OVERFLOW ERROR REVIEWS

APP & GAME REVIEWS

Every game gets a score out of 400. The best ones overflow.

Overflow Error rates mobile games on the four things that make or break them: how hard they hit, how much love went in, whether they work offline, and how the ads behave. Each category tops out at 100, but there is no ceiling. When a game is better than the scale allows, the scale breaks.

  • 5GAMES RATED
  • 2OVERFLOWED
  • 647HIGH SCORE
Pixel-art wizard watching a set of scales explode in a burst of orange sparks

THE RANKINGS

  • IN SCALE
  • OVERFLOW
  • 400 = FULL MARKS

  1. OVERFLOW ERROR

    401+

    Broke the 400-point scale. Download these.

    1. RANK1

      Blackbox

      An iOS-exclusive puzzle box with barely a hint: first work out what the level wants, then pull it off.

      chillpuzzle

      647OVERFLOWTOTAL / 400
      • HIT BOX135
      • GAME QUALITY299
      • OFFLINE PLAY113
      • ADVERTS100
    2. RANK2

      The Battle of Polytopia

      Chess meets Risk: pick a tribe, explore, research, conquer. Years of play and still going.

      strategy

      631OVERFLOWTOTAL / 400
      • HIT BOX200
      • GAME QUALITY231
      • OFFLINE PLAY100
      • ADVERTS100

  2. HIGH SCORE

    300–400

    Great games, firmly in range.

    1. RANK3

      Mars: Mars

      Jetpack from landing pad to landing pad in a calm infinite platformer. Perfect with a podcast on.

      chillplatformer

      348TOTAL / 400
      • HIT BOX58
      • GAME QUALITY130
      • OFFLINE PLAY100
      • ADVERTS60

  3. SOLID RUN

    200–299

    Good fun with a few rough edges.

    1. RANK4

      Flow Free

      The 2012 classic still holds up: connect every pair of colours and fill the whole board.

      chillpuzzle

      288TOTAL / 400
      • HIT BOX40
      • GAME QUALITY48
      • OFFLINE PLAY100
      • ADVERTS100
    2. RANK5

      Lucky Defense!

      Tower defense where every summon is a roll of the dice. Pray for a legendary.

      tower defense

      240TOTAL / 400
      • HIT BOX120
      • GAME QUALITY80
      • OFFLINE PLAY0
      • ADVERTS40

  4. CONTINUE?

    0–199

    Didn’t hit. Maybe next run.

    1. NOTHING HERE YET

HOW THE SCORE WORKS

Four categories, 100 points each for full marks: Hit Box, Game Quality, Offline Play and Adverts. There is no upper bound, so a game that goes above and beyond can score past 400 and overflow the scale.

READ THE METHODOLOGY