Cuddled in your bed and nuzzled between your assortment of fluffy blankets with a hot tea in hand, it’s finally time to close your Chromebook for some good quality time on your phone, but you’re bored of doom-scrolling sessions on social media, so instead you scroll to your options of games, covered with cobwebs- Block Blast, Brawl Stars and the Crossy Road game you downloaded three years ago.
When you’re scrolling through the app store looking for a game with more charm to it, it can feel as if you’re digging for something that doesn’t exist. To simplify your search, here are five games that are aesthetically pleasing, full of charm, and have no ads, with adventure that’s confirmed to cure academic burnout.
Good, Great Pizza
Centered in a warm pizza shop of your own, this game lets you experience the daily grind of a Domino’s Pizza employee. Do your best to fulfill orders to over 200 unique customers with different stories and requests while making enough money to decorate and upgrade your shop to your heart’s desire.
Each day has a different adventure in store, with multiple chapters and story lines to keep you making pizza with a purpose. Not only is the entrepreneur environment exciting, but the soft colors and attention to sound set the game apart from the others.
This pleasant pizzeria is a wonderful addition to your daily screen time, but if that’s not your vibe, turn your attention towards my next pick.
Casting Away
Imagine washing up stranded on a beautiful deserted island with an abundance of tropical fish. You’re prompted to take your boat out to sea and throw a line out in hopes of catching a magical creature. With melodic sounds of the ocean swaying in the background, you pull up plenty of fish, keeping some for your aquarium and selling others for the game’s turquoise currency, rune.
Use your rune to level up your island and build an Eden for both yourself and the animals you meet along the way. Along with being immersed in a cozy, soothing atmosphere, the simplicity of the game makes it truly addictive, reeling in fish from dawn till twilight.
Tsuki’s Odyssey
Step into the shoes of local carrot farming bunny, Tsuki, as he returns home from
his adventures in the big city. This passive adventure game allows you to explore Mushroom Village and make unique friendships with the oddball residents of the area. You can sell your crops to buy furniture to adorn your tree house, gifts for your friends, or plants to brighten up the town. Pass your days by fishing while the game’s signature soft jazz strums in the background, or talk to locals at the many clubs and businesses the game offers.
Although game play is shorter than others, if you check back in on Tsuki and his friends often, you might just catch something exciting happening!
Good Coffee, Great Coffee
For those who dream of waking up in the morning to the sweet scent of freshly brewed espresso in their very own cafe, this game perfectly simulates that. Released in February this year, the producers of Good Pizza, Great Pizza have outdone themselves yet again in creating another cozy, warm app.
Unlike other cooking-based games, this app allows you to experience making each type of coffee from start to finish, from grinding the beans to carefully pouring latte art. Leveling up comes with new syrups, toppings and challenges as you work to complete the rigorous “coffee trials”. In contrast to Good Pizza, Great Pizza, this game is slightly simpler, with longer days to fulfill orders and a more manageable menu. You’ll still find the same lovable characters, now craving copious amounts of coffee rather than cheesy bread.
Rusty Lake Series
A puzzle game for those who love an adventurous challenge, the world of Rusty Lake is full of secrets and complex lore to keep you thinking for hours.
As you enter the first trials, you’re deemed to explore the map in an escape room style, collecting items to help you along the way. Contrary to my other picks, Rusty Lake takes on a more eerie gothic style, with some haunting progressions in the plot as you dive deeper into the rooms.
Of all the digital puzzle games out there, this series immerses you into a dimension full of abnormal characters, from talking owls to rabbits with human bodies, and it brings back a tragic past your character seems to have forgotten. The Rusty Lake producers have ten games in their series, all following you, the detective, and a mysterious set of events, making for an addictive and challenging adventure.
Sometimes you need a break. Not just from school and work, but also from socialization, the media, and doom-scrolling. Overstimulating games with ads on every level have become the new normal and they don’t help with the stressful atmosphere you’re already trying to escape. I’ve found that cozy apps tend to transport you to a new world, a happier place without homework, responsibilities and dull people.
In the end academic burnout may be inevitable, but for now you can enjoy your tea under cozy blankets, making virtual coffee for your smiling digital customers.
