Aground vs Badland
Aground
Aground is a 2D, side-scrolling, survival-themed adventure game where you'll be digging out the bowels of the earth for precious ores to turn into tools, weapons, and armor or to sell to gain coins. Similar to games like Kingdom: Classic or its sequel, Kingdom: New Lands, the game will have you venture out to explore new islands to discover more about the story behind the land, to meet new characters and to obtain better resources to craft superior items.The storyline in this game is pretty intriguing as well. It features a Bermuda Triangle-like area where people often get shipwrecked and are washed up to one of the shores of the small archipelago. The islands are filled with weird creatures and is rich with minerals and resources. As survivors starting from scratch, they do not have access to the technologies they used to enjoy that is until apparently a mysterious tribe, called the Mirrows, helped to set stuff up.
Aground offers players the sort of freedom that Minecraft is able to provide and yet, is not fully a sandbox game nor does it have a procedurally generated map. Of course, this game has a great storyline, along with quests to help drive those plot points forward, and that alone makes it a really fun game to play.
Badland
Badland gained worldwide acclaim when it was first released mainly because the game itself has one of the best level designs on the mobile platform, responsive and intuitive controls, as well as a realistic physics-based gameplay. However, that's not the cherry on top - the game is possibly among the first on either Android or iOS to offer a multiplayer and co-op option despite being simply "a puzzle game". The graphics in this game is also incredibly stunning in its simplistic kind of way. The color hues supplemented the black, ball-like creature you'll be playing as. And of course, the game offers endless replayability via its level editor where players can create their own levels, share them to the world, and even play other people's levels too!Badland is an excellent atmospheric side-scrolling action-adventure platformer that guarantees hours of fun regardless of whether you're playing alone, or with or against friends. Its awards are very well-deserved and by playing it (you can get it for free), you'll quickly realize this is one of the many gems in the indie gaming scene.