The 23 Best Games for Girls Who Want To Get Into Gaming

If you’re a girl* trying to get into gaming, I love that for you! Gaming is an awesome hobby, and while it can be intimidating to start, we’ve got your back. This list is specifically curated to help out the girlies* — our girl friends, girlfriends, our friends’ girlfriends, and any other femmes out there who want to get into video games.

How to begin? The same way you would any other hobby! Set aside a few dedicated hours — perhaps a Sunday afternoon — and give yourself permission to try something new. Similarly, let yourself have a small budget — like $5 to $20 — to try out one of the games below that excites you. If it feels silly to spend money, consider if you would think it’s silly to buy a latte with a friend, buy a new book, see a movie, or pay for a class. Games — and your interest in them — are worthy! Treat yourself!

I rallied all the femmes on the site to weigh in. We picked titles from throughout the difficulty spectrum (indicated on a scale of one to five swords 🗡️, with 1 being the most beginner-friendly in terms of controls and speed). We prioritized games that are on platforms you may already have access to, like your phone or laptop (and we have intentionally listed those platforms first when available). We’ve also included some titles that are on bigger platforms that you might have access to through a roommate, partner, or family member.

If you want more detailed guidance on how to start playing video games, you can also check out my guides for How to Get Yourself (Or a Girlfriend!) Into Gaming (with a list of suggested co-op games) and How to Get Your Mom Into Gaming.

But otherwise, go ahead and just try one of the titles below! We all love them. Let us know in the comments about how it goes and if there’s any other titles we should include. Happy gaming!

– Amanda Tien, Editor

*When we say “girlies” here, we mean adult femmes! Some of the games here are not appropriate for games under 18. These games can also definitely be enjoyed by anyone who does not identify as a girl or a woman.

Best Games for Women Who Want To Start Gaming

In alphabetical order:

Apple Arcade
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey
Boyfriend Dungeon
Fields of Mistria
Frostpunk
Good Coffee, Great Coffee
Hades
Hades II
Kingdom Two Crowns
Littlewood
Love Nikki: Dress Up Queen
Marvel Rivals
Mass Effect
Minami Lane
Minecraft
Monument Valley
Regency Love
Reigns: Her Majesty
The Sims 4
Sticky Business
Tangle Tower
Tiny Bookshop

Apple Arcade

Okay, this first one is cheating a little bit — because it’s way more than one game. If the girlie has an iPhone, then the girlie may love Apple Arcade. There is a 30-day free trial for the cost of a latte to get access to about 200 games. A lot of them, frankly, are garbage — but are some actually excellent titles included.

Apple Arcade launched in 2019, and while it has never quite lived up to its promise of making great mobile gaming possible, there is some fun to be had. Say goodbye (or just, “hold on a sec”) to Candy Crush and Wordle and level up with some of the best games currently on Apple Arcade:

Balatro+ – if you like math and/or poker and solitaire and/or chaos, you’ll be as obsessed with Allison is. This mobile version makes it easier to play on a smaller screen.
Katamari Damacy Rolling Live – Play a colorful lil guy rolling around a ball that turns into a bigger ball!!! Fellow writer Gary swears by this one.
Outlanders – My comfort game! It’s a town-builder that is a perfectly balanced mix of playful and challenging.
Power Wash Simulator – a strangely relaxing game where, you guessed it, you power wash stuff. Gary and Allison both love this one.
If you were a kid in the early 90s or 2000s, you’ll love the pixelated retro nostalgia of Roller Coater Tycoon Classic+ (which looks exactly how I remembered it) and The Oregon Trail (updated art, same amount of dysentery!).

For the Android girlies, I don’t know much about Google Play Pass but here’s a list of some of the best games there.

The great thing about a gaming subscription is that if you don’t like a game, you can just delete it and try another one — or get rid of the subscription altogether! It’s a very low-stakes way to try out a lot of different things and find your style.

– Amanda Tien

Difficulty Level: 🗡️ – Though it can vary by title!

Platforms: iOS

Cost: $6.99 per month

Assassin’s Creed Odyssey

I have never felt so cool as when I, as heroine Kassandra, drop-kicked a sexist douchebag off of an island cliff. It was SO SATISFYING. Assassin’s Creed Odyssey is the first game in the long-lasting series that I ever played, much less loved. I had tried a few other titles in the series, but I had always gotten bored or confused. I didn’t feel like Assassin’s Creed was ever “for me,” not until Odyssey when I saw a cool woman on the cover.

