Legend of the Skyfish and Flip Divers: this week’s top mobile games

Welcome to Gearburn’s Mobile Game Picks of the Week, a weekly series in which Hadlee takes a look at the latest, most entertaining, or time-consuming mobile games on portable screens.

Think mobile games are a fad? Or maybe you’re just looking to be entertained in general? Either way, these titles might be worth your while.

It’s tough to follow up with last week’s picks, but Flip Diving and Polyforge are just two of the four standout titles.

Flip Diving (free – Android, iOS)

Prolific developer MiniClip has a reputation for producing some chart-topping games, with Flip Diving being its latest title.

You’ll be playing a cliff diver, pulling off all sorts of flips and stunts as you leap off the cliffside into the depths below. Think of it as Backflip Madness, but with more flips, really. The game also features exaggerated ragdoll physics as well as springboards and other platforms to achieve even greater heights. And in a smart move, the game even records footage of your best dives.

The only real downside to the game is that you only start with one kind of flip – additional flips/tricks need to be unlocked with virtual or real cash.

RipTide GP Renegade (paid – Android, iOS)

RipTide GP is one of the first modern mobile games to show off the graphical potential of current smartphones, with the latest game continuing this tradition.

The core gameplay is still familiar to series veterans and newbies alike, as you race against AI players on “hydrojet” jet skis. Fortunately, there are a few extras this time, such as “boss” battles, a time trial mode to battle your friends’ ghosts and improved visuals.

Renegade is available for R41 on Android and costs R60 on iOS.

Polyforge (free – Android, iOS)

This little puzzler slipped through the cracks in recent weeks, but resurfaced thanks to the AndroidGaming subreddit.

Polyforge sees a triangle constantly rotating around a shape, the player having to tap the screen to fire at said shape, eventually covering the entire shape. The kicker is that you can’t fire at the same side twice, making for a rather tricky experience after a while.

It’s not the deepest game in the world, but the combination of gameplay and polished audio department makes for a great way to destress (or get stressed).

Legend of the Skyfish (R80 – iOS)

The top-down action/adventure formula popularised by The Legend of Zelda is a great fit on mobile, with the Zenonia franchise and Wayward Souls proving this in a big way.

You can add another interesting title into the mix, in the form of Legend of the Skyfish. A top-down action/adventure with a hand-painted visual style, you’ll need to fight baddies and solve puzzles over 45 levels.

The inclusion of MFi controller support is another welcome plus, in case you must have physical feedback.