Luckily, Running With Friends works well as a single-player experience. You do need an opponent, but you can choose not to obsess over your distance. Just pull on your running shoes and get going.

Beast Bound is a peculiar adventure with odd little monsters, loads of loot, satisfying battles, and a quirky narrative that will keep you foraging and fighting. It’s worth a try for any fans of classic RPGs.

Despite this, An Alien with a Magnet is still enjoyable and provides a nice level of challenge across its story and bonus modes, though one might not be inclined to marathon it. But in shorter spurts, or if you manage to get on a roll, it satisfies.

As it stands today, Kumo Lumo is an adorably strange game that has stolen my heart, but not a spot on my must-play list. A rainy day game, for now.

It’s all so very close for Rayman Adventures, but in the end, you’re going to end up wanting more from it. It might look beautiful, but its increasing number of niggles let the side down in the end.

Zombie Anarchy feels a more respectable base-building game than most that have followed in Clash of Clans wake. It doesn’t offer enough innovations to be truly memorable, but if you’re itching to return to an old favorite genre, this is a pretty good one to try out. It won’t demand too much of you, but you’ll still feel like you’re getting stuff done.

With only a handful of traits and reactions to uncover, this current iteration feels less like a complete package and more like a jumping-off point, albeit an extremely beautiful, heart-wrenchingly adorable one.

Siralim 2 is by no means a perfect, or even particularly refined, game. But none of that really matters when you’re fighting your way through the God of Anger’s realm as he occasionally swears at you and your menagerie of bizarre creatures. It might not look like much on the surface, and it may be a little rough around the edges, but there’s a lot to enjoy here.

There’s no reason to not try Champs: Battlegrounds, as most players will find enjoyment, but how long that joy lasts is the biggest question.

Builder’s Journey is an impressively put together experience for the most part, but is probably only worth investing in at full price for true Lego die-hards.

Coco Loco is an interesting creature for sure, as it's not quite good enough to knock those perturbed birds off their perch but it is good enough and fleshed out enough to warrant a cheap download. The game is especially worth it if you're a huge fan of these types of games and can't stand the wait for Angry Birds Space.

Freak Tower is an interesting take on an iOS classic that adds just enough of its own flare to make things interesting. The only problem is that the pacing drags a good deal of the fun out of it when attempting to play for longer than a minute or two at a time. So long as it’s played in small bursts, though, it’s actually quite enjoyable.

While Merge Dragons! is going to take a while for you to truly get your head around it, it’s a fun curiosity. You’ll want to learn more about it and see just how far you can go. Being able to see things improve and change before your eyes makes a key difference in breathing new life into a fairly stale genre. You’ll find yourself eventually a little frustrated at its enthusiasm when it comes to in-app purchases, but you’ll be mostly pleased with what’s here.

Chocolate Tycoon is certainly a charmer, and the combination of both running and managing a chocolate shop ensures there's always something to do.

Is that going to drag in the legions of Bat-fans? No idea, but if you’re looking for a strategy management game that does things slightly differently, and slightly darker, then it’s well worth a look.

Treasure Buster is a very enjoyable game for what it is, and the RPG elements are definitely welcome. It’s not quite enough to prevent a feeling of familiarity and possible dullness from setting in, at least not if you play for extended periods of time, but when played in short bursts it’s not all that noticeable. Either way, it’s a fun game that’s worth a look if you like this kind of stuff.

PAC'N-JUMP may be just another Doodle Jump clone, but it's a good Doodle Jump clone. With a little bit of variety and some fun retro flavor, PAC'N-JUMP offers a terrific alternative to The Doodler that any Pac-Maniac should enjoy.

So while it may wobble a little, you can count this among another LEGO experience built just as high as the world it's mirroring.

For the most part, Power Rangers: Legacy Wars is a fairly well designed fighting game. It includes various freemium elements that work quite well in this context. In particular, league tables are rewarding to traverse, and you’ll enjoy being able to collect up so many different warriors. You might never have the time to unlock everything possible without a ton of grinding, but the time you do spend with Power Rangers: Legacy Wars will be quite pleasant if not overly memorable.

Evertile: Battle Arena is a great addition to any smartphone. Once you’ve picked up the basics there’s loads of room for experimentation. And not only is the community thriving – there’s always a game waiting for you – it seems really welcoming too.

