12 games to help you ignore your family this holiday season, number 8 may not actually work though

If you're the type of person who likes to squirrel themselves away while the family's over, burying into a bunch of video games to pass the time until the house is empty once more, then I've got a crucial list for you today.

Below are the finest examples of mobile games that will keep you entertained while Great Aunt Susie has parked herself in the living room and is refusing to let you use the TV on account of it being “anti-social” or some other reason boring old guffs dream up to stop you doing exactly what you want around Christmas time.

1. Monster Hunter Freedom Unite - AppSpy's been playing this for months, and we're still nowhere near the end, so it'll definitely keep you going 2. Motorsport Manager - Incredibly compulsive, but also low maintenance, allowing you to pretend you're listening to Uncle Geoff's dull conversation about mortgage prices 3. Touchgrind Skate 2 - You might think you're good at Touchgrind Skate 2, but you can always improve, and custom starting locations allow for short burst play to help you do that 4. Civilization Revolution 2 - Turn-based and thoughtful, perfect to casually check in on when no one's looking 5. Retry - The face of concentration you make while playing Retry will make relatives think you're doing something very important on your phone, rather than trying to beat level 32 6. The Sailor's Dream - “Are you playing on your phone again?” “Uh, no mum, I think you'll find this is interactive art and I'm broadening my concept of the human condition” “Oh” 7. Golfinity - Infinite golf 8. Beatbuddy - You need headphones to properly appreciate Beatbuddy, and dad can't tell you to do the dishes if you can't hear him, can he? 9. The Ensign - Black text on a white background, so if a passing relative were to glance at this they might be fooled into thinking you're writing a novel 10. Monument Valley - When asked to stop playing this on your iPad, just hand the device to them to give it a go, watch as they become mesmerised, and slink off to play something else on your iPhone 11. Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft - Card games are so good for sneaky play, just make sure you're not playing online 12. Final Fantasy 6 - This one's a classic in the same way that Chaucer is a classic. Your family wouldn't deprive you of Chaucer, would they?

Got any other suggestions? Thwack them in the comments please!