While the vast array of smartphone options gives you a lot of choice on what millimetre-thick piece of plastic and glass you decide will dominate your life, it does lead to a lot of fragmentation for mobile gamers. With so many options which generally boil down to the Amazon family of devices, Android alternatives and Apple’s beautiful walled garden, it’s sometimes frustrating to find that you can’t play with your friends who opted for another operating system. Thankfully, the developers of Riptide GP: Renegade ($2.99) have recently updated their flagship racing title with cross-platform online play on mobile, with the potential to later add console and PC players to the action, as well as a whole host of refinements that further improve the multiplayer elements to Renegade that we loved in our review back in August.

While cross-platform multiplayer is an awesome addition to Riptide GP: Renegade, developer Vector Unit has also attempted to make the general online experience better for those who may not have otherwise noticed a difference. The multiplayer lobby has been improved, with players now able to browse available games and see other usernames rather than the generic anonymous ‘player 1’ title they were given beforehand. Furthermore, matchmaking generally has improved to be more consistent, both as a result of the increased number of places able to draw players from and covert enhancements and UI improvements. Riptide GP: Renegade is an exhilarating futuristic racing experience, and its $2.99 price tag is extremely modest for what is a console quality experience in terms of both graphics and content, and so is highly recommended; be sure to let us know your impressions of the new online components of Riptide GP: Renegade on our forum thread.