The mini-games that make up much of Max’s Pirate Planet are too simplistic for adults to enjoy for a long time, though very young kids will have a whale of a time. There are worse planets to vacation on, like that one filled with sentient, horse-riding apes.

Without the crazy awesome pop culture references, smart QR code implementation, and intentionally (and brilliantly) confusing character design, Cloneggs might just have been another ho-hum twist on matching games. Thankfully Cloneggs has all of those things, making it a delightful little matcher with just enough going on to put a smile on any nerds face.

Heroes and Castles isn't visually stunning, and its controls might cost you more than one battle, but it's not a bad package when it's taken as a whole. Glory to the king and his butterfingered champions.

Sadly, however, I found the controls somewhat lackluster compared to everything else in the package.

Overall, the game is worth the free download and at least a trial run, if you will.

A high-quality title. If you're a huge Sega fan, it's a fun trip down memory lane through games you thought Sega forgot like Jet Grind Radio, Crazy Taxi and Space Channel 5. If that last sentence makes no sense to you, Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing is a good but flawed racing experience.

Grow Away isn't especially revolutionary, but it's surprisingly good, solid fun that will keep you busy for a while, coming back for just a bit more.

It's a near-perfect introduction for anyone interested in card-collection iOS games, as well as a great title for anyone interested in online CCGs looking for something a little less "intense" than the average offering. Aside from a few irritating framerate hiccups and load times, I'd say it's a great fit.

Many of Knights & Dragons' bits and pieces seem like familiar mechanics that probably wouldn't stand out in a free-to-play crowd, but it's the combination of all of them - plus a shift in gameplay focus - that makes such a difference. Despite my initial impressions this is very much a kingdom worth saving. Even worth fighting for.

Though it reminds me strangely of games like Angry Birds, Land-A-Panda is definitely still well worth investigating in its own right. If nothing else, the birds have had their fun; it's time for another species to dominate the skies instead.

Tinker Island is an exceedingly simple game, but it’s also pretty dang charming.

Heroes of Whitestone has some neat ideas, and it just about manages to hold them all together. If you’re looking for a deeper board gaming experience, then you’re going to come away disappointed. But if you fancy a midcore RPG with more than a few twists, then it’s definitely worth checking out.

Monster Island hits a few snags here and there, but it also does many things right. The reward system encourages players to do well and spend their winnings on valuable extras. There are over 60 levels per world and currently three worlds to play through, and though the physics disappoint slightly, the level design more than makes up for it.

Gear Jack has its moments, but you might not even be able to enjoy its strengths unless you really enjoy getting booted back to "Go" every time you mess up. If that sounds like the kind of challenge you've been lusting for, though, Jacky will be happy to be your new robot pal.

Regardless, there’s no denying Earn to Die 2 is still tons of zombie-smashing fun.

Whispering Willows isn’t a perfect adventure game, but neither is it a waste of time.

It’s still bright, it’s still full of interesting ideas, and it’s still one of the most intriguing IP that Bioware has created. This might not be the best way to play it, and you will find yourself frustrated from time to time, but it has one very big thing going for it: convenience. Being portable makes this one of the easiest ways to play Jade Empire. Stick it on your phone or tablet, take it with you on a long trip, and despite the port’s failings, you’ll still find one of the best RPG experiences on mobile. And that’s high praise indeed.

The visuals are too determined to mimic the past than impress in the present, the plot is awful fan fiction guff, and world feels utterly drab and lifeless. None of the areas I explored were memorable, and I had no desire to return to any of them once I’d moved on. The result is a game that clearly wants to be Jet Set Radio 3, and because we’re all so starved for more, we’ll lap it up like it is. But, ultimately, it’s not up to the same standards. I’d definitely back Sega giving Team Reptile the opportunity to make a genuine stab at a Jet Set Radio 3, as the love for the series oozes in every screen, but it needs the big budget that the series deserves. And, a vastly superior writing team.

Despite the wavering longevity of Fish Out of Water, the cutesy fish-hopper is still a very welcomed addition to Halbrick’s impressive roster of casual arcade games, and I can see Olympus the goldfish and all the rest of his fishy friends making a real splash on the App Store for some time to come. Just don’t try and skip a fish across the water in real life!

