10 Visually Gorgeous Mobile Games

Here is our list of visually impressive mobile games, some free, some paid, and while mos of them will run on any device, some do require high-end hardware. Without further ado, here are our mobile game suggestions for the aesthetes.

1. Osmos HD [Android, iOS, Amazon] $2.99

by Hemisphere Games

Listed as arcade, Osmos HD is so beyond that in many ways. Its visual beauty, atmospheric sound score and unique gameplay multiplied by a large variety of game modes and levels will certainly make it to the top of your list. Sit back, put your headphones on and relax - Osmos HD does not tolerate twitching and panicking. This brilliant physics-based game takes you to the world of the simplest life forms - cells. You are a shiny blue cell in the middle of inert amoebas, and what sets you apart is your pursuit of evolution. As you tap on the screen, your cell ejects mass, which propels it in the opposite direction - that's how you control your cell.

The other cells are either larger or smaller than you, and while you can consume the smaller ones, beware of the larger because they will consume you - game over. Different game modes have different twists to them - sometimes you orbit around a huge sun-like organism; sometimes you try to become the largest of all; on other occasions, you try to gobble up the amoebas avoiding the anti-matter drops.

The first couple of levels are quite easy, but don't get misled - the increasing difficulty will keep your palms perspiring, but that's exactly what you can't allow. The more poised you remain, the better you proceed in the game that requires utmost precision and timely reflexes.

A visual delight and a highly immersive atmosphere, Osmos HD looks fantastic while the relaxing and soothing sound track mixed with great variety of challenges, 72 levels, and 8 game modes provide a superior replay value for the right player. So, if you appreciate the stylish and fascinating slo-mo gameplay with no violence, Osmos HD is our suggestion #1.

The game is available on iOS, Android and Windows desktop, and has a trial download for the latter.

Features

• Multiplayer mode allows you to play with your friends locally over Wi-Fi or Google Play Services
• Visually dazzling
• Engrossing and elegant gameplay
• Great ambient sound score with a variety of tracks
• No in-app purchases
• 72 levels, 8 game modes

2. Morphopolis [iOS, Android, Windows and Mac]

by Micro Macro Games

Morphopolis is a visual masterpiece, and is a real treat if you like slow-paced and relaxed gameplay with unique take on puzzles. The true value of Morphopolis is of course the artwork, but it's well spiced with ambient sound score - sounds of nature.

If you stop for a moment to watch a child watching bugs in the grass, you might remember that peaceful feeling of wonder you once felt, too. Slow down, become small and feel the beat of the planet's heart in this gorgeous hand-drawn game that takes you to the world of bugs - colorful, vibrant, forever moving.

You have to help a little critter evolve, by finding him necessary items and food, and eventually let him morph into a more complex life form. There are five chapters in the game, each more challenging and complex that the previous one, and at times you will be browsing the Internet looking for clues on what to do next. Even though there are hints, the game basically leaves you on your own, exploring and pondering how to go about each scene. However, once you sort out the inconspicuous patterns behind it, you will find the puzzles quite accessible.

The hand-drawn visuals are like nothing you have see before, meticulously detailed and vibrant flowers, grass and insects sinking in the greens, fuchsias and magentas. Controls are simple - you drag the bug along the linear paths of several scenes that tie into a unified mission.

Features

• Hand-drawn 2D design is a masterpiece without exaggeration
• Relaxing sound score of individual musical instruments, birds and bugs chirping
• Unique take on puzzles mixed with traditional hidden-objects gameplay, perhaps a bit too easy for the hardcore puzzle fans
• Relaxing, peaceful, positive and rewarding gameplay
• No in-app purchases

The no-save option makes you start over each time you drop the game, but the best part here is you can take a different route and the game evolves in a different way, so the replay value is fine, too.

3. Sparkle 2 Evo [Android] $0.99, normally $2.99, now on sale

Sparkle 2 Evo is also a unique game featuring fascinating gameplay, gorgeous luminescent visuals and engrossing soundtrack. You start as a small simple critter living at the bottom of a Sparkle Void. Slowly, you evolve by consuming smaller creatures and avoiding or running away from larger predators. Eventually, you can grow to become big and gorgeous by outsmarting species of your own kind and other competitive species. Spectacular visuals paired with challenging gameplay and atmospheric soundtrack offer hours of fun and great replay value.

Finding food is fun, since there are plenty of nutritious elements at the bottom of the Sparkle Void but once in a while you run out of its stock and have to chase other critters for food. You are what you eat, and it's up to you how you evolve - a peaceful and forever-chewing herbivore, or an aggressive predator, or even an omnivore that eats everything.

You have the DNA dashboard of your sparkle, where you can find necessary information to plan your evolution. Since there is a strong arcade element to the game, you will have to fight fierce boss battles once in a while.

