Katana ZERO is a very polished fast-paced action platformer with instant-death combat, awesome slow-mo effects, and a story told through cinematic cut-scenes after each level. The game has us play as an amnesia-plagued work-for-hire samurai assassin who each day gets a new task from his boss. These tasks are represented as levels of inter-connected rooms full of dangerous enemies to defeat and security cameras to avoid. Inside each level, we run left or right, jump, dash, and attack with our katana. But we can also slow down time, allowing us to deflect enemy bullets – something that is very important as we die of a single hit. Completing a level requires high precision and almost perfect timing, so don’t be surprised if you have to replay a level a few times. But this is also what makes it extremely rewarding to finally get it right. After completing a task, we return home to drink tea, go to bed, wake up, go see what seems to be our psychiatrist, and then continue. And it is during these sequences that the game’s mysterious story is told through cinematic cut-scenes. I especially love how seamlessly the gameplay and story connect – it makes the whole experience very immersive. The game has a lovely 80s atmosphere and style, and it just oozes of quality. Everything from the animations to the pixel art is incredibly polished. The game has controller support, but I also had a great time with the touch controls, in some situations actually preferring it. Katana ZERO can only be played with a Netflix subscription. But if you’ve got that, it’s definitely worth checking out. NOTE: if you don't have Netflix, it's not worth buying the subscription if you only plan on playing Katana ZERO. Since the monetization has no impact on the gameplay, it scores 9 – down from 10 to indicate that although there are no ads or iAPs, it’s not “perfect”.

Blasphemous is a high-quality port of the exhilarating Metroidvania action platformer set in a vast colorful world full of weird abominations, unique powerful bosses, rich and complex lore, and deadly obstacle courses. It also features lots of places to discover, secrets to uncover, and spectacular battle tactics. Not to mention the blood, dismemberment, and gore… In other words, everything we all love about the genre. Blasphemous tells a deeply religious story about a terrible curse called The Miracle, which brought chaos to the world, turning many people into grotesque monsters and forcing others to manifest supernatural abilities. In this dark world, our silent protagonist sets on a path toward penance and ultimate salvation. Without going into too many details, the lore of this game is quite unique, and attentive players will have a great time learning its intricacies and dark secrets. The game offers 20+ hours of action-filled gameplay that has us freely explore a large open world, participate in all sorts of platforming challenges, and hone our combat skills on a wide variety of monsters. I like the game's art style, detailed animations, and interesting monster design. Aside from a couple of frustrating moments, the gameplay also feels fair. We always know where to go, the increase in difficulty is moderately paced, and if we fail to proceed because we’re not paying attention, that’s entirely on us. Unfortunately, the port does a poor job of making the touch controls comfortable. It feels almost unplayable without an external Bluetooth controller. Blasphemous is a $7.99 premium game that includes all the DLC for no additional cost. If you enjoy the Metroidvania genre and isn’t a stranger to mind-bending lore and over-the-top violence, this is one of the best games currently available on mobile. I highly recommend it. [Continue with the 11 best Metroidvania mobile games]

Pileus Bad Trip is a free 2D Action Platform game available on Android and iOS. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played offline in landscape mode. It has received 1 user rating from the MiniReview community. Pileus Bad Trip was released in January 2024 and has a current rating of 5 out of 5.0 on iOS App Store.

Elderand is a beautiful "souls-like" platforming action RPG where we slash monsters left and right while exploring an inhospitable land in search of a terrible evil. Playing as the sole survivor of a mercenary group tasked with disposing of an evil priest, we arrive at the shores of a gruesome land where evil lurks around every corner. Armed with a sword, a bow, and a magic staff, we meticulously pave our way through the dangers – all while gaining experience, obtaining new equipment, and learning useful skills that allow us to progress further. Exactly as is canon for the "metroidvania" genre. The first thing you will notice is the game’s large number of control buttons, each responsible for a specific action. These actions alter depending on the equipment we wield, allowing us to adjust the playstyle to our liking. From a brutal shield-wearing swordsman to a sharp archer with quick dodging skills or a powerful magician with deadly spells, there are quite a few options. The game may seem a bit bleak and uninspiring at first, but give it some time, and both its gameplay and story really start to shine. Personally, I was slightly annoyed by the fact that monsters respawn not only after resting at campfires, but even if we just re-enter a room. This made the exploration a bit tedious, although it didn’t ruin the experience for me. Of course, playing with a controller is much preferred. But even without one, I was able to get the hang of the touch controls that can fortunately be heavily customized. Elderand is a $6.99 premium game without ads or iAPs. It stands firmly as one of the best games in its genre and serves as an easy recommendation for anyone fond of hardcore platformers with deep exploration aspects.

Draconian is a retro-style indie action platformer in which we fight through hordes of men and monsters in a desperate attempt to avenge our murdered family.Starting as a light story of our protagonist's childhood, the game quickly takes a dark turn when enemy forces arrive at our doorstep, wreaking havoc in the once peaceful neighborhood. Before we know it, we are caught in the middle of the chaos, with fires, arrows, and dangerous soldiers rushing from every side. We deal with these enemies using quick sword slashes chained into combo attacks, spectacular finishing blows targeting half-dead opponents, and jump and dash abilities that let us evade attacks or achieve better positioning.While the focus is on battling a large number of opponents, the game features a level design suitable for testing our platforming skills, and a variety of enemies that force us to utilize different tactical approaches. As we gain experience from battles, we eventually level up and learn new skills that provide even more combat variety. The story may appear trivial, but it presented enough engagement and intrigue to drive me forward, towards the unexpected ending. What I liked the most about the game is how well the animations are made. Despite the low-res pixelated style, every character's movement feels natural and believable, making it pleasant to watch. The only downsides are the poorly scalable UI and the non-customizable touch controls. Fortunately, the game can be played with a controller.Draconian monetizes by showing short ads between levels, but given how long these levels take to finish, watching ads will never become a problem. For those wanting to support the developers, who clearly put a lot of effort and love into this game, there is a single iAP that also disables the ads.