Odyssey’s Ancient Greek setting is familiar from years of movies like 300 and school texts like The Iliad, but being able to play a bad ass woman warrior makes the game fresh. While some diehard fans didn’t like how the game telegraphed quests or made punching often more effective than sneaking, I felt that those gameplay changes made Odyssey much more approachable to a newcomer.

The game is huge and has an emotionally rich story with lots of fun side quests, making it a perfect game for binging during long cold winter months. There are a variety of difficulty settings as well, so if you’re looking for your first serious capital g Gamer game, Assassin’s Creed Odyssey is a great one for the girlies!

– Amanda Tien

Difficulty Level: 🗡️🗡️🗡️🗡️🗡️ – This is the biggest game on this list, but the combat is easy to dominate with button-mashing, especially if you set it to an easier mode.

Platforms: Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S

MSRP: $59.99 (but you can often find it cheaper as a used physical copy in stores like GameStop!)

Boyfriend Dungeon

Kitfox’s 2021 Boyfriend Dungeon is a great game for someone new to but curious about combat. You fight not-scary enemies in an empty mall using a sword that transforms into a hot dude. AMAZING. There’s also a dagger that turns into a beautiful lady and a scythe that turns into a charming non-binary person. The conceit of this delightful game is that some people have a magical ability to turn into weapons, and you, ~ the chosen one ~ can wield them to fight off demons.

As I wrote in my review, Boyfriend Dungeon is a fun, sweet, and silly game that brings as much joy as it does thoughtful reflection on what it means to make connections — romantic or otherwise.

(Content warning: There is an instance of stalking, but I felt the game handles this with nuance and care. I wrote about it here.)

– Amanda Tien

Difficulty Level: 🗡️🗡️🗡️ – Great choice for someone looking to try combat for the first time.

Platforms: Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5 Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S

MSRP: $19.99

Donut County

If you like bright colors, giggling to yourself, and/or donuts, you’ll be obsessed with Donut County. You play a talking raccoon who delivers donuts, but for some inexplicable reason also gains the power to accidentally create giant (donut) holes that are destroying the whole town. Televisions, ovens, traffic cones, trucks, and buildings will all fall to the holes you create. And as it turns out, the only way you will be able to save the town is through the very way that you destroyed it!

Donut County is absurd, adorable, and fun, which makes it all the more impressive that it was made by just one person, Ben Esposito, in 2018. Donut County does a great job of teaching you the way to play and get more comfortable with puzzles and movement. I played on my iPhone, and touching the screen to cause neon-colored chaos brought me a lot of joy. You can beat all of Donut County in just a few hours, so it’s a very manageable adventure.

– Amanda Tien

Difficulty Level: 🗡️🗡️

Platforms: iOS, Android, Mac, Windows, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One

MSRP: $4.99 on iOS and $12.99 on other platforms

Fields of Mistria

Fields of Mistria is one of my favorite cozy games, and a great low-pressure entryway into gaming. It combines farming, animal husbandry, decorating, combat, magic, friendship, and romance in one pocket-sized pixelated package. The game is still in early access (which means it hasn’t fully launched), yet after 58 hours of playtime, I still feel like I’ve barely scratched the surface.

There are a lot of good things about Fields of Mistria, but the community, art, and non-playable character (NPC) dialogue really set it apart from other farming sims. The community page on Steam is full of guides, cute screenshots, and adorable fan art, and the developers are always on the lookout for gripes and suggestions. Every NPC feels unique and original, and they’re genuinely entertaining to chat with. The game is also very low-demand in terms of graphics, so a mid-range laptop will run it just fine.

If you want to experience some of the best parts of gaming with none of the toxicity and all of the cuteness, NPC Studio’s Fields of Mistria is a great place to start!

– Darcy Maunder

Difficulty Level: 🗡️

Platforms: PC

MRSP: $13.99

Frostpunk

I don’t think most people would put the 2018 survival city builder Frostpunk on an intro to games list for anyone (especially after the cozy building game above!), but here we are. Frostpunk, by 11 Bit Studios, is a bleak city-building game about making utilitarian decisions to ensure the survival of the human race during a devastating global cooling. It’s not cute, it’s not pretty, but it is incredibly addicting and challenging.

