I know when that hotline bling, it can only mean a new set of challenges has unlocked

After relenting for far too many years, the biggest releases on mobile in 2022 finally convinced me to get one of those Xbox controller attachments that hold your phone. After about five minutes of using it, I tossed it in the bin. The whole set-up was just too heavy and flimsy, even if it made playing games like Diablo Immortal and Apex Legends Mobile an absolute dream. No, if I'm going to get a controller for my mobile, I'm going to need to shell out the big bucks for one of those Backbones. And conside?ring what's on the horizon for? next year, it'll likely be worth it.

For this year though, I was perfectly happy playing through the best mobile games of the year with touchscreen controls. Whether I was digging up treasure in Shovel Knight Dig or scoring the winning goal in Rocket League Sideswipe–a game that was technically released in late November 2021 but wasn't actually playa?ble until a few days later in December so we're counting it as eligible–touchscreen controls continue to evolve and improve with each passing year and each crop of new games.

Except for in Wordle where my fat fingers keep typing the wrong letters. Yes, we're counting Wordle for this year's GotY awards as well because while it?? might have started up last fall, nobody outside a small group of peopl??e was playing it until December.

W??e didn't cover as many mobile games on Destructoid this year as we have in t?he past, but that doesn't mean we weren't playing them.

Here are the nominees for Destructoid's Best Mobile Game of 2022:

• Jetpack Joyride 2
• Marvel Snap
• Poinpy
• Rocket League Sideswipe
• Shovel Knight Dig
• Slice & Dice
• Wordle

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Rub your head on the ceiling in plastic and cardboard

It's difficult to believe it's been seven years since Halfbrick's fantastic runner Jetpack Joyride or??iginally released, but there it is. Time flies. I'm?? getting so old.

It's also maybe a little difficult to fathom that a bite-sized phone game that has come and gone years ago is now getting the board game treatment. But that's exactly what's happening, because the Kickstarter for Jetpack Joyride (the board game) surpassed its goal the day it launched. Here we are now with fewer than six hours left in the campaign, so I figured I'd let you a??ll know in case you're interested in getting in before it closes.

It's especially interesting to see a video game focused on action and reflexes translated to a format more often associated with careful planning and taki??ng turns. Of course, this game eschews those conventions, going for a real-time free-for-all sort of design. It also transfers over some of the bits that made the original game so replayable: rotating challenges that ask you to do more than just get to the end.

Jetpack Joyride (the board game) is set to release next year.

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Version 1.7 arrives

Say what you will about mobile games in general, but a whole heap of developers are doing the platform right. One of the good guys is Halfbrick, who has contiuously updated Jetpack Joyride for nearly three years now with free content, adding in?? new rides and unlocks.

The latest update is patch 1.7, adding in new vehicle skins (including the Colossatron), new costumes, a new cartoon, and ex?tra achievements. That's dedication.

Jetpack Joyride | Jetpack Joyride [Apple | Android ]

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For PlayStation 3 and Vita

Congratulations Barry Steakfries! You've reached one million PSN downloads for Jetpack Joyride.

Halfbrick just announced last night that "1,000,000 accounts" have downloaded the game over the PlayStation 3 and Vita platforms. The game was already widely successful on mobile devices and Facebook.

I'm glad to see them doing so well, as Jetpack Joyride consumed my life at launch on my iPhone. It's one of the best in the endless runner genre, and I can't wait to ??see what they come up with ??next.

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Free steak fries!

Mobile hit Jetpack Joyride launches on PS3 and PS Vita this month, with Europeans getting it today while North Americans wil have to wait until December 31. It's in full HD, features leaderboards and trophies, and will be absolutely free?. 

Halfbrick worked with fe?llow Aussie studio Big Ant for this version of the game. 

In our gallery you'll find a few new screenshots of Jetpack Joyride on the Vita. 

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Only $3.99

Halfbrick isn't satisfied with the 35 million mobile downloads they've got for Jetpack Joyride so far, so they're adding the ??game to the PlayStation Network ?this week. 

This one-button wonder comes to PSN for the low price of $3.99, which means that you have no excuse not to buy it. I'm a fan of Barry Steakfries and am looking forward to seeing him on the big screen. And that song. You know that song. It's going to be coming through my home en??tertainment center's speakers now, drilling its way de??eper into my head. 

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Android owners can finally play one of the most enjoyable mobile games ever with the arrival of Halfbrick's Jetpack Joyride. Best of all, it's free! You can download the game either through Google Play or the Amazon App Store.

