Introduction
With The Force Awakens capturing imaginations both young and old in cinemas this Christmas, there's never been a better time to break out your smartphone or tablet and see what the App Store/Google Play has to offer from A Galaxy, Far, Far Away. To bring balance to the Force (and to keep you firmly in the know), the team at T3 Towers has compiled a list of the ten best apps and games, ranging from in-depth videogame stat companions and pinball masterpieces to card trading extravaganzas and full-on RPGs. Oh, and every game featured here is available on both iOS and Android.
Star Wars Journeys: Beginnings
Serving as something of a sequel-cum-reimagining of previous entry Journeys: The Phantom Menace, this little app is a mixture of interactive storytelling and motion control games set across the prequel trilogy. It's definitely geared towards the little ones, but it also requires in-app purchases to unlock each chapter so beware.
Price: Free (in-app purchases)
Star Wars Pinball 3
As you might imagine, Star Wars Pinball 3 does exactly what it says on the metaphysical tin - it's a pinball game that supports a slew of Star Wars-themed tables. One of many versions floating about on iOS and Android, this one comes preloaded with the Empire Strikes Back table gratis, but as with many free apps you'll need to cough up for the rest.
Price: Free (in-app purchases)
Star Wars Card Trader
Unlike many Star Wars titles for iOS and Android, Star Wars Card Trader isn't a full game that's been butchered in the name of microtransactions, but one built specifically to be F2P. it's intuitive and engaging card battler that combines the moreishness of card collection with the magic of all things Star Wars. New cards and packs can be purchased in-game or earned in matches.
Price: Free (in-app purchases)
Star Wars: Galactic Defense
Spanning both the Prequel and Original Trilogies, Star Wars: Galactic Defense is a tower defence game that brings all your favourite battles from the movies to life in cute animated style. You can tackle the missions as Jedi or Sith and even use special Champions that can help turn the tide of battle in seconds.
Price: Free
Star Wars: Battlefront Companion App
Whether you're playing on PC, Xbox One or PS4, sign in with your EA account and track your stats direct from your iPad or Android tablet. It's a great way to break down your playstyle on different modes and maps and even offers its own bespoke card game, Base Command, which enables you to unlock new perks in the main game.
Price: Free
Angry Birds Star Wars HD
Easily one of the best Angry Birds crossovers, Angry Birds Stars Wars HD (the full price version, not the microtransaction riddled one) is one of those time sinks that can easily take over every last iota of free time. Each class of bird is styled off an iconic SW character and offers special, big-toppling moves (lightsaber-toting fowl, anyone?).
Price: £0.86
Star Wars: Commander - Worlds In Conflict
Another freemium entry, this time centred around the easy accessible yet equally deep real-time strategy genre. Choose either the Rebellion or the Empire, build an impenetrable fortress and send your armies out to conquer the enemy. There's a pretty in-depth story mode and the option to form alliances with other players.
Price: Free
Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes
One of many new games heading out of publisher EA following its lucrative licensing deal with Disney, Galaxy Of Heroes tasks you with collecting different characters from the movies (The Force Awakens included) and putting them into team-based battles. Fun to play, beautifully animated, but a tad too reliant on microtransaction at times.
Price: Free (in-app purchases)
Star Wars: Uprising
Easily the most eagerly anticipated game to arrive in the new and refreshed Expanded Universe, Star Wars: Uprising is also the first new canon title to be set after Return Of The Jedi. A real time action-RPG by trade, Uprising tasks you with controlling building a party of smugglers, bounty hunters and gangsters as you fight to survive against a wounded Empire.
Price: Free
Official Star Wars App
Whether you're a new Star Wars fan brought into the family by The Force Awakens or a veteran fanboy looking to top up their lore, the Official Star Wars App is your ideal saga companion. Synced up to the official info archive at starwars.com, you can also use it to keep up to date on the latest news and updates direct from Disney and Lucasfilm.
Price: Free