a revolutionary leap as it is an iterative advance, making a great sports management game that much better.

Verdict: Pretty much best of breed for football management simulations. Definitely something for the more strategic and logistically inclined players out there. Look for your adrenaline rush somewhere else.

Virtua Tennis Challenge

 

 

Download

Sega's Virtua Tennis Challenge takes the venerable sports franchise mobile, letting players choose from among 50 fictional players in their quest to become the number one tennis player. Players can choose from a custom, gesture-centric control interface, or a more traditional virtual gamepad as they cut loose with lobs, slices, drop shots, and more. The SPT World Tour mode challenges you to advance to the top by competing in new tournaments daily, exhibition matches allow you to just cut loose with a fun game, and you can even challenge your friends to a multiplayer match over Bluetooth.

Verdict: A good mobile port for the Virtua Tennis franchise that provides a good amount of challenge, slick presentation, and multiplayer.

 

NBA Jam

 

 

Download

The venerable NBA Jam comes to the Android, bringing its funky, big-headed 2v2 arcade zaniness to basketball lovers. A light-hearted and action-packed port of the 2010 release, NBA Jam delivers familiar arcade thrills while also updating the player lineup to the 2012 season. Play through the Campaign mode to unlock teams, players, and cheats, and then go wild with the more freeform Play Now mode. An additional feature is WiFi multiplayer allowing you to go head to head with your friends for some crazy basketball fun.

Verdict: NBA Jam takes a good arcade sports game formula and pulls it off well on Android.

 NBA 2K13

Download

NBA 2K13 dials up the simulation aspect, with players taking command of a full 5v5 basketball game at the helm of their favorite NBA teams. Quick match mode allows for freeform play, while a more in-depth multiseason mode offers a deeper campaign and team management experience. A fun feature is the "greatest games" mode, which allows players to recreate particularly famous matches complete challenge thresholds to meet. While the soundtrack curated by Jay-Z is solid, the graphics disappoint during the many close-up shots, looking extremely blocky. There is also no multiplayer mode at the moment.

Verdict: While it might not be an incredibly awesome sports game to rival console titles, NBA 2K13 is certainly a pretty good mobile basketball game.

Apps for London 2012 Olympics abound

 

TORONTO: Whether it is a live video stream of the 100-meter dash, on-demand replays of diving, or notifications when the national team wins a medal, the mobile app is likely to play a greater role in the 2012 London Olympic Games.
Nearly 30 percent of 1,330 people questioned in an online survey said they would watch the Games on their smartphones, and 31 percent planned to view it on their tablets, according to TechBargains, a California-based deal aggregation website for electronic products, which conducted the poll.
Meanwhile, there are no shortage of apps available.
NBC Olympics on iOS and some Android devices has information including medal counts, news and athlete biographies.
The app also features the Prime Time Companion, which syncs with NBC’s primetime broadcast and allows users to access additional trivia, polls, slideshows and videos on what is currently being aired.
“If you’re watching something on Michael Phelps or Ryan Lochte, it may have a popup that tells you to read their bios, offers you a slideshow of Ryan Lochte, or a video of Michael Phelps from Beijing,” said Chris McCloskey, vice president of communications for NBC Sports Group.
NBC Olympics Live Extra, a second app is only available in the United States. People looking to stream the event in Britain can download BBC Olympics for Android, iOS and Blackberry, while viewers in Canada can download CTV Olympics for Android, iOS, BlackBerry and Windows Phone.
London 2012 Results is one of several official apps from the International Olympic Committee. It provides event results, schedules, medal counts and information on athletes and venues. The app is available worldwide for Android, iOS, Windows Phone and Blackberry devices.
National teams have also released their own apps.
2012 Team USA Road to London lets fans send messages to U.S. athletes via Facebook or Twitter, and provides the latest updates on the team. The Australian team has an app called Australian Olympic Team London 2012.
When a major event happens at the Games, the Canadian Olympic Committee plans to release updates through its app, Canada Cheers 2012.
“This year’s Games are supposed to be the most social Games ever,” said Dimitri Soudas, executive director of communications for the Canadian Olympic Committee.
“We’ve really turned up the heat on being more interactive and engaging and providing more information to our fans.”
For strictly medal counts, Medals 2012, released by eGames Consulting, provides push notifications when the user’s national team wins.
The London 2012 Olympic Games began Friday and run until Aug. 12.

