Our picks for the best mobile games of 2024

Mobile games have come incredibly far in the past decade, with many newer releases offering console-quality experiences. 2024 was no different, with a slew of sequels, follow-ups, and entirely new titles hitting Android devices around the globe.

With that in mind, and in no particular order, here’s a quick look at our favorite mobile games released in 2024.

After the smashing successes that were (and are) Genshin Impact and Honkai: Star Rail, it’s no wonder that developer Mihoyo’s latest project was one of the most anticipated of the year. Thankfully, it’s also very different from Genshin Impact, with a return to Mihoyo’s action RPG roots. Plus, unlike Genshin Impact, you can play it with a controller on Android!

In many ways, it’s a step back from the expansive worlds of the previous two titles, with more manageable dungeon-style gameplay and a less farm-heavy gameplay loop. The gameplay isn’t anything particularly innovative, but what makes Zenless Zone Zero shine is its style. The characters and world are gorgeous, with a futuristic urban punk aesthetic that’s a clear break from the rest of Mihoyo’s portfolio.

With a straightforward concept and one of the most addictive gameplay loops I’ve ever experienced, Balatro temporarily took over my life when it landed on Android in September. For the uninitiated, it’s a poker-based roguelike deck builder with far more depth than it seems at first glance.

Despite being made by a single anonymous developer, it was one of the most polished new games on Android in 2024. It’s a premium game, costing $10, but it’s more than worth the price of entry. It’s easy to sink hours into playing this game on your phone (trust me, I have), and the auto-save and resume mechanics work very well.

Star Wars: Hunters is a game that’s been in the works since way back in 2018, and 2024 was finally the year it actually launched. The squad shooter takes place after the fall of the Galactic Empire and features a very colorful cast of heroes from all sides of the conflict. For once, those characters don’t include any big names you’ll recognize from the movies, but the designs are still a highlight.

The game does a good job of bringing competitive Overwatch-style matches to mobile, with much shorter and simplified gameplay. If you like that kind of game, Star Wars: Hunters is free-to-play, so you’ve got nothing to lose by playing. It’s currently available on Android, iOS, and Switch, with a Steam launch coming soon.

You might be tempted to dismiss Infinity Nikki as just another girly game, but it’s got far more going on than just glitz and glamour. I mean, yes, there’s a lot of glitz and glamour, but it’s presented in a way that really works. Instead of defeating enemies and dungeons, the game is mostly focused around exploration, puzzles, and collecting outfits for style challenges.

Pokemon TCG isn’t as popular as other competitive card games, but it was a huge part of my childhood. Pokemon TCG Pocket makes a direct play at nostalgia and mostly hits the mark. While it does have the PvP battles you’d expect from a mobile game, it’s unique because it’s more about collecting cards than using them.

Your main task is opening packs with a satisfying animation, arranging them in binders, and showing them off to other players. Sure, there’s a battle mechanic that will satisfy the competitive needs of some (if you like coin tosses), but it’s never going to compete with Hearthstone, MTG, or even Pokemon TCG Live. And it doesn’t have to.

Squad Busters didn’t get as much attention as other mobile games in 2024, but it’s the latest multiplayer battler from Supercell. In many ways, it’s an extension of Brawl Stars, with the same top-down style and a huge arena that slowly shrinks. However, it adds an element of team building, where you must balance fighting other players with farming coins to strengthen your team.

Despite this, matches are still short and mobile-friendly. This one has had a fairly turbulent launch, and personally, I think it’s missing some of the magic that previous Supercell games have had. Still, it’s good fun if you want a slightly more chaotic experience than Brawl Stars, and it’s only going to get better as the developers find their footing.

Call of Duty Mobile was an absolute sensation when it launched in 2019, and the follow-up Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile has already racked up over 10 million downloads. It’s actually set to replace CoD Mobile in the coming years, so expect Activision’s support for Warzone to quickly outpace the previous title in 2025.

In case you live under a rock, Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile is a first-person shooter game, just like the console and PC title. Even better, it’s connected to the other two versions with cross-progression on battle passes, so you can take your addiction with you on the bus. Unfortunately, there’s no crossplay with other platforms besides Android and iOS.

Netflix Games has steadily published a string of bangers, and the latest is a follow-up to one of the most iconic mobile games of the past decade. Monument Valley 3 looks and plays almost identically to the previous titles (for better or worse), with mind-bending puzzles and stunning visuals.

It’s a short game, but if you already have a Netflix subscription, you might as well play it. The other two games are also included if you haven’t played those yet either, and starting next year, Monument Valley 3 will have seasonal updates every few months.

Kingdom Rush is a series that revolutionized the tower defense genre on mobile, and more than 13 years later it’s still going strong. The latest iteration, Kingdom Rush 5: Alliance, has the forces of good and evil working together against a greater enemy.

The biggest change here is that you can control two heroes at once. That makes it more micro-intensive than previous games, and Elite towers help add to the overall replayability. Really though, if you’ve liked Kingdom Rush games in the past, you’ll like this one too. As of writing, it’s on sale for $4, with in-app purchases to unlock extra heroes.

My last pick is a bit of a strange one since most of you probably have never played it — or at least played it on a phone.

Grid Legends: Deluxe Edition is a port of the Codemasters game that launched on consoles in 2022. It’s a straight upgrade from GRID Autosport, but the catch is that it doesn’t work on most devices. At launch, it requires a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 or Gen 3 smartphone, plus at least 15GB of storage. It also costs $13.49, which is a pretty penny for a mobile game.

Still, it’s a very fully featured game, complete with a career mode and multiplayer, plus all of the DLC content. That’s an excellent value for anyone looking for mobile racing action, and if you’ve already shelled out for a modern flagship, you can probably afford the price of entry.