Features

• Relaxed, addictive and fully engrossing gameplay
• Magical luminescent atmosphere, dazzling visuals
• Matching ambient sound score
• Three different evolution paths to take
• DNA control center
• 15 dazzling levels
• MOGA controls support

4. Unpossible $1.99

by Acceleroto

Unlike the above-mentioned chill-out titles, Unpossible is frantic and utterly crazy-paced, but nonetheless visually gorgeous, and if you like the Tron-like design, check out this iOS game.

You will certainly see the advancing tunnel every time you close your eyes and before you doze off to sleep after you spend some time playing the Unpossible. It takes your reflexes and memory to extremes, and in this way, it's both exciting and frustrating, and you'll be aspiring to play a few seconds more each time.

You ride a sci-fi high-way that turns and twists every other second throwing all sorts of deadly cutlery in your face. Hit it and you are dead; start over again. The tube moves fast, and the knives and obstacles come out of nowhere, but if you are attentive enough you can recognize a pattern in each level, which can make it easier to progress. You can choose touch or tilt controls to turn the advancing tube, and the gameplay is quite intuitive, yet frantically challenging.

Thrilling sci-fi visuals are jaw-dropping, and the game is a true gem for the Tron aficionados because the chase feels like you have a squad of Rinzlers behind your back.

Features

• Crazy speed, high difficulty, frantic gameplay
• Gorgeous sci-fi design
• Rhythmic soundtrack
• Three difficulty levels from the moderate to hardcore
• Daily challenges with unique grids and achievements become available once you unlock all the difficulty levels
• Cruise mode lets you turn on the endlessly moving tube, place your iPad on the wall in front of you and get hypnotized
• Highly addictive
• Great replay value

5. BADLAND [Android, iOS]

by Frogmind

One of my favorite arcade side scrollers, Badland isn't just beautiful - it is spectacular, atmospheric and creepy at the same time. Challenges of increasing difficulty will keep you coming back for more to this charming, yet cruel game of survival.

You control a little cute critter, a mix of a bat and a fur ball. It attempts to fly by moving its tiny wings, and as it hits different power-ups, it either grows big or small, or reproduces itself making a big company, or a family of black fur balls with big eyes.

The critter travels through a beautiful forest full of dangers à-la Jigsaw - knives, hammers, broken glass, needles, shredders and tunnels with no way out. You control your hero by tapping on the screen.

The game features a great deal of levels and a very welcome occasional 'skip this checkpoint' help when you get stuck on a particularly difficult level. The multiplayer mode lets up to 4 players play on the same device, while plenty of unlockable additional challenges make this huge world even bigger.

Features

• Atmospheric gameplay
• Difficulty varies, so the game is cute and simple enough for the kids to pick up, but the increasing challenges will please the hardcore arcade players
• A great variety of beautiful environments spiced with dark silhouettes of knives and traps create a visually gorgeous picture
• Spooky ambient soundtrack
• Heart-breaking scenes when you have to sacrifice your flock to let at least one pass the gate
• Simple controls
• The game is free, offers IAPs
• Some levels are frantic while others are slo-mo allowing you to look around and enjoy the scenery

6. Nova 3 Near Orbit [Android, iOS]

N.O.V.A. series is classic of the genre and the best examples of high quality HD visuals that rely on heavy CPU and processor load. Nova requires at least 2GB of free memory to install, and will test your flagship's guts, but the spectacle is well worth it.

Fight in the outer space for the survival of human kind and shoot the enemy with all your might across the 10 spectacular levels taking place in different nooks of the galaxy and earth. The game offers a hefty load of ammo to choose from and customize, as well as powerful vehicles and different mechanic power-ups.

Six multiplayer modes for up to 12 players let you ally with your friends and even drive the same vehicles as you join forces in the fight against aliens. The visuals convey the grandeur of interstellar fight scenes and the subtle drops of shadow and change of lighting, and even the tiny space dust particles. If you must play a first-person shooter, let it be Nova 3 Near Orbit - you won't regret it.

Features

• Epic story, fascinating adventure
• Fierce battles
• Huge arsenal, customizable gear
• 6 multiplayer mode for up to 12 players
• Spectacular visuals, detailed and polished 

7. Frax HD for iPads $3.99 or $6.99

Frax HD is not exactly a game, but it definitely isn't a productivity app. I'd say it's art and if you fancy the idea of creating your own fractals wallpaper or a fractal video, this app is a unique blend of a game and an artist's tool, which is a work of art in itself.

The app is a very impressive, one of the kind graphics toy for iPads and iPhones unrivaled in its power, beauty and uniqueness. An interactive playground for creating fractals features an intuitive UI, a great deal of customization options and a complex explanation of how the fractals are generated through some mathematical algorithms, but fortunately, you don't need to read any of that. What you need to do is launch it and start playing with colors, light, motion and texture as you create bizarre patterns and watch them come to life, a spectacle that is both jaw-dropping and hypnotic.

The infinite zoom fractals mode lets you turn it on, place your device on a stand, sit back or have a party and have the fractals play in the background.