Dead Cells is a roguelike Metroidvania soulsborne sidescroller. The main mechanics of the game is to make our way through procedurally generated dungeons, killing enemies and collecting cells along the way. Cells are used to buy permanent upgrades for our warrior. If we die before reaching the end of a stage, we must start all over with only the chosen upgrades intact. Combined with the large range of available weaponry, this creates a fun and challenging gameplay experience full of fast-paced combat. The risk of death and loss of the coveted cells creates truly adrenaline-rushing gameplay moments. The amazing pixel art-style is well-designed and the fluid movement and animations perfectly compliment the brutal combat. Dead Cells is a $8.99 premium game with a single iAP for a DLC pack. Due to the sheer amount of gameplay value, the game is well worth the price. Especially if you are a fan of metroidvania souls-like games.UPDATE REGARDING DLC: Playdigious has done a great job with its first paid DLC called "The Bad Seed". This expansion adds three new biomes, accessed in the early game as an optional route after Prisoners Quarters, the first game area. The core gameplay remains the same, but in addition to the three new well-detailed environments, the expansion also adds new weapons, abilities, enemies, and a boss. At $3.99, the "The Bad Seed" DLC is a great addition to the base game and the frequent free content updates that give the game a long lifespan.

Mask Around is a free 2D Action Platform game available on Android. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played offline in landscape mode. It has received 2 user ratings from the MiniReview community. Mask Around was released in November 2024 and has a current rating of 4.7 out of 5.0 on Google Play.

Space Gladiators: Premium is a paid 2D Action Platform game available on Android and iOS. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played offline in landscape mode. Space Gladiators: Premium was released in June 2024 and has a current rating of 4.2 out of 5.0 on Google Play and 3.7 out of 5.0 on the iOS App Store.

Bladed Fury is a fast-paced 2D hack and slash platformer where we play as a princess who has been accused of killing her own father and now slays villains, collects powerful artifacts, and seeks the aid of powerful spirits to clear her name. The game’s smooth action-packed combat has us master the use of light attacks, strong attacks, shields, dashes, and different powerful magic abilities to dispose of hordes of enemies throughout a 3-5 hour campaign. True to its platformer roots, Bladed Fury isn’t all about just slaying enemies, however, as we also have to solve puzzles and discover secret areas by utilizing our double jump and air-dash techniques. Ported to mobile, the game provides the same highly polished experience as its popular PC and console counterparts. The art-style, music, and story that draw heavy inspiration from ancient Chinese art and culture is mostly great, although some of the dialogue and characters can be a little off-putting. The touch controls are also good, and playing with a controller feels great – although it should be noted that it seems some abilities aren’t mapped to any buttons and therefore still need to be tapped.Bladed Fury is a $4.99 premium game without ads or iAPs. It’s a great example of a side-scrolling action-platformer done properly, making it an easy recommendation for any fans of the genre despite its short length.

Mangavania: Action Platformer is a free 2D Action Platform game available on Android. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played offline in landscape mode. Mangavania: Action Platformer was released in August 2020 and has a current rating of 3.7 out of 5.0 on Google Play.

Drish - retro pixel plaftormer is a free 2D Action Platform game available on Android. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played offline in landscape mode. Drish - retro pixel plaftormer was released in January 2021 and has a current rating of 3.5 out of 5.0 on Google Play.

Guts 'n Grunts is a paid 2D Action Platform game available on iOS. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played offline in landscape mode. Guts 'n Grunts was released in January 2024 and has a current rating of 5 out of 5.0 on iOS App Store.

Juiced! is a colorful story-driven old-school action platformer about a brave space explorer who ventures to an alien planet to retrieve an ancient artifact and save the Universe from a terrible evil. The game looks and plays like many old DOS platformers. This means we must traverse several beautifully designed platforming stages by jumping, double-jumping, interacting with the environment, and killing various nasty enemies that roam around. We also collect coins and fruits, but contrary to most classic games where we did so to increase our score, the coins can be exchanged at vending machines for useful consumables. And the fruit charges our “Juiced! Meter”, which turns us into an unstoppable devastating force when full. What I like the most about the game is its abundance of different unique mechanics. In addition to regular jumping-and-shooting, we swing on ropes, swim across the water, unlock chests with keys, ride vehicles, shoot cannons, plant seeds that grow into climbable plants, and dig holes in the ground using a driller mole. The diversity of the weapons also amazes me. Not only do we get to fire conventional weapons with projectiles that fly straight, along an arc, bounce off of walls, or automatically seek targets, but we can also release a hungry hound that follows enemies around, or throw a crab-like crocodile that locks them while we jump on their heads. I also enjoyed the game's elaborate story with lots of bright characters and funny dialogues, its creative boss battles, and the option to play cooperatively with a friend. Overall, it's an amazing high-quality platformer that fans of the genre will definitely enjoy. Juiced! is absolutely free on Android, with no ads or iAPs. On iOS, it costs $0.99.

Willy Jetman: Astromonkey's Re is a paid 2D Action Platform game available on Android and iOS. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played offline in landscape mode. Willy Jetman: Astromonkey's Re was released in July 2020 and has a current rating of 3.6 out of 5.0 on iOS App Store.

Metaphysics is a free 2D Action Platform game available on Android and iOS. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played offline in landscape mode. Metaphysics was released in May 2020 and has a current rating of 4.5 out of 5.0 on Google Play and 5 out of 5.0 on the iOS App Store.

