A heatwave is spreading across the country, marking the ideal time to unleash our best Android Apps of the week update! We heartily recommend that you get yourself indoors out of the roasting sun, draw the curtains tightly shut and download some of the gems we’ve listed for you below. Sunlight is overrated anyway, if you ask us.
If you have Barcode Scanner installed on your Android device then you can use it to zap the QR Codes shown below. Otherwise you can click the URL link in the title of each app to gain access to its page on the Android Market.
Approx £1.22
Mercifully, most of us won’t ever be in the position where we have a deadly assault rifle in our hands, but if you have the urge to feel powerful and shoot pretend targets, you should give this a whirl. Based on the hit PC military combat series, ARMA II Firing Range grants access to hundreds of authentic weapons and allows you to test your aim across some seriously gorgeous locations. The visuals in this game really are stunning, but then you’d expect them to be as ARMA II Firing Range requires your phone to have a Tegra-based graphics processor. If your handset is up to the task then this is a highly recommended download.
Free
What do Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman and The Green Lantern all have in common? No, it’s not that they all wear tight Lycra suits that leave little to the imagination – it’s that they’re all available on Android thanks to the release of this suitably heroic DC Comics application. Think of it as Kindle for but comics. You can browse hundreds of different issues, purchase them for download and view your comics from the app or your PC desktop. The interface is slick and the quality of what’s on offer is fantastic. If the recent spate of superhero movies has whetted your appetite for further ripping yarns, then you should give this a try.
Approx £1.83
Any game that reputes to resurrect the classic 16-bit platform adventure has a good chance of being featured in our weekly best Android apps update, but Roboto’s much more than just an excuse to get misty-eyed about the good old days of gaming. With sharp 3D visuals and a thumping soundtrack, it puts many PSP and DS titles to shame, and the engaging and addictive gameplay ensures that you’ll get more than your money’s worth. What’s more, Roboto has been designed to take advantage of the Sony Ericsson Xperia Play‘s physical controls, granting it an even more authentic console-like feel if you happen to own that particular phone. If you’re a fan of Sonic, Mario and virtually any other old-school platform epic, this will be right up your street.
Free (Beta)
We make no secret of the fact that we’re absolutely head-over-heels in love with Swype. It’s our favourite Android keyboard replacement here at Electric Pig, and currently holds the Guiness World Record for the fastest text input on a touch-screen device. Predictably, rival apps are starting to appear which claim to ‘out-swipe’ Swype, with TouchPal keyboard being the latest to make bold claims. TouchPal is already available on the Android Market but the developer is working on a swipe-based edition known as TouchPal Curve. It’s currently in an invite-only beta, but if you follow the @TouchPal and send them a message, they’ll give you a link to download the app. So far we’re impressed – the level of text prediction is certainly more powerful than Swype can manage. Check out the video – complete with a frankly shocking cover of Lady Gaga’s Poker Face – below.
Free
Gameloft’s assault on the Android Market continues with this fantastic 3D racer. With 26 famous manufacturers and over 100 different cars to unlock, there’s an astonishing amount of content here. The visuals are typically polished (this is Gameloft we’re talking about, after all) and the realistic handling makes it feel closer to Gran Turismo than Ridge Racer. Amazingly, GT Racing: Motor Academy is completely free to download and play – you can purchase XP packs to speed up your progress through the game, but patient players will savour the opportunity to rise through the ranks and unlock content through merit rather than cash.