You really have no excuse here. We gave Jetpack Joyride a 9 out of 10 in our re?view last year. And did I mention it's free?? Because it's free. FREE!

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The insanely successful mobile game Jetpack Joyride (formerly known as Machinegun Jetpack) has hit Facebook. Right now it's in "beta", but from what I can tell, this version is essentially the entire game. For the uninitiated, Jetpack Joyride is a part of the endless runner genr??e and is controlled entirely?? with the mouse.

Thankfully, Halfbrick puts a little spin on "endless" games (which usually get really old really fast) by giving you various "missions" to engage in along the way that increase your rank as you complete them (basically a level-up): it's addicting to say the least. Along the way, you'll collect in-game coins allow you to buy both cosmetic and mechanical upgrades. While Jetpack Joyride is free, Halfbrick gives you the option to purcha?se coins?? (in-game currency) for real life cash.

I'm a little rusty from when I played it into the ground on iOS, but on my first Facebook run I hit 3529m -- not bad! If you enjoy the game and you think you're going to be in it for the long haul, you can buy the double coins powerup for $1 (10 Face??book Credits) -- it lasts forever.

Jetpack Joyride [Facebook]

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We met with Halfbrick's Phil Larsen yesterday here at GDC to eat all of his candy and steal all of his beers in his hotel suite. During this invasion he showed off a bit of Jetpack Joyride's upco??ming update, which will introduce equippable gadgets to the iOS me?ga-hit. 

Mr. Steakfries can now equip up to two of these new gadgets to give him special abilities to do things like earn more coins. One named Ezy-Dodge Missiles slows missiles down so they can be avoided a bit more easily. Fancy shoes called Air Barrys, shown above, let him jump over obstacles easier. There's fifteen in all, and mixin??g and matching them will open up hundreds customization combinations, some with special combination names. We saw a range increasing combo that Barry first encapsulated in a bouncy ball after biffing, and then turning into ice to slide even farther. Pretty slick.

The Jetpack Joyride 1.3 update is the biggest one sinc??e the game's launch, and it will be free when it launches some time in April.

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Jetpack Joyride is free for a limited time right for the iPod, iPho??ne and iPad! The runner style game sees you avoiding obstacles and collecting coins through the use of a jetpack that happens to be a freaking chain gun.

Seriously, Jetpack Joyride ?is stupidly addictive and you're a horrible stupid face if you don't even try the game. You jerks.

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Halfbrick's much-loved iOS title Jetpack Joyride has? reached 350,000 downloads in its first week, proving once again that the studio seems to have a handle on this whole App Store business. Alongside this news of success comes free unlockable content for the $0.99 game.

• Mr. Cuddles, the robot dragon "vehicle"
• Fruit jetpack, inspired by Fruit Ninja
• Honest Phil costume, based on Halfbrick's own Phil Larsen

I'm a firm believer that all games should be eventually updated with dragons, no matter how irrelevant that may be to the source material. Hey, it worked for True Crime.

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With so many "runner" games on iOS, another one is certainly a hard sell. But there's a reason these games are so popular. It's a simple concept ??-- a character moves continuously from left to right at an ever-increasing speed, the player's goal to jump, slide, or whatever to avoid obstacles. The goal: get as far as possible.

Halfbrick's latest, Jetpack Joyride, is yet another in a long line of these endless runner games. But don't let that turn you off. Between responsive controls, colorful sprites that are easy on the eyes, and a clever rewards system that will keep players coming back for more, Jetpack Joyride is comfortably the best in its class.

Jetpack Joyride (iOS)
Developer: Halfbrick
Released: September 1, 2011
Price: 99 cents 

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to play Jetpack Joyride, and that's half of its appeal. Like many iOS titles, its controls boil down to tapping the screen and occasionally, um, tapping the screen some more. You'll be doing so to initiate protagonist Barry Steakfries' machine gun jetpack, tapping (or holding) to make him hover in the air as you avoid lasers, missiles, and a maze of electric ropes. As you pr?oceed further, the stakes get hire as Barry moves faster and fa?ster, and the game's traps become trickier and trickier. 

While the machine gun jetpack may very well be the most awesome mode of transport ever in the history of forever, it's not the only vehicle in Barry's arsenal. Occasionally and randomly, additional vehicles can be picked up along the way. From the "Crazy Freaking Teleporter" to the Tiny Wings-inspired "Profit Bird" (which borrows sound effects from the popular, money-making iOS title), each vehicle will react to those same screen taps and holds, but responds a bit differently. For example, the "Crazy Ass Teleporter" will allow you to zap to new areas of the screen with a simple tap. The "Profit Bird" is one of the more slower vehicles, but can be made to fly with repeated screen taps, and I found it easier to navigate than many of the others. You'll come to find your favorites as you experiment and play, but given that they basically offer one free hit (i.e. mushrooms in Super Mario Bros.), you'r?e going to want to gra??b 'em when you see 'em.

