Welcome to the 417th edition of Android Apps Weekly. Here are the big headlines from the last week:
- Android has a lot of really cool gestures. We rounded up over 40 of them in this article and it’s paired with a video to show you most of them. Our hope was to have some cool gestures you might not know about. Hit the link and watch the video to learn more.
- WhatsApp is making it easier to switch from Android to iOS. The reverse is already pretty easy to do. We saw some screenshots this week showing that the company is preparing the feature and it should roll out sooner rather than later. The screenshots were from the beta version of the iOS app (version 22.2.74) so ​​it’s very close to being complete.
- Android skins aren’t everyone’s cup of tea, but some people quite like them. One deficit is that it isn’t always easy to figure out all of the unique features of your skin. We wrote a commentary here where we talk about how OEM skin developers should have an app that points users to the unique features and it’s pretty good.
- Google is being sued yet again. This time it’s for tracking people even if they turned off location tracking. The lawsuit alleges that Google continued to track people even after it told them that disabling location tracking would stop the behavior. You can learn more about the lawsuit from the link.
- Microsoft finally released a timeframe for Android app support on Windows 11. The company says the feature is coming at some point in February. It’ll be a public preview of sorts so it won’t be the full rollout. However, it’s about time that this came since it was one of the headline features of the new OS. Hit the link to learn more.
ChocoboGP
Price: Free
ChocoboGP is an arcade game from Square Enix and it’s not very good if you don’t adjust your expectations. This is little more than a publicity stunt to advertise the actual Chocobo CP game coming in 2022. The mobile version has two controls. Players use them to complete levels as fast as possible. The game also includes leaderboards, some character customization, and obstacles to get around. This game isn’t deep and it doesn’t feel good unless you’re playing it for its intended purpose which is killing short periods of time.
SmartRedial
Price: Free / Up to 3.49
SmartRedial is a niche app. It basically lets you redial a phone number if the connection is busy until you become connected. It redials automatically once you set it to and it’ll dial, wait for a pickup, and then dial again if a person doesn’t answer. The app shows you the redial history so you can see how annoying you’ve been and you can customize the app to an extent. For example, you can change how many times you attempt a redial before giving up and trying again later. It’s okay for what it does, but we don’t see a ton of people needing an app like this.
Seige: Apocalypse
Price: Free to play
Seige: Apocalypse is a card-based strategy game. It plays like many other strategy games where you put units on the field and do battle. You simply put the units on the field with cards instead of the usual means. The game features PvP duels, various cards to collect and upgrade, alliances, leaderboards, and a PvE mode where you can practice your strategies before heading into PvP. Unfortunately, the game leans heavily on its PvP and, for the time being, the meta is fairly balanced.
The game has a lower Google Play rating because its initial launch had a crash issue along with some connection issues. The developers are working on it, but it may take a week or two to get it right.
Pointz is a really neat idea that needs time to develop. Basically, it shows you maps for bikes, scooters, skateboarders, etc. The routes grow as users add additional data in more and more places. Like most crowd-sourced apps, the early release doesn’t have a ton of data. The hope is that new users help build out the maps even further. Google Maps already has a feature like this, but the developers hope to have better alternate routes from the bike path-heavy Google Maps.
The Office: Somehow We Managed
Price: Free to play
The Office: Somehow We Manage launched from pre-registration this week. It’s a fairly typical idle game in terms of mechanics. However, the game adds in humor and characters from The Office through the use of comic-style cut scenes. The hope is that the humor offsets the lack of originality in the gameplay mechanics. There are multiple currencies and the game leans a bit on in-app purchases like you would expect. It’s a funny game and it has solid gameplay, but some may get frustrated with the in-app purchases.
If we missed any big Android apps or games news or releases, tell us about them in the comments.
Thank you for reading! Try these out too:
