In the past, we used to take our 3DSes with us on vacations, public transit, and to hospital lounges, because it was so easy to pick and place a game on this tiny handheld and put it in mode. sleep level whenever you need attention.
These days, we’re more likely to carry a Nintendo Switch with us whenever we know there’s going to be a long downtime, and while the Switch isn’t quite as portable as the chocolate bar-sized 3DS, it can still fit a bag or a bag very big bags, if you’re lucky. There are plenty of games on the Switch that are perfectly positioned for a 15-30 minute session – so we’ve rounded up some of the best right here!
It is worth noting that quite a lot not at all roguelike or puzzle games make for great short play sessions, but we’ve tried to keep it a little more varied, with online multiplayer games, story games, and even RPG works really well in short bursts. Interesting!
Publishing company: Modest package / Developers: Mega Crit
Craft a unique deck, encounter monstrous creatures and discover vestiges of great power in Slay the Spire! Choose your cards wisely! Discover hundreds of cards to add to your deck with each attempt to climb the Spire. Pick cards that work together to effectively defeat your enemies and rise to the top. Whenever you start your journey up the Spire, the layout will be different each time. Choose a risky or safe path, face different enemies, choose different cards, explore different relics and even fight different bosses!
It’s super easy to launch Slay The Spire, join a couple of battles and rush out again. Just trying to remember what your strategic plan is…
Publishing company: PLAY / Developers: Petit Depotto
Gnosia is a sci-fi social deductive RPG in which you will engage in discussions with a variety of unique characters, with the aim of defining Gnosia in the group. Players will have to use the information they can gather during the discussion to identify who they think is Gnosia and then vote to put them into a cold sleep. As you progress, your abilities will improve – but so will the crew’s abilities.
The timeloop nature of this game makes it easy to complete a round in about 15 minutes!
Publishing company: Distracting software / Developers: Distracting software
In Dicey Dungeons, a fast-paced deck roguelike, you’ll battle monsters, find better loot, and level up your heroes as you work together to take down the Goddess of Fortune, Lady Luck. Balance your carefully planned strategies with not knowing about a roll of the dice.
Matches are quick and simple, so you can easily play through several in 10-20 minutes.
Publishing company: Association of Quantum Astrophysicists / Developers: Spry Fox
Cozy Grove measures its gameplay sessions in fast food-sized portions, with gorgeous artwork and genuinely laughable dialogue. As a Boy Scout, you’ll roam the island’s jungle every day, uncovering new hidden secrets and helping appease local ghosts. With a little time and lots of craft, you’ll bring color and fun back to Cozy Grove.
This game is literally designed for 15-30 minute play sessions and it will really ask you to come back another time when there is nothing left to do.
Publishing company: Hemp / Developers: Hemp
Baba is you is a puzzle game where you can change the rules that you play. At every level, the rules are present as blocks with which you can interact; By manipulating them, you can change the way levels work and cause unexpected, unexpected interactions.
It’s easy to play this game in batches, but don’t be surprised if you spend the entire 10 minutes just staring at the screen and trying to really think, really hard.
Publishing company: Polytron / Developers: Polytron
Gomez is a 2D creature that lives in a 2D world. Or is it him? When the existence of a mysterious 3rd dimension is revealed to him, Gomez is sent on a journey that will take him to the ends of time and space. Use your ability to navigate 3D structures from 4 separate classic 2D perspectives. Explore a serene and beautiful open world filled with secrets, puzzles and hidden treasures. Unearth the mysteries of the past and uncover the truth about reality and perception. Change your perspective and see the world in a different way.
Jump in, jump around and jump out again – FEZ makes for a great bitize session, as each level is pretty small and self-contained.
Publishing company: Draknek and friends / Developers: Draknek and friends
From some of the best puzzle designers in the world come The Expedition of a Monster, a lovely and relaxing open world puzzle adventure for monsters who love to learn about humans. By pushing the tree over to create a path, you will explore hundreds of islands near and far to learn about the history of “mankind”.
Any of Draknek’s games – including Fire Peak and Cosmic Express – makes great short games, if annoying.
Publishing company: Nintendo / Developers: Nintendo
Animal Crossing: New Horizons is a game that constantly improves everything – whether it’s museum exhibits, your home decor, or your own cooking skills. There’s loads of work to do here and the real challenge will be to keep it only 20 minutes.
Visiting your island for a bit is always a nice way to relax, or you can join one of the Happy Home Paradise house designs if you’re so interested!
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Publishing company: Devolver Digital / Developers: Devolver Digital
Minit is a special little adventure that takes place in sixty seconds at a time. Journey outside your comfortable home to help the unusual, uncover countless secrets, and overcome dangerous enemies, all in the hope of lifting a rather unfortunate curse that ends each day only after one minute.
There really is no better game to play in such a short time. You can play this game in ONE MINUTE.
Publishing company: Annapurna Interactive / Developers: Angel Matrix
White neon is a lightning fast first person action game about killing demons in Heaven. You are White, an assassin chosen from Hell to compete with other demon slayers for the chance to live forever in Heaven. The other assassins seem familiar, though… did you know them in a past life?
Neon White’s fast-paced gameplay makes for action-packed gameplay sessions that will make you feel like you’ve hit the load in just a short time.
Publishing company: Bethesda Softworks / Developers: Panic button
DEATH Make it clear from the start that you are not the prey, you are the predator. Enemies encounters are never just between two people, but dozens of the enemy. If you are not careful, they will lack your efforts. Unlike most modern shooters, in DOOM your health does not regenerate. You’ll have to earn it instead, just like the good old days. DOOM is one of the best first-person shooters we’ve ever played, and certainly the best in its class on Switch. There is a certain magical quality about playing a game this good on the go.
Sometimes, when you’re stuck on a bus or in a waiting room, you just want to rip and tear. DOOM will always be with you.
Publishing company: SEGA / Developers: SEGA
Like its predecessor, Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 combines Sega’s Puyo Puyo series with The Tetris Company… um, Tetris. Players can choose to play one of two modes in solo play, or can combine the two in Strange Match mode, where both Puyos and Tetrominos drop into your play area at the same time. The main focus of the game for solo players, as in the original, is the Adventure mode. Just like before, Adventure is a long story mode where a bunch of weird and wacky characters engage in a weird storyline about the worlds of Puyo Puyo and Tetris colliding with each other.
While we tend to think that PPT2 is best played with friends, Tetris itself has always been a great time-filler, and this is no different. You can also pick up Tetris effectif you want something a little more serious.
