Today, mobile titles are host to fantastic games from all genres, but the humble casual genre remains the backbone of the Play Store. There’s nothing like kicking back with a good game after a long day at work, so these titles are designed to offer a relaxing experience perfect for winding down.
We’ve collected casual games from various genres, so whether you prefer sandbox builders or casual puzzlers, there’s something here for you. They’re also perfect for enjoying the bigger screen of one of the best Android tablets. But regardless of your hardware preferences, read on to discover the best casual games you can download right now.
Monument Valley 2
With such a crowded lineup, it’s hard to pick the single best casual game for Android, but the original Monument Valley is a long-time resident of our best games roundup. Its sequel, appropriately named Monument Valley 2, offers more of the same fantastic gameplay, so it’s a must-play if you enjoyed the first.
Monument Valley 2 offers gorgeous graphics, calming puzzles, and a captivating story. It’s ideal for casual gamers who want to see the best of the genre. Don’t worry if you haven’t played the original either (although we would recommend it!), Monument Valley 2 is a completely standalone game.
Godus
Godus incorporates elements from multiple genres to create a charming and enjoyable god game. While there’s a lot to handle here, calming graphics and simple building mechanics make Godus an ideal casual game. It’s perfect for people who want to build something over time in their own time, and if you get bored, you can always smite your population and start again.
WorldBox
WorldBox knows that sometimes you don’t want to build something or explore a new world. Sometimes you want to play God. WorldBox offers a pixilated world where you can choose to nurture life as it grows or razes it all in a fiery apocalypse. Unlike Godus, you won’t get attached to your people. While you will inevitably decide to destroy your budding civilization, observing your civilization grow is fascinating.
While WorldBox is free, it is clear this is meant to be a trial for the premium version. At $7.99, it might seem pricey, but a massively expanded roster of creatures, god powers, and tools such as time control makes it an easy purchase.
Townscaper
Townscaper doesn’t have missions, achievements, goals, or unlockable content. What it does have is the cleverest building mechanics in any mobile game. You interact with the game by placing colored blocks on an irregular grid, and Townscaper’s algorithm combines the blocks into houses, bridges, towers, gardens, or stairways as you place them. It sounds simple, but it’s amazing to watch in practice.
While there isn’t any more to Townscaper than placing blocks, its flawless execution makes it well worth the price. Play this if you’re looking to relax with a beautiful building game, but don’t expect it to last you for hundreds of hours.
Pocket City
Pocket City is a scaled-down city builder, perfect for the casual gamer. If you like the idea of a city builder but often find them too challenging, it’s ideal. It has zero microtransactions or long cooldown times on building features and is playable offline. You won’t find features like advanced traffic controls or spectacular civic events here, but you’ll quickly find that Pocket City provides plenty of content. Trigger disasters, expand your city with recreational zones, and manage civic services to build a beautiful city.
Desert Golfing
There are a lot of golf games on Android, including the fantastic puzzler Golf Peaks, but sometimes you need to get back to the roots. Desert Golfing has endless levels with no obstacles, powerups, or tricks; just a ball and a hole.
Desert Golfing is deceptive in its simplicity. It’s challenging enough that you won’t get a hole-in-one each time but just easy enough to think you’ll be able to do it next time. Desert Golfing might not be the best golf game around, but there’s beauty in its simplicity.
Railbound
Created by the aforementioned Golf Peaks developers, Railbound is a puzzler whose challenges are only matched by its charm. Tasked with transporting two dogs by rail, you’ll utilize different elements of railway infrastructure to achieve your goal.
Many puzzle games can leave you frustrated at a tricky level, but you can’t help but smile when your carriages bounce indignantly off each other. Play this if you enjoy a good puzzler that doesn’t take itself too seriously.
Neko Atsume: Kitty Collector
A strangely addictive game, Neko Atsume lets us all achieve our greatest dream of collecting kitty cats. While your property will start sparse, purchasing additional toys and providing a steady food supply will bring all the cats to your yard.
There’s really not a lot going on here, but it won’t take long before you’re checking your phone every hour to see if your favorite cat has returned. Before you know it, the highlight of your day will be finally having enough money to buy a new cat tree. In some ways, it’s the perfect casual game, pointless but completely addicting.
Choose the best casual game to unwind with
Ironically, finding the perfect casual game can be a lot of work, so we hope this list has helped everyone find some awesome casual games. You’ll notice that there are a lot of puzzle games in this roundup, so if these are the games that caught your eye, try one of the best puzzle games for Android to see what else the genre has to offer.