Carrion is a reverse-horror Metroidvanian side-scrolling action puzzle platformer, which is a genre mix that creates a truly unique experience – and a sentence I never thought I’d write. The game is set around a hideous amorphous monster that crawls through vents and spaces to gain mass by devouring humans while learning new abilities and solving puzzles – all to escape the underground lab it is trapped in. And that’s the role we play. We’re the monster in Carrion, and it’s a refreshing change. After the initial excitement of throwing people against the floor and walls like a macabre squash game before inevitably deciding to consume them, we find ourselves forced to dodge automated weapons, fires, and various other obstacles, including bosses. This is all entwined with small puzzle elements to keep us thinking amid the fast-paced chaos. To me, the game gives off strong Metroid Fusion vibes, except we now play as a constantly shape-shifting spaghetti monster of destruction and chaos. However, unlike in Metroid Fusion, there’s no map to see where we’ve been. And while the graphics are impressive, in all their eerily grisly pixelated glory, some areas still feel similar to others. So returning to the game after a break can be a bit disorienting. The controls take a little getting used to and aren’t perfect, but I don’t think they could’ve been implemented much better for touch devices. There’s also controller support. However, my main critique is that the initial excitement of playing as the monster fades over time. The game’s emphasis on puzzles shifts the focus toward stealth and strategy rather than all-out destruction, which may not be what some players expected, although I quite enjoyed it. Carrion is free to try through a generous demo before a single $6.99 iAP unlocks the full game.

Meow Hunter is a 2D action platformer RPG by the developers of Soul Knight. The game is split into levels that consist of several rooms full of enemies, and a boss fight at the end. The fast-paced hack ‘n slash combat has us jump and dash around these maps while using melee, ranged, and special attacks to defeat all enemies so we can continue to the next room. As we progress in each level, we occasionally get to pick one of three random temporary upgrades for our different attacks. These range from simple stat boosts to new functionality, such as being able to charge up an attack for a special effect. In addition, we can equip nine items that stay with us permanently, which we can dismantle or level up at town. The items are all pretty fun, as most add big twists to the gameplay, like the helper drone that automatically shoots enemies. When we reach the last room, we can challenge an easy or difficult variation of the boss, after which we return home and can save any new items we’ve found. Unfortunately, the controls are rather finicky, especially when climbing ladders - I'd often get stuck while trying to jump off them. While the game sorely needs it, Bluetooth controllers are not supported. The cat theme and cyberpunk-like world are kinda cute, but the world is pretty busy, almost too much at times. Meow Hunter monetizes via a free and paid battle pass and iAPs for new heroes or the currency used for stat and item upgrades. Paying players progress faster, but I haven’t run into any paywalls as a free player, and there are no forced ads or energy systems. The game definitely shows promise, but a lot is missing at the moment.

Exolotl : Zian is a paid 2D Action Platform game available on Android. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played offline in landscape mode. Exolotl : Zian was released in May 2023 and has a current rating of 4.1 out of 5.0 on Google Play.

Zombotron Re-Boot is a high-quality and extremely polished 2D action platformer with great controls, fun environmental puzzles, and lots of enemies and weapons. We play as a freelance mercenary making his way through the dangerous dungeons of an unknown planet by blasting enemies, discovering secret areas, and much more. While the primary objective is to simply survive, each level features optional objectives that focus on completion time, kill count, and special missions like blowing up ten enemies at once. These give the game a lot of replayability, as it’s almost impossible to achieve them all on your first try. The simple controls let us run, jump, aim, and shoot. But since auto-aim is enabled by default, the game is convenient to play with touch controls, and there is even Bluetooth controller support. The game also isn't super hardcore, as we can revive almost exactly where we died. As we progress, we find and upgrade new weapons, of which we can equip three at a time. Ammo for each gun is limited, so we have to carefully preserve it. But we find more as we go, and can buy additional weapons and ammo at shops that appear throughout the game. Zombotron is incredibly atmospheric, and especially the lighting and effects look fantastic. Each level also continues directly into the next, making it feel like a consistent open world. The game features a single chapter of 11 levels that end with a boss fight, but two additional chapters are in development. Zombotron Re-Boot monetized via ads after each level, with no iAP to remove them. It's a no-brainer for any fan of action platformers – and it’s easily the best platformer I’ve played this year.

International Missions is a free 2D Action Platform game available on Android. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played offline in landscape mode. International Missions was released in May 2021 and has a current rating of 4 out of 5.0 on Google Play.

Tower Fortress is a free 2D Action Platform game available on Android and iOS. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played offline in portrait mode. Tower Fortress was released in November 2017 and has a current rating of 4.1 out of 5.0 on Google Play and 4.3 out of 5.0 on the iOS App Store.

Unbroken Soul is a paid 2D Action Platform game available on Android and iOS. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played offline in landscape mode. Unbroken Soul was released in June 2019 and has a current rating of 3.8 out of 5.0 on Google Play and 4.2 out of 5.0 on the iOS App Store.

Retro-Fred is a free 2D Platform Action game available on Android and iOS. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played offline in portrait and landscape mode. Retro-Fred was released in August 2024 and has a current rating of 5 out of 5.0 on iOS App Store.

Prince of Persia: Lost Crown is an epic Metroidvania platformer with fast-paced, fluid action and tons of content. And best of all, it’s not just a great port of the original console game with controller support, but also includes mobile accessibility settings. Set in mythological ancient Persia, we play as Sargon, a member of the Immortals clan, trying to rescue Prince Ghassan, who’s been kidnapped. We progress through the immersive story across Mount Qaf, with twists, turns, and unique fully-voiced characters. To save the Prince, we fight and parkour our way through large, interconnected areas full of enemies, traps, puzzles, and secrets. Being a true Metroidvania, we often circle back after gaining new powers, like a longer dash or dimensional claws, to reach hidden items or new paths. Fighting is fast and exciting. We build combos and use special attacks charged by damaging enemies. These can be unlocked and swapped out. There are also amulets that boost damage, combos, and more, plus shops for upgrades. Enemies and bosses inspired by Persian mythology keep things fresh, forcing us to slash, dash, and parry—sometimes triggering cutscenes. For a mobile port, it’s spot on. We can play full console style or customize almost everything from controls to difficulty, auto-parries, and even game speed. That said, I still struggled a bit jumping and firing arrows. The 2.5D visuals look great, with lighting and textures that match the aesthetic. I did encounter one bug where enemies stopped attacking and I lost 19 minutes of progress. And with saves limited to certain areas, it’s less accessible as a mobile game on the go. Prince of Persia: Lost Crown is a try-before-you-buy game with a $14.99 iAP to unlock the full game, and a few optional DLC. As one of the best Metroidvania mobile games, I recommend it to anyone who wants to experience a full console game on mobile.

Makis Adventure is an open-world action platformer where we explore a number of colorful locations full of challenges, fight monsters and powerful bosses, and swim through puddles of water by transforming into a bloodthirsty shark. The game features an interesting blend of 2D and 3D perspectives, with a 3D open world that consists of several places of interest. Entering one of these locations shifts the view to a side-scrolling perspective, and we start methodically exploring the surroundings. While there are enemies to kill, the core challenge lies in dealing with the intricate platforming segments. With just a couple of attacks and a dodge roll, the combat system isn’t anything ground-breaking. But I enjoyed the underwater sections, where our protagonist - who is actually a shark demon - turns into a swimming nightmare that crushes anything standing in his way with the power of his mighty jaws. What I like most about the game is its exploration aspect. We start a quest in one part of the world, travel to another part to solve it, and then get rewarded with a new skill or item that helps us access new places elsewhere on the map. The open-world nature gives us complete freedom to beat the challenges in our preferred order, and an abundance of mini-games keeps the gameplay diverse. While this sounds a bit like a “Metroidvania” game, it unfortunately doesn’t fully fit the genre definition. The biggest issue is the lack of controller support. Even though the touch controls are quick and responsive, not being able to customize the button placement caused several unexpected and frustrating deaths. Makis Adventure is a $2.99 premium game without ads or iAPs. Granted, the game has some technical issues, looks a bit simplistic, and is much shorter than most would hope for. But it's still an impressive achievement for an indie dev.

Dead Station is a 2D sci-fi action platformer with RPG elements, in which we explore the insides of the titular facility while searching for access to the next level, fighting off enemies, and trying to figure out what happened to the station's previous inhabitants. While the story isn’t captivating, the core gameplay loop is pretty solid. Our character can move left and right, scale platforms, jump over gaps, and interact with various mechanisms. Later, we also find a melee weapon, a gun, and various additional equipment such as mines, grenades, and medical kits. Killing enemies grants us experience points that we spend on upgrading our character's skills. Most levels also contain secret locations with consumables and rare crafting parts that need to be applied at special stations to improve the characteristics of our weapons. The game manages to create a disturbing atmosphere of desolation and lingering danger. It really feels like every moment something bad might happen, leading to our untimely demise. Unfortunately, the visuals never change much, and the enemies have very little variety, which makes the game feel quite repetitive towards the end. Dead Station monetizes by showing occasional ads in-between levels, but they appear so seldom that they have almost zero impact on the overall gameplay experience. So if you enjoy well-made 2D action games, be sure to check it out.

Yokai Hunter Shintaro is a paid 2D Platform Action game available on Android. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played offline in landscape mode. Yokai Hunter Shintaro was released in April 2022.

Dead Station is a 2D sci-fi action platformer with RPG elements, in which we explore the insides of the titular facility while searching for access to the next level, fighting off enemies, and trying to figure out what happened to the station's previous inhabitants.While the story isn’t captivating, the core gameplay loop is pretty solid. Our character can move left and right, scale platforms, jump over gaps, and interact with various mechanisms. Later, we also find a melee weapon, a gun, and various additional equipment such as mines, grenades, and medical kits.Killing enemies grants us experience points that we spend on upgrading our character's skills. Most levels also contain secret locations with consumables and rare crafting parts that need to be applied at special stations to improve the characteristics of our weapons.The game manages to create a disturbing atmosphere of desolation and lingering danger. It really feels like every moment something bad might happen that leads to our untimely demise. Unfortunately, the visuals never change much, and the enemies have very little variety, which makes the game feel quite repetitive toward the end.Dead Station monetizes by showing occasional ads in-between levels, but they appear so seldom that they have almost zero impact on the overall gameplay experience. So if you enjoy well-made 2D action games, be sure to check it out.

Undestroyed : Platformer Game is a free 2D Action Platform game available on Android and iOS. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played online in landscape mode. Undestroyed : Platformer Game was released in May 2022 and has a current rating of 4 out of 5.0 on Google Play and 3.8 out of 5.0 on the iOS App Store.

Breaking Gates is a paid 2D Action Platform game available on Android. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played offline in landscape mode. It has received 1 user rating from the MiniReview community. Breaking Gates was released in February 2021 and has a current rating of 4.3 out of 5.0 on Google Play.

Micetopia is a paid 2D Platform Action game available on Android and iOS. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played offline in landscape mode. Micetopia was released in January 2021 and has a current rating of 2.8 out of 5.0 on Google Play and 3 out of 5.0 on the iOS App Store.

Great Sword - Action RPG is a free 2D Action Platform game available on Android and iOS. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played online in landscape mode. Great Sword - Action RPG was released in September 2019 and has a current rating of 4.2 out of 5.0 on Google Play and 4.6 out of 5.0 on the iOS App Store.

Space Intern is a fun 2D indie platformer about a young trainee’s relentless struggle to reach his designated place of study while dealing with dangerous natural and artificial obstacles that become more and more ridiculous with each passing level. Without any weapon or way to fight against the enemies, we must rely on our quick reflexes, platforming skills, and a handy double-jump ability to brave all the dangers of a hazardous research station. As we progress through the levels, we encounter interesting new obstacles and gameplay mechanics. And the developer has done a great job at making each level unique and entertaining. I especially liked the intensive boss fights at the end of each section, which really put our skills to the test. Each level also contains two stars that are hidden in hard-to-reach places. Gathering these presents an extra challenge but is not required unless you want to unlock additional character skins. Space Intern monetizes by showing force ads at the end of each level, which can be completely disabled via a single $3.99 iAP that also grants access to a couple of premium skins. Overall, I enjoyed the game's incredibly solid level-design and silly yet fitting humor. I think it's a must-try for any fan of quality platformers.