If you've only played a handful of tower defense games, Siegecraft TD will be right up your street. It's polished, it's to-the-point, and it's meticulously crafted. But if you're looking for something more from your tower defense games, Siegecraft TD is going to be a passing distraction and nothing more.

If you just want to spend a few hours smashing monsters with a hammer and unleashing rune magic, Wraithborne can definitely help you out with that. Just keep in mind that it's probably going to be more a fling than a long term relationship.

With plenty of levels to play through and online leaderboards to master, we'll be playing Roboto for a good while longer. It's just a shame that those controls couldn't be a little tighter.

Ultimately Strife is a real time-warp, but one that’s actually quite enjoyable if you go in with the right mindset and a fair bit of patience. For the low price it’s certainly worth a punt, but those expecting a polished modern-day experience might go away scratching their heads.

Is it fun? Yeah, for sure, and even though there’s a lot going on it’s never overwhelming. It’s not the most innovative game on the App Store, but it’s a great way to waste a few minutes here and there. This is a great distraction that’s going to keep you occupied for just as long as you let it.

If you're a fan of endless runners and want a change of pace, there's plenty of fun to be had in Verticus. Just be ready for a challenge – and due to some perspective frustrations, that challenge may sometimes be an unintentional one.

Monster Rolling could benefit from some fine-tuning, but it’s still an amiable game in its current form. If you love tooling around with digital slot machines, you may as well raise some monsters while you do so.

A fun game that does a pretty good job of combining a couple of different types of genres together. It feels imprecise at times, and this (plus the randomness) can sometimes lead to frustration, but it’s also meant to be replayed after you inevitably lose so it’s not that big a deal. Mostly. Except when you fail because of said frustrations. Still, jumping back into things is easy enough.

Beautiful, charming, and wonderfully addictive, but it has a few issues that are holding it back.

But if you're active in the MLP fandom and you have cash to burn, it's probably worth the money and effort necessary to make a town that's worth showing off. Friendship is Magic, but envy is a heck of a motivator, too.

RadBalls is a fun little bite-sized experience that is worth playing through, even if only for the bright and colorful aesthetic and the amazing upbeat soundtrack. It isn't overly complicated, it's easy to pick up and learn, utilizes the multi-touch capabilities of the iOS devices, and would be a great game for all ages to play around with.

Inevitably, there’s a pay to win style system in place. If you throw money at the problem, you can unlock things faster and progress at a steadier rate. It’s tempting to do, but SIEGE: Titan Wars just about throws enough freebies at you to make it possible to resist. There’s also the issue that you’re going to end up fading away from SIEGE: Titan Wars. After all, it’s a mixture of things you’ve seen before. Without the touch of class and precision that something like Clash Royale offers, it doesn’t quite have the staying power. For a little while though, it’s quite appealing.

While Centipede Ultra may offer an experience that's only a fraction of Atari's inexplicably defunct 2008 Centipede release for the iPhone, it's also a game that gives us little reason to complain.

It's actually a very fun and addictive game, so long as you don't mind not having any idea of what's going on and just throwing things until something works.

At the end of the day, Space City is a nice diversion in the lacking social genre on iOS. While most games are simply content with being simple, Space City is at least polished and mostly focused.

Just be prepared to part with some very cute little pigs.

Heroes of Dragon Age is a decent collectable card game, though its poor stamina system and passive battles make it difficult to recommend to hardcore Dragon Age fans who enjoy the series for its action and exploration.

If you like Rage of Bahamut but would prefer something with a kinder, gentler, perhaps more kid-friendly style (and you don't mind forking over a few bucks now and then, or lagging well behind those who do), then Monster Paradise is probably just what you're looking for.

As tower defense games go, Jelly Defense starts out with the potential to be one of the greats. Unfortunately, it never really lives up to this possibility, and that's really too bad because it manages to get some very big aspects very right in very big ways. It's sort of like JELL-O that way: it looks like it'll be awesome, but then turns out to be merely okay.

It's not a game I'd recommend to everyone, but Quizboard is something I could see resonating with a lot of people. It's also free to play, meaning you've no excuse to avoid giving it a chance.

So even though Joust Legend isn't what we had in mind when we first heard the name, it's still a fun game with a great sense of atmosphere and fun mechanics. Don't be afraid to give this one a look.

