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TOP PICKS | 22 TOOLS
Best Games for Perseverance
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Minecraft: Education Edition
Stellar collaboration tools, controls make Minecraft classroom-ready
Bottom line: An excellent tool to engage students in learning, collaboration, and critical thinking is now more accessible than ever to teachers.
Grades: K–12
Price: Paid $5 per user per year; schools may qualify for volume licensing.
Magnus Kingdom of Chess
Gentle chess puzzle game ideal for young newbies
Bottom line: For kids who are new to chess but want to learn how to play, this fun intro to the game provides a well-done tutorial combined with a light overarching storyline.
Grades: 1–8
Price: Paid $7.99
The Infinite Arcade by Tinybop
Simple game-design app has endless creative potential
Bottom line: Letting students design, play, improve, and share their own games opens up opportunities for learning potential in many subject areas.
Grades: 2–6
Price: Paid $2.99
Zoombinis
Classic logic puzzler gets a beautiful new look
Bottom line: Promote powerful thinking skills, resilience, and decision making through purely fun gameplay that will keep students begging for more.
Grades: 3–8
Price: $4.99
GooseChase EDU
Digital scavenger hunts provide dynamic, fresh learning experiences
Bottom line: Students and teachers will enjoy the powerful learning of a modern scavenger hunt.
Grades: 3–12
Price: Free, Paid Free version supports one live game and five teams. Plus version is $49 per year and supports unlimited live games, 10 teams, and 40 participants per game. Premium version is $199 per year and supports 40 teams and 200 participants per game.
Minecraft
Spiraling sandbox of adventure and creation gets kids to dig deep
Bottom line: An irresistible and seemingly limitless incubator for 21st-century skills that, with a little guidance, can chart new courses for learning.
Grades: 3–12
Price: Paid $26.95 for desktop, $19.99 for consoles (except Switch at $29.99).
Engare
Unique puzzle game's artistic geometry rewards and frustrates
Bottom line: Play for the surprising geometry and beautiful art; consult the web or just walk away for a while when stuck.
Grades: 4–12
Price: Paid $6.99
LittleBigPlanet 2
Accessible yet deep game creator will dazzle and challenge
Bottom line: A deeply charming experience for teachers and students interested in pushing boundaries, making things, and participating in a healthy community focused on boundless creativity.
Grades: 4–12
Price: $19.99 $19.99
Epistory - Typing Chronicles
Practice typing by exploring and defending a world made of paper
Bottom line: Great for practicing touch-typing skills, this adventure game draws players in with a slowly revealed backstory.
Grades: 6–12
Price: Paid $14.99
FTL: Faster Than Light
Failure is frequent and fun in this strategic starship sim
Bottom line: This starship simulator isn’t easy, but gritty kids will learn from failure and practice systems thinking.
Grades: 6–12
Price: $9.99
Human Resource Machine
Addictive, unique way to supplement coding instruction
Bottom line: A novel way to learn programming that will require student collaboration and extra adult support.
Grades: 6–12
Price: Paid Costs $4.99 for the app and $9.99 on Steam.
Papo & Yo
Powerful tale of alcoholism uses puzzles and metaphor to build empathy
Bottom line: A beautiful game that's sure to build students' empathy skills and provoke deep conversations about alcoholism and abuse as well as metaphor.
Grades: 6–12
Price: 14.99
The Pack - NYSCI
Deceptively gentle coding game really packs a problem-solving punch
Bottom line: This gorgeous, immersive programming game encourages novel solutions.
Grades: 6–12
Price: Free
Tyto Ecology
Well-developed biome sim provides cheap, endless learning
Bottom line: This affordable ecosystem balancing game teaches life science skills while keeping students engaged.
Grades: 6–12
Price: Paid $6.99 for base game (3 biomes); $3.99 for each biome expansion pack.
Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons
Unique cooperative adventure with lasting social and emotional impact
Bottom line: With good support, an extremely powerful game to build empathy.
Grades: 7–12
Price: $2.99-$14.99
Portal 2 Puzzle Maker
Mind-bending level editor for beloved physics game
Bottom line: For STEAM educators with the right tech and know-how, it'd be puzzling not to use this tool.
Grades: 7–12
Price: $19.99 Puzzle Maker is included with purchase of Portal 2.
Sid Meier’s Civilization VI
Best entry in classic strategy series might not be best for classrooms
Bottom line: As with all games in this series, Civilization VI is a great learning experience with the right support, but older, cheaper versions may be more practical for classrooms.
Grades: 7–12
Price: Paid $59.99
Kerbal Space Program
Design and launch a rocket into space in realistic astrophysics sim
Bottom line: This accurate rocket sim encourages trial-and-error learning and makes for great (and often explosive) physics and engineering experiments.
Grades: 9–12
Price: Free to try, Paid $39.99, free demo
Please Knock on My Door
Effective and affecting game about dealing with depression
Bottom line: A slow-paced SEL game for helping students understand the nuances of managing mental health.
Grades: 9–12
Price: Paid $12.99
This War of Mine
Strategy game offers superb, mature take on war and civilian survival
Bottom line: A stark portrayal of civilian life in a war-torn city that requires strategic thinking and invites repeated plays.
Grades: 9–12
Price: $19.99
Florence
Incredibly relatable story about navigating adult love and life
Bottom line: This heartwarming game helps kids empathize with the highs and lows of romantic relationships.
Grades: 10–12
Price: Paid $2.99