Unruly Heroes is an action-platformer full of environmental puzzles and a Trine-inspired gameplay where we continuously switch between multiple heroes to solve puzzles and fight enemies. Each hero has a unique fighting style that allows us to defeat different types of enemies, and the challenging boss battles require utilizing both shear force and the environment to survive, creating a truly challenging experience. Every level even has secret keys and coins to uncover. Keys are used to unlock passive and special abilities for our heroes, while coins are used to buy cosmetic skins. The touch controls are alright, but experiencing frantic on-screen taps not always registering may cause some frustration – especially since the game requires high precision. Luckily, Bluetooth controllers are supported.The art-style is full of colorful environments and fantastic character designs. Set against the backdrop of the Wukong legend, the foreground seamlessly blends into the background, colors pop on screen, and the special effects explode during battles.Unruly Heroes is a $1.99 premium game. It takes about 12 hours to 100% complete, including finding all secrets and replaying levels to get the best times. It’s a complete platforming experience, and the price point is well worth the amount of entertainment it offers – especially if you enjoy the Trine-like gameplay.

Ninja Arashi 2 is an action platformer that continues the story of a retired ninja fighting the dark forces responsible for the death of his family.In addition to the gameplay of the first game, Ninja Arashi 2 introduces new mechanics, such as the ability to kill enemies with a sword, push heavy objects, swim underwater, seek shelter during blizzards, and ride the winds using an umbrella. The levels have also become more diverse, the enemies more deadly, and the various traps more elaborate – all of which poses a real threat for the unprepared player.The gold we collect inside levels can be spent on various upgrades and improvements that increase our skills and add new moves to our arsenal. And we certainly need these upgrades, as the difficulty ramps up right from the start, which, combined with the boss fights, makes the gameplay much more challenging than in the first game. Ninja Arashi 2 can be played for free, with forced ads between levels and iAPs to buy a premium currency used for cosmetics and additional lives. Compared to its predecessor, it provides a more streamlined experience, but to comfortably play the game, it is highly recommended to buy the $1.99 iAP that removes ads.

Ninja Arashi is a hardcore action platformer about a retired ninja forced to recall his training after his family is assaulted by an old nemesis.While the story isn’t exceptional, it's the action-packed gameplay that makes the game truly shine. As we travel through a series of atmospheric levels, we perform acrobatic stunts, fight enemies, avoid traps, and collect loot to grow stronger. To help us survive, we can use skills that allow us to throw shurikens, dash through hostile enemies, or disguise ourselves as a tree stump. While regular enemies don’t provide any significant challenge, it’s the abundance of elaborate traps and their combinations that pose a real threat. Since we die at first hit and have a limited number of lives, it’s necessary to exercise caution and awareness instead of blatantly rushing forward.As we progress through the levels, we collect scrolls to unlock the next chapter, as well as gold and diamonds used to upgrade our offensive and defensive skills to make us deadlier in combat. It is almost impossible to beat later levels without first memorizing traps and enemy locations, which may be a turndown for casual players. On the other hand, platforming veterans and hardcore players will be pleased with the amount of challenge being offered.Ninja Arashi shows forced ads between levels, which can be disabled via a $0.99 iAP. Additional iAPs are used to buy more gold and diamonds, as well as unlocking various cosmetic skins – none of which is necessary to successfully beat the game.

Shantae: Risky's Revenge FULL is a paid 2D Platform Action game available on iOS. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played offline in landscape mode. It has received 1 user rating from the MiniReview community. Shantae: Risky's Revenge FULL was released in December 2011 and has a current rating of 4.6 out of 5.0 on iOS App Store.

Frogue - Roguelike Platformer is a paid 2D Platform Action game available on Android. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played offline in landscape mode. Frogue - Roguelike Platformer was released in January 2024 and has a current rating of 2.9 out of 5.0 on Google Play.

SouloMania is a free 2D Action Platform game available on Android and iOS. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played online in landscape mode. SouloMania was released in November 2023 and has a current rating of 4.6 out of 5.0 on Google Play and 4.4 out of 5.0 on the iOS App Store.

Cat Journey is a 2D action platformer where we take control of Red Cat who is on a quest to find and save his sister inside a dangerous and mysterious forest. The simple touch controls have us double jump, dash, cast spells, and swing swords to defeat the monsters lurking in the dark forest. Thankfully, there’s also controller support. As we progress, we find new weapons and spells hidden around the forest or buy them at a safe hub between levels. The platforming of Cat Journey is tricky, and deaths are frequent. So at the end of a dangerous platforming section, it’s very tempting to watch an ad to revive in place rather than respawning at the last checkpoint. The atmospheric music and art stand out, and the enemy and environmental designs meld together well, giving the game a cohesive style. Movement and combat are also well-tuned overall, but due to some bugged hitboxes, it’s easy to get into a situation where we take damage without our character reacting in any way. Enemies sometimes even clip through us. It doesn’t ruin the overall experience, but I do hope it gets fixed. Cat Journey monetizes via ads shown between deaths and levels, and incentivized ads for more currency or to revive. Ads can be removed via a $1.99 iAP. For fans of 2D platformers looking for a well-paced game with controller support that's a bit on the shorter side, Cat Journey is a decent fit.