Hambo has some quirks which are more a matter of personal preference as to whether you would appreciate them or not. Beyond that, with the exception of a couple of gameplay issues named above, Hambo is a pretty solid, fun game with over 200 levels, so you should be kept occupied for quite a while if you go with it.

But if you’re looking for a tough as old boots game that doesn’t seem to follow any of the rules of making a successful mobile game in 2016, and yet still manages to be the sort of experience you’re likely to lose hours to, then Cubway is definitely worth your time.

Where Solitairica falters is its depth. It’s not as deep as it sounds. Once you’ve unlocked all the classes, you’ll find yourself gravitating to your favorite and mostly using the same spells repeatedly. That’s fine, but it means that Solitairica outstays its welcome eventually. There are only so many times you can play it until you feel as if you’ve had your fill and seen enough. Fortunately, that amount of content just about warrants a purchase, but you’ll burn out earlier than your initial playthroughs would have you think.

Ultimately Vagante is no masterpiece, but it has an impressively satisfying core gameplay loop that will help this appeal to more hardened roguelike fans. Less experienced fans of the genre may want to steer clear though.

Deckmake Fantasy does well on so many levels that it's a real shame that the localization issues are constantly being thrown front and center. If you can look past that, then you'll have very little to complain about while playing. I'd call it a bummer, but it's by no means a dealbreaker.

This is evolution rather than revolution, and not even a particularly dramatic evolution.

Aside from a few missteps in design, Mirrors of Albion is still an incredibly ambitious game that has a lot of heart, and is perfect for social and hidden object gamers of all ages. If you're looking for a different kind of hidden object game, or a social game with a magical twist, then this imaginative romp through London might be just the fit for you.

Rock Runners is a great addition to the one-button runner genre, and runner fans should definitely consider giving it a whirl. What we really need now is a sequel that isn't so dependent on the same content being mashed together over and over again.

I don’t understand why it’s so difficult for digital board game conversions to get tutorials right, but it’s a common problem that Race for the Galaxy unfortunately hasn’t avoided. Also tiny text. Still, once you (eventually) figure out and get used to the icons, as well as the various types of strategies, it really is a great game. I really do wish it was more welcoming to new and out of practice players, though.

Overall, Sine Mora is well worth the time of anyone into mobile shoot’em ups. There are plenty of annoyances, especially for the less experienced player.

With more control over the characters, Ring Run Circus could claim the title of ringmaster; for now, it’s just a really good show.

Until then, we compromise, and if you love the NHL and want a number of different ways to explore those feelings, NHL 2K is a pretty good one.

There certainly seems to be an audience for this type of game, but you’ll have to be drawn in by the atmosphere of Dragon Storm and be prepared to be social if you really want to be part of it.

Kill Shot Virus isn’t rich on variety, but it’s still fun. Kind of like when you have a craving for junk food, it’s never going to beat a classier meal, but sometimes you just want something quick and easy. Kill Shot Virus does a fine job of being the gaming equivalent of that. You’ll always feel like there’s something new to do, even if it’s something you’ve actually done before.

As a whole, Forgotten Memories is designed really well, and it is very creepy with some neat puzzles. The game is only marred by clunky combat experiences and a stingy save system that is stuck in the 90’s.

As long as you don't mind the snack-sized portion, Gobtron is a really fun and funny game as long as you have the stomach for it. He may not be a beast of legend, but Gobtron has enough charm and charisma to turn into something more.

Overall, Toon Squad offers an intuitive base-building experience with a casual, accessible battle mechanic.

Dawn of Magic is a competent yet forgettable RPG. The game's main selling point is that it's free. At that price, it's a worthwhile adventure to noodle around with while sitting in a doctor's office or waiting for a train to work. The characters are mildly endearing in spite of the Engrish translation, and the RPG gameplay is completely functional.

On that note, if you’re looking for bright and cheery match-three title, I’d recommend Scrubby Dubby over Candy Crush Jelly Saga. But if you’re a sugar-crushing fanatic who’s hungry for everything the Candy Crush universe has to offer, Jelly Saga won’t rot your insides.

Despite an annoying story and unbearably loudmouthed characters, Sela the Space Pirate still managed to win me over with its great controls, fluid animations, and hectic space shooting gameplay.