You can pause, you can save scum, and you can slow time down to a crawl in order to build a city that can withstand an eternal winter and save your people. This is a great option for the girlies who love strategy, puzzles, and building things (and maybe feeling they have control over things). The 2024 sequel, Frostpunk 2, is even more in-depth, but I still prefer the first one.

– Alexia Dahlin

Difficulty Level: 🗡️🗡️🗡️🗡️ – Good for more experienced gamers ready for a challenge

Platforms: PC, Mac, PlayStation 4, Xbox One

MRSP: $13.99

Good Coffee, Great Coffee

Any game that developer TapBlaze makes in this universe is one that I will happily play. Though currently only on mobile, Good Coffee, Great Coffee is a café management sim where you play as the owner/barista and serve a cast of kooky customers. Accessible to gamers of all skill levels, Good Coffee has you make and serve drinks while managing the daily operations of your café. Players can also decorate the place with revenue earned from your shop. There’s also several objectives to reach, making you want to come back each day and play a little more.

While I shared in my review that I do prefer its predecessor Good Pizza, Great Pizza, the coffeehouse successor is the perfect opportunity to unleash your inner latte girlie. You’ll get the same humor and vibes, and customers are still going to give you the run around (it’s fun, I promise!) when they’re trying to order. Don’t worry, the game isn’t Diner Dash, so the intensity is fairly low. There’s no incentive to rush; you can hang out and go at your own pace.

If it’s anything like its predecessor, Good Coffee, Great Coffee should see free ongoing content updates in the future. Hopefully it will bring new objectives, customers, drinks, and story. At a price of $0, it’s hard to beat. Check it out for yourself and make some delicious drinks!

– Allison McDaniel

Difficulty Level: 🗡️

Platforms: iOS, Android

MRSP: Free!

Hades

With morally complex characters, diverse and deeply sexy character design, multiple slow-burning romance options, and gameplay that’s intuitive to pick up and rewards you with every run, what isn’t there to like about Supergiant Games’ Hades?

This game was my first roguelike back in 2020 when I was a fledgling baby gamer in the throes of the pandemic. I picked it up mostly because of the Tumblr fanart I was seeing, but I became quickly obsessed with its addictive, clever mechanics that made every run unique.

Instead of getting frustrated by frequent deaths due to my lack of skill, I loved that every death in Hades forwarded the narrative instead, allowing me to feel, well, less like a bad gamer. In fact, sometimes I looked forward to my frequent deaths more than the runs themselves if it meant flirting with Thanatos a little more and uncovering family secrets. In other words, there was no way to really fail.

Hades, simply put, is the game that taught me to love games again.

– Lauryl Fischer

Difficulty Level: 🗡️🗡️🗡️ to 🗡️🗡️🗡️🗡️🗡️ depending on how seriously you take it, and you can always set it to a lower difficulty level; this is a great choice for someone looking to take their gaming to the next level.

Platforms: PC, Mac, iOS, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S

MSRP: $29.99

Hades II

Meanwhile, Supergiant’s brand-new sequel, Hades II, takes every successful element from the first game and asks a deeply important question: What if there were also witches?

Divine femininity is at the heart of Hades II — from Melinoe’s relationship with goddesses like Hera, Artemis, and Selene to the familiars she bonds with and the garden she tends (a mini-game perfect for cozy game lovers). Zagreus’s Mirror of Night has been swapped out for Melinoe’s Arcana Cards based on tarot, while the new Cast function adds an additional layer of witchy gameplay. Other new gods expand the Hadesverse’s celebration of soft masculinity and body diversity (that’s a specific shoutout to Hephaestud, my king).

While you’ll enjoy the world-building if you played Hades, you do not need to have played the first one to enjoy Hades II, especially if it’s Melinoe as a protagonist that inspires you.

Hades II is a true love letter to feminine power.

– Lauryl Fischer

Platforms: Mac, PC, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2

MSRP: $29.99

Kingdom Two Crowns

If you ever watched Game of Thrones and thought, Pfft, I’d lead that place so much better, then Fury Studio’s 2018 Kingdom Two Crowns is the game for you. This addicting fort-building game puts you in the throne. You can grow your small village to an empire, discover new technologies and witchcraft, fight off demons, and of course, fail. But it’s easy to start another run, and I spent many hours on my phone diving back in to try and create a sustainable kingdom. As a bonus, there’s also a co-op mode, so you might find it fun to play with a friend or partner.

