10 Games You Can Play A Little Each Day (2024)

Gaming has become more of a commitment these days. You might, more often than not, end up setting aside more than a couple of hours for a session for a major quest or two in Baldur’s Gate 3, to say nothing of how long even a random battle encounter could take, let alone enhanced Honour Mode boss fights.

But not everyone can afford to sit down for hours at a time, which is why we’ve come up with a list of the best games to play daily that don’t require a lot of time commitment per session. From farm simulators to roguelikes and even role-playing games, there’s something for everyone with just a little bit of time on their hands.

10 Stardew Valley

Stardew Valley is the perfect farm simulator that allows you to dedicate as little or as much time as you want in a single session. Even spending 30 real-life minutes planting and watering crops can make a huge difference to your farm over time.

You can also explore the mines (getting through five levels will take around 30 minutes or quicker if your luck’s higher than usual that day) or simply focus on earning coins from the next harvest or fishing trip.

9 Animal Crossing: New Horizons

The beauty of Animal Crossing: New Horizons is that you don’t need to spend a long time on anything at all if you don’t want to.

Choose which dailies you want to focus on, from collecting star fragments to visiting neighbours with a gift in hand, depending on how much time you have. Since none of what you do is truly time-sensitive, you can play this game a little each day without losing out on anything. Just remember to keep the roaches away and don't let your turnips go rotten!

8 Don't Starve

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In Don't Starve, building a well-protected base in a world filled with monsters requires time and consistent effort. Plus, because the map’s an endless, generative sandbox, there’s no limit to your exploration. You can even postpone endgame stuff if you just want to see how long you can survive in the deep, dark woods on your own.

Spend an hour every day collecting resources - or hunting down monsters for useful crafting materials. This (admittedly creepy) world is your oyster, so go forth and try not to starve!

7 Valheim

This is perhaps one of the most dangerous open-world survival games of all. Still, despite its fearsome giants and who-knows-what-else in the woods and beyond, Valheim is a game that allows you to set your daily goals as ambitiously as you want.

You could, for example, want to increase your skill levels for the day instead of slaying another giant. Everything you do - even swimming in the river - trains a particular skill of yours, so every little bit counts!

6 Splatoon 3

If competitive PVP is more your speed, then Splatoon 3 is where it's at. Match lengths vary depending on which competitive mode you pick, but they don't take up a lot of time - Turf War, for example, lasts only three minutes.

It's far less commitment than many other competitive PVP matches require, and all you have to do is make a mess of things, so the entry level is less complex.

5 Hades

Hades is a game you can play a little every day to move the needle of the main story progression. Explore a range of unique weapons in the Underworld and change up your playstyle every run. Just expect to spend around half an hour every time you attempt an escape with Zagreus.

Autosave kicks in every time you enter a new chamber, so you don’t even have to worry about having to finish a run before you can end your gaming session for the day.

4 Dreamscaper

Can't get enough of roguelike games? Dreamscaper takes you through “dungeons” in the form of dreams and nightmares while the main character sleeps, and is filled with intuitive puzzles and fascinating boss fights.

In waking life, forge connections and use resources gained from your dreams to buy meaningful gifts for the townsfolk you encounter. The game's replayability is built into its main story progression, so every little bit counts, making it one of the best games to play on a daily basis.

3 Borderlands 3

Borderlands 3’s fast-paced and zany side quests make this one of the best RPG shooter games you can play daily.

The great thing about Borderlands is that there’s plenty to do aside from the main questlines, from zipping around the map in search of treasure to helping NPCs out with errands big and small.

Frequent saving isn’t necessary either, since the game will always bring you back to where you left off when you return, even if you’re in the middle of a frozen wasteland.

2 The Outer Worlds

Dive into The Outer Worlds and explore the vibrant but dangerous Halcyon System in the year 2355. Dabble in an array of missions and dismantle the capitalist system that's overtaken the colony, or perpetuate it, depending on who you want your character to be.

If you’re not playing The Outer Worlds at Supernova difficulty, manual saves are enabled no matter where you are, making this a low-commitment game you can always come back to every day.

1 Marvel's Spider-Man

As with all other Spider-Man games, there’s a lot you can do as New York’s friendly neighbourhood webslinger apart from tackling main story missions in Marvel's Spider-Man.

Swing around the city and track down collectibles, farm resources for new Spidey suits, and engage with random baddies you encounter in alleyways and even on rooftops. Crime-fighting won’t take more than 10 to 15 minutes each time, while special Combat Challenges may take up to half an hour depending on how quickly you dispatch enemy waves.