Remember when you paid for a game, and then you played it? Hard as it may be to recall, this was once the norm. Since smartphones came along, Freemium games - where you play for free but pay to speed things up or unlock more - have been in the ascendancy. And while in-app purchases aren’t always a bad thing, sometimes it’s nice to just pay upfront and settle down to play.

With that in mind, here are 10 of the best recent mobile games – all released in the second half of 2015 – that are worth shelling out for, with no subsequent in-app purchases. Prices are correct at the time of writing.



Prune

Android / iOS (£2.99)

Growing trees was never this fun before – or, in fairness, this fast. Prune is a wonderfully-relaxing grow ‘em up that has you swiping your vegetation to adulthood, while bathing in the blissful visuals and music.

Grow your own, again and again … Prune

Her Story

iOS (£3.99)

Interactive video games have got a bad name down the years, usually with good reason. Her Story rights the wrongs of the past though: a gripping thriller that sees you solving a crime by digging into videotaped interviews with a prime suspect.

Gripping … Her Story

This War of Mine

Android / iOS (£10.99)

A high price, but this thought-provoking war game sets a high bar for quality. This isn’t a war game in the sense of moving tanks and troops around though: instead, you’re in charge of civilians, trying to survive in a war-torn city.

Not just any wargame … This War of Mine

The Room Three

iOS (£3.99)

All three of The Room games are well worth your money, but the latest is a great place to start. It’s a collection of physical puzzles set on a mysterious island. The puzzles are truly challenging, while the graphics are stunning. It’s coming to Android on 11 January, too.

Mysterious puzzler … The Room Three

PewDiePie: Legend of the Brofist

Android / iOS (£3.99)

YouTuber PewDiePie may have made his name on a platform focused on free content, but his mobile game is a premium affair. It’s also much better than you’d expect from a celebrity licence: a well-crafted platformer with bags of humour.

Premium bantz … PewDiePie: Legend of the Brofist

Spider: Rite of the Shrouded Moon

Android / iOS (£1.61 - £2.99)

An excellent sequel to Spider: The Secret of Bryce Manor, which sees you creeping around a (possibly) haunted mansion in eight-legged form, trapping insects and solving puzzles. It’s genuinely eerie, with lots to explore.

Eight-legged and eerie … Spider: Rite of the Shrouded Moon

Five Nights at Freddy’s 4

Android / iOS (£2.29 - £2.32)

Mobile’s best survival-horror series reached its final stage with Five Nights at Freddy’s 4, with its horrific animatronic animals taking the battle to your character’s home. Expect plenty of moments when you’ll jump out of your chair.

Horrific animatronics … Five Nights at Freddy’s 4

Octodad: Dadliest Catch

Android / iOS (£3.90 - £3.99)

If you thought your father occasionally struggled with parenting, imagine if he’d been an octopus pretending to be human. That’s the quirky premise for Octodad, but it’s more than a tentacled gimmick: there’s a challenging adventure here.

The daddy of all tentacle-based adventures … Octodad: Dadliest Catch

Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons

iOS (£3.99)

Set this alongside This War of Mine in the pantheon of mobile games that may make you cry. Brothers is an adventure with a proper storyline (yes, about two brothers) and some exquisite graphics. It even manages to make virtual joysticks work (fairly) well on the touchscreen.

Fraternal adventure … Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons.

The Deer God

Android / iOS (£3.85 - £7.99)

The price difference is disappointing for iOS gamers, and it’s fair to say this pixel-art adventure is an acquired taste. It’s worth trying to acquire it though: a beautiful game where you play a deer (and other animals) making its way in the world.

Pixellated beauty … The Deer God

What have we missed? The comments section is open for your recommendations of excellent premium games.

• The best Android games of 2015



• The best iPhone and iPad games of 2015

