With a reasonable one-time purchase on the App Store and on Google Play, it’s certainly worth taking the chance that you’ll unlock weeks of fun and frustration for less than a fancy cup of coffee. You’ll probably want the coffee too after you’ve poured a few all-nighters into seeing how far you can take things, but the point is if you’re debating whether to give Super Gridland a try, do it. It’s early, but this might just be one of the best games of the year.

For those that can look past the in-app purchases and enjoy the gameplay for what it is, WarFriends will be a welcome addition to their home screen. For everyone else, the journey into WarFriends will likely be both frustrating and short-lived. But whether you ultimately find yourself loving or hating WarFriends, it’s worth a try, because we have a feeling that this is a game people will be talking about for quite a while.

Variety is Sea of Lies’ strongest point. The story is told in chapters, with each one unveiling a clever little twist once you complete it. You’ve also got a handy little kit you’ll use to dust objects for fingerprints, seeing as how you’re a detective and all. Those two features alone keep you guessing as to what to do next, but throw in the clever hidden object scenes and gold hunting mini-game and you’ve got an excuse to keep playing all the way to the end.

A familiar experience, but also an improved one compared to earlier games. Eventually you’ll still reach a stage that’ll take you a while to complete, but you’ll just about forgive it. Much like before.

One can only hope that this game is successful enough to justify a sequel of its own (a new Sonny 2 if you will) down the line, perhaps with slightly more elaborate gameplay graphics and a slower progression in difficulty.

More important than whether the game continues life as a paid app or is free, the prospect of an update means that there’s hope some of the glitches currently holding the game back can be worked out.

Kids will love just how cute Hank is (because he really is), but don’t be surprised if even their attention wanes after a time. To get the most out of My Talking Hank, you’re going to have to play the long game of checking in so often that it’s going to feel like a second job. That’s not so appealing in the long run.

The micro-games do get pretty hectic as you progress but never to the point of feeling impossible.

Even with its room for improvement, Snowball! is a frosty treat for fans of pinball and pixel art. For those who don’t want to venture out into the cold, Snowball! will evoke the spirit of winter without the seasonal side-effects.

When you do manage to eke out a victory, however, and balloons are popping, Birds flying, and Pigs falling over, Angry Birds Blast is true to its name. It has much of the Pig-bashing and Bird-saving excitement we look for in our Angry Birds games, wrapped in the joy of puzzle-matching with dynamic power-ups. Although it sometimes feels too generic and like it missed out on some Angry Birds-specific thematic opportunities, we still consider this yet another bullet on the Birds’ long list of successful avian excursions and human diversions.

Batman – The Telltale Series has been a very enjoyable story overall. I certainly don’t regret the time I’ve spent with it. However, I do feel a bit let down by Telltale’s handling of the port. Mobile and PC/console platforms are very different in terms of performance, but with all the technical problems that have been a constant irritation across five different episodes, I have to wonder if any real effort was put into this particular version at all.

There might not be that much tactical depth here, but this is the sort of game you’ll dip into for a couple of minutes only to look up after a few hours have passed. And that’s really the hallmark of this genre. It’s unlikely that this is going to dethrone the clashing king of the genre, but if you like your action a little more helicoptery and your gameplay closer to the hard end of the midcore, then War Commander: Rogue Assault is well worth a look.

This digital version is interesting, but it’s not much more than that.

There’s an entertaining game here, if you’re willing to slog through it. And when you do manage to get to the end you’re really going to feel like you’ve accomplished something. Even if, in the grand scheme of things, you really haven’t.

One especially great part of RollerCoaster Tycoon Classic is how it can introduce younger gamers to the series, and indeed, both my kids were clamoring for some time with it over their holiday break. Think of it as something of a combination love letter to the originals and apology note for the series’ previous foray into mobile, one that proves successful on both fronts.

It may be a by the numbers casual hidden object game, but Haunted Manor: Painted Beauties adds interest where it counts. The puzzles keep you guessing and searching, the hidden object scenes spice things up at just the right time, the mini-games are short but fascinating, and the story hits things home with a lot of supernatural twists and turns. Easy, simple, and fun.

Even before the added bonus of unlocking and mastering all the different remedies’ changes and effects, Remedy Rush was already a satisfyingly deep puzzle-runner with a lot of little details and clever strategies—like bumping back into aggressive germs—that are a treat to uncover and employ. It’s a game that’s as much fun to learn as it is to master, and we’ve far from mastered it. We’re looking forward to many, many more sick days to come.

After experiencing the best of the best spelling games here at Gamezebo, Word Cookies is about as satisfying as a gas station vanilla wafer.

When it comes to gameplay, there are two noticeable improvements in Don’t Starve: Shipwrecked over Pocket Edition. The switch to strictly touch-controlled movement is more straight-forward, while the accuracy of lighting changes between night and day has also improved noticeably. This being said, there were a few instances of ‘random death’ (no creatures in sight, not hungry, sane, etc.) and night-time creatures appearing during the day, but overall they didn’t affect the enjoyment of the game too badly.

Grim Tales 6 has just about everything you’d want in a hidden object game. Best of all, it’s presented in a fluid and attractive package. There are no genre-breaking ideas wedged into the gameplay, but what’s here has been built to feel just slightly out of the ordinary. And that’s a very good thing.

I don’t necessarily think Sister Location is the worst mobile iteration of the FNaF series, but it’s certainly not the best despite the overall improved visuals. Most of the animations are choppy or gone, a lot of audio was cut, you can’t replay the mini-game at will (which really sucks), and so on. Port issues aside, that checkpoint system is also super obnoxious. If you’re a fan who has some or all of the other games on your mobile device then you’ll probably want to get this one as well. Otherwise, you’re not missing much.

Gardenscapes has been doing this for years, but as an experience designed for expanding on mobile—and which has already received over 200 additional levels and numerous new garden sections through updates in less than seven months since launch—players will have rewarding matching, gardening, and Austin-interacting to look forward to for the foreseeable future.

It’s very early days in the year, but Milkmaid of the Milky Way still smacks of an adventure game that should be remembered come the end of year roundups. While it doesn’t bother trying to re-invent the wheel, it does an admirable job of sprucing up said old wheel with a 21st Century style twist or two. It’s an easy game to love.

Paper.io is fun, addicting and definitely worth the free download, especially for .io fans. Those who maybe didn’t understand the appeal of these games will enjoy the simplicity Paper.io brings to the genre, along with the vibrant and charming aesthetics.

Castle Creeps TD might be a fun reminder of why Tower Defense is such an enjoyable genre to play, but it’s also a reminder of some of the less kind elements of free to play. It’s these which are going to stick in your mind in the long term, rather than the enjoyment you had before they set in.

It’s The Binding of Isaac on your phone. That’s awesome. If you’ve had your fill with any of the other versions on almost every other video game platform imaginable, then you probably don’t need to check this one out — but otherwise, it’s definitely a good time.

It feels like Star Wars: Force Arena delivers enough fun and nostalgia that the de facto four-battle limit won’t be a dealbreaker, but it is something to keep in mind. It’s certainly a worthy addition to the overall pantheon of Star Wars mobile games, one that gives you new hope — pun fully intended — that creative ways to approach the world’s most famous sci-fi series are still out there.

The issue with Fieldrunners Attack! is that it isn’t even a great interpretation of the usual base building strategy stuff. It’s too formulaic, and too safe to be considered a step forward in any way. Full troop control is something that other strategy games should embrace, but it’s still not enough. If you’ve played any of the many Clash of Clans clones out there, you’ve played this before. Don’t pump money or time into it. It’s not worth it.