Those most of the 80s kids out there, the earliest memories of gaming go back to the days of Nintendo and Atari. It is on these retro consoles where the pixelated characters such as Super Mario and Double Dragon brought tremendous joy and excitement to us.
Over the years, the gaming industry has experienced a rocketing progress and we’ve come a long way from playing humble pixel games to high-graphic titles in all the genres. However, there is still something truly special about the old times, which is why despite owning high-powered mobile devices that are capable of explosive performance, we still come back to Pixel-style games.
8 Best offline multiplayer games for Android
The idea of bringing back 8-Bit and 16-Bit retro style gaming may have been started by games like Minecraft, but the craze has definitely caught on. Thanks to their sheer popularity, here are some of the best Pixel games available on the Google Play Store that have been tried and tested to be insanely addictive.
Best Pixel games for Android
1. Minecraft
In a post PlayStation era when retro games seemed like a dying concept, this open-world RPG changed the way games were played altogether. Now that Minecraft has been made available to mobile devices, it qualified easily as one of the best pixel style games out there.
The game gives you the ability to go about in a massively infinite world surviving, exploring, and building things from scratch. From playing alone to joining up with your crew across different platforms, Minecraft does not have a particular mission line for you, and that’s what makes it so relaxingly enjoyable.
2. Grand Prix Story 2
There’s a lot more that goes into professional track racing, and with Grand Prix Story 2, you become the guiding hand of the man behind the wheel. This RPG simulation game puts you in control of your very own race team, and it’s your life’s work to become number one.
Start off by building your own vehicles from the ground up and customizing/upgrading each and every part bit by bit as you progress. With different tracks, you need to employ different strategies and make sure that you hit that nitro boost at the right time to race ahead of the competition and leave them in the dust.
3. Pixel Gun 3D: Survival shooter & Battle Royale
PlayerUnknown’s Battleground or PUBG as you may know it has already conquered the mobile world with its intriguing gameplay and multiplayer capabilities. Now you get the same enthralling action but with less battery-hogging graphics in the pixelated world of Pixel Gun 3D.
Far from a retro game, this modern shooter game puts you on the face of a block world where everyone is out to get you and become the lone survivor. With the ability to play with up to 8 friends in a single game, break into buildings to find high-powered weapons from rifles to lightsabres, all while chatting with your team in real time.
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4. Sword Of Xolan
A game does not need hardware melting graphics and a complicated control menu to be a great action/adventure game, and Sword Of Xolan proves it. You’re in the shoes of Xolan, a valiant young warrior who is on the path to fight for justice, all of which has been created in beautiful retro-style pixel art.
Packed with 30 different adventure levels and 9 challenges, you’re stuck in a race against time. Help Xolan unlock different fighting skills and battle the likes of zombies, monstrous giants, and flying creatures in this epic platformer adventure.
5. PewDiePie: Legend of Brofist
With 60 Million+ subscribers, Felix Kjellberg is probably the most famous YouTuber out there, and most of us know him by PewDiePie. With this particular game, you get to live out as the YouTube himself and play this awkwardly amazing platformer that is designed completely in retro style.
Your goal is to run through the different platformer scenarios collecting BROCOINS (coins for bros, get it?) which allow you to unlock different characters like other YouTubers such as JackSepticEye, Marzia, Markiplier and more, along with real voice acting and epic boss fights that keep the repetitive game refreshing each time you play it.
6. FINAL FANTASY Series
The very foundation of the success that SQUARE ENIX Studios enjoys today is based on the FINAL FANTASY series, and thanks to popular demand, the entire lineup has been brought to the Android platform. With a bunch of main characters to select from that you play as the protagonist, the FINAL FANTASY series is a collection of drama, fantastic storyline and more.
Designed to be a detailed saga of a mystic land far away, you get a mix of magic, pixelated style action and plenty of brawls, all packed into one. This RPG (role-playing game) has defined the genre for decades, and now you get to enjoy it on the go with your Android device.
7. Crossy Road
Answering the age-old question of why the chicken crossed the road, Crossy Road is an epic take at what makes endless platformers so addictive. Packed with a simple gameplay where the goal is to literally just cross the street and get over to the other end, the seamless user interface is what makes it so much fun.
As you cross the streets carefully while keeping an eye out for incoming traffic, unlock and collect over 150 different retro-style characters. The game is among the few good ones available on the big screen with Android TV and is surely worth a try.
8. RollerCoaster Tycoon® Classic
The entire Tycoon genre of games goes a long way back, and the RollerCoaster Tycoon® Classic can be easily credited as Atari’s best post-retro era games. Putting you in the seat of power to create your very own theme park, this simulation game is like no other, especially if you’re in the mood for some nostalgia.
