10 Best Android games: Thumbs at the ready

By Chris Martin

Ok, let's cut to the chase, here are the 10 best games to download on your Android smartphone or tablet.

1. Hill Climb Racing

Hill Climb Racing may look a little basic but what it lacks in eye popping graphics, it makes up for in pure addiction. To start you get a jeep, one level and gas and brake pedals, but you'll soon unlock more cars and levels with the coins you collect during each run. Coins are collected by driving over them, reaching checkpoints and performing flips. Not only can you spend them on new items, but upgrading your cars. New levels and cars are added regularly and rag-doll physics add a comedy factor. You'll find yourself coming back again and again to get further, an upgrade, new car or level.

See also: The 5 best Android fitness apps: Get healthy with your smartphone.

2. Temple Run 2

Temple Run is the crème de la crème of endless runners and the second version is not only better than the original, but free. Temple Run 2 combines simple controls, with a simple objective with a graphically stunning design including forests, caves and zip lines to keep you entertained for hours. You'll be jumping, dodging and sliding not only to beat your friends but also to unlock achievements and new characters. Various power ups add another fun element, too. You might not escape with the precious idol, but you'll definitely have fun trying.

3. Bad Piggies

The first Angry Birds to put the green pigs in the spotlight is Bad Piggies, and we love it. Getting your pig, or eventually pigs, from point a to point b might sound simple enough but you've got do do it by building a contraption out of a selection of parts. After a few tutorial levels, this starts to get quite challenging, then add in the objectives to gain those all important three stars and you've got yourself a great game. Probably the most fun is the sandbox levels which let you build almost anything you want from a vast inventory of parts.

4. Plants vs Zombies 2

The original Plants vs Zombies was a smash hit and the second version is a must have game for any Android gamer. This long awaited sequel remains an exceptional, charming tower defense title that expands on the original while taking you in new and exciting directions. A new level structure takes you through different themed worlds with matching new zombies to take on. You can, to a degree, choose which levels to play and there are new objectives to complete. As you would expect, there are new plants to get to grips with and although in-app purchases make an appearance you can essentially ignore them.

5. Cut the Rope

A classic mobile game with now various editions, Cut the Rope has superb level design and the game makes great use of the touch screen. There's excellent physics-based gameplay with plenty of different objects to interact with in different and clever ways. Three stars placed around each level will make you want to play over and over again until you've cracked the puzzle. There's loads of levels to keep you going. Let's not forget how adorable the main character Om Nom is, too. Now the original game is fairly old, the developer has made the full version completely free so you can't go wrong with this charming and addictive title.

6. Real Racing 3

If Hill Climb Racing is a little basic for you, and you have some space free on your device then you'll need to check out Real Racing 3. For starters you'll be blown away by the impressive quality of graphics which offer a high level of detail. As the name suggests, Real Racing 3 features real cars, real tracks and real people. Time Shifted Multiplayer means you can play with your friends even if they're offline. There's a good selection of race types including cup races, eliminations, endurance challenges and drag races. And how much does this console looking game cost? Well it's free so get downloading.

7. Triple Town

Bringing an innovative concept to puzzle games, Triple Town is a great free download and the kind of game you can pick up at any time. The idea is to build the best city you can and this is done by combining three items to form one increasingly better one. Bushes become trees, trees become huts and so on. Some cute but pesky bears will get in the way of your progress. We're also big fans of the gorgeous and charming graphics and animations. Like most games, you can spend real money but it's not a necessity.

8. Tetris Blitz

As the name suggests, Tetris Blitz isn't just a regular version of Tetris. Instead of the simplistic endless nature of the original, Blitz gives you a two minute time limit in which to score as many points as you can. A frenzy mode adds a fresh new element to this classic game.  Instead of moving blocks around, you simply tap on the screen where you want them to go. This removes some of the skill but is in-keeping with the game's fast pace nature. Although the game tempts you to buy power-ups, you can still get high scores without getting your wallet out.

9. Candy Crush Saga

Consistently at the top of the Google Play store, Candy Crush Saga is a massive success. This is an addictive puzzle game that anyone can pick up and play, using the classic match-three style, but a variation on the theme that sees gems swapped with sweets and other tasty treats. The ease with which you can continue your game on multiple devices is a huge plus point and instead of playing for simple high score, you need to complete levels with various objectives. It's free to download but once you reach to level 35 Candy Crush begins charging 69p per episode.

10. New Star Soccer

New Star Soccer is a game which puts you in the boots of an up-and-coming professional football without a penny to his name. You have to complete flick based football challenges such as passing, shooting and timing interceptions. The better you get the more money you earn and this is where the game gets really fun and a little creepy. You can buy vehicles, clothes, property and a whole string of girlfriends. Essentially the more things you have and the more you train your player the better you get. So while you start your career at lowly Torquay United, you can flick your way to the World Cup.

Source: Pcadvisor