If the aesthetic is a little dark for you but you like the conceptual challenge, check out Outlanders on Apple Arcade, which is my ultimate comfort game. If it’s the medieval aspect that excites you, check out Reigns: Her Majesty later on this list. You can also take city-building to the epic level by trying Frostpunk! It’s good to be king.

– Amanda Tien

Difficulty Level: 🗡️🗡️

Platforms: iOS, Android, Windows, Mac, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One

MSRP: $6.99 on mobile or $19.99 on computers and consoles

Littlewood

SmashGames’ 2020 title Littlewood is an adorable farming/life sim, perfect for if you’re new to gaming. I like to consider it a more chill alternative to Stardew Valley, which, while massively cute and enjoyable, can be a bit overwhelming for new gamers, with the sheer amount of content in the game. Littlewood has a lot of the same general components as most cutesy farming simulators, with fishing, mining, growing crops, the whole nine yards, but something I particularly enjoy about it, is being able to design and organize the whole town, rather than just your own farm. The process of collecting decorations and changing the layout of the town to make it as aesthetically pleasing as possible is super fun and relaxing. As an added bonus, there are plenty of romanceable characters for you to choose from!

Overall, Littlewood is super low-stress, with easy to understand mechanics, as well as a day-cycle that progresses as you do in-game actions, rather than being tied to the actual passing of time, meaning there’s no rush to complete as many tasks as possible before the in-game day ends. This is my go-to game when I want to get cozy on an evening and play something low-pressure and relaxing for a couple of hours. Over the past year or so, I’ve recommended this game to both new and established gamers alike, because it really does have something for anyone who enjoys cozy games.

– Scarlet Hardy

Difficulty Level: 🗡️

Platforms: PC, Mac, Nintendo Switch

MRSP: $14.99

Love Nikki: Dress Up Queen

You might laugh at the concept of this game. Aren’t dress up games for little kids? NO!

Love Nikki: Dress Up Queen is the 2017 installation of the Nikki series, originally by Nikki Inc. It looks deceptively like a children’s game, but it comes with a rich, surprisingly dark lore that makes it impossible for me to stop playing. I just have to know the rest of the story. It’s a story of political intrigue, curses, and, of course, magical outfits.

Love Nikki is, admittedly, a gacha game, meaning it is slow going unless you pay money for extras that can help you progress faster. But what I love most is that it’s not a pay-to-win game. All of the content is accessible (and free) if you have patience.

I’ve been playing for around two years now. I love the story and beautiful, artistically designed outfits so much that I anticipate playing until they stop supporting the game. I love that this is a free mobile game that doesn’t get old, and doesn’t paywall the full experience. It’s the perfect introduction to the gaming world for someone who has never even played a game before.

– Alexia Dahlin

Difficulty Level: 🗡️

Platforms: Android, iOS

MRSP: Free!

Marvel Rivals

I have avoided first person shooter games ever since my brothers spawn killed me 20 times in a row during a game of capture the flag in Halo 2. I’ve always considered myself hopelessly bad at them. It didn’t help that there are 8,000 different weapons that I never had time to memorize. I thought that FPS games just weren’t my thing. Then, I played Marvel Rivals.

Marvel Rivals is a 2024 first person shooter themed around the Marvel universe comics and developed by Chinese game maker NetEase. It comes with arcade modes, but its regular matches are either escort missions or king of the hill matches. Marvel Rivals is aesthetically pleasing, with cute, colorful champions and visually interesting maps. Amanda has previously written about how Apex Legends could be the feminist future of first-person shooter games, but she admits that Apex has a steep learning curve. Marvel Rivals, in comparison, is a relatively approachable starting point that still brings in a lot of what makes Apex less toxic.

Marvel Rivals is the ideal for women who want to get into competitive games (which is normally a very toxic landscape for femmes). In Marvel Rivals, the heroes are familiar with hilarious voice lines. You can pick characters with easy-to-understand powers like the Invisible Woman and Squirrel Girl. It’s awesome to get to play as bad ass femmes! Similar to Apex Legends, you can communicate in-game with buttons so you don’t have to engage with any toxic voice chat. Plus, it’s free with the option to pay for more things later.

