Rafe, Ewan and Steve pick the S60 games that will be keeping them amused while their families hog the TV/XBox... If you've only got time to try a few smartphone games, these are the ones to go for!

Steve Litchfield

Pro Tour Golf Even though the folks at Synergenix have clearly said that this is a 'first cut' at a definitive golf game, it's still horribly addictive and discovering a few months ago in a hotel room (don't ask) that it was also one of Rafe's favourites shouldn't have been the surprise it was. At first glance it doesn't hold much promise, there's only the one course and you're not playing against any computer players, but the interface, graphics and physics are so well done that the limitations are quickly forgotten while you battle to beat your previous lowest score. Watch out for the wind indicator though, it always shows wind direction relative the hole overall and not relative to the direction you're currently facing... Try and buy at AAS shop.

Virtual Pool Mobile A port from other PDA platforms, Virtual Pool Mobile is just perfectly programmed. From the texture-mapped 3D graphics to the computer player AI to the superbly realistic physics, this game is very well thought out and brilliantly presented. As you progress round the virtual pool halls, playing opponents of greater and greater ability, there's something for everyone, from rank beginners to old hands like myself. Great, great fun, only marred by sound glitches that often mean the sound of a ball dropping is heard before the ball itself gets potted. Try and buy at AAS shop.

Yahtzee A tried and tested game of chance and probabilities, you'll need surprisingly amounts of skill and strategy to get consistently high scores in Yahtzee. The aim is to get the most from three dice rolls of up to five dice on each turn, scoring the 'hands' in the table provided. It's surprisingly addictive, fun to play while waiting in line or for a bus, and it's completely free! Download from home page.

One For All Solitaires It caught me by surprise when I found out that this was one of the best selling games in the AAS shop; surely people are more into blasting monsters and navigating labrynthine mazes picking up rune these days? Is there room for a simple card game in the S60 charts? There certainly has been room on my smartphone and if I was going to go for any one title then it would be this one. Rather than simply modelling one solitaire variant, it includes them all, from Golf to Freecell to Montana to Pyramid. And 190 other versions. OK, so some have only subtle rule changes, but One For All Solitaires is simply stonkingly good value for money, at only $5. The programming's up to EpocWare's usual high standards and card selection is always intuitive and quick. No explosions, no loss of life and little adrenaline, but you'll still be playing this in airport lounges long after you've tired of other games genres. Buy it at AAS shop.

Meteor 2 I'm a complete sucker for arcade games, especially ones that blend brain power with reflexes. Meteor 2, available in both portrait and landscape versions, is Breakout on steroids. With bells on. Instead of a plain bat and bricks, you've got a spaceship and... well, bricks, but they're attractively textured and come in many different types. Some drop powerups when hit, others drop negative features which you have to try and avoid. Oh, and did I mention the space invader mothership that cruises across the top of the screen every so often? And, lest you forget, you're supposed to be playing Breakout, so there are one or more balls to juggle around the star field, trying to keep it in play and knock out an entire level. A great implementation of a classic game, taken to its nth degree. Try and buy at AAS shop.

Ewan Spence

Angelfish With the vertical orientation of the Series 60 screen, there’s always been a single genre that would work perfectly – the up the screen, 2-D Shooter. And Fathammer delivers the goods with Angelfish. On first playing this, I nearly wept. You’ve got guns, power-ups and a manoeuvrable ship. Against you are waves and waves of enemy fighters. Yes they have a predictable pattern, but that’s exactly how this genre is meant to work. Unfortunately there’s no demo, but if you’re remotely interested in this arcade style of game, then rest assured it’s worth it. Buy it from the AAS Shop.

Lemonade Tycoon If lightning quick reflexes aren’t your idea of fun, how about JamDat’s Lemonade Tycoon? You start with almost nothing, a few dollars in your pocket, some sugar, lemons and a table in your garden. From there you work through this business simulator to build up the largest Lemonade Stand Company in the world. A hot day? Head to the beach with lots of ice, if it cools down, try the shopping centre. A steep learning curve, with a million things to consider, puts Lemonade Tycoon firmly toward exercising the old grey matter with some good clean graphics as the day is simulated and you watch everyone walk past your table. Buy it from the AAS Shop.

Texas Hold ‘Em Poker There’s been a resurgence in Poker in the last few years, mainly thanks to TV coverage that benefits from mini-cameras allowing everyone watching to see who’s bluffing and who has the best hand. It also means that the televised games, playing Texas Hold Em, have translated to becoming very popular in handheld versions. This MIDP based version of the game is the No Limit version, so you can shout “all-in” just like the professionals against 4 computer opponents of varying AI skill. And the hard AI levels really do know their way around the rules. Challenging, fast to play, and easy to pick up, Hold Em Poker is one of the better representations. Try and Buy from the AAS Shop .

