🎮 Confession: I still play the same mobile game my cousins mock me for

I'm thirty one and I play a simple tile matching game on my phone every night. My cousins mock me for it. They play the big graphics games with online teams. They call mine a game for aunties and my little cousin once uninstalled it as a joke. I reinstalled it in five minutes. Lost two years of progress. Still not over it. It's nothing special, you match coloured tiles and get a score. But it's what helps me switch off after emails and calls. The bigger games made me more tense, there was always a team counting on me. Nobody shouts at you in a puzzle game if you mess up. That's the whole point for me. Dad started playing too and last week he beat my record and announced it at dinner like a world title. I grew up playing carrom and ludo on the floor with my grandparents. This is a quieter version, minus the rule arguments. My grandmother cheated with a smile and we all pretended not to see. Cousins say try something harder. Why? It's meant to be fun. Maybe I'll get a console one day, if it has a good story. Until then I'll keep matching tiles.

Two years of progress lost after uninstalling, ouch. Hope you linked it to an account this time.

I used to be embarrassed about my own simple games till I read how many people use them to relax. A friend who's a doctor plays a block puzzle between patients and says it clears her head. So you're in very good company, and there's no shame in it at all.

Grew up on carrom and ludo too, and the phone versions never feel the same to me. The real board has that striker sound when it hits the coins, and the powder smell. My uncle still carries a small bag of the powder with him whenever he visits. Try the real thing with your dad once a week, just for a change.

Your dad announcing the record at dinner like a world title is the best part of this. My grandfather picked up a card game on my phone last year and now asks for it every evening.

Nothing wrong with a puzzle game, it's better for sleep than a shooting game anyway, trust me. My brother plays loud online matches at midnight and wakes up angry the next day. I do a word game for about fifteen minutes before bed and sleep like a baby. Your cousins will get it after their first really stressful job, wait and see.