The gameplay is straightforward too; There’s not a lot of complicated external knowledge necessary like in other popular competitive games. You just aim and shoot! Or button mash for special powers.

Like comic books, games are for everyone. Marvel Rivals is a great introduction to a genre of games that has historically been “for the boys.” Let’s make it for the girls 🙂

– Alexia Dahlin

This blurb has been adapted from a longer piece Alexia wrote on her personal blog, “Marvel Rivals is for the Girls.”

Difficulty Level: 🗡️🗡️🗡️ to 🗡️🗡️🗡️🗡️🗡️, depending on how seriously you take it

Platforms: PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S

MRSP: Free!

Mass Effect

I had just moved into an apartment by myself in a city where I knew no one. I had gamed a lot as a kid, but not as much once I was a teenager and college student. I walked into a GameStop and bought myself a used Xbox 360 along with a stack of used games that I found in a bargain bin. One of them was a $4.99 copy of Bioware’s 2007 space adventure, Mass Effect.

That weekend, Mass Effect held me in a vice grip, and the reason for that was the main character, Commander Shepherd. Players can choose a male or female protagonist and customize their appearance. The female version, known as “FemShep” by the fandom, is voiced by the incredible Jennifer Hale. Shepherd was everything I wanted to be in that moment. Confident, strong, a survivor.

A few days later, I had a roommate move in, and problems began almost from the get-go. I soon moved the Xbox 360 into my room so I could have a safe haven to play. On weekends, I snuck out of the apartment early to get a cup of coffee and then crawl back into bed, playing Mass Effect on a small spare television. In the cold winter months, I spent hundreds of hours making my way through the original Mass Effect trilogy. I fought for justice, led a spaceship, made friends, seduced others, killed bad guys, and tried to make the universe a better place.

The Mass Effect games are what cemented video games as my most beloved hobby. I have replayed the original trilogy frequently over the years, and I love it every time. A few years ago, the games — and all of their DLC — were packaged and retouched in the easy-to-get Mass Effect: Legendary Edition. The first game’s combat is a bit stilted, and the inventory menus are seriously dated, but this series still stands up story-wise. For girl gamers who are looking to embark on an epic adventure, Mass Effect will take you to the stars.

– Amanda Tien

Difficulty Level: 🗡️🗡️🗡️🗡️🗡️ – As a single-player shooter game, you can take your time learning the ropes. There are adjustable difficulty settings and different powers you can equip.

Platforms/Versions: Mass Effect (2007) is available on Xbox 360 and backward compatible with Xbox One, available online for $19.99, though it frequently retails as a used physical copy for $4.99. Mass Effect: Legendary Edition (2021), which contains the three main games and DLC, is available on PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S. MSRP: $59.99

Minami Lane

Minami Lane is one of my top favorite cozy games. Developed by Blibloop, it’s a relaxing city builder where you pet cats, drink boba, and embrace the good life. Set on a Japanese-inspired street, you’ll place shops, houses, and attractions throughout. Within the game, you have objectives to meet, such as satisfying the demands of your residents. It’s very casual as you can play it as fast or slow as you’d like, leaving the fictional Minami Lane in your hands.

What I love about 2024’s Minami Lane is its chill lo-fi beats, leaving me feeling comfy and cozy while playing. It’s a perfect girl game with its pastel color palette and good vibes. The only complaint most players have is that it’s too short, but there’s a sandbox mode that will suffice. You know a game is good when players only complain that they want more!

Minami Lane has about two to four hours of content, which is reflected in its affordable price of $4.99. It’s a must-play for anyone who enjoys management sims or city builders, even if you aren’t a cozy gamer. Even if you aren’t a gamer at all, Minami Lane is very approachable, with no gaming skills needed. Please play Minami Lane so we can get more games like this!

– Allison McDaniel

Difficulty Level: 🗡️

Platforms: PC, Mac, Nintendo Switch, Xbox Series X|S

MRSP: $4.99

Minecraft

Whenever someone asks me what my favorite video game is, Minecraft is the first one to come to mind. Not because I play it all the time, but because it’s the game that got me into gaming. It’s classic and versatile, and can be played as a cozy building/decorating game, dungeon crawler, survival, or adventure game depending on your preference. I’ve spent just as many hours, if not more, building pretty houses and playing hide and seek in Minecraft as I have fighting for my life against monsters.