Lucky Luna is a fun and highly-polished platform action game by the developers of Alto’s Odyssey. It’s a fast-paced experience with amazing level designs, lots of secret areas, and difficult boss rooms.What truly sets the game apart is that our character, Luna, can’t jump. So we're forced to attempt to survive each level by simply swiping left and right to move in either direction. A fast swipe moves us further faster, while gently dragging our finger across the screen lets us move slowly and with high precision.With no combat system, Lucky Luna is a game all about surviving traps by moving fast while staying in control and safely landing on the next platform. And there really are traps everywhere, so this is much easier said than done – not to mention the hardcore boss rooms. Thankfully, while it takes just a single hit to die, we can respawn infinitely at the many checkpoints. After completing a level, which can easily take 5-10 minutes, we get three separate scores based on how many pearls we’ve collected, how fast we finished the level, and how few times we died. Apart from the campaign mode where we’re looking for lost plates to complete a shrine, the also game features an endless mode, and both achievements and online high-scores. The pixel art style is fantastic, and the animations and sound effects help create a highly engaging experience. Each level also has a distinct theme with unique traps that make it a joy to explore everything.Lucky Luna is a premium game that can only be played with a Netflix subscription. If you already have Netflix, it’s a must-try for any fan of platformers.NOTE: if you don't have Netflix, it's not worth buying the subscription if you only plan on playing Lucky Luna. Since the monetization has no impact on the gameplay, it scores 9 – down from 10 to indicate that although there are no ads or iAPs, it’s not “perfect”.

Apple Knight is a 2D action platformer in which we explore dangerous side-scrolling maps full of valuable loot, deadly traps, and angry monsters – all with the aim of bringing back peace to our troubled land.Our goal in each level is to reach the exit by jumping, grabbing walls, and dashing across long distances to avoid traps. We may dispose of our enemies using melee and ranged attacks, but it’s much more fun and deeply satisfying to push them into conveniently placed spikes and creatively utilize other surroundings.While it follows the exact formula used by many similar games in the genre, Apple Knight feels a bit more focused on the exploration part of the gameplay. Instead of obvious linear paths, each map is made up of a convoluted network of roads and passages, most of which are easy to miss. The interesting boss battles, multiple difficulty levels, and simple quests we may complete for various NPCs to earn extra rewards also bring some variety to an otherwise straightforward gameplay experience.In-between levels, we use coins to purchase new swords, armor, and projectiles. The latter are especially interesting as throwing stuff at enemies is a key part of any effective strategy. We even get to play around with some exotic projectiles such as spike bombs, teleportation spells, and swarms of deadly bats. Apple Knight monetizes via annoying forced ads, and incentivized ads to unlock premium chests. Both can be disabled via an iAP, just like more gold and premium equipment can be bought. While accumulating enough gold requires some tedious grinding, it’s still possible to beat the game without paying.Overall, if you enjoy level-based action platformers and don't mind the pixel graphics and slightly uncomfortable controls, be sure to give the game a try.

Kingdom of Arcadia is an old-school action platformer that has us complete 20 challenging levels and fight 4 powerful bosses to save our troubled kingdom from its impending doom.We play as a young boy who got trapped inside an arcade machine and now needs to help its pixelated inhabitants deal with an evil sorcerer. Each level consists of a platforming maze full of traps and enemies that we must use our sword, throwing knives, and double-jump ability to deal with - all while searching for an exit to the next level. As the game progresses, the obstacles grow in difficulty and ingenuity. To effectively deal with them, we need to upgrade our equipment by spending the coins we collect along the way. The game is designed to let us replay already finished levels to gather more resources, but we can thankfully progress far without having to engage in a tedious grind-fest.While the game isn’t extraordinary, it carefully emulates the retro platforming genre. It features nice visuals, energetic music, four distinct worlds to explore, and a humorous story. Unfortunately, the unusual premise of being stuck inside an arcade machine doesn’t affect the gameplay in any way, which I feel is a wasted opportunity.Kingdom of Arcadia is a $0.99 premium game on iOS. On Android, it’s free-to-play, with ads to revive or unlock special chests. There are three iAPs to disable the ads and gain more coins, bonus resurrections, and chests. Any of these purchases also enable offline play, which feels like a weird design decision.

Aiyra Indian - Adventure 2D is a free 2D Platform Action game available on Android. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played offline in landscape mode. Aiyra Indian - Adventure 2D was released in July 2019 and has a current rating of 3.3 out of 5.0 on Google Play.

Special Agent CyberDuck is a challenging action platformer with a neat pixel art-style and 80 levels full of enemies, boss fights, and secret areas to discover.Our goal is to get to the exit of each level without dying, which includes shooting enemies, dodging bullets, and jumping platforms to avoid traps and obstacles. Although simply getting to the exit lets us continue to the next level, finding each level’s multiple secret areas to save hostages is part of what makes the game fun, adding a slight adventure feel.To deal with the many enemies, we fire our weapon(s) that slowly overheat if we spray-and-pray for too long. Interestingly, the game features more progression than most action platformers, allowing us to unlock new weapons that we can switch between at any time, and buy new characters with unique advantages.Although we can tweak the difficulty, CyberDuck is inherently challenging, and with no checkpoints, you better be prepared to restart most levels over and over again. This makes the game perfect for those who enjoy punishing platformers, but it is, unfortunately, possible to get into situations where death is seemingly unavoidable.The controls work decently well and are easy to get the hang of, and the art-style and humorous duck-themed universe is a great fit for the gameplay. The only slight downside is that the menu UI is a bit convoluted.Special Agent CyberDuck monetizes through very sparse incentivized ads for extra in-game currency, iAPs up to $15 to support the indie developer or instantly unlock all characters, weapons, and attributes. Everything is also relatively easily unlocked through gameplay, however, and the game isn’t grindy.It’s a great fit for anyone who enjoys hardcore platformers, and its speed-run mode ensures a high level of replayability.

