Frontier Command

Frontier Command drops you on a lonely stretch of alien shoreline with three settlers and a lot of bad weather. From there it's a careful dance of building, researching and defending against storms and the occasional creature. It leans thoughtful rather than frantic, which suits mobile perfectly.

The genius is in the interface. Everything is drag-and-tap, menus stay out of your way, and you can pause and plan whenever you want. I kept coming back for 'just one more upgrade' and lost an evening or two.

It can get punishing if you sprawl too fast, and the early tutorial could hold your hand a bit more. Push through it, though, and there's a deeply satisfying management loop underneath.

What we liked

• Clean touch-first interface
• Meaningful build decisions
• Great for pause-and-plan sessions