Halfbrick has also thrown some additional random elements into the mix with bonus coins that appear periodically throughout your journey. These coins can be redeemed in a slot machine after a run (when you hit an electric fence, missile, etc.) and can offer a number of bonuses and perks. Some will even give you a second chance, letting you continue on to reach a higher score. In other instances, you might hav??e a bomb dropped on you to give you some extra distance to reach even higher scores. 

These basics and the very nature of wanting to best your own high scores (and your friends' via Game Center or Ope??nFeint) would be enough to keep you coming back for more. But Halfbrick has also integrated an impressive mission system that kept me playing this simple game for hours on end. At any given time, players have three goals to reach, ranging from hitting certain distances to near-missing X-number of missiles. Completing goals earns you stars, and as you rank up, missions roll over into a fresh set of objectives. There's always something to be striving for, whether it's topping the leaderboards or knocking another one of the game's missions off your list. 

There's also a ton of extras packed into Jetpack Joyride, most of them purchased with coins picked up during gameplay. While some of them are simply cosmetic (my Barry Streakfries looks like a zombie now; what's yours wearing?), others are more useful in gameplay. One-off items can be purchased, like second chances or distance-boosting bombs, or permanent upgrades like adding a coin? magnet to the game's many vehicles.

There are few criticisms that can be thrown at Jetpack Joyride, but I'd be lying if I said it was a completely perfect experience. For one, the very nature of having to tap the screen with your finger can lead to obstructing your view, and potentially a hazard that will cause your game to end. To the game's credit, you can tap anywhere on the screen, including a small area directly behind Barry. Your mileage with this may var??y, but I never really found a place where my finger never seemed "in the way" at some point. 

There's also a lot of luck involved in Jetpack Joyride, at least when it comes to reaching the high end of the leaderboards, and this may frustra??ted some. True, the game is all about fast reflexes and being able to keep up with the blazing speeds that Barry can reach. Make no mistake, the touch scre??en on any iOS device can keep up with the game's controls, which are quick and responsive. But there's a bit of randomness involved, as well, particularly when using those bonus coins. My best run came from the sheer luck of getting multiple bomb bonuses and a heart, which earned me a chance to continue on further. Even still, the most skilled players will always have an edge, and will also have that element of luck on their side. 

At a mere 99 cents, Jetpack Joyride is an insane value for what's offered.?? Let's put it this way: the in-game stats on my iPod tell me I've put six hours into the game; include my time playing on an iPad, and you're adding another two or three. To put that into perspective, I pro?bably didn't have to play more than 30 minutes of this game to give it a proper review, the game is simply that straightforward. I simply was having so much fun, and I didn't want to stop. 

Speaking of which, I've said enough. I think I've got some more Jetpack Joyride to play. I'd suggest you get ?to doing the ??same. 

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Halfbrick's latest iOS release, Jetpack Joyride, is now available in the App store and they have furnished this charming trailer which outlines the gam???e's story. It's a complicated tale about a man and his love of a machine which will make you cry and weep.

Nick and I both spent a little bit of time playing Jetpack Joyride at PAX. For my part, it was a delightful and challenging one-button game with a lot of meat on its bones, but you should go and check out Nick's preview for a much more thorough examination.

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The last time I saw Halbrick's Jetpack Joyride it was called Machine Gun Jetpack. That was back in March, when the Australian developer had? brought out an early version of the iOS game to show us at GD??C. 

??Months later, the final game -- which hits the App Store on September 1 -- isn't a wholly different experience (it's still a "runner" game), but the months of polish sure do show through. While my full review won't be up until next week, here's a quick video look at the game in action to get you prepped for its release. 

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While Mojang attempts to hold on to the name of Scrolls, fellow indie developer Halfbrick is changing the name of their upcoming iOS game Machine Gun Jetpack. From now on, the game will be called Jetpack Joyride.

As explained in their video, Halfbrick realized that while the machine gun jetpack is still in the game, there are so many other types of jetpacks included that the name was a misnomer. Rainbows, lasers, bubbles, there are a lot more options than just a machine gun jetpack, including vehicles. Plus, alliteration is awesome!

Jetpack Joyride will be releas??????????????????????????ed for iPh??one and iPad on September 1, 2011, for 99 cents.

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