Football has taken over baseball in recent years as the most popular sport in America, enrapturing everyone in the passion, hard hits, and amazing athleticism of its players. Gameloft has released a freemium NFL football simulation, NFL Pro 2012, to try and ensnare players that love the game of football. Unfortunately the freemium model, when combined with the game’s many other flaws, makes NFL Pro 2012 a game most football fans will want to leave on the sidelines.

For a long time now, I’ve had a theory that golf would be infinitely more interesting to watch and play if it were a full-contact sport. There’d be no time to stand around and analyze the banks and traps and wind, and whatever else they’re doing out there that doesn’t involve just hitting the darn ball towards the hole. Golfers would have to just react and swing their clubs since there’s no doubt that if they didn’t, there’d be someone leaping through the air at them with all intentions of severing their head from their body. While the upcoming iOS mini golf game Egg Punch has a great action verb in its title, my dreams of Full Contact Golf (copyright pending) will have to be sidelined for now.

Now that the World Series is over, we baseball fans need something to keep us occupied until Spring Training starts up again. For those of us who don't live near any batting cages, Homerun Battle 2 has just arrived in the App Store. The game's mechanics are incredibly simple and effective, offering what seems to be a fun little virtual sports game for us to enjoy. Sadly, the technical issues and incredibly frustrating in-app purchase system kill just about any joy you'll find.

There are plenty of ways to get your soccer fix on Facebook. From in-depth management games like Top Eleven to more simple, arcade-style experiences like GolMania, the platform is flush with soccer games. But what if you want a little of both worlds? That's what the upcoming World of Football is hoping to offer, with a combination of club management and real-time multiplayer action.

Tight Lines Fishing, from SocialSpiel, is an odd looking game that doesn’t make the best first impression, but has a strange way of growing on you. A collection-oriented fishing game, it seems rather dull at first, but has a simplistic charm that is actually a bit soothing. Though it is not quite the same as actual fishing, the game does attempt to emulate it as best it can on the social network.

When you stop and think about it, playing golf is a lot like shooting artillery. You have to consider factors like trajectory, firing power, wind speed, as well as hazards like livestock and suicidal groundskeepers. OK, maybe not that last part, but all of these are the types of things you have to account for in Worms Crazy Golf, a surprisingly clever and fun addition to the Worms franchise.

Even by sports management game standards Top Eleven is a slow burn. You can’t jump right into the action and start winning games. You can’t just go out and buy the best player you can find. Instead, you’ll have to adhere to a real-world schedule and carefully manage your finances. It may not sound like a lot of fun, but if you’re interested in the nitty gritty of running a soccer club, there are few better choices than Top Eleven.

I don’t make it a practice to review a game by spending most of my time comparing it directly to a different game. But this time out I’m going to make an exception. You see, a few days ago I played and reviewed FIFA 12, and right after it came out Konami released Pro Evolution Soccer 2012. If you release a game that quickly after your competition, then really, you’re inviting the comparison. The problem for Konami is that they come up short on just about every point for me.

GolMania is different than almost every sports game on Facebook. Instead of an in-depth management experience, it's a more simple arcade-style soccer game. You play quick, high scoring games against other players in real time and the game is bright and cartoony. It's a refreshing change of pace. Unfortunately, the core soccer play isn't all that solid, and in its currently early state the game is also missing some key features.

You know, for a good long time now I’ve tried to avoid games on my various touch screen devices that have been ports of full-on current console games. A game that runs on an Xbox or PlayStation really doesn’t usually benefit by being crammed onto such devices, having the controllers removed and replaced with virtual ones. This philosophy has served me pretty well thus far. FIFA 12, however, is going to make me start changing my tune.