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submitted 3 days ago by Osm@lemmy.ml to c/games@lemmy.world

I'm moving away from proprietary apps and want to find open-source games on Android that are genuinely good, not just time-killers or kids' titles.

My criteria:

  • Truly open source (repository available, ideally on F-Droid)

  • No ads, no trackers, no in-app purchases

  • Modern feel and polished experience — something that feels like a real game, not a tech demo

  • Made for adults: deep gameplay, challenge, real progression (any genre welcome — strategy, roguelike, RPG, racing, puzzle...)

I trust actual players over AI-generated lists, so: what open-source game on Android gave you the best experience, and why?

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[-] EatMyPixelDust@lemmy.blahaj.zone 1 points 20 hours ago

"I keep having this dream" is pretty good, I thought

[-] coffeecake@programming.dev 2 points 1 day ago

Andor'd trail. I sank so many hours in it that I had to uninstall lest I become negligent of my daily tasks and work. Also has some funny moments.

[-] MITM0@lemmy.world 2 points 1 day ago

I would really love to see an Open-Source clone of Plants Vs Zombies.

(No I cannot code)

[-] tal@lemmy.today 14 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

Yeah, this is probably what I'd call the strongest open-source Android game (though I do like roguelikes, so gotta take personal preference into account).

Also, !pixeldungeon@lemmy.world is moderated by the Shattered Pixel dev, who came over to the Fediverse, so that's cool.

It isn't as deep as some other roguelikes, but roguelikes in general are deep, and it's well-adapted to the Android environment — touchscreen, easier to play in bursts, where you don't have to remember a lot to get back into a run if you play a bit, then pick it up later. It's got a reasonably gentle learning curve, as roguelikes go.

[-] rowinxavier@lemmy.world 2 points 2 days ago

Tbh I would call it the strongest game on Android based on hours played. Getting your first win is really hard, but getting consistent wins is a whole other level I have not been able to manage. Good fun, lots of options, and really good balancing.

[-] JSocial@lemmy.dbzer0.com 33 points 3 days ago
[-] randomwords@futurology.today 1 points 2 days ago

I like Mindustry a lot. I even picked it up for PC to enjoy playing it on the desktop as well.

As much as I love civ, I haven't been able to translate it to the phone. I just really want a mouse for that game.

[-] Postmortal_Pop@lemmy.world 10 points 2 days ago

D2Android

It's not quite what you describe but I'd argue it's very much what you're looking for. It runs Diablo 2: Lord of Destruction on Android with some quality of life mods and the option to mod it more heavily.

D2Lod is actually very different from D2 Resurrected or Eternal, mostly because it was made when games weren't live services. There were a lot of changed made to D2R that increased the grind which aren't present in D2Lod. It's the full game with an engaging story, cinematics, decent replayability, a solid gameplay loop, and you'll probably recognize the birth of a lot of familiar mechanics in it (borderlands is literally just d2 with guns)

It's a really reliable and open source app, I've been playing for weeks and it only crashed once on the very first run of the game, but I think that's because it took too long and graphene killed it. It does use the original d2Lod files which aren't open source but they were programmed for windows 95 so they're closed source like a picket fense is secure.

That is possibly the only issue I expect you'll have with the game, it's by no means retro but the graphics fit the age. Great for what they are historically but even I can see the improvements made for D2R. Lastly you do have to own a copy of D2Lod and use the cd keys to activate it. The github tells you how to get them officially but I'd be happy to just give you the files and keys from my 2001 Battle box. I bought the game and I'll gladly remind Blizzard of that every chance I get.

[-] GreenKnight23@lemmy.world 3 points 2 days ago

I've been 15 years clean....why you gotta do this to me...

[-] astanix@lemmy.world 2 points 1 day ago

Off topic to this thread but if you havent played in 15 years you should check out Project Diablo 2

[-] Postmortal_Pop@lemmy.world 2 points 2 days ago

Stay awhile and listen

[-] Tower@lemmy.zip 3 points 2 days ago

Uh oh... learning about this might be dangerous. I'm pretty sure I've still got my old cdkeys around here somewhere...

[-] Postmortal_Pop@lemmy.world 3 points 2 days ago

If you don't I'll share.

[-] Hapankaali@lemmy.world 14 points 3 days ago

Chess on Lichess ticks all your boxes except maybe "modern" (though it has a modern UI).

