Best Arcade Games For Android – May 2023
The best arcade games are ones that offer a nostalgic feel. Even if you didn’t grow up with games of this genre, any new ones that follow the same format of those older titles tend to be among the most fun to play.
Android has loads of options to choose from. So we’ve scoured the depths of the Play Store’s many titles to find the best arcade games for Android that you can sink your teeth into. Keep in mind that this list is certainly subjective. However, while not everyone’s tastes are the same, the titles we’ve selected for this list all have some standout features.
They’re excellent arcade games for one reason or another. Which makes them easily break away from the pack. Another thing to note about arcade games is that a lot of the time, they aren’t too heavy with story elements or super complex gameplay mechanics. While they can definitely be challenging, they’re easy to pick up and play.
Best Arcade Games For Android
| Game | Download cost | In-app cost (per item) |
| Hyperforma | Free | $0.99 – $4.99 |
| Bullet Hell Monday | Free | $1.99 – $4.99 |
| Candies ‘n Curses | Free | $1.99 – $19.99 |
| Sonic Dash 2: Sonic Boom | Free | $0.99 – $99.99 |
| Alto’s Odyssey | Free | $0.99 – $9.99 |
| Bendy in Nightmare Run | Free | $0.99 – $99.99 |
| Contra Returns | Free | $0.99 – $109.99 |
| Golden Axe Classics | Free | $1.99 – $4.99 |
| Giant Dancing Plushies | $3.99 | $0 |
| Solar Explorer: New Dawn | $2.99 | $0 |
Hyperforma
- Download cost: Free
- In-app purchases: Yes
- Size: 252MB
- Google Play rating: 4.7 out of 5 stars
Hyperforma is part puzzle game and part arcade game, and one of the best arcade games on Android right now. Set in cyberspace your job is to destroy blocks to get to the core. You’ll encounter boss fights, unlock new levels, and there’s even a story to follow with a sci-fi cyberpunk theme.
Bullet Hell Monday
- Download cost: Free
- In-app purchases: Yes
- Size: 79MB
- Google Play rating: 4.7 out of stars
Who doesn’t love a good old fashioned bullet hell shooter? Probably plenty of people. But plenty of people love them too. Including us! Which is why we put Bullet Hell Monday on this list. It’s one of the best arcade games on Android and it’ll give you one “hell” of a challenge when you try to work your way through its many difficult stages.
Plus there’s some cool graphics and even cooler music.
Candies ‘n Curses
- Download cost: Free
- In-app purchases: Yes
- Size: 61MB
- Google Play rating: 4.6 out of 5 stars
It’s spoopy season which means now is the perfect time to find some equally spoopy games to play on your smartphone whenever you have some free time. Candies ‘n Curses is a great arcade game with a Hallo0ween-style theme to it. it’s not specifically Halloween, but you get the idea.
You can battle ghostly bosses and collect more powerful weapons and even loads of outfits for your character. Give the trailer a watch and see if you don’t get excited.
Sonic Dash 2: Sonic Boom
- Download cost: Free
- In-app purchases: Yes
- Size: Varies with device
- Google Play rating: 4.2 out of 5 stars
Sonic Dash 2: Sonic Boom is an awesome arcade title that is also part endless runner. You can play as all or most of your favorite Sonic The Hedgehog characters, including Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Shadow, and Amy Rose.
Think of it like an old school Sonic game but without the platforming and the 2D side scrolling visuals.
Alto’s Odyssey
- Download cost: Free
- In-app purchases: Yes
- Size: 79MB
- Google Play rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
One of the best arcade games on Android in, well forever, is Alto’s Odyssey. This is essentially a side scrolling endless runner where you can play as Alto in another adventure boarding down a mountain and seeing how far you can get. Perform tricks to earn points, gain upgrades, different outfits, and pump up that high score.
Plus enjoy the calming ambient soundtrack and gorgeous background visuals. It’s a wonderful game to play when you only have 10 or 15 minutes.
Bendy in Nightmare Run
- Download cost: Free
- In-app purchases: Yes
- Size: 57MB
- Google Play rating: 4.2 out of 5 stars
Another spoopy game for the month of October is Bendy in Nightmare Run. One of the best arcade games on Android for a few reasons. For one, the visuals are super cool and have that hand-drawn look you find in super popular games like Cuphead or in old school Disney cartoons.
As far as gameplay goes, you can probably guess it’s another runner. Runners just lend themselves well to mobile and this one is a total gem. It also includes boss battles, and is actually one of a few Bendy games on mobile devices.
Contra Returns
- Download cost: Free
- In-app purchases: Yes
- Size: 647MB
- Google Play rating: 3.3 out of 5 stars
Technically this is listed as an action game, but Contra was a popular action arcade game back in the day and was available on arcade machines. This is a new game in the series designed specifically for mobile, and is really quite fun if you like this style of game, similar to titles like Metal Slug and others.
You can play solo or with another player, and it even has PvP elements. There’s also a story mode, a challenge mode, and a big arsenal of weapons to make dispatching your enemies more fun.
Golden Axe Classics
- Download cost: Free
- In-app purchases: Yes
- Size: 70MB
- Google Play rating: 4.2 out of 5 stars
Golden Axe Classic is part of the SEGA Forever lineup of mobile titles, which includes a lot of other games like Streets of Rage, Altered Beast, The Revenge of Shinobi and more. This includes three games in one. Golden Axe, Golden Axe II, and Golden Axe III. So there’s plenty for you to go through here.
You can save game progress, play offline, and there should be a multiplayer experience being added at some point if it’s not already there.
Giant Dancing Plushies
- Download cost: $3.99
- In-app purchases: No
- Size: 119MB
- Google Play rating: 4.4 out of 5 stars
if you like rhythm games you will probably love this one. Th goal is to help giant plushie kaiju move to the beat of the music as they traipse through city streets. There are multiple plushies to unlock and you can give them upgrades to make them more powerful. Which helps them destroy more stuff and help you earn more points. Which leads to more available upgrades.
There’s also multiple game modes and unlockable weapons to equip. And, there are zero micro transactions. Which is usually a pretty big bonus for many mobile gamers. Normally this game costs $3.99, but if you subscribe to Google Play Pass it’s free to install and play as much as you like.
Solar Explorer: New Dawn
- Download cost: $2.99
- In-app purchases: Yes
- Size: 96MB
- Google Play rating: 4.1 out of 5 stars
This is an awesome arcade game if you have any sort of interest in space exploration and discovering what’s out there in the far reaches of the galaxy and beyond. In this game you can colonize the inner solar system as well as collect resources.
There’s also a physics engine in place where part of the game requires you to safely enter the atmosphere of each planet you’re trying to land on and colonize. There’s 40 missions and you can customize your lander, gain a bunch of achievements and even try things in various challenge modes.
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