With the new year recently underway, not much has changed yet.

One trend that definitely won’t vanish anytime soon is the emergence of smartphone gaming, with this growing entertainment option now becoming a large part of modern-day culture. 

While the growth around smartphone usage might be depressing to some, it’s impossible to deny just how much better our mobile phones are in 2023. Snake is no longer seen as the main gaming product, instead being replaced by a wave of enhanced mobile titles that can now be housed on our dramatically improved smartphone devices. Essentially like miniature computers that reside in our pockets, the sophistication devices made by the likes of Apple and Samsung possess is mightily impressive, with our miniature handheld devices now capable of handling a variety of entertaining gaming apps. The games they can house have never been so good either, with Irish smartphone users gaining access to a comprehensive selection of top titles. 

Free games on iOS and android  

Given the diverse nature of mobile gaming, users have access to a wide variety of products. For some people, there isn’t a need to invest large sums of money in gaming products when they only occasionally dabble in mobile gaming. As such, free games appeal, with these types of products generally containing no in-app purchases the further you progress through them, representing an entirely free gaming experience that provides entertainment along the way. In Ireland right now, the most popular free games include the likes of Chess - Play and Learn, Attack Hole, Woodoku, Snake Run Race, Words of Wonders: Crossword, and Wordscapes. 

The most popular products around 

Although free games are worth exploring, sometimes it’s worth investing a bit of money in order to experience a much better mobile gaming experience on the whole. The most popular products around certainly tend to offer that, with these enhanced gaming products elevating this growing category of gaming massively. Most of the leading products in the space are downloadable options, such as Minecraft and Coin Master, although browser games are also showing notable growth. For example, an increasing amount of mobile gamers are enjoying online casino games at the moment, with reputable providers housing attractive products like poker and blackjack, alongside innovative live game shows and other live games with a croupier present. Other popular browser games include classic titles like Tetris and much-loved sandbox games like Line Rider. It’s the downloadable titles that are dominating the charts right now, though, with Irish gamers downloading Football Manager 2023 Mobile, Candy Crush Saga, Coin Master, Geometry Dash, and Bloons TD 6 at the moment. 

A look at some good alternatives  

The aforementioned products are certainly more popular than the rest, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that they’re the best products around. Sometimes the biggest companies hog the limelight but the games they release might not warrant it, meaning that some hidden gems get hidden further down the download charts and don’t gain the traction they perhaps deserve. The sheer amount of mobile games available to play in the modern world means that there is an abundance of mobile products that deserve more attention than they get, with the variety of games meaning that there is always something fresh and exciting to experience on a miniature handheld device. With Irish gamers now exploring mobile gaming in more detail, a selection of good alternatives have emerged alongside the more favoured options above. Other games being explored by Irish mobile gamers includes the likes of Royal Match, Township, Fishdom, Candy Crush Soda Saga, Evony: The King’s Return, Pokemon Go, and PUBG Mobile.