You don’t have to play 24/7 to enjoy games on your phone. Be a casual gamer and join in the fun!
Not everyone wants to commit hours of their day to playing games on their phone. That’s why casual games exist! You can drop in and play whenever you want to at your own pace and be as laid back or as competitive as you want. Most casual games are free, offering in-app purchases and some ads, while a few will cost you a dollar or two, but they’re totally worth it. We had some fun playing around with the very best casual games for Android, and here are some of our favorites.
- Fast like a Fox
- Smash Hit
- Blek
- Piano Tiles 2
- Candy Crush Saga
- Fruit Ninja Free
- Angry Birds
- Ridiculous Fishing
- Dumb Ways to Die 2
- Words With Friends
- My Talking Tom
- Mandala Coloring Pages
Fast like a Fox
Search for stolen coins, emeralds, and diamonds as you race through multiple worlds in Fast like a Fox. The retro-style geometric design of your little hero fox and the landscapes he runs through are fun to watch, and the soundtrack is zippy and catchy.
The game claims it’s “easy to play, hard to master” and that’s just what you want in a casual game; it will keep you coming back until your fox has claimed all of the treasure he can. In-app purchases can be made to help you advance, but the more you play and the better you get, the less likely you’ll be to need those extras.
Download: Fast like a Fox (free with in-app purchases)
Smash Hit
Unwind in your downtime by breaking virtual glass in Smash Hit. No consequences, only loads of points when you shatter the glass obstacles in your path in beautifully designed game levels.
The music and audio effects change as you progress through the game’s stages, over 50 of which are available with the free download. An optional in-app purchase gives you premium perks such as the ability to save and access checkpoints, new game modes, and cloud save access across all of your devices.
Download:Smash Hit (free with in-app purchases)
Blek
If you often find yourself mindlessly doodling, Blek is a game designed with you in mind. The multiple award winning game takes doodles to an artistic level as you find patterns and draw your way to more challenging levels.
The concept is simple and hooks you in right away. Use your doodling skills to draw a continuous line that collects all of the colored balls in a pattern. Succeed and your doodle becomes its own piece of art; make a mistake and you try again. Blek is easy enough to play on your downtime, yet challenging enough to busy your mind. With full support for the S-pen, this is a must-own for Samsung Galaxy Note owners.
Download:Blek ($2.99)
Piano Tiles 2
Building on the popularity of the original Piano Tiles game, Piano Tiles 2 lets you play along with the band to classical music and modern pop songs. Use your fingertips to tap the black keys as they scroll down your screen to the music.
Play in friendly battle of bands-style competitions against your Facebook friends or against other music lovers from around the world. In-app purchases unlock additional songs. A tremendously popular game with a beautiful built-in soundtrack? That’s an absolute must have.
Download:Piano Tiles 2 (free with in-app purchases)
Candy Crush Saga
The Candy Crush franchise is the most popular casual puzzler for phones. In the latest twist on the Candy Crush game, you match three of the same candy on the game board to create, spread, or clear away jelly. Your nemesis is the Jelly Queen and you can battle her alone or test your skills against your friends.
The game has added new candies you’ll wish you could buy and eat in real life. If you’re connected to Facebook you’ll have access to a leaderboard that shows you how well you’re doing and who your biggest competition is. There are over 100 levels of sweet, silly fun to be had, and the games are as short or as in-depth as you want them to be.
Download:Candy Crush Saga (free with in-app purchases)
Fruit Ninja Free
Enter the world of Fruitasia, where your Sensei is waiting for you with fruit fight missions. All you need to know to get started is that Fruit Ninjas slice fruit, not bombs; once you master that, you’ll be slicing and dicing like an old pro in no time.
As your game improves, you can upgrade your blade and join new Dojos. Learn how to handle bananas and multi-slice pomegranates, not to mention the rare 10 fruit Great Wave. It all sounds funny and a little on the ridiculous side, but it’s also all for fun and distraction; that’s the perfect casual game.
