Research in Motion's BlackBerry platform remains a portable powerhouse, powering almost one-sixths of the world's smartphones (according to Gartner). It's only behind iOS, Android and Nokia's Symbian OS in popularity. It's almost synonymous with mobile business, and many Blackberry Apps are business oriented. But that doesn't mean it can't be fun.
Okay, so BlackBerry doesn't spring to mind when you think "games" but the advent of BlackBerry App World in 2009 means if there are games out there, you can get to them. At least, you can get them for newer BlackBerry models; the App World supports BlackBerry OS 4.5.0 and up devices, including various models like the Curve, Pearl, Storm, Storm 2, Bold, Style, and Torch, among others. Check that your model number is listed before downloading a game. And not only can you get games, there's a few that are free for the taking and well worth having on your handset.
Don't expect iPhone Retina-display caliber graphics, of course. BlackBerry games tend to be more blocky and arcade style, and frequently don't even support touch screens, since not all BlackBerry handsets have them. In fact, some are mostly text based, harkening to the days of old D&D role-playing or a game of Zork on a DOS-based desktop. Of course, sometimes that's even more fun.
As long as you're not craving first-person shooter quality graphics, you will find a fun cross section of no-cost time-wasters for the modern BlackBerry handset that will take up the slack when you wait for a client, your lunch, or just want to get through the next boring meeting in the conference room.
Tower Blox New York
This sequel to the original Tower Bloxx moves to Manhattan. Use the board game mode to find an area of the city for building, then put your sky-scraping skills to the test creating towers of power. The full unlimited version is $4.99.
Space Lines
Combine the games Concentration and Tetris, throw in some precise timing requirements, and elements of space travel (this was supposedly one used to test cosmonauts, as it's a remake of an old Russian brain challenger), and you've got Space Lines. You'll learn the strategy needed as the 9x9 board grows ever more complex as you play.
Ka-Glom
What do you get when you add explosions to the falling blocks of a Tetris-esque game? You get Ka-Glom. Connect four blocks with the explosive Ka-Glom jelly and you can set off a chain reaction of booms that clear your board. It has a both a survival mode for high pressure and puzzle mode to test your thinking.
Sudoku Lite
On the "lite" end of the continuum of Sudoku titles from Skava (including Easy, Hard, and Extreme, each of which is $2.99 ), this collection is limited to 10 puzzles, but that's still a good starter to see what you'd get when you pay for 100 or 1,000.
Memory
Finally, one for keeping your kids occupied: Memory is Concentration, the classic method of honing your, uh, memory. The different levels of difficulty mean different challenges for different kids. The game also features a child lock so the wandering fingers can't delete any data.
Superheroes Alliance
This online-only game with supposedly 150,000 players (It's also on Facebook, Android and iOS) lets you create a hero, answer the call for a villain's bounty, build alliances, and, naturally, save the day. You'll need to be connected to play and take part in the vanquishing of evil.
Pixelated
Think of it as Rubik's Cube but with only one side. The goal in Pixelated is to turn all the various color blocks on screen into a single color, with as few actually moves as possible. The $2.99 Plus version of course adds more like extra color schemes and difficulty levels.
Copter
It's pretty basic: guide your helicopter around obstacles inside a cave. Don't ask why you're flying in a cave, just look out for that ceiling and the randomly placed blocks that one should assume are free-floating stalactites or stalagmites. Copter looks a little like the old Atari Pitfall, and just like that classic, will eat up your hours.
Hangman
There's a few versions of this venerable game on BlackBerry App World, but this version is the best as it can even give you words in a theme, be it sports, movies, music, and more. They claim it comes with enough words that you can play it for days without a duplicate. You can input the word via your QWERTY keyboard and play among three difficulty levels.
Bubble Breaker - Free 5 Levels
Mix Tetris with bubble wrap and you get this game. The more colors in a row you get, the more bubbles that break simultaneously. This is a limited version of course, with the full version that will cost you 99 cents.
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