Super Mombo Quest is a fun and uniquely fast-paced precision platformer with a large Metroidvania-like world full of crystals to collect, enemies to defeat, and dangers to avoid.The world is split into lots of interconnected rooms that each have two objectives; collect all the crystals scattered throughout, and achieve a “mombo combo” by killing every enemy before a timer that starts when we hit the first enemy reaches zero. Since every enemy hit and crystal collected adds a bit of extra time to the timer, this last objective makes the gameplay super exciting by forcing us to kill everything in one long combo. And we definitely want to complete these objectives, as they reward us with gold coins used to unlock closed-off areas of the world.There are no bullets or weapons in Super Mombo Quest, which means we have to jump on enemies to kill them and use double-jump, wall slides, and dash-jumps to swiftly navigate the room. And when we eventually die, we respawn at a small village where we can spend crystals collected through gameplay on power-ups and permanent upgrades. When we’re ready to continue, we then exit the city to make our way through the persistent universe again.The gameplay experience is highly polished, and I particularly enjoyed discovering the large number of secret areas, and the tight controls that feature both customizable touch controls and Bluetooth controller support. Super Mombo Quest monetizes through ads occasionally shown between rooms, a $2.99 iAP to remove ads, and a $4.99 iAP to also unlock a crystal-doubler, a unique skin, and to make the game offline-playable.It’s an easy recommendation for anyone who enjoys platformers, and one of the best games in the genre to release this year.

Birk's Adventure is a paid 2D Platform Action game available on Android and iOS. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played offline in landscape mode. Birk's Adventure was released in December 2019 and has a current rating of 4.6 out of 5.0 on Google Play and 4.7 out of 5.0 on the iOS App Store.

Access Code Zero is a paid 2D Platform Action game available on Android and iOS. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played offline in landscape mode. Access Code Zero was released in April 2021 and has a current rating of 4.8 out of 5.0 on Google Play and 3.9 out of 5.0 on the iOS App Store.

Super Cat Tales 2 is a lovely adventure platformer with a beautiful pixel art-style, over 100 levels, and no ugly UI buttons anywhere, instead opting for a control mechanism that has us tap and hold anywhere on either side of the screen to run, and double tap to sprint. Jumping is done by sprinting off of any elevated platform, wall-jumping by running into a wall, and some cats even have the ability to take out enemies by hitting them while sprinting.Switching between cats within each level to use their unique ability plays a big part in figuring out how to complete the level to perfection and collect all hidden "bells", which are later on required to unlock new levels. I really enjoyed this system.The ads that appear between levels can be removed through a $6 iAP, and while also rewarded through gameplay, more gold can be bought too, which allows us to unlock items like coin-doublers faster.

Much like Swordigo, Sword of Xolan is a fantastic action platformer with 30 levels, offline-playability, a great soundtrack, and controller support!Finding all the hidden areas in each level is a bunch of fun, and the game monetizes with ads, which can be disabled through a single $1 IAP. A mobile game without all the frustrating fuzz!

Tiny Dangerous Dungeons Remake is a remastered version of an old action platformer about a daring explorer who ventures into the depths of an old temple in search of immense treasure. Most notably, the monochrome GameBoy aesthetics of the original game have been replaced with a cartoony style similar to the developer’s later titles, such as Poor Bunny!. It looks like a completely new game with reworked art, new music, and improved gameplay - and it plays incredibly smoothly, even with touch controls. Mechanically, we get the same old mini-Metroidvania, which has us traversing a series of interconnected locations, jumping over obstacles, defeating enemies with a throwing knife, and gradually acquiring better equipment, which grants us new abilities and unlocks access to previously restricted areas. [Check out our list of the best Metroidvania mobile games] What I like the most about the new game is the addition of new zones, new enemy types, new intermediate bosses, new items, new secrets, and even an additional ending. It’s hard not to notice the many design improvements and the overall quality of the game. Tiny Dangerous Dungeons Remake isn’t very long, and except for a couple of tough platforming sequences and nerve-racking bosses, it doesn’t pose any significant challenge. It can be finished in a couple of evenings and thus ideally suits any fan of casual platformers. It’s a premium game that costs $2.99 on Android and $3.99 on iOS, with no ads or iAPs.

Wall World is an action roguelite mining game where we climb a colossal vertical wall using a robospider, drill for resources in procedurally generated mines, and fend off increasingly aggressive waves of monsters using missiles and tower defense-like turrets. The core gameplay loop of mining, upgrading, and defending our robospider against hordes of flying and wall-walking monsters would be engaging if not for its incredibly slow start and sluggish progression. Most of the early game is spent chipping away blocks of dirt and valuable resources with a mining raygun until key upgrades unlock basic functionality like faster mining. Discovering secret rooms, blueprints, and impressively-written lore pages offer fleeting moments of intrigue, but they're overshadowed by the heavy grind and steep cost of permanent upgrades. And while the concept of combining mining with real-time defense like in Dome Keeper is inspired, the mobile port of Wall World suffers from a frustrating control scheme that didn’t translate well from the PC and console versions, which themselves were criticized for poor controller support. Aiming is unreliable, movement feels like pulling an iron curtain, and the fire button sometimes stops responding entirely. The mobile version also lacks official controller support. The pixel art is detailed and atmospheric, with eerie enemy designs and a bleak, imposing wall. The UI could be more intuitive in its pillar-boxed state - especially when navigating tools. It’s also easy to fumble over the UI when switching weapon types. Wall World is a $8.49 premium game, and the “Deep Threat” DLC from the PC version is not available. Even on PC and console, Wall World was a divisive game. But on mobile, its baked-in inferior controls, missing DLC, and unnecessarily repetitive design unfortunately heighten these weaknesses.

