The best 5 new Android and iOS applications of the week

This week has been busy for me since I had to play many games for my smartphone gaming Asus ROG Phone 3. I'm also testing the Google Play Pass catalog, to see if the offer is more interesting than Apple Arcade. So I've found you some very cool games but also some productivity apps and an application that brings to any Android smartphone a very high profile functionality for iOS 14 and Android 11.

Super Clone: a cyberpunk vertical shooter

Super Clone is a third-person vertical shot from above. You must progress through several levels by shooting at anything that moves while avoiding enemy projectiles.

The gameplay mechanics are very basic and your character has the ability to aim and shoot automatically. All you have to do is manage your moves and roll at the right time to dodge enemy fire.

The game is visually very nice and colorful, the universe is fully cyberpunk. You can upgrade your character and unlock bonuses as well as new weapons. The light-RPG springs bring some depth to the game, which is getting more and more difficult.

It's the kind of game you can play for a few minutes to pass the time or just spend your evenings on it at try-hard to reach the high score. On the other hand, it contains in-app purchases to speed up your progress.

You can download the Super Clone game for free (in-app purchases) from the Google Play Store or the Apple App Store.

Bullet Echo: an exciting tactical TPS

I think I found the new nugget that I'm not going to let go of anytime soon. Again, this is a top-down TPS (third-person shooter). Except that Bullet Echo emphasizes the tactical aspect of combat. The game is multiplayer, so you compete against other players in an arena. Sound and light are the two great gameplay mechanics.

Concretely, when you move around on the map, you are semi-blind. For those of you who have played Age of Empire, it's as if you're facing an area you haven't yet explored, and so is almost invisible until you enter it.

In the game, it's the barrel of your rifle, the direction in which you point it, that makes the elements of the map, including the enemies, visible. You can collect bonuses to upgrade your weapon, to heal yourself, ammunition, or bulletproof vials.

And then you have to keep your ears open to hear where your opponents are because you make noise when you shoot or move around on the map. You must then well manage your movements but especially the places on the map that you aim at, in order to make them visible.

Frankly, I've played it for a few hours already and I really like the tension that comes out of it and the tactical aspect that is very successful.

You can download the Bullet Echo game for free (in-app purchases) from the Google Play Store or the Apple App Store.

LinkTray: a widget to share multiple links easily

LinkTray is a very simple and convenient application to share multiple links from different applications on your smartphone. It was the NextPit community that helped me discover it via our forum.

It behaves like a widget in your interface and you can group all the links you want to share at a given time. You then have a list quickly accessible from the widget with your links from Twitter, your web browser, or YouTube, for example.

Via this hub, you can then share the different links in the way you choose, as you would normally do on your Android smartphone. The application is free, with no ads or in-app purchases.

You can download the Link Tray application for free from the Google Play Store.

Tap, Tap: to tap the back of your smartphone like you would on iOS 14 or Android 11

Tap, Tap is an application that is still in Alpha version and is not yet listed on the Play Store that I discovered on the site XDA Developers. It brings the Back Tap gesture of iOS 14/Android 11, the fact of launching certain actions by tapping the back of your phone, to any Android smartphone (starting with Android 7.0).

The developer Kieron Quinn, also known as Quinny899 on the XDA forum, has managed to port this feature that uses the accessibility options of your smartphone. Tap, Tap can recognize when you tap on the back of your phone and then perform certain actions, such as activating the voice wizard, launching applications, or replacing gestures like "backspace".

You can set each action associated with tapping. A future update will allow you to adjust the sensitivity of each tapping. And the application also proposes to set up "gates", cases in which the application will not react to tapping to avoid false positives or the unexpected launch of an unwanted action.

The application is surprisingly successful for an Alpha version and the interface is very ergonomic. I tested it on the OnePlus North and the smartphone even recognized the tapping through its plastic shell. Tap, Tap is an open-source application, so you can follow its development on GitHub.

You can download the Tap, Tap application for free via the APK file here.

A Blind Legend: an audio RPG played with your eyes closed

Lately, I'm more and more eager to explore the theme of accessibility in tech, especially when it comes to the uses of a smartphone.

A Blind Legend is one of those games designed to be accessible. Here, the target audience is the visually impaired. A Blind Legend is a heroic fantasy RPG whose adventure and the gameplay is based solely on sound.

Well, the game was released in 2015 so it's not a recent application. But the experience transported me so much that I wanted to share it with you here and eventually make you discover this game if, like me, you missed it at the time.

You play Edward Blake, a famous blind knight. And you must move through this world that is invisible to you by following the voice of your daughter, Louise. Thanks to the 3D binaural sound you can locate the direction your daughter's voice is pointing to in order to orientate yourself.

By scanning and tapping on your smartphone screen, you can move around, perform actions or fight. The game is free and made in France by Dowino studio. And it's really an experience to try. However, the game has not been updated since October 2018.

You can download the game A Blind Legend for free from the Google Play Store or the Apple App Store.

What do you think of this selection? Have you already tested some of the applications on this list? What would be your applications of the week? Share your opinions in the comments!