Stardew Valley
There aren’t many games that have aged as well as Stardew Valley, but to be honest, the game plays pretty poorly with touchscreen controls. The menu is hard to access, and the finicky auto-attack feature means any journey to The Mines will quickly be cut short by swarming enemies. A controller fixes all that. Or at least, most of it. There are a few instances where you’ll need to tap on the screen, like choosing a farm type, entering your name, or opening the quest menu, but the rest is smooth sailing. If you haven’t already played Stardew Valley (or are hopelessly addicted on other platforms), you should definitely try it on Android with a controller.
Dead Cells
This Android port is immaculate, but trying to beat the game with on-screen controls is like trying to thread a needle while wearing mittens. This game is notoriously difficult, so adding an extra layer of difficulty with touchscreen controls is particularly punishing. I would not recommend it. After a slightly bump launch, Dead Cells on Android now supports nearly all controller types, and it’s playable without issue (except skill issues, in my case). All of the DLCs are also available, although you will need to purchase them separately. If you want to save some money, consider subscribing to Google Play Pass, which includes the full game and DLCs. A year’s subscription costs just a bit more than the complete version of Dead Cells at .99, and it also includes Stardew Valley and several other premium Android games with controller support. The full version is also available with a Netflix subscription as part of Netflix Games.
COD Mobile
PUBG Mobile was a massive hit on Android, but it has since been overshadowed by COD Mobile for a number of reasons — one of which is controller support. COD Mobile supports PlayStation, Xbox, and Backbone One controllers, and they work just like you would expect if you’re coming from a console Call of Duty game. The game itself is also excellent. I don’t like how aggressively it pushes battle pass economics, but the FPS gameplay is probably the best there is on mobile devices (Fortnite is also up there). If you are a competitive player using a controller, the game will match you with other controller-using foes to keep things fair.
