Pocket Gamer presents... Swipe 501 - the greatest guide to the greatest iPad and iPhone games ever

Imagine you've just landed in Havana. And you got there because you stumbled across a copy of The Buena Vista Social Club while sifting through your dad's defiant collection of CDs (they're like disc-shaped MP3s).

Enthralled by the sound, you hack into your trust fund and extract enough to obtain a ticket on the next flight to Cuba.

Once there, though, you're surrounded by patrons of seemingly endless venues offering you the authentic Cuban sound. How, then, do you seek out 'quality reality' from 'tourist trite'?

It's the same thing pretty much every time time you turn up on the App Store.

When faced with hundreds of thousands of games, how do you single the best out as most worthy of your precious time?

It's one of the reasons we created Swipe 501 - The Essential iOS Games Guide.

For this extension of the award-winning swipe magazine, Swipe 501's editors have travelled back to the start of the App Store to showcase more than 500 (the clue's in the name, see) of the must-play iOS games to have emerged since that fateful day.

The Swipe 501 team has sifted through thousands of highly rated iPad and iPhone titles released between 2008 and 2014 and picked out those that it feels still stand up to scrutiny today.

The 501 titles to have made the shortlist span genres, styles, and audiences. So, whether you're a newcomer to the iOS scene needing help on where to start your collection or a seasoned gamer looking for hidden gems, there'll be something in there for you.

And like swipe, the 501 Essential iOS Games Guide has been built from the ground up as a true interactive digital experience for iPad (you'll see what we mean once you've started tapping away inside).

Swipe 501 is out now. And at just 69p / 99c, you won't need to break into anyone's account to get it.