Features

• 42 interactive landscapes in standard and 200 in Pro version
• High-end output of images at 2048x1536
• Cloud-based render service for larger output is available via IAPs
• Plenty of customization controls, including range and zoom, great flexibility
• Simple in use - pick up and play
• Astonishing results from psychedelic images to seizure-inducing light shows
• Easy save and share options
• Great to create your own wallpaper
• Conncet your device to Apple TV and mirror Frax Flow automatic mode to your large screen, displaying an infinite fractal show perfect for chill-out parties and romantic dinners
• Large gallery of presets
• The option to import an image from your camera roll as a preset, a base for custom color scheme
• Powerful, fun and astonishingly beautiful toy

8. Real Boxing [Android, iOS]

by Vivid Games S.A.

Real Boxing is one of the most visually impressive and satisfying sports games for mobile devices, and a high rating in more than 50 countries is a great proof to the high quality of physics and visual supremacy. Smooth performance multiplied by intensely realistic gameplay and striking beauty of real box will keep you wowing as you play.

You will start by customizing your boxer, and there is great deal of parameters you can toy with here - from skin color, to clothes and tattoos, but before long, you will find yourself fighting exhausting rounds of sweat and blood in your face. There is a great deal of opponents, each with their own unique style, and you will have to learn and adapt if you want to climb the global leader boards.

Features

• Supports Wikipad tablet controller combo
• Awesome 3D visuals
• Powerful sound effects
• Atmospheric and intense gameplay
• Tons of customization options
• Realistic everything - from drops of sweat flying as you hit your opponent, to crazy screaming crowds around the ring
• Impressive arenas of Moscow, New York, Las Vegas and London
• 35 levels of career mode
• Three belts to conquer
• Mini games to train the boxer
• Tons of unlockable perks - equipment and clothes

9. Smash Hit [Android, iOS]

A visual delight and a test to your reflexes and memory, Smash Hit is an intense glass-shattering experience with awe-inspiring visuals and realistic shattering sounds and a great ambient soundtrack to accompany the increasing speed of your journey.

You start off at a slow pace floating through a stylish building full of glass structures. You have to throw metal ball at the glass structures that are on your way, as well as try to hit the beautiful gems along your way. They bring you points, and provided you hit them all, the number of balls deployed in one hit increments, but miss one and you get back to one ball at a time.

Visuals, however, is what will keep you coming back for more because each new level has a different design and a different set of glass structures and gems - from simple rectangles to DNA-like shapes and rotating glass hammers and ice age glaciers.

The gameplay is addictive and fun, and you will find yourself memorizing where the greatest traps reside, calculating and predicting them the next time you start over. You can play for free, starting with Checkpoint 1 after each fail, or buy the premium version for $1.99 and save the last checkpoint to start from there.

Features

• Gorgeous design
• Addictive gameplay simple to pick up, but challenging as you progress
• Free game with non-intrusive IAPs
• Great variety of environments
• Highly atmospheric gameplay
• Awesome soundtrack
• The possibility to memorize traps location can make it easier to advance
• Powerful ammo combos of up to 5 balls deployed at a time, unlimited balls for a short period of time, extra-devastating balls
• If you hit a structure you don't die. Instead, you lose you ball combo and 10 points
• Great replay value
• Over 50 levels, each with unique environment and set of traps

10. Star Wars: Assault Team [Android, iOS, Windows Phone, web – link for Win 8 devices]

Star Wars: Assault Team by Disney Mobile and LucasArts is a card-battling delight for the fans of George Lucas Star Wars epic saga. You start with one card of Han Solo and go on a mission to free your friend Chewbacca from a prison cell on an empire's ship. One by one, you find your old and new friends and collect epic heroes in your deck.

Next, you collect the training packs and power-ups and train and upgrade your characters, so there are a lot of factors to take into account before each battle. A complex set of strategy and tactics, Star Wars: Assault Team takes you all across the galaxy as you fight the alien monsters, the empire's soldiers or other players on the arena.

It is on the arena that you can get some cash for upgrades if you run out of money, but you will eventually have to fight other Han Solo's and Co. if you want to get far in the game. The more missions you complete, the more powerful you can make your cards, the more cards you collect in the pursuit of Luke Skywalker or Princess Leia. Despite the fact that it's a turn-based card battler, a genre you would consider as static, the battles are intense and spectacular, while the ships' interior and the opponents are meticulously detailed and realistic.

Features

• Compete with other players on the arena
• Collect codes, escape traps on Mos Epa, uncover Wookiee resistance - the missions are numerous and include Episode IV and V
• Take up to 4 characters to a battle, re-group and train them
• Use your reward packs to train your characters
• Each character has unique abilities and power-ups
• Intense battling scenes
• Challenging and complex upgrade system
• Cinematic visuals create an illusion of moving, fighting and interacting with other characters
• Smooth animations and sound effects
• Requires Internet connection
• Free game, offers IAPs ranging from $1.99 to $99.99
• Addictive and fun, one of the best Star Wars game for mobile devices