I spend too much time on my phone, just like most everyone else. I, however, have never really tried to limit my screen time, and it hasn’t been a huge problem, but lately I think it’s become excessive.
Still, I have no plans to amend this. Instead, I’m sharing my favorite calm puzzle games on my phone. I don’t exactly know how to categorize these; some are more puzzle-like, and some are definitely games. Commonly, they’re all pretty chill, not high stakes, and not frustrating.
Tap Master – Take Blocks Away
If you know me, there’s a good chance you’ve heard of Tap Master—its full name on the App Store is Tap Master – Take Blocks Away. I was addicted. It was comforting, easy yet challenging, simple yet complicated. Unfortunately, on Nov. 3, I unknowingly beat Tap Master. There are only 700 levels. Hopefully, they add more soon, but it was still worth it and took me a long time to get to that point, so I still recommend it. There are also different modes, though I generally stuck to the levels, where you click the blocks to make them go in the direction of the arrow shown on the block. It sounds easy, but it becomes difficult as you progress.
Sudoku.com – Number Games
I don’t know why the app contains .com, as it’s not a website. Sudoku is a pretty popular and well-known number puzzle, and this app version has saved me from boredom many, many times. There are daily challenges, in addition to six difficulty levels. This app is by Easybrain Ltd, and they have many more similarly formatted games, with some of my favorites being Number Match – Numbers Game and Nonogram.com – Number Games. I like how these games aren’t very overstimulating—they are all simple, black-and-white color schemes. I had tried other Sudoku apps before this one, and for me, they did not compare.
Coffee Pool
This is straying away from the puzzle aspect a bit, but I play Coffee Pool often, so I felt it deserved a place on this list. The coffee aspect of the name comes from the fact that there is a daily level, so the concept is that you do it while drinking your morning coffee. They also have Coffee Golf, which I played first, but did not love as much as I love Coffee Pool. It’s still worth checking out, though. Coffee Pool has the daily level and also “leagues,” which basically serve as levels. I am currently on league 72. It’s a pretty simple pool game; you pull back the cue to shoot the balls, but there are also added “modifiers” and goals to present a challenge. There are also power-ups, luckily, if you get stuck (I often do). My favorite part of this game is that there aren’t limited lives; you can try each level as many times in a row as you want.
Solitaire
At points in my life, Solitaire has been used so much that I complete levels in my head as I fall asleep (the Tetris Effect). I can’t place a particular thing that has made me prefer this version, by MobilityWare, to many others. You can customize your card backs and the background of the “table” you’re playing on, which is a nice touch. Overall, Solitaire is a classic, and I don’t like to carry a deck of cards with me everywhere, so this app alternative is fantastic.
Should I make an effort to reduce my screen time? Probably. But I make myself feel better knowing my eyes are hurting from puzzle and number games rather than doomscrolling (though I still have time for that too). Though I recently joined the rising tide of Clash Royale players, I still prefer my classics. And, Tap Master developers, if you see this: please make more levels. I’m mourning.
