25 of the best games apps

Mirror's Edge

iOS (69p for iPhone/touch, £1.99 for iPad)
Mobile versions of “proper” console games are often a letdown, but EA managed to pull off this conversion by taking the parkour gameplay of Mirror’s Edge, flipping its 3D world down to a single plane and simplifying the controls. Tear across the roofs of the city at an adrenaline-pumping pace, dodging obstacles as you enter a “groove” of seemingly effortless free-running.

Tiny Wings

iOS (69p)
Not every game featuring birds has to be about smashing the living pork out of evil pigs. Tiny Wings is a game about building up speed and momentum in an attempt to get your bird across an entire island before the sun sets and he falls asleep. Attractively twee graphics and music make it something of a zen experience to play.

Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP

iOS (£2.99)
A game or a work of participatory art? We’re still not sure, but it’s certainly an experience. Sword & Sworcery isn’t really like anything else on the market: drenched in atmosphere thanks to its evocative soundtrack and pixellated visual style, it’s a thoughtfully paced exploration of a mythical realm. About as far away as you can get from the “snackable” style of gaming that dominates mobile.

World of Goo

iOS (£2.99), Android (£2.99)
Build elaborate structures using living balls of goo in order to allow other balls of goo to escape from each level. A glorious puzzle/construction game in the tradition of Lemmings, World of Goo isn’t just a brain-mangling challenge – it also manages to be surprisingly thought-provoking along the way.

Temple Run

iOS (Free), Android (Free)
You’ve stolen the idol, now you need to escape from the temple, careening headlong down a crumbling, hazard-strewn pathway pursued by a band of bloodthirsty monkey-demon creatures. The thing with Temple Run is that you’ll always die eventually – the idea is simply to get as far as you can through the randomised 3D levels. The control system, all swipes and tilts, makes this a cinch to play anywhere.