Skul: The Hero Slayer is a fast-paced roguelite action platformer where we dispose of an exorbitant number of enemies and powerful bosses using a rich variety of weapons and skills. Playing as a small skeleton fighting hordes of humans, we venture through a series of locations by jumping between platforms, avoiding obstacles, and swinging our weapons at the countless enemies rushing at us from all sides. Some of these locations also contain merchants, trainers, story-driving characters, and, of course, bosses that really put our skills to the test. The most interesting gameplay aspect is the different skulls that we pick up and wear instead of our own head. They provide different stats and skill sets that transform us into a swordsman, a spearman, a mage, and so on, significantly altering the play style. We can even switch between two different heads at any time, and upgrade them to improve their stats and unlock more skills. The permanent progression comes in the form of stat improvements that we buy from a shop in between runs. We also gradually rescue characters that unlock new features at our home base. My biggest disappointment with the game is its high repetitiveness. Instead of procedurally generated levels, we get a limited set of pre-designed locations that quickly become boring. Another issue is the poor controller support, with many models not working - despite the developer's claims. Unfortunately, the touch controls aren’t comfortable, and constant miss-taps in the heat of battle often cost us our life. Skul: The Hero Slayer is a $7.99 premium game without ads or iAPs. Despite the annoying lag and unresponsive controls, the game still offers great entertainment for fans of action platformers. Hopefully, the issues will be addressed in the future.

Deathblaze is a 2D hack-and-slash action game where we jump on platforms, frantically swing our swords at the enemies, and dodge to evade deadly incoming attacks.   Aside from quickly disposing of all enemies and opening closed passages with remote switches, our goal in each level is to collect as many coins as possible. We then use those to upgrade our character's stats or buy better weapons. While the levels in Deathblaze don’t contain secret areas or stashes – as is otherwise common for the genre – some do require us to thoroughly search every nook and cranny by traveling back and forth. If we aim for a full completion, that is. What I like about the game is its visual and gameplay diversity. Each chapter takes place in a visually unique location with a distinct set of enemies that require different tactical approaches to deal with. At some point, we even have to run for our life from an angry fire-breathing dragon, evading obstacles on the way. What I didn't like is the game's lack of meaningful story, its low number of levels, and the grind-focused gameplay. Although it’s possible to finish all levels with only a couple of upgrades, getting three stars in each level and completing all achievements require a lot of grinding – or paying. Speaking of which, Deathblaze monetizes via incentivized ads and iAPs for more coins used for upgrades. We may also directly purchase better weapons that otherwise cost quite a lot. Thankfully, they are not needed to complete the game. Overall, Deathblaze is a decent representative of the genre, which will hopefully be further updated with additional content.

ScourgeBringer is an epic action roguelike platformer where we slash and dash our way through a floating fortress to save our species.On the surface, ScourgeBringer seems like a traditional action roguelike where we clear room after room of monsters while gathering upgrades and searching for the boss so we can move on to the next level. But beneath that lies an interesting combat system that truly sets the game apart. Every attack in ScourgeBringer keeps our character in the air for a short while, and we have to constantly air-dash between enemies to smash them and interrupt their powerful telegraphed attacks. Combined with the need to dodge bullets and avoid floor hazards, this mechanic means we’re almost always flying around.The ability to run on walls and air-dash between attacks makes the combo-driven combat super satisfying. This gameplay experience only gets better with more upgrades, but since most powerups cost blood or health, we must also carefully manage those resources. The game features gorgeous pixel art, an intense soundtrack, and it runs phenomenally with both touch controls and a Bluetooth controller.The biggest problem some might have with the game – and many others in the same genre – is that it sucks to die in the last level and then have to go through all the easy levels over and over again. The powerups also don’t give a huge boost in power, so we have to rely on improving our skills to win.ScourgeBringer costs $6.99 on Android and $5.99 on iOS. The lack of ads or iAPs for boosts or revives makes it a great and very challenging experience. It’s a polished game with hours of content that is a must-try for fans of the genre.

Rune Sword is a 2D retro action platformer featuring lots of jumping, climbing, dashing, sword swinging, arrow shooting, and loot collecting.Throughout 30 levels split into three acts, our objective is to deal with any obstacles in our way and ultimately reach the exit. Thankfully, our character can double jump, grab walls, and dash over long distances, providing lots of ways to overcome the platforming challenges. Most of the time, however, we can just follow a simple linear path, only deviating from it to search for hidden treasure chests that are often located in hard-to-reach places.The combat isn’t groundbreaking, with only one type of sword attack, and the option to shoot arrows if we have any in stock. But at least the coins we gain for completing levels can be used on upgrading our equipment so we hit harder and can sustain more incoming damage. The game’s most interesting concept is its unlockable runes that add various bonuses to our character's stats. Since we can only take three of them with us on our journey, there's a bit of strategizing about which ones to pick - but ultimately, the benefit they provide doesn’t affect the gameplay in a major way.While easy to handle most of the time, I sometimes noticed a significant delay between pressing one of the on-screen buttons and the respective action being executed, which hurts the overall impression of the game.Rune Sword monetizes by showing forced ads between levels, and incentivized ads to respawn after death, double the number of coins earned, and unlock special chests. Thankfully, there are iAPs to disable these ads, and some to buy additional coins or unlock high-tier equipment faster. Thanks to the moderate difficulty level, the game can be finished without tedious grinding or need for any purchases, which many will appreciate.

Tiny Dangerous Dungeons is a free 2D Platform Action game available on Android and iOS. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played offline in landscape mode. It has received 1 user rating from the MiniReview community. Tiny Dangerous Dungeons was released in May 2015 and has a current rating of 4.4 out of 5.0 on Google Play and 4.1 out of 5.0 on the iOS App Store.

Snow Dudes is a free 2D Platform Action game available on Android. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played offline in landscape mode. Snow Dudes was released in January 2019 and has a current rating of 4.3 out of 5.0 on Google Play.

Shadow Blade: Reload is a paid 3D Platform Action game available on Android and iOS. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played offline in landscape mode. Shadow Blade: Reload was released in January 2017 and has a current rating of 3.6 out of 5.0 on Google Play and 3.7 out of 5.0 on the iOS App Store.

Tallowmere is a paid 2D Action Dungeon Crawler game available on Android and iOS. It’s a singleplayer experience that can be played offline in landscape mode. Tallowmere was released in May 2015 and has a current rating of 4.7 out of 5.0 on Google Play and 4.7 out of 5.0 on the iOS App Store.