10 best free online and mobile games to curb pandemic fatigue

Keep boredom at bay and make the most of Singapore’s newly heightened Phase 2 restrictions with the help of these free online and mobile games!

Doing your part to keep everyone safe doesn’t mean sacrificing your social life or sanity. Simply switch out your weekly dinner parties for virtual hangouts with your loved ones and you’ve got yourself a whole new world of possibilities — the digital world, that is. 

We’re talking about the best online and mobile games, both old school and new school, that span from online jousts of wordplay, to adventures through enchanted lands, and even virtual escape rooms. For those who prefer single-player games, we’ve included a couple of those too! Guard against pandemic fatigue by keeping things fresh with more game-night inspo.

1. A Dark Room

Warning: This game is addictive. As a writer, I have a thing for narrative tales — and a bigger fascination for gamified ones that I can be a part of. The story starts like this: you wake up in a cold dark room and your only option is to ‘light fire’.

As you keep the room warm, options open up and the adventure tale unravels. There’s a surprising amount of suspense and a certain charm about the minimalistic way the text rolls out. It’s almost primitive, but intentionally so — because this game is all about survival, and it starts from a simple fire.

Available on Desktop: Play now

2. Wingspan

Calling all bird enthusiasts! When we last featured this board game in our kid-friendly things-to-do guide , it was sold out on Amazon. However, it is now playable online!

The goal is to attract the best birds to your aviary which will, in turn, help you ultimately secure the best habitat. There are marbled eggs, researchers, bird watchers and many other fascinating elements to this game that plays up to five and has a run time of up to 60 minutes.

Available on Desktop: Play now

3. Shell Shockers

“Do you like counter strike?” That was essentially my introduction to this egg-centric first-person shooter game. Don’t be fooled by their cute graphics or cheery colour palette — its inviting facade will quickly morph into wartime fury as you choose your weapon of choice and take a crack at egg-tinguishing your opponents.

Available on Desktop: Play now

ALSO READ: My Hero Academia launches mobile game

4. Sword & Sorcery

Evil had won —  or so they thought! However, just in the nick of time, fallen heroes are resurrected to wage war against the monsters and once again restore hope and order to the Land of Talon Coast. In this epic adventure game, you’ll be controlling a resurrected hero with unique powers.

You’ll have to work together with the other players (five in total) to venture through “ominous forests, dangerous ruins and besieged cities” — all in a bid to save the kingdom and break spells! Might take up to 60 minutes.

Available on Desktop: Play now

5. Prison Break

Got a large group of friends and you’re all bored of playing Scribbl.io ? Virtual escape rooms are the perfect way to while away the hours. Picture this: it’s 1955 and you’ve been sentenced to life in prison for a crime you did not commit.

You are stuck in the notorious Iron Gate Prison and you’ve no chance of parole. What now? There are rumours that the inmate who roomed in this cell before you had dug his way to freedom, but there are also whispers that he was brutally murdered by a warden. The common consensus remains that you’ve got to get out — and fast. This one is a tough one, with a difficulty score of nine out of ten. Good luck!

Available on Desktop: Play now

6. Animal Crossing

Play it alone or with friends, either way, it might be time to revisit those islands that you once built in the heat of Circuit Breaker 2020. Described as a “self-isolating comfort blanket” by CNET , Animal Crossing’s main goal is for you to upgrade your home and pay off any debt you accumulated by upgrading it.

You can raise funds by selling caught fish, making friends, digging up shells — it’s really up to you! But everyone starts off the same, a lonely human on an island with animals. Sounds strange? A little. But in today’s uncertain state, any semblance of stability or escape is appreciated.

Available on Desktop: Play now

ALSO READ: Mobile games that made 2020 more bearable

7. The Washington Post’s Daily Crossword Puzzles

I know! I was beyond thrilled when I first chanced upon Washington Post Crosswords. There are two ways to do this — solo or with a friend. There’s an option to print out the puzzle and kick it old school with pen and paper and a cuppa joe. Or to challenge your fellow wordsmiths. Just select the icon next to the timer at the top of the puzzle to send the link!

Protip: make it more fun by playing it over zoom, with a time limit, some snacks and possibly a whole lot of in-good-fun banter. The best part? There’s a new one every day!

Available on Web or Mobile Browser: Play now

8. Among Us

Nothing says wolf in sheep’s clothing like this mobile-friendly game by Innersloth. Gather your crew (four to ten!) and test the strength of your teamwork as you attempt to maneuver a spaceship safely back home.

The thing is, one of your crew members has been replaced by a parasitic shapeshifter aka alien imposter — find out who the imposter is and vote him or her off before they sabotage your mission and wipe you out.

Available on Apple App Store, Google Play Store & Desktop: Play now

9. Psych!

This was my go-to when we were bored out of our minds during tutorials back in university. Each game would only take about 15 minutes and we could invite as many people as we wanted. Described as “trivia meets Cards Against Humanity”, this game includes a wide variety of categories with hilarious questions.

The trick is making your answer believable enough that people might vote yours as the truth — whilst still being funny enough to earn some laughs along the way. For best results, play it over zoom!

Available on Apple App Store and Google Play Store: Play now!

ALSO READ: Best free games you can get from an Amazon Prime membership

10. Secret Hitler

Yes! Everyone’s favourite board game is back and online. For those of you who have never played Secret Hilter, you’re in for a treat. Perfect of groups of five or more, this is a game of deceit and manipulation. But don’t worry, good can still prevail.

The stage is set and it’s 1932 again. You’re a German politician in pre-WWII Germany and the Liberals are desperately trying to ward off the Fascists. However, no one knows which party the other is on — and one of you is Hitler.

Available on Desktop: Play now

Bonus: Other activities to curb pandemic fatigue

In the surging anxiety of claustrophobia, amidst announcements that circuit-breaker-like restrictions were back on, I chanced upon Louvre’s Walking Museum Tours and for some reason, it provided a certain sense of calm and relief from all the noise going on.

It felt almost therapeutic, and memories of being in that space with a best friend just a couple of years ago reignited the hope of future travels once again.

Just in case you’re feeling that same sense of pandemic fatigue, here are some other ideas that might help:

• Colour your life free from the chaos of trouble with Crayola’s free printables or perhaps save it for a virtual art jamming session with your friends.
• The Peters Township Public Library created a Harry Potter-themed Escape room on Google Docs for no-frills portable fun that you can check out anytime anywhere with your mates over zoom or at home with the fam.

This article was first published in YouTrip.