Casual online games so I can focus on listening in meetings?
May 3, 2023 12:55 PM Subscribe
I struggle to pay attention during conference calls and tend to get distracted by my email, small tasks or reading. I've found that puzzles and some casual games help keep that easily distracted part of my brain occupied so I can pay attention and listen.
Please give me your online games suggestions that aren't too involved and:
1. Don't involve words or reading
2. Don't have a timer or where time isn't an integral part of the game
Some games that have worked (but i got bored of them):
https://www.free-play-mahjong.com/
https://minesweeperonline.com/
https://www.chrisraff.com/dicewars/
https://www.match3games.com/game/Crash+it (this was ok but has a timer that made it frustrating and a little too engaging)
I take notes or actually drive meetings where I really have to participate in or are really important. But I have some where I'm more of a listener and only have to chime in periodically and would like to stop zoning out.
These meetings are remote. In-person meetings are also a struggle but i can't play games during them.
(I might have add or adhd)
Some games that have worked (but i got bored of them):
https://www.free-play-mahjong.com/
https://minesweeperonline.com/
https://www.chrisraff.com/dicewars/
https://www.match3games.com/game/Crash+it (this was ok but has a timer that made it frustrating and a little too engaging)
I take notes or actually drive meetings where I really have to participate in or are really important. But I have some where I'm more of a listener and only have to chime in periodically and would like to stop zoning out.
These meetings are remote. In-person meetings are also a struggle but i can't play games during them.
(I might have add or adhd)
Meow Tower is my current go-to for this. It's nonograms with an additional layer of furnishing rooms for cats.
posted by Narrow Harbor at 1:12 PM on May 3, 2023
posted by Narrow Harbor at 1:12 PM on May 3, 2023
Desert Golf and Golf on Mars fit this bill perfectly for me on iOS, I’d check out if there are online versions.
posted by supercres at 1:12 PM on May 3, 2023
posted by supercres at 1:12 PM on May 3, 2023
Battleship Solitaire is specifically designed for this (well, for podcasts but close enough) and works great for me. It's the only thing that I can play and still genuinely process spoken language at the same time. There's a hard mode hidden in the settings.
posted by davidest at 1:13 PM on May 3, 2023 [3 favorites]
posted by davidest at 1:13 PM on May 3, 2023 [3 favorites]
I play sudoku for this, but that's... probably not the best thing for paying attention. Also I've gotten to the point where I time my sudoku games, but that's something you can ignore.
Seconding 2048, because the first few dozen moves are pretty inconsequential, so you can just hit random keys for a while and not put yourself at too much of a disadvantage.
posted by kevinbelt at 1:21 PM on May 3, 2023
Seconding 2048, because the first few dozen moves are pretty inconsequential, so you can just hit random keys for a while and not put yourself at too much of a disadvantage.
posted by kevinbelt at 1:21 PM on May 3, 2023
Hidden Folks is great for finding a number of people and items in a given busy scene. You can play this in silent mode, and each scene gets progressively more difficult.
posted by seawallrunner at 1:33 PM on May 3, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by seawallrunner at 1:33 PM on May 3, 2023 [1 favorite]
Idle games like Cookie Clicker are great for this.
posted by Theiform at 1:40 PM on May 3, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by Theiform at 1:40 PM on May 3, 2023 [1 favorite]
I like match 3 games for stuff like this -- Matchington Mansion and Royal Match are two that I've played to death.
posted by jabes at 1:51 PM on May 3, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by jabes at 1:51 PM on May 3, 2023 [1 favorite]
I have a variety of thing on my phone that fit your bill.
Pretty colour puzzles: Blendoku and Blendoku 2; I Love Hue and I Love Hue 2.
Pretty pattern puzzles: Aurora Bound and Aurora Hex.
Connecting dot puzzles: Dots & Co, Two Dots (which has bonus scavenger hunt events).
Mindless running around eating things smaller than you while not being eaten yourself: Peach Blood. Actually that one requires a degree of attention, but it's so easy to die and start again and it's just so weird that I had to at least mention it.
A more complicated tic-tac-toe: Crush Rings.
Sort mixed-up coloured smiley face balls in test tubes: Lyfoes.
posted by Athanassiel at 2:17 PM on May 3, 2023 [4 favorites]
Pretty colour puzzles: Blendoku and Blendoku 2; I Love Hue and I Love Hue 2.
Pretty pattern puzzles: Aurora Bound and Aurora Hex.
Connecting dot puzzles: Dots & Co, Two Dots (which has bonus scavenger hunt events).
Mindless running around eating things smaller than you while not being eaten yourself: Peach Blood. Actually that one requires a degree of attention, but it's so easy to die and start again and it's just so weird that I had to at least mention it.
A more complicated tic-tac-toe: Crush Rings.