At a glance, it seems like a weird concept; Everything’s square, you’re square, and you collect things by punching them with your bare fists. But Mojang Studios’s 2009 behemoth is fun because it’s so boundlessly random. Want to explore and collect all the different pets? Go for it! Want to build a roller coaster? Sure. Want to go to another dimension? Of course! Want to mod the game so you can visit the moon, or fly around with fairy wings, or add more dimensions? Do it all at once! Why not?

Minecraft can be as basic or as ludicrously complicated as you like, and, although it’s easy to learn alone, YouTube is full of new player guides and explanations if you want some extra help for the start of your adventure!

– Darcy Maunder

Difficulty Level: 🗡️🗡️

Platforms: PC, Mac, Android, iOS, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Fire OS/TV, and Samsung Gear VR.

MRSP: Mobile versions $6.99, console versions $29.99

Monument Valley

For the girls looking for a low-stakes, beautiful, interesting experience, look no further than Ustwo’s 2014 hit Monument Valley. In this mobile-friendly game, players guide a little bird-like person through a variety of puzzles that are M.C. Escher-like mazes. Each level builds upon the previous, effectively coaching the player through harder and harder challenges.

Monument Valley is a dreamy experience. The pastel-neon color hues are inviting. Lo-fi music drives you forward with purpose through the subtle narrative. The puzzles get more difficult, but never impossible. It’s a satisfying game to win (and there’s a sequel if you want more!). Monument Valley is a great adventure into casual gaming.

– Amanda Tien

Difficulty Level: 🗡️

Platforms: iOS, Android, PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S

Cost: $3.99 on mobile, $19.99 on console

Regency Love

I will never stop talking about this game. The Jane Austen girlies will be all over Regency Love, a visual novel where you play a young woman trying to make her way in society and find an eligible suitor. You can manage different skillsets, like embroidery or horseback riding, while still socializing about town. None of the gameplay is too challenging, and there’s a very clear tutorial. If you’re looking for an approachable place to start, then this great interactive novel on your iPhone might be your speed!

I fell in love with all the characters of this woman-made game from Australian indie studio Tea for Three. I was more than happy to pay a couple extra dollars for the DLC. Each story path is engaging and endearing. I wish every year that they’ll make more! Instead, I’ll just have to replay and keep watching the 1995 BBC version of Pride & Prejudice.

If you like this energy but want something that’s more saucy a la Bridgerton, check out Ambition: A Minuet in Power that I write about in #9 here.

– Amanda Tien

Difficulty Level: 🗡️

Platforms: iOS

Cost: $4.99

Reigns: Her Majesty

Do you love to swipe on dating apps? Whether you’re actively searching or comfortably in a relationship, you can swipe to your heart’s content in Nerial’s Reigns. The gameplay is very accessible: you play as a ruler, and you make a variety of decisions simply by swiping left or right. Want to negotiate with that prince from the other land? Swipe left. JK, want to send him to the dungeon? Swipe right. With bold art styles and clever writing, the Reigns games are great for short plays or long binges. Because you can play on your phone and the swiping mechanic is familiar, it’s a great choice for someone who wants to try a game with a low barrier to entry.

There are a ton of options in the Reigns franchise (including even a Game of Thrones one!), but my personal favorite is 2017’s Reigns: Her Majesty. Rather than play as a king, you are a queen who can assert feminist leadership over the medieval land, decide who she will marry (if anyone!), and even join a witch coven. You’ll have to be strategic to keep your crown! Plus, the game is written by a woman, so we love that!

– Amanda Tien

Difficulty Level: 🗡️

Platforms: iOS, Android, Mac, Windows, Nintendo Switch

MSRP: $2.99 on mobile or $7.99 on consoles and computer

The Sims 4

We almost thought about not even including The Sims because it’s such a modern day staple of “girl gamer” culture. That said, it’s beloved for a reason, and we wanted to highlight the most recent edition for a reason.

If any game felt the way that playing dolls late at night felt as a little kid, it would be The Sims 4. It’s the perfect way to relive childhood whimsy.

In The Sims 4, you can create your own little people, control their lives, and decorate their homes. If you can’t think of any stories yourself, there is a huge community of Simmers who post inspiration all day long. The best part is that the base game is now free!

