Google has announced, as is tradition, its annual selection of the best Android apps and games that you need to be downloading in 2018.
The Google Play Awards take place every year just before Google’s I/O developer conference and this year is no different with some outstanding choices ranging from the latest mobile games to apps that can help increase our well-being.
We’ll add to this piece as new apps become available throughout the year but for now here’s Google’s definitive list of the best.
Here are the best Android apps and games for 2018:
1. Standout Well-Being App: Simple Habit
Think of Simple Habit as the ultimate encyclopedia for your mental health. Containing some 50 sessions and literally hundreds of premium mediations this app contains everything you need to reach a place where you’re feeling yourself again.
Download on the Google Play Store
2. Best Accessibility Experience: Be My Eyes
This app is an incredible example of how if you give people the chance, humanity can actually pull together and help each other out. The app connects some 68,000 blind or visually impaired users with almost a million volunteers. through a live video connection the volunteers can help identify objects, or assist with daily tasks which otherwise might have been almost impossible without quick and immediate help.
Download on the Google Play Store
3. Best Social Impact: Khan Academy
Khan Academy is a free school teacher in your pocket. This not-for-profit organisation have created a comprehensive global curriculum for almost all ages and backgrounds and can help you learn about everything from the fundamentals of biology to music notation. Its goal is simple, to make sure that everyone can have access to education.
Download on the Google Play Store
4. Standout Indie: Old Man’s Journey
This hand-drawn game is everything you could possibly need for a busy commute. It’s easy to play and yet full of surprises as you travel through this old man’s life and uncover the memories that made him the person he is today. It’s charming, and beautiful to look at.
Download on the Google Play Store
5. Best Community Building Game: Episode
Episode is a narrative driven game unlike any other that allows you to place yourself right in the centre of the story. You can play through your own customised version of ‘Mean Girls’ or choose from some of the other 75,000 stories that are available to download. The game’s focused around community involvement so you can create your own stories for others to enjoy as well.
Download on the Google Play Store
6. Best AR or VR Experience: BBC Earth: Life in VR
It’s BBC Earth, but in VR. Honestly we could stop writing as that should be enough but we’ll go into a bit more detail. This bespoke virtual reality app designed for Google Daydream takes you below the oceans meeting just some of the amazing creatures that live and survive.
Download on the Google Play Store
7. Standout Startup: Canva
Canva is a powerful design tool condensed into one incredibly easy to use app. Whether you want to create a banner for some college work, or give your Instagram posts that something extra then Canva is for you. It's used by thousands around the globe including media professionals to give their social media content the boost it needs.
Download on the Google Play Store
8. Best Breakthrough Hit: Empires & Puzzles
Its bright graphics, instantly accessible gameplay and hidden depths has made Empires & Puzzles a complete surprise hit. Of course, anyone who’s played it will no that there’s nothing surprising about its success. The game can get a bit ‘pay to win’ if you’re playing other players, but when you’re playing against the computer this is simple easy to master fun.
Download on the Google Play Store