At the turn of the year, Singapore was leading the way with smartphone penetration and the latest figures suggest that more than 70% of the population owns one. That really is some stat, and an indication of how addictive the devices truly are. From messaging to social media to gaming there are a plethora of options that can keep you occupied whether the phone is in front of you or not.

We know that the likes of Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and Snapchat are the big players for social media but what about the games, which are the most popular (and addictive) across the globe?

1. Candy Crush Saga – Available on Android and iPhone, this game made its name on Facebook where you suddenly became constantly inundated with life and move requests from a large proportion of your friends. Chances are, you succumbed to temptation and began to play it yourself. Such is the simplicity and quick nature of the game and levels that almost everyone is playing or has played it. The popularity saw the game become a popular app and with so many modes to play combined with a lot of levels, it’d be a safe bet that it will continue to be popular and addictive for some time yet.

2. Angry Birds – The worldwide phenomenon that just keeps growing had to be on the list. When t-shirts, toys and PC games are coming out on the back of an app then you know you’ve struck gold – and the era of the app has truly arrived. What started out as an easy to play game has become an intensely addictive game for people of all ages – quite literally. It’s easily adaptable to all phones and tablets, while the addition of teaming up with Star Wars has seen the game grow to such a stage that the apps are no longer free. Now it’s also available on BlackBerry Z10 World as the brand continues its resurgence.

3. Real Racing 3 – Sports gaming can be difficult on smartphone, and this is reflected in that many popular apps have a price on them (Real Boxing, Virtua Tennis, Need For Speed, Football Manager etc) but you can still find some hidden gems in there. This is one of them, free on Android and iPhone, the graphics and gameplay are superb, handling is easy and with hundreds of events, more than 50 cars to buy and the online multiplayer feature it might just become a regularly played game on your smartphone.

4. Dots – The thing with popular puzzle games like Candy Crush is that you often want a new option, and Dots is one of the hottest games on smartphone at the minute. Unsurprisingly, the matching three or more objects formula that we see in most puzzle games applies here and it is another game that looks simple but really isn’t, and in a frustratingly addictive way. You have been warned.

5. Plants v Zombies – This bizarre game has won a number of awards since starting as a PC game. It is a tower defence game with a peculiar twist. Goofy zombies are the enemy and you need to defend the home with plants that house special abilities. The sequel has just come out and is likely to be just as addictive. Have fun(gi).

With so many apps available today, it is hard to cut your list down to just five but these are undoubtedly five of the most addictive. Check the Guardian out for their 50 best games for tablets and smartphones from a couple of months ago for more options! Happy gaming.

Writer: Lenny Marlina (Nina Lia) – (http://mightytechnews.wordpress.com/)