Gameloft dominates this list for a reason: they understood physics. Midnight Pool allowed you to calculate spin, power, and ricochet on a tiny screen. The 220x176 canvas displayed the cue ball, the pocket angles, and the 8-ball clearly. The career mode, where you hustle opponents in a bar, was surprisingly narrative-driven. For social multiplayer (passing the phone), this was king.
You cannot find these games on the iOS App Store or Google Play. They are abandonware. However, with a bit of tinkering, you can relive the nostalgia.
Often pre-installed on Walkman phones, Towers Block was the "Tetris killer." It involved stacking colored blocks to form towers and clearing them. The touch-screen response (on resistive screens) was mediocre, but the keypad controls were perfect. It was the ultimate battery-drainer for bus rides. Simplicity mixed with addiction makes this a top contender.
Buy an old Sony Ericsson W810i or Nokia 6300 from eBay. These phones natively support 220x176. You will need: