In spite of the difficulty level and minimalist beauty of the graphics, Optica’s problem is that it’s just not that compelling, and once levels start to get more devious, summoning the will to trial and error your way to the end becomes your biggest hurdle.

Trexels II is a vacuous entertainment void, which does at least accurately simulate the icy desolation of deep space.

Slapping down a couple of mines and energy structures, then sending a massive volley of missiles to destroy the enemy base will get you through the first few levels, until suddenly it becomes overwhelmingly tough. The lurch in difficulty isn’t insurmountable, but also isn’t much fun, which is particularly disappointing given how perfect everything else is in Element.

Although frequently frustrating – this is a game you will find yourself loudly shouting at – it’s also fabulously clever and addictive, with one more go an almost foregone conclusion as you once again impale/lacerate your stickman in pursuit of that final collectible.

Even at this early stage (there’s no indication yet when Red Dead Online will officially emerge from beta) there’s plenty to do, with a similar wealth of content to the single-player game. And yet Red Dead Online hasn’t abandoned its essential character: it’s altogether slower and more content to leave you to your own devices than GTA Online. The prospect of living an online life in Rockstar’s vision of the not-quite-as wild-as-it-used-to-be West seems just as alluring as the story mode.

The charmingly dark and brooding graphic style works nicely with the fizzing electromagnetism of each level, but it’s undone by the touchscreen controls. The demanding, pixel-perfect jumps you need to pull off to complete platform sections immediately rendered exasperating by the woolly onscreen joystick and buttons. It’s not in any way a dead loss, but without a physical joypad you should brace yourself for irritation.

The result isn’t quite the sum of its parts unfortunately, because although each course looks stunning, rounds have an unfortunate tendency to be frustrating, the random factor underpinning victory just slightly too prominently. That’s actually quite a good analogue for real world crazy golf courses, and if you enjoy that element in the digital world this will seem pretty great.

It may be turn-based and lack any sort of time restriction, but it’s also highly competitive, with a distinct stab of angst when another player steals the very line of food and felines you’d nervously been eyeing. Sadly, it’s also riddled with bugs, many of which force you to restart the app, something that with any luck will be addressed in an update.

As a pick up and play mobile puzzle game this ticks the right boxes: levels are short and satisfying to crack, and its cute graphics are just enough to give you an impression of golf.

There are all sorts of decisions to make: should you try and cover up the civilian casualties from a stray airstrike or fess up, lowering support? Will you educate farmers on use of pesticides, or offer passive advice? It sounds dry, but once you’re in the thick of it, using the game’s myriad social and political leavers to lessen the chaos, it’s utterly gripping and offers layers of extra complexity over Plague Inc.’s already highly compelling ruleset.

It lacks the sparkle and modernity of the more recent Florence, but still evokes a wonderful sense of mystery and melancholy, and because of its sedate pace does not in any way suffer from having touchscreen rather than physical controls.

Its pleasing synth tunes and unusual gameplay are immediately alluring, but that optimism is swiftly trampled by a difficulty level that starts tricky and rapidly becomes sadistic, the overwhelming flurry of notes requiring taps so fast that the music gets lost under an ecstasy of fumbling. It’s always a pity when fresh and interesting ideas don’t quite work, but unfortunately Sonar Beat never manages to live up to its considerable promise.

Sadly, with only 41 puzzles – more are coming soon – it’s over too quickly, but while it lasts this is a highly amusing and completely free slice of mobile gaming goodness.

Emotive, melancholy, and thought provoking, Photographs creates a striking balance between game and story that will leave you considering its themes long after you’ve put away your phone.

It’s fun while it lasts, but we very comfortably finished the game on our first run, which took about half an hour, and while you can just keep going round and beating it again and again, there’s very little inducement to do so; the procedurally generated maps varying so little as to make them effectively identical.

It’s played in real-time, a countdown appearing on each move you make, with new cards to collect when it’s finished. It also has a branching narrative with the powerful and evocative prose you’d expect from the founder of Failbetter Games. If you like being flung headlong into deep and esoteric mysteries there are few games that do a better job of it, or reward you as much when you figure them out.

With any luck the legion of glitches will be fixed in an update, but even with all that Powernode manages to be engrossing and addictive.

As far as it goes, this is a reasonable game of cards, but like last month’s Knights Of The Card Table its lack of depth makes it instantly accessible but less interesting in the medium to long term. It also has very long grinds and a lurch in difficulty, which may or may not be designed to tilt you in the direction of its in-app purchases, something that feels beyond cheeky in a paid-for game. There are much better card battlers available, the best of which is still the brilliant Card Thief.

Relaxing, aesthetically pleasing, and giving you just enough room to feel creative with your flower arrangements, this suffers from the usual idle game problems – no threat, zero difficulty, mostly a waiting game – but makes up for it with charm and good looks.

The Quest has to start somewhere with online multiplayer though and this is as good a place as any.

Having Patrick Stewart as your narrator is quite the selling point, but he seems oddly wasted here, in this otherwise fairly low budget, portal-filled puzzler. Before you get too excited this is really nothing like Valve’s classic and a much more slow-paced, story-based affair.

If you’re not careful you’ll also find yourself learning a lot about the period’s history and the Romans’ divisive final lurch towards Christianity. But don’t let that put you off, as this is a deep and varied strategy game that never lets historical authenticity get in the way of fun.

Its frequent checkpoints get more spaced out as you progress, but the invention never stops, expanding its simple base mechanisms in increasingly challenging new directions. Its polished, elegantly biological good looks are complemented by deliciously gloopy sound effects in this satisfying and tactile action puzzler.

Between managing individual outbreaks you use a world map view to spread the infection to neighbouring countries in your ongoing effort to kill all humans. But while the process is reasonably compelling, the relative simplicity of its mechanics eventually starts to undermine the fun.

Its attempted revolution of turn-based tactics isn’t quite as practical as it first seems but this is still an impressively fun, and funny, strategy game.

A sci-fi shooter-meets-RPG sabotaged by a lack of plot, weak character progression, and sluggish combat.

A director’s cut that for once makes a significant difference, with new levels and the return of co-op – although the underlying game is still slightly flawed.

A monstrously awful game that is subject to so many bafflingly awful design decisions it’s lucky it doesn’t collapse into a black hole of its own ineptitude.