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The best Star Wars games on iPhone and iPad (2015)

Picking franchise games 'aint like dusting crops

The best Star Wars games on iPhone and iPad (2015)

Just two teaser trailers have whipped half the world into a frenzied state of Star Wars anticipation.

If that half includes you, then you've got a bit of a problem: there's still seven months to wait before release. How can you possibly fill the aching void?

With games, of course. LucasArts has not been shy in granting the Star Wars licence to applicants, presumably in exchange for vast sums of Galactic Credits.

Unfortunately, there's not been much of an eye given to quality, especially on mobile. And things have got worse recently with the solid Tiny Death Star and the middling Assault Team in favour of the poor Star Wars Commander.

So, to save you the effort of searching out the wheat from the Bantha fodder, here's our picks for the best Star Wars games on mobile.

Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
by BioWare - buy on iPhone and iPad

We're starting here because if you haven't played this, it's the first thing you should pick up. Forget the price tag: not only is this the best franchise game you can get, it's long and varied enough to keep you playing until the film comes out.

Its rock solid RPG system with lots of skill trees and engrossing tactical combat would be enough to make it a top title alone. What makes it truly special is its evocation of the Star Wars universe as it was a long, long time before a long, long time ago. There's a colossal variety of alien environments, full of fascinating characters.

And of course, the famous gripping plot with its killer twist. Presuming you're one of the handful of people who doesn't already know it.

Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga
byWarner Bros - buy on iPhone and iPad

The next longest time-filler you could opt for is this collection which spans all six films. Or all three, if you want to fervently pretend that the prequels never existed.

You will have to watch your beloved childhood dreams rendered into blocky Lego caricatures and mercilessly lampooned. But it's done with love and care and the result is a fun family game with enormous cross-genre appeal.

The blend of platform action and gentle puzzling is pitch perfect and the game is bursting with content. So there's plenty of secrets for more hardcore gamers to tease out once the kids are done playing.

Star Wars Pinball 3
by Zen Studios - buy on iPhone and iPad

Okay, we might be only three items in, and already we're starting to stretch the definition of a "Star Wars game" a little thin. I don't recall anyone in the Mos Eisley Cantina hunched over a table, making dangerous tilts.

But Zen Pinball is such a great game in a weak field that it's a must-have inclusion.

Zen pinball earns its stripes due to the astonishing realism of its physics. After a few minutes on these tables, you'll have a hard time believing you're not hunched over a real one, instead of just your mobile.

All the Star Wars tables have lots of movie dialogue to help set the mood. For maximum flavour, pick The Empire Strikes Back, which has a linear goal progression to mimic the movie plot. It might all be balls, but it's a more thematic experience than you might imagine.

Angry Birds Star Wars
by Rovio Entertainment - buy on iPhone, buy on iPad

Shifting physics puzzles of Rovio's smash hit into Star Wars universe is only slight less tenuous than representing it with pinball. But again, you can't ignore the quality of the resulting game.

The birds are now cast as heroes from the movies, each with a suitable special ability. In putting these powers together Rovio has in fact managed to improve on the original formula.

Not only is this full of loving Star Wars touches like those iconic swiping transitions, but it brings together the best of previous Angry Birds titles into one top-quality franchise mixer.

Star Wars: Galactic Defense
by DeNA - free on iPhone and iPad

From the odd to the downright weird. If it's not bizarre enough that we're recommending a bird-based Star Wars game, now we're recommending a free to play one, too.

Developer DeNA took the wise adage of "if it 'aint broke, don't fix it" with this tower defence game. Rather than doing anything groundbreaking, it made a solid genre title with a Star Wars theme on top.

So while the play might be nothing special in itself, getting to play with Luke Skywalker as a hero kind of is.

A recent update has increased the amout of pay to play in the game, and fans have reacted with justified fury. But we're going to include it here in the hopes of a better balanced update.

Star Wars: Force Collection
by Konami - free on iPhone and iPad

This is another free to play game that's suffered from a bad recent update. But such is the dearth of decent Star Wars titles that, again, we're holding out for an improvement down the line.

Because the basic concept behind this title, a collectible card battler in the vein of Rage of Bahamut but with a Star Wars skin, is thoroughly enjoyable. It even manages to improve on its inspiration.

Not only is it packed with movie clips and stills to evoke atmosphere, but the online and solo games are a bit more fun and challenging than the norm. Fans can even read up on the trivia behind their favourite cards.

Matt Thrower
Matt Thrower
Matt is a freelance arranger of words concerning boardgames and video games. He's appeared on IGN, PC Gamer, Gamezebo, and others.