I like to play chess puzzles on the shitter at work, while traveling or at home when I'm bored with other games.

[-] Maerman@lemmy.world 14 points 3 days ago

Endless Sky is available from F-Droid. I personally found the UI to be a tad clunky, but that might simply be because I'm used to playing it on desktop. You might find that worth your time.

[-] makingStuffForFun@lemmy.ml 1 points 2 days ago

I play it on my tablet and it is absolutely fantastic. There is a fork for tablets out there, I think on F-Droid, and it's literally a perfect tablet experience.

[-] celeste@kbin.earth 2 points 3 days ago

I played it the first time on my phone but the desktop version is way less of a pain in the ass and I don't think I can go back to the android one.

[-] Sturgist@lemmy.ca 1 points 3 days ago

I saw a mod to make the android UI more useable, not sure how it works as I play endless sky on pc

[-] THEPIGWHODIDIT@lemmy.world 6 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

Stardew Valley isn't open source but has the rest of it

[-] theorangeninja@sopuli.xyz 9 points 3 days ago
[-] astanix@lemmy.world 2 points 1 day ago

I enjoy this game quite a bit. It's nice that it is being updated so frequently.

[-] nul42@lemmy.ca 8 points 3 days ago

I like Breakout 71 by Renan LE CARO

[-] Postmortal_Pop@lemmy.world 1 points 2 days ago

Love this game, haven't had that experience since DX ball on windows XP.

[-] toxicbubble@lemmy.world 4 points 2 days ago

pokemmo

mtg forge

[-] Aqarius@lemmy.world 2 points 2 days ago

Battle for Wesnoth has an android version. Works quite well.

[-] tomatosametomato@piefed.zip 3 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

I'm sorry I don't have a list to add to the conversation but one of your points made me curious:

What do you mean by "Made for adults: deep gameplay, challenge, real progression (any genre welcome — strategy, roguelike, RPG, racing, puzzle…)"?

As far as I'm concerned, real adult "games" don't have progression: Basketball, football, baseball (do you count muscle growth?), chess (ELO is progression? one value?), backgammon (ELO I guess?).

What do you see as "real (adult) progression"?

edited (to make my misunderstanding bold)

[-] habitualTartare@lemmy.world 1 points 2 days ago

Chip defense, a casual tower defense game that teaches you about circuits and is surprisingly more in depth than it deserves to be. https://f-droid.org/packages/de.chadenas.cpudefense

[-] THE_GR8_MIKE@lemmy.world 2 points 2 days ago

That Twilight Princess port called Dusk lol

[-] vogi@piefed.social 2 points 2 days ago

It also works with the Wii ISO now!! For anybody who does not feel like paying the GC prices.

[-] mechoman444@lemmy.world -2 points 3 days ago

Balatro.

One of the best games to play on mobile. It fits basically all of your criteria and you can just Google search a copy of it, you don't have to pay for it from the play store.

[-] smaximov@lemmy.world 6 points 3 days ago

Didn't know Balatro became open-source.

[-] LePoisson@lemmy.world 3 points 2 days ago

Requiring the game to be open source is going to limit you a lot I think. Also, balatro is fuckin awesome - get it, play it, love it.

[-] mechoman444@lemmy.world -4 points 2 days ago

It isn't. Which is why it said it fits almost all of its criteria and it is one of the best games on mobile that you can get right now.

It's a full and complete game with no advertisements. No loot boxes, no engagement and you can just unlock the whole game from the game and play it to your heart's content.

We're not diagnosing schizophrenia here. We're talking about mobile games.

[-] Jtee@lemmy.world 3 points 2 days ago

OP: Hey I'm looking for something with 'x' requirements!

You: Here's something completely different!

Not a bad recommendation, but doesn't seem like what OP is asking for.

[-] mechoman444@lemmy.world 0 points 2 days ago

It's not completely different. It fits almost all his requirements.

Why would I not recommend a free accessible completely playable game?

He doesn't have to download it but the advice is sound.

Once again, this isn't a medical diagnosis!

[-] Jtee@lemmy.world 1 points 2 days ago

Fair enough it's not completely different. It misses the open source ask, so I wouldn't have recommended it even though it's a great gane

this post was submitted on 08 Nov 2026
76 points (97.5% liked)

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