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App Friday: Wild Tangent for Android

WildTangent gamesIf you’re a gaming fan the name WildTangent might sound familiar. The company is a cross-device games producer whose titles feature on laptops from HP, Toshiba, Dell and Asus and currently features on over 100 million devices worldwide.

Over the last couple of years the company has turned its attention to mobile, most recently powering the Games section on the Sony Select app on selected Sony Xperia smartphones (such as the new Sony Xperia Z) and also features a dedicated Android app (available via your mobile browser). What makes WildTangent different to the Google Play and Sony PlayStation Store is its flexibility; users can rent games, buy games or play ad-supported versions free, bringing premium titles to mobile gamers via a more accessible model.

To rent or buy games you need WildTangent’s digital currency, called ‘WildCoins’, which can be redeemed through special vouchers or codes as well as by prepaying online. Games cost on average between four to eight wild coins, but prices are based on what the developers charge – so a graphically intensive game like Shadowgun costs around 22 WildCoins. Each WildCoin cost approximately 12 pence.

WildTangent on Android

WildTangent’s games store allows you the ability to play any game and never have to spend a penny, but of course renting or buying has its perks. Renting a game for four consecutive days and you will automatically own it. To use WildTangent you need to create an account (for free) whilst Xperia owners who register with WildTangent will get free WildCoins during setup.

There are currently 200 mobile titles including: Panic Flight, Shadowgun, Fruit Ninja and Polar Bear ( interestingly the first title released by WildTangent’s own studio) and 900 further games are being lined up, but the company is selective about which developers it works with, preferring quality to quantity.

Browsing, searching for and buying or renting games is simple enough with the existing library on offer grouped by category as well as the addition of a search function. tapping a game also reveals a brief description along with the option to download. Any purchased, rented or otherwise owned games fall to the ‘My Games’ section, with your most recently played titles at the top.

Available now independently of Google Play, WildTangent and any games you access through it require that you have ‘Unknown Sources’ set to allow in your phone’s settings.

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