Welcome to the 354th edition of Android Apps Weekly. Here are the big headlines from the last week:
- Google accidentally published an app in the US and then immediately took it down. The app is originally for folks in Kenya. It helps them get Android devices on loan and then gives creditors the ability to shut the phone down if the payments stop. Google partnered with companies in the country for the program and it looks rather shady without context. Hit the link to learn more.
- Spotify is considering a podcast-only subscription tier. The company spent a boatload of money on podcast talent over the last year and wants to earn a few bucks from podcasts specifically. Spotify is asking users if they would want something like that. If their results are anything like ours, this won’t see the light of day. Most of our readers hate the idea and we don’t blame them. You can get most podcasts for free with most podcast catchers.
- YouTube Premium subscribers can get some free Google Stadia swag this week. Google is offering up a free controller and Chromecast to subscribers. It’s a nice move from Google to promote the service and get some Stadia controllers out there. You also get a free month of Stadia with the offer. Hit the link to learn how to redeem the offer.
- PUBG Mobile is returning to India. The new version of the game is specifically for the country and has some changes from the vanilla version. For instance, all characters start clothed and the blood is removed for green hit effects instead. PUBG Corporation also vowed to donate $100 million to India to cultivate esports, the local video game industry, and other stuff as well. You can hit the link to learn more.
- Google Photos is closing its free doors next summer. The company announced that it simply can’t keep up with demand anymore and people have to pay for the storage they use after June 1, 2021. Any photos uploaded to the service until then are still free and photos existing on the service before then remain free. Afterward, Google Photos uses your 15GB of free Google Drive data and then you have to pay for a Google One plan to expand your own storage. Current Google Pixel devices get to keep the free uploads, but future Pixel devices won’t. On a related note, here are the best microSD cards available right now.
Immortal Reborn
Price: Free to play
Immortal Reborn is an idle RPG with a Diablo theme and few graphics. It’s a mostly text adventure where you custom build your character to effectively slay as many bad guys as possible. There are four classes, various things to do, and various gear to equip. The game features idle game play, simple controls, and easy mechanics. The game’s verbiage is a little weird sometimes but it’s nothing serious. It’s longer than average for an idle game and has a lot more RPG elements than most of them.
Bookmark Manager
Price: $0.99
Bookmark Manager lets you manage bookmarks independently from your web browser. There are a variety of scenarios where such a tool may be useful. You can store bookmarks, organize them how you want, and reference them whenever you need. Most people won’t need such a tool and simply use Firefox or Chrome because those bookmarks sync. You can also export your bookmarks and import later on a new device if needed. This is a reasonably decent solution for folks who switch off of the mainstream browsers and need a better way to manage bookmarks. However, by and large, this is a niche tool. It’s in early access beta so there may be some bugs.
Goddess of Genesis S
Price: Free
Goddess of Genesis S is a new gacha RPG. The game is fairly standard in terms of underlying mechanics. You summon heroes and use them to progress through the game. The combat is turn-based and every character can be upgraded in various ways. This one boasts surprisingly decent graphics. You can apparently upgrade every character to max ranks as well so there shouldn’t be too many bad pulls. It’s reasonably free-to-play friendly for the time being, but the long term grind may chase some players away.
GameOn
Price: Free
GameOn is a new app from Amazon that records your video games. The app features direct support for about 1,000 Android games, including some heavy hitters like PUBG Mobile and Final Fantasy Brave Exvius. Additionally, it can record anywhere from 30 seconds to five minutes of game play in the past as a sort of recall feature or you can set it to record in five minute segments. You then upload those videos and people can watch them. It’s set up similar to TikTok where the videos are meant to be short and showcase cool moments rather than long play sessions. The app also has challenges to complete and you can, of course, watch other people’s videos. It’s brand new so it’ll likely change a lot in the coming months and years.
Underworld Office
Price: Free / Up to $2.99
Underworld Office is the latest game from Buff Studio, developer of 7Days and Buff Knight. This one is an interactive story game about a boy who falls into the underworld and eventually has to work there. You play through various stories about ghosts. The choices you make can put you at one of seven endings. There are also 40 short animations and various collectibles for completionists. The game is also relatively inexpensive for a free to play game. This one has a 4.9 out of 5 rating on the Play Store for a reason, because it’s actually pretty good.
Thank you for reading! Check these out too:
- 15 best idle games for Android
- 5 best Android apps for screen recording and other methods too
- 15 best gacha games for Android
- 15 best Android browsers
- 10 best visual novels for Android
If we missed any big Android apps or games news, tell us about it in the comments!