19 Best Android Games To Play On Your Chromebook

Now that (certain) Chromebooks run Android apps via the Google Play store, the gaming options for these laptops aren't as dry as they used to be, and include some gems. There's only one catch: not all Android games run well (or at all) on Chrome OS, as they were written for phones and tablets and not laptops. And with each passing month, Android's best new games — which I will add here — become Chrome OS's gains. So while Fallout Shelter runs without a stutter and Marvel's Spider-Man Unlimited is one of the better infinite runners we've seen, others (including Madden NFL Football, NBA 2K17 and Middle Earth Shadow of War) fail. This is why we downloaded a ton of Android games to test them out on the Google Pixelbook so you know which games to trust on a Chromebook. The racing title Asphalt Airborne 8 works well on a Chromebook, offering smooth performance in tablet and laptop mode. It also offers support for the keyboard as a controller, so you don't have to stretch your arms up to the screen when you're not in tablet mode.

One of the greatest fighting games of all time has landed on Android and Chromebooks, and it looks great on a high-res PixelBook screen. This edition comes with more than 20 characters, with unlockable moves, online competition and a story mode. Yes, this one looks a little weird, but stay with me. It's a puzzle game where you race the computer to see whose rivers of ink can fill more of an outline first. One of the best minimalist games around. Honey, Square Enix shrunk the JPRG! This game recreates the story of the console epic beat-for-beat, but with a shrunken, cuter version of the original. Gameplay's also changed to fit the touch-screen. The first chapter for free, and the rest will cost you. This rich and complex Japanese RPG is still in progress in the US, so you've still got time to catch up with the rest of the gamers.

Each character has their own affinity, and playing that character in a quest with a matching affinity means earning higher stat boosts. This goes double for the game's side-quests, which reward users with greater boosts for matching affinities. Yes, there are a lot of in-app purchases you can buy, but you don't need them to enjoy this game. One of the most addictive puzzle games of the decade has landed on the Chromebook, with Threes, where you move tiles together in a grid to add them together. You start with 1's and 2's, and then add matching tiles together (3's with 3's, 6's with 6's and so on and so forth). Not to be confused with the bland knockoff 2048, Threes features a catchy instrumental soundtrack, and its tiles come to life as cute, growly little rectangles. Only supports touch-screen for tap controls. The cult classic Katamari Damacy ball-rolling game is one of the weirdest concepts in video game history, and its fun has now arrived on Android and Chrome OS.

Instead of collecting items on your giant ball in an aimless manner, this mobile version is an infinite-runner where your ever-growing sphere gets larger and larger and becomes difficult to fit between dangerous obstacles. One note, though: you'll want to use its touch screen controls, and not tilt option, as the latter isn't sensitive enough for survival. While it's not a straight port of the console version of Injustice 2, the Android version of the DC fighter game playes quite well via Chrome emulation. Not only do the characters move smoothly, but you see them in tons of detail. Since there's no keyboard support, and you need to tap the screen quickly, this one may be best on Chromebooks with smaller screens. Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp puts you in the role of a gal or guy who's walking around the world, just looking to make friends and have them come over to hang out.