Download:Fruit Ninja Free (free with in-app purchases)
Angry Birds
You’d be an Angry Bird, too, if a bunch of pesky pigs swiped all of your eggs. That’s the premise of the mobile game so popular they based a movie on it. This free game will keep you entertained in short spurts while you’re in line at the grocery store, or for longer rounds on that long bus ride home.
Every bird comes with a unique skill, designed to ruin the evil pigs and restore order. Fling the birds at obstacles, power up their skills with features like a Birdquake (hint: it’s exactly what it sounds like), or make a one-time purchase of the Mighty Eagle and show those pigs who the real bosses are. It’s loads of addictive fun for gamers of any age or skill level.
Download:Angry Birds (free with in-app purchases)
Ridiculous Fishing
The key character in this slightly absurd, absolutely fun game is a mysterious man named Billy, who’s out on the water in his trusty boat, trying to catch fish. The real catch? After he catches the fish, Billy flings them into the air and shoots them. Wait…what?
The goal is to get Billy’s fishing lure as deep into the water as you can without touching any fish on the way down; on the way up, grab everything! Because you’re paying for the game outright, there are no additional in-app purchases to make, so when Billy needs to buy his chainsaw and toaster (which are actually very helpful fishing appliances, as it turns out) you won’t be out of pocket. And just wait until you get to Billy’s hats…those silly, ridiculous hats.
Download:Ridiculous Fishing ($2.99)
Dumb Ways to Die 2
This casual game is based on the cute, animated Australian public service announcement that went viral. All you have to do is stay alive, and that would be easy if your character wasn’t so dumb. Dumb Ways to Die 2 is actually a series of mini games, perfect for those little moments when you want to play a game but can’t invest loads of time.
In the Dumb universe, you don’t throw the javelin, you catch it. Have you always wanted to swim with dolphins? Try your hand at the Dolphin Rodeo and try not to break your neck. Don’t forget to join the local curling team and play with dynamite rocks. Invite your friends in the multiplayer mode and see who can jump the ever-rising electric fence.
Download:Dumb Ways to Die 2 (free with in-app purchases)
Words With Friends
Fancy yourself a wordsmith? If so, get on board with Words With Friends, the Scrabble-based game you play at your own pace, whether it’s one word an hour or one word per day. Just check your gameboard whenever you have a few free moments and play tiles to earn points and climb the real-time leaderboard.
The in-app chat feature lets you converse with your friends as you play, so you can send them an innocent taunt or gentle reminder that you’re waiting for them to take a turn, or you can congratulate them on a complex play. You’ll also be able to access your game from your desktop, laptop, tablet, and phone, so your game can just keep on going.
Download:Words With Friends (free with in-app purchases)
My Talking Tom
Adopt and raise an adorable kitten when you download My Talking Tom (think tomcat). It’s up to you to feed him, play games, and teach him how to be a grown cat by checking in with him regularly and keeping him happy.
If you talk to your Tom, he’ll repeat what you say. Tickle him on your screen and watch him giggle and purr. You can customize your Tom by choosing what his fur looks like, what kind of apartment he’ll live in, and the clothes (yes, clothes!) he’ll wear. The two of you can play in-app mini-games like Bubble Shooter and Planet Hop before Tom needs to be tucked in for the night.
Download:My Talking Tom (free with in-app purchases)
Mandala Coloring Pages
The popular trend of adult coloring books is on your phone, too. If you haven’t tried it yet, it’s time to download the Mandala Coloring Pages and remember how much fun coloring was when you were a kid.
With hundreds of mandala designs to choose from, and a virtually endless colour selection, you can create beautiful images in your moments of spare time. Unlike real coloring pages, you can tap Undo to use a different color if you change your mind. You can also save your finished pieces and share them to your social media account or even print them. How lovely is that?
Download:Mandala Coloring Pages (free with in-app purchases)
Keep it casual
We want to know what are some of your favorite go-to casual games? Tell us all about them in the comments!