Sort mixed-up coloured smiley face balls in test tubes: Lyfoes.
posted by Athanassiel at 2:17 PM on May 3, 2023 [4 favorites]
Came here to say I Love Hue & ILH2, they are pleasantly distracting -- even soothing -- without commanding much attention from the analytic parts of your brain.
posted by slappy_pinchbottom at 2:22 PM on May 3, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by slappy_pinchbottom at 2:22 PM on May 3, 2023 [1 favorite]
If you can find Kolumnz, it's a puzzle games I find soothing. It was free from MSoft at one point, and I've made sure to bring it along to subsequent computers. This is a useful category of games, and I wish there were more, esp. with not much increase in speed, and without lots of noise and explosions. I had a lowkey version of Bejeweled for a while, but it got a forced upgrade that is too much.
posted by theora55 at 2:26 PM on May 3, 2023
posted by theora55 at 2:26 PM on May 3, 2023
Ballz is a good fidget toy once you've played enough of it to turn it reliably into Number Go Up. Works better on Chrome than on Firefox for me. There's a button to turn the music off that only appears on the opening Play button screen.
posted by flabdablet at 3:04 PM on May 3, 2023
posted by flabdablet at 3:04 PM on May 3, 2023
Yeah, Two Dots is what I play in meetings. I’m on level 4500-something. No timer, good for split concentration.
posted by caviar2d2 at 3:28 PM on May 3, 2023
posted by caviar2d2 at 3:28 PM on May 3, 2023
I haven't actually played Gardenscapes myself but the ads for it make it seem like a great fit for this.
posted by potrzebie at 6:44 PM on May 3, 2023
posted by potrzebie at 6:44 PM on May 3, 2023
I do jigsaw puzzles. You can set the number of pieces. I do about 200 pieces. https://www.jigsawexplorer.com/
posted by Joleta at 9:18 PM on May 3, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by Joleta at 9:18 PM on May 3, 2023 [1 favorite]
Seconding jigsaw puzzles. I’ve got Jigsaw HD on my iPad and if I put it in airplane mode it won’t play ads.
posted by Preserver at 9:23 PM on May 3, 2023
posted by Preserver at 9:23 PM on May 3, 2023
I have the same problem. I use wordless logic puzzles for it, but I haven't been able to find very many that involve the right level of concentration:
0h n0
0h h1
Linjat (unlike the other two, this one has a finite set of puzzles, but it'll keep you occupied for a good few meetings).
You might also find something that suits your needs in Simon Tatham's Portable Puzzle Collection, but I haven't checked to see if the web links are still good (I have it installed on my phone).
posted by ManyLeggedCreature at 2:15 AM on May 4, 2023 [1 favorite]
0h n0
0h h1
Linjat (unlike the other two, this one has a finite set of puzzles, but it'll keep you occupied for a good few meetings).
You might also find something that suits your needs in Simon Tatham's Portable Puzzle Collection, but I haven't checked to see if the web links are still good (I have it installed on my phone).
posted by ManyLeggedCreature at 2:15 AM on May 4, 2023 [1 favorite]
Match the Number. It’s PERFECT for this. No thought needed, just move blocks around and watch the numbers add up.
posted by pearlybob at 2:36 AM on May 4, 2023
posted by pearlybob at 2:36 AM on May 4, 2023
Conceptis. My go-tos are pic-a-pix and fill-a-pix.
posted by elmay at 6:13 AM on May 4, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by elmay at 6:13 AM on May 4, 2023 [2 favorites]
Simon Tatham’s Portable Puzzle Collection (also available as a free & ad-free mobile app) is the very best for this. They’re ad-free, lightweight, offer the ability to adjust difficulty, and varied enough that you can cycle between them and never get bored. I’m currently enjoying Flood for very low-impact fidgeting and Lights for when I want to occupy my brain just a little more — but there are lots of great ones in there.
posted by ourobouros at 6:30 AM on May 4, 2023 [3 favorites]
posted by ourobouros at 6:30 AM on May 4, 2023 [3 favorites]
gamesnacks.com has a bunch of these games. I really like 99 Balls and Zumba Ocean, but there are lots of choices there. It's made by Google, no ads interrupt the games, and the colors are very pleasant.
posted by Night_owl at 7:04 AM on May 4, 2023
posted by Night_owl at 7:04 AM on May 4, 2023
Not online, but I enjoyed the simple mobile game Flow Free, which seems like it might fit your needs.
posted by that's candlepin at 8:42 AM on May 4, 2023
posted by that's candlepin at 8:42 AM on May 4, 2023
If you're a fan of tetris, then Haru Cats Slide is great. Infinitely re-playable. Nothing is timed, so you can stop and restart as needed. Also a fan of 2048.
posted by hydra77 at 10:03 AM on May 4, 2023
posted by hydra77 at 10:03 AM on May 4, 2023
Response by poster: Thank you all! This list is great and my colleagues will be pleased that I am listening to them.
posted by captaincrouton at 6:57 AM on May 5, 2023
posted by captaincrouton at 6:57 AM on May 5, 2023
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by AlexiaSky at 12:57 PM on May 3, 2023 [1 favorite]