It’s been a decade since The Sims 4 released, and The Sims Studio and Electronic Arts have continued to create fun paid add-on DLC options. It is the fourth game in a beloved series that was originally meant to be an architecture simulator back when the first was developed by Maxis in 2000. More than 20 years on, I can’t think of a better game to introduce someone to the world of casual gaming.

– Alexia Dahlin

Difficulty Level: 🗡️ to 🗡️🗡️🗡️, depending on how seriously you take it

Platforms: PC, Mac, PlayStation 4, Xbox One

MSRP: Free!

Sticky Business

Sticky Business is the game I needed as a little girl and an adult. As the name implies, you run your own sticker business where you create stickers, pack your orders, and listen to customers’ stories. Doing this job full-time would be a dream in real life, although quite unrealistic. I love that I get to live out this fantasy in a $10 (frequently on sale for less) title.

Spellgarden Games’ 2023 Sticky Business is a low stress, low skill, low stakes game, and one that is a must-play for cozy gamers. There’s also DLC with stationery elements and another with a camping theme. To my fellow creatives, this one is for you.

I’m not normally a binge gamer, but after purchasing Sticky Business, I played about five hours in the first day. Even though I’ve played through the entire game, I am working on buying every shop item to be the ultimate sticker master. As you progress and earn money, you can buy more supplies, elements, and colors to create even more unique and fun stickers. It’s addicting to sit and make your own creations, and I love being able to integrate customer requests into my designs. Aaaand, if you’re a Twitch streamer, you can integrate the game and have your viewers be your customers!

– Allison McDaniel

Difficulty Level: 🗡️🗡️

Platforms: PC, Mac, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S

MSRP: $9.99

Tangle Tower

I grew up playing HerInteractive’s Nancy Drew video games. I loved solving mysteries with my mom and my sister, pouring over clues and investigating peculiar places. When I found Tangle Tower on Apple Arcade a few years ago (it’s no longer on the subscription), I felt I had finally found the spiritual successor to my beloved childhood experiences.

Tangle Tower is an excellent locked room mystery that tasks players with solving a mysterious murder in a unique mansion where all of the suspects live. The game is fully voice acted and features beautiful artwork, entrancing music, and a fun mix of puzzles. If you love a good mystery book or show, you’ll love playing detective. The last act wraps up a bit too quickly for my liking, but SFB Games has a sequel in the works, so I’ll just bide my time!

– Amanda Tien

Difficulty Level: 🗡️🗡️

Platforms: iOS, Android, Mac, Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One

MSRP: Free with Apple Arcade, $4.99 on Google Play, or $19.99 elsewhere

Tiny Bookshop

I love selling books in my little mobile bookshop in a seaside town with all my new friends. Oh, wait, that’s not my real life, but it is the premise of this year’s fantastic Tiny Bookshop.

I so enjoyed spending hours curating my bookshelves, recommending titles to customers, decorating my shop, and becoming a local in this sweet town. Tiny Bookshop showcases a deep love of books and an understanding of why community-building matters. Ever since I wrote my review in August, I have recommended neulodic games’ Tiny Bookshop to everyone I know — and that includes you, too!

And perhaps most importantly for this list, Tiny Bookshop is a delightful management simulator game that will please those familiar with the genre or serve as an accessible entry point to newcomers.

– Amanda Tien

Difficulty Level: 🗡️🗡️

Platforms: PC, macOS, Nintendo Switch, Switch 2

MSRP: $19.99.

More Great Games for the Girlies

A Little to the Left – Cozy, low-key puzzle gaming, see #1 here to read more
Animal Crossing: New Horizons – Run an adorable island with animal neighbors, read more here
Cateau – A cozy visual novel where you play as a cat in Paris, read more here
Coffee Talk 1 & 2 – an excellent fantastical coffee shop simulator with great vibes and endearing storytelling, see #4 here to read more
The Cosmic Wheel Sisterhood – a multi-layered tarot-driven adventure, read more here
Disney Dreamlight Valley – An easy Disney-themed farming sim, see #2 here to read more
Mail Time – Deliver letters to forest creatures in this lighthearted platformer, read more here
Murder By Numbers – I know David’s girlfriend swears by this story-driven murder mystery and picross puzzle game; click here to learn more
Oxenfree – a spooky, puzzle-fueled mystery on a haunted island, with multiple endings (content warning: there is some suicidality and teen violence), see #6 here to read more
Stardew Valley – the epic small-town farming sim, see #5 here to read more