Flappy Golf 2

Despite pulling mechanical inspiration from the short lived fad game Flappy Bird, Flappy Golf 2 actually manages to earn a spot as one of the best arcade golf games on mobile devices. For those who may have missed it, Flappy Bird was an exercise in frustration, asking you to manipulate a bird through a dangerous and endless course of obstacles by tapping wildly and finding the sweet spot between carrying the bird too high and sending it plummeting to the ground. That frustration was part of its short lived appeal, but Flappy Golf 2 manages to create a game that has a lot more staying power, and that's largely due to the impressive skills of developer Noodlecake Studios.

Noodlecake Studios created one of the best mobile golf games on the market with the Stickman Golf series, and Flappy Golf 2 fundamentally serves as something of a remix for those games. It takes 31 different courses first used in the Stickman Golf series and tethers them to a new control scheme. Just as in a more vanilla game of golf, your goal is to get your ball to the target in as few strokes as possible. But unlike a regular game of golf, you control the ball using two buttons on either side of the screen that control each direction. There's a surprising amount of strategy here, and Noodlecake proves how a rather simple control mechanic can be stretched out in a variety of interesting ways. The complex stages require you to think strategically, taking into account vertical and horizontal space and positioning your ball so it's ideally positioned for the next swing. The physics here are your greatest opponent, and figuring out just the right amount of momentum you need to stick your landing requires a refreshing amount of skill and forethought.

While simply getting your ball to its destination can be a trial in its own right, there's plenty of challenges designed to push players to be there best and keep revisiting old stages. Courses reward bronze, silver, or gold medals determined by the amount of strokes you took, and getting the best grade can take skill, patience, and a thorough understanding of the course designs. These aren't just regular greens either. A number of complicated obstacles like sand, wind drafts, and sticky purple goo necessitate that you understand both the physical qualities of the surfaces and the trajectory of your ball. In addition to the traditional courses, there's a daily challenge that asks you to compete against the scores of players from around the world and rewards unique prizes for top scorers. There's also both local and online multiplayer as well as a number of cosmetic options to unlock, so you can stay immersed in the game well after you've finished the standard courses.