Funny how the games that are designed for smartphones rather than shoehorning in control sets that don’t suit often turn out to be the best. Of course, it helps that your game has a simple hook (pun intended) and an addictive quality that makes it stand out from the rest. Vlambeer’s Ridiculous Fishing, an update of the 2010 original, ticks all those boxes – it is, in short, brilliant.

The implementation is textbook: a likeable, if not slightly non-descript main character, a simple set of controls (tap to start fishing, tilt to aim your hook and then tap to shoot during each attempt’s second section), beautiful visuals and a disposable, impulse-buy price point (£2) round off the package. The resulting combination is exactly what smartphone games should be all about: simplicity.

The first stage, throwing the line, feels intuitive without being patronising, the idea to sink the lure as deep as possible (so avoid all the fish). The further down you go the more points you get, and the more fish you can catch on the way back up. Once the line is up, the game switches to tap controls as you blast the gills off the fish as they’re catapulted into the air for, yes, more points.

Points can be cashed in at the shop for upgrades (better guns, hats for the fisherman and so on) and ultimately there are different locations on the map to fish. The game comes into its own when you’re trying to collect all the fish available and max out your character, something that’s refreshingly old-school now in the way that there are zero in-app purchases – you’ll have to do this one all yourself.

It’s a superb game. It’s soaked with dry humour and slick presentation but is much easier to play than the team’s previous iOS effort Super Crate Box. The game won’t last you weeks (think of it more like a minor diversion than something massively meaty) but there’s challenge here if you go looking for it. Yes, it caters for the hardcore but this is a much more open, casual friendly game.

This is a fun, addictive little game, and one that’s almost certain to be the next big thing on the App Store. We’d love to see it on Vita, in portrait mode, but anyone with an iOS device owes it to themselves to give this a shot.

Score: 9/10

You can buy the game (for iOS) now from the App Store, here.