Super Miners Slick graphics and good presentation lift this Boulderdash clone out of the sea of average games. Your job is simply to run round a mine collecting all the diamonds, while avoiding the falling rocks, digging through soil, and solving the puzzles which all these elements contribute to. If you get through the 100+ levels then you can pair up (over Bluetooth) with another S60 owner to try some co-operative or competitive head to head games. Lots of variety, and a good mix of puzzles and arcade action. Try and Buy from the AAS Shop .

Zingles (Sudoku ) Professional This year’s Rubik’s Cube, with the little ‘more than a magic square’ puzzle appearing everywhere, from the backs on newspapers to high class magazines and over a million books in stores near you. Once it was clear the 9x9 grids had been taken to heart, the programmers moved in and served up a veritable feast of Sudoku. The principle is simple. Fill in the numbers 1-9 so that no number repeats itself in any horizontal or vertical line, nor in any of the 3x3 grids in the square. ZingMagic probably have the slickest Symbian version, with automatically generated grids, numerous graphical options, and a puzzle solver if you need a hand solving the £10,000 prize Soduko in your newspaper. Buy it from the AAS Shop .

Rafe Blandford 

RollBot A 2D action game that is ideally suited to the mobile phone. You can pick it up and play for just a few minutes or play for a little longer and work your way through all 25 levels. It is similar to the 'run the marble round the maze while avoiding holes' games that were popular (and you still find at granny's house) before someone invented the smartphone . The gameplay is fairly simple, but with power ups (which vary from a blasting ball to a fast ball, and more) and well designed levels (both in terms of looks and gameplay) this should keep you busy well beyond the New Year. Buy it from the AAS Shop (pre 6680 phones).

Frozen Bubble This Open Source game has been ported from Linux, but as with RollBot it is perfect as a casual mobile game. In the game, you fire bubbles at a group of hanging bubbles which will burst if hit when in groups of three or more of the same colour. Sounds simple - it is, but levels get progressively harder as you go, and you'll soon be calculating the rebound angles of the walls for that perfect shot. To make things more exciting, the roof gradually moves downward, resulting in a total freeze of your bubbles if you're not quick enough. Frozen Bubble also passes the 'can I borrow your phone to play a game test' - it is simple to pick up without any great skill required and can be surprisingly addictive - which can be useful when you need to placate a family member who has been at the Christmas sherry. Download it from the Homepage.

Legacy Legacy is an in depth RPG game and includes the staples of similar games from the PC, converted to the smartphone. As such it is an immersive game and features a detailed story line, professional graphics and more monsters that you can shake a stick (or sword) at. There's more than 50 hours of gameplay in the main game and further expansion packs are also available. As an RPG it will not be to everyone's taste, and it is far removed from the causal mobile games featured elsewhere on this page, but if you're an RPG fan or interested in the genre then you really should check it out. Buy from the AAS store.

Sky Force Sky Force is a traditional arcade scrolling shoot 'em up, and as such is another casual game ideal for the mobile. You fly your plane through a level moving at a constant pace. There are chances to pick up power ups to give you awards, points and extra fire power. The game is graphically well presented and has an impressive set of sounds to go along with the simple, but rather good gameplay. Part of the fun of the game is maximising your score by shooting as accurately as possible and working through the increasing levels of difficulty. Sky Force has been a consistently good seller from very early on in the life of S60 and it remains at the top of the best seller list to this day. Buy from the AAS Shop .

Emulators This last one is a bit of a cheat because it actually lets you play lots and lots of games. Emulators allow you to play games from other systems - emulating them -  and there are a wide variety of emulators available for S60 so it is hard to pick any one out of the bunch. Some of the more popular ones include SonicBoy (Game Gear and Sega Master System), SuperGoBoy (GameBoy), and MAME (Multiple Arcade Machine Emulator). Your preference is going to be down to which system you played with when you were younger. The Spectrum/Commodore wars continue to this day thanks to emulation. For most emulators you'll need both the emulation software and ROMs (games) to play with. The legal situation with regards to ROMs is that you should only use those for which you own the original game, but this often seems to be ignored for the older systems. However, beyond the original games there are public domains ROMs which are often very good in their own right. More emulators available in the AAS shop.

Still looking for more? Head over to the reviews section to see some more S60 games rated and reviewed.