The evil pigs have been crushed by pudgy little angry birds, spooky abandoned temples have been explored over and over while being chased by demon monkeys, subways and train systems around the world have been surfed, and millions of candies crushed and pets rescued.
Now, new games are making their way into our smartphones.
Here are five trending games on Android and iOS that we are playing right now and you should too:
Battle of wits
Quiz Up is the world’s largest online trivia game with over 200,000 questions across 400 topics – from art, business, lifestyle, literature, movies, TV to science, history, geography, sports, music and more. New topics and questions are also added every week.
The gameplay: choose topics of interest and either challenge a friend or play against an online opponent. Each game consists of seven rounds in multiple choice question format with four options. Each round lasts 10 seconds, and the faster you answer the more points you get. The final game score results in level ups and for every 10 levels you reach in a topic, you are awarded a title.
Why we love it: Quiz Up challenges your knowledge and memory, tests your speed and control, and indulges your self-esteem (oh how good it feels to know that you know so much!) when you beat your opponent. It has a sleek interface and a cool soundtrack that stays with you. It is also a fun way to learn new stuff. And to see your name up there on the leaderboard among 10 million other players — yeah, that’s the kick!
We wish: There was a single player mode or that it could be played offline as well.
Quick Tip: Review your questions and answers at the end of each game. Chances are high that you will be thrown the same question more than once over different games in a topic.
Numbers Game
2048 is a single-player game where you slide tiles on a grid to combine them and create a tile with the number 2048.
The gameplay: Swipe up, down, left or right to move tiles. When tiles with the same number touch, they merge and add up. Your goal is to keep matching the tiles till they add up to the 2048 tile. Game ends when you have no further tile combinations left on the grid.
Why we love it: 2048 takes elementary math (2+2=4, 4+4=8, duh!) and makes it look complicated enough for you to come off as a cool geek to the non-discerning eye. Beside the show-off factor (yeah, we’re snazzy like that), the game has a simple, no-fuss design and a night mode for playing in bed. A recent update has added the possibility to continue the game even after achieving the 2048 tile and an option to save and continue later.
We wish: The soundtrack didn’t sound like a nursery rhyme.
Quick Tip: Do not use the up swipe unless you have no other moves left.
One For Speed Demons
SPHALT 8 is the latest iteration of the incredibly popular arcade racing game on Android and iOS.
The gameplay: Tilt to steer (for auto acceleration), click on nitro boosts, avoid barriers and crashes and go win a race. Simple? Not so much. In the latest version, the focus is on jumping and being airborne, with tracks featuring many ramps to facilitate the same. Credits are earned when you jump, perform tricks, smash opponents out of the way, do mindblowing drifts and other cool stuff.
Why we love it: Who doesn’t love an adrenaline-filled, nitro-fuelled race with a choice selection of 47 extremely high-end and deliciously sexy cars! Excellent graphics mean the nine exotic location settings of Venice, French Guiana, Iceland and others look all the more exciting. Add to that a groovy soundtrack and you are all set to scorch the race track.
We wish: The cars were priced cheaper, sniff!
Quick Tip: Spec-up your car regularly by upgrading those you have or buying new ones using the credits you earn during a race, otherwise you might be left to bite the dust.
Sniper On Prowl
Clear Vision 3 is a shooting game where the badass stickman sniper goes on missions to eliminate targets.
The gameplay: Choose the mission, choose (and upgrade) your weapon, find your target, aim and wham! Target down. Mission success. Or maybe not. That is, if the wind blows too hard or you shoot too low or too high. Remember your physics from school which taught you that a bullet fired from a gun travels in a trajectory, which is affected by air resistance and shooting angle? Well, turns out you have to apply those rules here too if you want to avoid a messy hit job.
Why we love it: The Clear Vision series probably has the coolest hitman ever: the stickman who on the outside leads a normal happy life with his stick wife and a stick daughter who goes to school. But once his façade drops and he goes to his secret basement workplace, there’s no stopping this badman. The back story aside, the missions themselves have whacky plots and become increasingly complicated as you progress through the levels, thus making you all the more addicted to it.
We wish: Hit(stick)man could move around and the gameplay involved some strategy as well.
Quick Tip: Always calculate the wind and distance compensations before adjusting your aim.
Take A Hill Pill
Hill Climb Racing is a simple yet highly addictive physics-based driving game. 
The gameplay: Press on the accelerator to drive up and down hilly terrains, collecting points and fuel recharges. Sounds easy? Wait until the laws of physics come into motion and you break your neck with a resounding crunch as your car flips or dives nose-first. This is where the play between accelerator and brake becomes important and what makes this game more than just child’s play.
Why we love it: Because it has cute cartoonish graphics, and upgradeable cars and parts. Because its entire premise and appearance might look silly and juvenile, but hey, looks are deceptive, no?
We wonder: Why no racing in Hill Climb Racing?
Quick Tip: To avoid flipping and breaking your neck, brake well in advance and slow down at crucial points of the track, just like you should in life (wink!)
Follow @satarupapaul on Twitter
From HT Brunch, May 25
Follow us on twitter.com/HTBrunch
Connect with us on facebook.com/hindustantimesbrunch
Clear Vision 3 is a shooting game where the badass stickman sniper goes on missions to eliminate targets.
The gameplay: Choose the mission, choose (and upgrade) your weapon, find your target, aim and wham! Target down. Mission success. Or maybe not. That is, if the wind blows too hard or you shoot too low or too high. Remember your physics from school which taught you that a bullet fired from a gun travels in a trajectory, which is affected by air resistance and shooting angle? Well, turns out you have to apply those rules here too if you want to avoid a messy hit job.
Why we love it: The Clear Vision series probably has the coolest hitman ever: the stickman who on the outside leads a normal happy life with his stick wife and a stick daughter who goes to school. But once his façade drops and he goes to his secret basement workplace, there’s no stopping this badman. The back story aside, the missions themselves have whacky plots and become increasingly complicated as you progress through the levels, thus making you all the more addicted to it.
We wish: Hit(stick)man could move around and the gameplay involved some strategy as well.
Quick Tip: Always calculate the wind and distance compensations before adjusting your aim.
Take A Hill Pill
Hill Climb Racing is a simple yet highly addictive physics-based driving game. The gameplay: Press on the accelerator to drive up and down hilly terrains, collecting points and fuel recharges. Sounds easy? Wait until the laws of physics come into motion and you break your neck with a resounding crunch as your car flips or dives nose-first. This is where the play between accelerator and brake becomes important and what makes this game more than just child’s play.
Why we love it: Because it has cute cartoonish graphics, and upgradeable cars and parts. Because its entire premise and appearance might look silly and juvenile, but hey, looks are deceptive, no?
We wonder: Why no racing in Hill Climb Racing?
Quick Tip: To avoid flipping and breaking your neck, brake well in advance and slow down at crucial points of the track, just like you should in life (wink!)
Follow @satarupapaul on Twitter
From HT Brunch, May 25
Follow us on twitter.com/HTBrunch
Connect with us on facebook.com/hindustantimesbrunch