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- Google Photos added what may be its last new feature while the service is still free. The new feature helps identify blurry photos and screenshots so you can safely delete them and free up some storage. Additionally, the app now calls “high quality” backup mode “storage saver”, although it does still backup photos in the same quality. Hit the link to learn more.
- Verizon is offering up a year of free Google Play Pass or Apple Arcade subscriptions to its users. The company began the promotion on May 26th so it is live for all of its customers right now. Both services usually go for around $4.99 per month. It’s a pretty good deal for Verizon subscribers. Hit the link to check it out.
- WhatsApp had some more drama this week. First, the company announced that it won’t limit its functionality if users don’t agree to the new terms of service, but only in India. Then, the company flat took the Indian government to court over its new social media laws. This is all part of ongoing drama where users protested WhatsApp’s new privacy policy.
- Sony confirmed this week that they’re exploring mobile games for its various franchises. That could potentially include any PlayStation exclusive title, including God of War, Last of Us, and many others. We don’t know a ton of details yet, but Sony is definitely working on making mobile games for its most famous franchises.
- The Honor 50 is the first Honor or Huawei smartphone since the US-Huawei sanction to receive Google Play services. That gives it access to the Play Store, all of its apps, and GMS. This is a pretty big deal since both Honor and Huawei saw sharp declines in sales outside of China since the sanctions took effect. Our readers seem excited as well, saying that they would consider buying Honor again if it received GMS again on its phones.
Lilulu
Price: $3.99
Lilulu is a puzzle game with heavy exploration elements. The story revolves around the titular character and her particular mental state. Players chase a little girl through Lilulu’s memories and uncover the information therein. The story unfolds as the player progresses through the game. It’s not an overly complicated game, but the story is quite nice. Plus, the game is reasonably cheap at $3.99 with no in-app purchases or ads.
WellPaper
Price: Free
WellPaper is an experimental app from OnePlus. It’s technically a live wallpaper app of sorts. The app changes based on your app usage. It tells you which app categories you used and how long for each category. Thus, you get a visualization of your day’s activities right on the home screen. The wallpapers actually look pretty nice. They are lightly customizable so your home screen still looks nice even as it shows you data about your day’s usage. The app is also free with no in-app purchases or ads.
Storypick
Price: Free to play
Storypick is the latest game from Com2uS, publisher of Summoners War and others games. It’s a visual novel style narrative game with dating sim mechanics. Players progress through various TV series-style storylines, make choices, and determine the outcome. The game has various scenarios to play through and some of them are based on actual TV shows like Netflix’s Kingdom. The microtransactions could be better implemented into the game and there are some small things like translation errors. Otherwise, it plays well.
Clubhouse
Price: Free
Clubhouse made a pretty big splash in 2020 when big names like Elon Musk dropped in for conversations during the pandemic. The app was iOS only at the time with a notably absent Android version. This week, that is no longer true as Clubhouse launched on Android. The app lets people drop into conversations other people are having as a listener, kind of like a live podcast, or they can host their own talks. It requires an invite to get in, but people are being let in as fast as the company can. There are some bugs, but it works pretty well for an early release.
Guardians of Cloudia
Price: Free to play
Guardians of Cloudia is a new MMOPRG. It has both classic MMORPG elements along with some extras to help it stand out. For instance, there are over 100 pets to collect as well as a healthy number of PvP game modes, including a battle royale mode and a 1v1 mode. The game isn’t without its issues. There are some translation problems and it’s not particularly free-to-play friendly. However, free players can grind long enough to complete game content without too much trouble. In any case, some people really like, some don’t. It’s worth a look.
If we missed any big Android apps or games news or releases, email us at contact@androidauthority.com and let us know!
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