Cosmic Express
Prepare for a mental pummelling
£4.99 FROM Cosmic Engineers, cosmicexpressgame.com Needs iOS 6 or later
This adorable yet rock-hard puzzle game is made by a man called Alan Hazelden. He’s the Einstein of puzzle games – he’s so very good at them. But that means Cosmic Express is incredibly difficult.
You have to draw a tiny railway to pick up and drop off alien passengers, whose houses correspond to their colours. They will not go to each other’s houses, and some of them refuse to even get inside a train carriage that another alien has been in.
It’s deceptively adorable, with cute little noises every time you squish an alien. But Cosmic Express is the kind of game that will wring out your brain. Is that a good thing? Well, do you like puzzles? Do you like the idea of a game that has you stumped for days until you suddenly realise how to solve it in the bath? Then yes, it is a good thing. It will punch you in the brain, and you will probably love it, like people who love eating chillies that make them cry.
There are so many levels, which is a lovely surprise for an iOS game, but a potentially daunting feature for anyone who throws their phone at the wall in frustration every time they can’t complete a level.
This isn’t the kind of game that you can blast through on one bus journey; each level takes thought, planning, and a whole lot of trial and error. And you’ll feel like a genius when you get it.