In the end, this is a game that feels like what it probably is: a decent enough first effort in carving out something new in a sub-genre that had been empty for a while. It might take some time for a really great licensed NASCAR mobile game to come around, but it’s at least possible that it will be a future iteration of this series, which is something you couldn’t have said about any title for years.

Voyageur is an intriguing tale of sci-fi style exploration that gradually switches from fascinating to a little too ponderous for its own good. It never quite reaches the heights of its potential, but you’ll still find it strangely compelling. Until, that is, one day it’s not.

You need to react quickly to the point of operating on pure instinct once things really pick up, and a single mistake will send you back to the beginning. If that sounds like your thing, or if you like really pretty space stuff and don’t mind a bit of frustration, then definitely check it out.

Supreme Heroes is a decent free-to-play CCG with lots of powers to collect and upgrade, as well as other players to spar with and show off your costume designs. But it’s just not as big and bold as I’d have expected a game about super powered crime fighters to be. I mean it’s not bad; it’s just rather bland.

This isn’t Tetris at its finest, but it is an interesting twist on the formula.

Ultimately though, Fantasy War Tactics is a pretty darned entertaining strategy RPG. It doesn’t punish players too much with premium teases and in-app purchases, and there’s usually plenty to do even after you run out of the energy needed to fight stuff. It could really do with a character selection option, though.

Still, if you’re a fan of the franchise, or you have a youngster who loves the little blue gnomes, playing Magical Meadow is certainly preferable to, say, having tea and crumpets with Gargamel.

While Golf Zero might not have the universal appeal of Colin Lane’s earlier works like Wrassling or Dunkers, those who master it will likely have fallen in love completely. It’s just that it’s so hard, those who master it are likely to be few and far between.

Even with a large amount of content that keeps downloading after the initial install, though, there's something about Battlestone that leaves you feeling just a tad unfulfilled. Just like the four-door model usually ends up the smarter choice over the two-seater, there are games out there that don't look as sexy but will probably hook you in more completely in the end.

The End also shoots itself in the foot by tying challenges and duct tape rewards quite tightly to payment hoops or forced social broadcasting.

If you don’t mind just stomping through levels as a giant monster, building new weapons and special hats, and watching your numbers go up, then you’re going to enjoy pretty much everything that the game has to offer. Mainly because, that’s pretty much everything the game has to offer.

In terms of core gameplay, Great Little War Game is a delightful, challenging title. Unfortunately, the production values are a bit uneven and drag the rest of the game down. Still, it's a lot of fun, and strategy fans should enjoy it.

With a steady stream of freebies via daily bonuses, and chests that can be unlocked for extra goodies, Battlejack does a good job of drip feeding content and therefore luring you in. It may never quite stick in your mind as a game to remember for years to come, but its charm and steady progress means you’ll likely return to it any time you want a win during your day. Sometimes, that’s just what you need.

There’s a really cool and enjoyable puzzle strategy game in Ticket to Earth. The problem is all the supposedly random bits end up making things feel unfair. Failing a level because the tiles happened to spawn in a way to help an enemy chase me down isn’t challenging, it’s cheap. Missing out on collecting important items on the board because they often appear where enemies can grab them first isn’t fun, it’s frustrating. I really, really want to like Ticket to Earth, but I just don’t have the patience for its poor balancing.

Bookworm Heroes is a worthy extension of the Bookworm universe. It’s just a blasted shame that Popcap decided to make it free-to-play, since almost all of its failings can be traced back to the divisive gameplay model. Does Lex cry softly to himself when the game is turned off? He’s well within his rights to do so.

It's hard to know which audience Glu is really going after. If it's the Mafia Wars crowd, Contract Killer deserves a big check in the win column. If it's action gamers who haven't really embraced freemium gaming yet, Contract Killer doesn't quite go far enough to hold their interest for long.

The core idea is a wild twist that still maintains the essence and strategy of the original game. The presentation is simple but functional and beautiful, even before you include the nine color palette swaps available in the full version. With more variety in its modes and improvements to the A.I., Really Bad Chess would be our preferred way to checkmate.

Regardless, fans of Tiny Wings and games like it should give RAD Boarding a try. It’s not perfect, but it’s still way better than sitting in a bunker and eating a can of wadded beef.