Question: Gaming on Android vs. iOS Tablets

How is gaming on Android now? How is parity with iOS regarding availability of games?

I've been holding out to buy a new iPad, as my iPad 3 is getting very old now. A new iPad Air is rumored to be announced and released early this year, but I'm now wondering if I should just go the Android route, as I am an Android phone user and would never switch to an iPhone.

The only reason I own an iPad now is actually just to have access to iOS apps and games that didn't come over to Android, as that was always significant even a couple years ago.

So, anyway, I'd love to hear from anyone regarding how the Android market is now and opinions on going Android for my next Tablet, knowing that I'm going to want to play some mobile games that don't come to PC.

Thank you!!

I'm not an expert, but as someone who owns both an iPad Air (I forget which generation) and a Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+, I find that most games that interest me release first on iOS. Sometimes never on Android. Android holds it's own, though. It has plenty of games, and generally gets them a month or two after they release on iOS. I think the *only* game that comes to mind that is only on iOS that matters to me is the MOBA: Fates Forever. However, Vain Glory is on both systems and is a very good contender if that matters to you.

Hope that helps!

The Android market for mobile games still tends to get short shrift in comparison to iOS. While there's certainly a large audience on Android and it's gotten a bit easier to develop games for those devices over the years, the iOS market still tends to be more profitable and thus gets more attention. For as many problems as the iOS marketplace has, it still doesn't have nearly as many issues with visibility and piracy as there are on Android, so I suspect iOS will remain the main focus for a lot of developers for the foreseeable future unless Google puts in more effort to address those issues.

You're still going to get games first and maybe even only on iOS. Whenever you hear about some hot new game, most of the time you'll be left behind if you've just got an android device.

If you like mobile gaming and want access to as many games as possible, I'd recommend an iOS device. I hate Apple products and got an S6 a while back and I've loved every minute of it, but I get why some people use Apple products. Just keep in mind that tying into Apple's services is a pain and they care about profit more than their customers. You can't do custom ringtones because they want to you buy their ringtones. You can't put any music you want on their phones because they want you to buy iTunes songs. If you love mobile games, then go ahead and get an iOS device, but keep in mind the grass isn't always greener on the other side of the fence.

@substance_d: I have no idea who told you that you can't have custom ringtones or music not purchased through iTunes on an iOS device, but that is wildly untrue. I've been using an iPod/iPhone as my primary music device for 5+ years now and have never bought a single song through their store.

Jesus. You sound like a conspiracy theorist.

What happened to just adding ringtones and music to iTunes and then syncing the phone? Did Apple change that?

I have an iPad Air 2 and an Nvidia Shield Tablet, and I play games on both. The Air 2 is a far better experience. The Shield is easily the best Android tablet for gaming and it's just a clunky mess when compared to the Air 2. Games load slower, the performance is less consistent, and the screen isn't as good. The actual game ecosystem is also better on iOS. Android is a lot better than it was a few years ago, but I don't think I've played any Android exclusives that are any good, while I've played a bunch of iOS exclusives (at least timed exclusives) that were a lot of fun.

Basically, if you have the money to get an Air 3 when it comes out, get it. There are no Android tablets that will match it for gaming. If price is a concern, the Nvidia Shield Tablet is a solid option and has gotten much cheaper in the past year. I think it's $199USD now, which make its shortcomings a little easier to handle.

I'm not sure. I had an iPhone for years and the last time I looked into it, it was not nearly as simple or straightforward as it should be. I didn't like using iTunes in general, so maybe it is easy if you agree to use iTunes, but when there are better, faster, easier ways of transferring things to to your phone, iTunes feels needlessly restrictive. I respect Apple for standing up to the FBI's demands regarding the whole San Bernadino thing, but their products would not sell if people didn't treat them like status symbols.

IMHO, the games for both Android and iOS devices are worthless. Not many will agree with me, but in my opinion, the golden era of mobile phone gaming ended just before Android phones came out (just remember good old Java games like Asphalt Urban GT2, Tower Bloxx, Soul of Darkness). Now it's mostly boring F2P (or pay-to-win, I'd rather call it). Also, I hate the absence of the physical buttons - makes FPS, arcades and such absolutely unplayable for me.

Thanks everyone for the comments here! I am definitely sticking with Android for my phone, but I am feeling more convinced that my tablet should remain iOS. It does everything I want in a tablet, plus it gives me access to the iOS marketplace that I don't get with my phone.

Only small children and kittens should play games on tablets....no exceptions.

@trinketnpinker: Tower Bloxx was cool, spent hours playing 'dat.

@fakekisser: I enjoy the Android phone, ipad tablet combo. I would hate trying to game on a phone, even a large phablet. I like the feel of Android for a phone, but for a tablet, I've never liked it in that form factor.

While every game may come to Android, iOS will get them first. And there have been a few games where extra content was only available on the iPad.