How we test whether a game really works offline

Plenty of games are listed as offline that quietly need a connection to do anything useful. So we have a routine, and it's not complicated: airplane mode on, then try to actually play.

We check three moments. Launch: does it open without a signal? Mid-session: does saving work? And the sneaky one, does closing and reopening the app keep your progress or wipe it?

We also test on a mid-range phone, not our newest one. If a game only feels good on top hardware, that matters to most readers who don't own the latest model.

It sounds obvious, but this catches a surprising number of games. Big Bass Drop passed every step without complaint, which is partly why it earned its spot in the catalog.