8 apps to help you kill time during Chinese New Year
Ah, Chinese New Year.
A time for bak kwa, pineapple tarts and of course, hongbao.
However, it is also a time for getting annoying questions from relatives whom you've not seen for the past year about your relationship or work status.
If you're looking to shun as much human contact as possible this festive season by sticking your nose firmly into your phone, we've got you covered.
Here are eight apps – both new and old – that will definitely help you kill some time over the long weekend.
LARA CROFT GO
Available on: iOS and Android
Price: $6.98 (iOS), $5.98 (Android)
It may not be the action adventure game that most gamers are used to seeing her in, but Lara Croft's mobile adventure isn't something to be sniffed at.
Starring the heroine from the Tomb Raider series, Lara Croft Go is a turn-based puzzle game that features gorgeous visuals and and engaging problems to solve.
Players must guide Miss Croft through danger-filled levels containing obstacles like lose rocks, poisonous snakes and crushing boulders.
To make things even sweeter, developer Square Enix recently launched an update which adds a second level to make the experience even meatier than before.
TIME KILLER RATING: 4/5
MARVEL FUTURE FIGHT
Available on: iOS and Android
Price: Free (with in-app purchases)
Imagine your favourite Marvel characters (minus those from the Fantastic Four and X-Men) being thrown together in a RPG experience not too dissimilar from Diablo and you've got Marvel Future Fight.
While MFF is a freemium game that tries to encourage users to spend real money to get in-game advantages, Korean developers Netmarble have been extremely generous in handing out freebies like energy and in-game items to help the game stand out from the competition.
The graphics are stunning for a free game and feature a slew of characters from the Marvel Cinematic Universe like the Avengers, Guardians of the Galaxy and SHIELD as well as other characters from the comic books like Spider-man.
If you loathe having to repeat playing stages in order get experience and items, the game's auto-play function allows you to grind away at the game without actually controlling it – definitely a handy feature if you're forced to tear away and entertain someone.
TIME KILLER RATING: 3/5
FOOTBALL MANAGER MOBILE 2016
Available on: iOS and Android
Price: $12.98 (iOS), $10.98 (Android)
Any self-respecting football fan will know about the all-consuming obsession which is Football Manager.
As the title suggests, FM puts you in the shoes of a football manager, giving you free reign across a multitude of aspects at your chosen football club as you aim to achieve their wildest dreams.
From tactics to transfers to youth development, there's no better feeling than guiding a lesser team into the big time and winning football's biggest prizes.
It is also sucks up time with a vengeance, as most people who have lost entire nights of sleep can attest.
TIME KILLER RATING: 5/5
PILOTEER
Available on: iOS and Android
Price: $4.48 (iOS), $1.41 (Android)
Remember that annoying Flappy Bird game which irritated you to no end but you still kept on playing anyway. Each time you just knew how to get it right. Until you crashed out.
Say hello to Piloteer, a physics-based game that puts you in control of a guy strapped to what is probably the most finicky jetpack in existence.
With 60 different missions to complete, players will be amused/frustrated/infuriated/exasperated/irate (usually in very quick succession) as they try to tame the piloteer's seemingly impossible to control flying machine.
Failing is rarely this fun.
TIME KILLER RATING: 3/5
FISH OUT OF WATER!
Available on: iOS and Android
Price: $1.48 (iOS), Free (Android)
Chinese New Year and fish go hand in hand, so including this game feels somewhat appropriate.
Fish Out of Water! comes from the geniuses at Halfbrick Studios who brought Fruit Ninja to the world.
The premise is simple – pick three of the game's six fish or sea-mammals (each with their own unique abilities and flight patterns) and launch them as far as you can to earn a perfect score of 10 from a crabby panel of judges.
While the game can get repetitive after a while, it throws in missions and different weather conditions to vary the experience.
TIME KILLER RATING: 2/5
LINE: DISNEY TSUM TSUM
Available on: iOS and Android
Price: Free (with in-app purchases)
Prepare for an overload of Disney cuteness.
Pronounced as "soom soom" and derived from the Japanese word "to stack", Tsum Tsum is a frenetic connect-three puzzler featuring adorable avatars called Tsums of Walt Disney and Pixar's most iconic characters.
When linked with the Line chat app, you can send and receive hearts from friends for extra credits while competing with one another for additional coins, which are used to buy additional Tsums which have their individual unique powers.
Even if you're a veteran with all or most of the 77 different characters from the international characters, you could try your hand at the Japanese version which even more new Tsums – including characters from Star Wars.
TIME KILLER RATING: 3/5
FINAL FANTASY VII
Available on: iOS
Price: $22.98
While it was hailed as a classic and a masterpiece during its day, time has not been so kind to Final Fantasy VII's graphics after nearly 20 years.
Still, the game's story and gameplay were why it was so acclaimed and caused fans to clamour for a remake, which is set to hit consoles in the future.
In the meantime, iOS users can take a walk down memory lane with this direct-from-PC port or see what all the fuss was about.
The downside is the hefty price tag. Some classics do come at a cost.
TIME KILLER RATING: 4/5
STAR WARS: GALAXY OF HEROES
Available on: iOS and Android
Price: Free (with in-app purchases)
If you're still feeling the itch for more Star Wars after watching The Force Awakens, Galaxy of Heroes could be the tonic to soothe your Force fever.
Featuring the beloved sci-fi franchise's armada of characters — including those from the latest movie — GoH is a turn-based strategy game that pits your team of Star Wars characters against an opposing squad in a virtual battleground recreating some of the movies' iconic scenes.
Each character has skills which can be deployed to potentially change the course of a battle.
While this game is also bound by typical freemium game constraints in a bid to get you to open your wallet, many fans have praised the game for rewarding free users frequently, which is a huge plus in anyone's book.
TIME KILLER RATING: 3/5
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