Combining the elements of the classic ones for the mobile version, RollerCoaster Tycoon® Classic comes with a highly customizable landscape where you can build up massive rollercoasters, make sure your guests have amenities such as food stalls and restrooms to keep them chirped up, and so much more to run a successful virtual amusement park.
9. Super Phantom Cat
Paying homage to the 8-Bit and 16-Bit games that most of us grew up enjoying, Super Phantom Cat is another jewel in the crown of endless platformer games. You’re put in the role of Chemist White as you make your way through the perilous Phantom World jumping over obstacles and making your way through.
There’s a neat little soundtrack that goes along with the fluidic gameplay of this pixelated adventure game, with plenty of bonus levels and challenges to keep you hooked. If the furry feline gets boring, you can always unlock more characters to play with and enjoy their whimsical design.
10. Sonic the Hedgehog™ Classic
Not just one, but multiple generations of gamers have grown up enjoying the lighting speed running ability and joyfulness of Sonic the Hedgehog. SEGA is back to take you down the memory lane with the all-time classic game that was one of the founding pillars of the platformer game genre.
Despite being decades old, Sonic the Hedgehog™ Classic still stands neck to neck with the best Android games, offering an intuitive control system with a crisp 60FPS for unmatched smoothness. From the vermin’ ability to boost forward, jump and climb across the levels, unlock Sonic’s friends such as Knuckles, Tails, and others and use their unique abilities.
11. Pokémon Quest
The entire reason why Pokémon Go became such as viral sensation is the fact that nostalgic gamers remembered how much they enjoy catching all those mystic creatures on their Game Boy. With the release of Pokémon Quest, Nintendo is taking it one step further with the same old fun of entertainment of RPG’s but with a twist.
Taking shape in the form of modern pixelated style games, Pokémon Quest drops you off on the Tumblecube island packed with your favorite Pokémon, all of which are in cuboid form. It’s time to go around the island with your companions, find wild creatures and recruit them into your crew while keeping an eye out for dangers that lurk in the shadows.
12. The Sandbox Evolution – Craft a 2D Pixel Universe!
While the Google Play Store has been able to encompass most genres of gaming, there are only a handful of sandbox simulation games, and this one is among the coolest pixel-style offerings out there. Play God and bring your very own creations to life in a massive simulation where you control everything from the environment to the creatures.
With more than 170 different elements to play around with, you can build massive worlds by simply selecting elements such as dinosaurs, volcanic mountains, massive Megalodon sharks and so much more. You can even create your very own games within the Sandbox Evolution and built your very own civilization of pop culture characters.
13. Tiny Pixel Farm – Simple Farm Game
Remember the old days of Farmville where you distant Facebook friends kept sending you unwanted livestock and harvested your fields for you? Tiny Pixel Farm is based on a similar concept of giving you the control of your very own farm, but this time around, your world is pixelated and does not require you to be on a social media website.
You inherited a patch of land from your grandfather which has not been irrigational in a long time, but it is up to you to change that. From turning things around for the resident cattle to looking after your property and the guests who come over for a country trip, the simplicity of an otherwise complicated game style makes Tiny Pixel Farm so good.
14. Pixel Cup Soccer
The football fever may be subsiding as France took away the World Cup this year, but that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy the action in pixel style. While the game is free now with the exception of ads in between, you do get to enjoy a football gameplay that is smooth despite being sculpted around the 8-Bit pixel art.
Play for your very own team among the 32 participants who made it to the Brazil World Cup in 2017. Gather around the best of your squad and gear them up for the Pixel World Cup to hold your head high with different weather conditions and even stadiums that you can pick yourself.
15. Dan the Man: Action Platformer
While Halfbrick Studios is mainly known for their virally popular game Fruit Ninja, they did create one other game during their entire time of existence which has been quite popular too. Dan the Man is an action-packed adventure game that will send you back to the times of platformer games where brawling was the norm.
You start off as Dan, but can later unlock more characters like Josie and Barry Steakfries as you push through Story Modes, Endless Survival, and the Battle Mode. As you walk through the game fighting epic bosses, unlock special costumes to power up your character and keep up with the Daily Events for more specials.
These are some of the best and most virally popular pixel games for Android that not only come with a mix of classics from the past but some newly created marvels as well. If there’s any other great pixel style game you’d like to recommend, be sure to mention it in the comments down below, and we’ll surely give it a try!
Great article! I love these games. Thank you for sharing