Gameloft Launches “Real Football 2012” for Android, Wicked “Stamina” Feature Included

Launched in the Android Market only two days ago, Gameloft’s “Real Football 2012” has a 4.2 average rating based on around 300 votes from players who downloaded and installed the game.

Although the game has been receiving mixed reviews, the main reason is not the quality of the game “per se,” but the infamous "stamina" features  implemented by the developers.



It appears that Gameloft introduced this “stamina” stat for in-game players which is depleting pretty fast after only several games. In order to remain competitive, Android users will need to replenish their teams’ stamina, which can only be done by in-app purchase.


That’s pretty wicked, but those who do not want to spend a dime on “Real Football 2012” can wait a rather long time until the “stamina” gauge is slowly replenishing.

Unfortunately, this is not the first game that gets this “stamina” system implemented, and probably won’t be the last either. “Let’s Golf 3” also has gotten the same “stamina” thing and has received mixed reviews as well.



Most players are annoyed by this wicked “stamina” feature introduced by Gameloft in most of its freemium games. Here are some of the comments sent by  Android users who played “Real Football 2012":

“Good game. I enjoy playing it on my phone. I put 3 stars because the stamina thing is anoying. U have to wait 1 day for a match. C'mon, this way a lot of users will quit playing it.”

“after all complaints gamelft got from let's golf 3 because of the stamina they input it into this game as well? 1 star from me this is disgusting.”

“This Freemium may work for some, but I want to pay for a game once then play it. There's also no need for this intrusive notifications on boot to get people to spend more!”

“Real Football 2012” is now available as a free download in the Android Market and is fully compatible with all devices running

Gameloft's Real Soccer 2012 lands on the Android Market

The newest addition to Gameloft's soccer series of games has landed on the Android Market as a free download. Real Soccer 2012 lots of improvements with it over the last edition plus you can now create and share content thanks to the new Custom Kit Editor that comes with the game.
Improvements to the Real Soccer franchise in this new 2012 game take the shape of better graphics, more features and better controls to really enjoy some soccer action. The Custom Kit Editor is bar far the more unique feature to come with the game though.

Real Soccer 2012 Features:
- REPLAY THE GAME YOU JUST WATCHED ON TV: With just the press of a button, you can recreate any matchup from the in-game news feed and play!
- STAND OUT ON THE FIELD WITH CUSTOM KITS: Create your own custom team jerseys, shorts and more using a detailed editor, then share it with the rest of the community, or look for cool designs made by other players and use them yourself.
- THE BIGGEST, MOST ENJOYABLE SOCCER COMMUNITY: Get the latest soccer news thanks to official RSS feeds from goal.com, as.com and sports.fr. Send your comments, interact with friends, upload pictures and videos.
- THE OFFICIAL FIFPRO LICENSE: Thousands of real players’ names, 350 teams and 14 league championships to play including England, Spain, France, Germany and South America. Online updates of the database will keep your game up to date with the most recent player transfers and lineup changes.
- MANY GAME MODES TO ENJOY: Access many different game modes including Exhibition, League and various International Cup modes, or practice your skills in Training mode. You can also take over your favorite team as a manager and lead it to glory, or replay the best games of the past by entering History mode.
As you can tell by the features list, there is a lot more to do in Real Soccer 2012 than just playing soccer such as taking over your favorite team as the manager of it or jump right into the editor and start creating custom designs for other people to use. Gameloft has also been working on the graphics quite a bit it seems with smoother animations, better cut-scenes, more realistic graphics and so on.

For you soccer fans out there who want to nab this game, you can do so by heading over to the Android Market now and download the game for free if you have a compatible device for it.
Developer Website: Gameloft
Android Market Link: Real Soccer 2012