In the 1980s and early 1990s, gamers like us would often play side-scrollers that offered little more than basic game mechanics. In response, our parents would frequently tell us to get outside and experience life beyond those simple games. While getting outside is still essential for our children’s development, the gaming industry has advanced tremendously over the decades, and there are now many video games that teach life lessons and essential life skills.
That’s not to say that I didn’t benefit from video games that teach life lessons like patience, perseverance, and eye-hand coordination. However, nowadays, kids are getting all of that, plus more, as games have evolved from simple side-scrollers to open worlds with complex puzzles.
As a parent, I’m always on the lookout for games that educate my children in fun, unique, and sometimes quirky ways they will love. These are my favorite 21 video games, which offer unique gameplay while delivering essential life lessons and skills that kids can apply from the screen to the real world.
Oregon Trail
Rating: E
About the Game: Parents who went to elementary and middle school in the 80s and 90s will immediately recognize this title. While the graphics have improved significantly, the game still manages to capture the same magic it did all those years ago. Parents, beware; you may find yourself falling in love all over again.
Lessons Taught: This game has taught generations about what life was like during the Western expansion era. Not only do kids learn the harsh reality of life before modern luxuries, but they also have to learn how to ration resources, complex decision-making (fording the river was always the bane of my existence), and adaptability to deal with problems as they arise.
Available On: PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Nintendo Switch
Rocket League
Rating: E
About the Game: Rocket League is a straightforward game where players use vehicles to play soccer. There is a certain amount of physics involved in playing this game, so it isn’t as straightforward as FIFA, but it’s not like players are going on side quests or anything.
Lessons Taught: While some people may stretch the benefits of Rocket League a little, there is still plenty that kids can glean from this game. For the most part, it teaches kids to think on their feet while also building teamwork skills and strategy.
Available On: PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Nintendo Switch
The Sims 4
Rating: T
About the Game: The Sims may not be as big as it once was, but it remains a recognizable title to this day. New generations – like my fifteen-year-old daughter – are starting to discover the world’s most literal RPG. For those who aren’t aware, the Sims is a digital version of the game of life where you do everything from chores to work to child-rearing.
Lessons Taught: While The Sims doesn’t teach hands-on life skills like cooking, it does remind you what happens if you ignore those tasks in real life. It teaches kids the importance of communication and relationship building. The reason this game is rated T for teens is that it tackles some more sensitive subjects in life, such as procreation and death. While it may make some parents uncomfortable, it is a great way to start a conversation about these topics with your kids.
Available On: PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X
Kerbal Space Program
Rating: E
About the Game: This game has been around for a while, and there is a new version on the horizon. However, as of now, it appears that Kerbal Space Program 2 will be exclusive to PC. In Kerbal Space Program, kids get to be little green aliens and build their spacecraft to explore a fictional galaxy.
Lessons Taught: Hidden in this fun game that kids will get hours of enjoyment out of are real-world engineering and problem-solving skills. The game isn’t easy, and kids will fail, but this game provides a safe space for them to learn how to fall and get back up. Kerbal Space Program challenges kids to be creative and test the limits of engineering and, to a lesser extent, simulates space flight.
Available On: PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X
Tetris
Rating: E
About the Game: Tetris has to be one of the most recognizable games of all time. The only people who logged more hours on Tetris in the 80s and 90s were our moms. Finding a place to fit all those blocks as they gradually fall faster and faster is way more fun than it sounds.
Lessons Learned: One might think that there are no life lessons to be learned from Tetris, but as an adult with terrible spatial awareness, I often recall my Tetris days whenever I needed to pack a suitcase. It also teaches kids to be adaptable if they make a mistake or the block they want is refusing to drop.
Available On: This beloved game is available in many forms over every console imaginable, but nothing beats playing it on the Switch handheld. The photo above is from Tetris 99 on the Switch.
Madden
Rating: E
About The Game: The Madden series is a beloved football franchise that gets a new entry every year. This game has evolved from its humble 16-bit beginnings to a truly immersive experience where you spend just as much time managing your team as you do playing.
Lessons Taught: Of course, there are the glaringly obvious lessons that any sport teaches, like good sportsmanship and playing until the whistle blows, but newer versions of Madden teach some profound life lessons. Now, kids can play in owner mode, which gives them the keys to the team’s purse. They can set ticket prices and sell concessions to generate revenue, which they can then use to acquire new players and fund stadium upgrades. It’s basically like taking an Entrepreneurship 101 class but having fun doing it.
Available On: Madden 26 will be available on PS5, Xbox Series X, and Nintendo Switch 2
Stardew Valley
Rating: E10+
About the Game: Stardew Valley is a farming RPG, which may not sound like fun, but it is. You start the game with a few dollars in your pocket and a farm and tools you inherited. It’s your job to cultivate your plot of land. A great way to describe this game is a mix between The Oregon Trail and The Sims.
Lessons Taught: There are so many real-life lessons that can be learned from this game. As Seth Turner pointed out on Medium, it teaches kids about investments because, at the end of the season, you must spend money on new seeds to prepare for the following season. It also shows that hard work is rewarded, and the journey is more important than the destination. Newer versions of the game can be played online, introducing a social component to the experience, although it is not a necessary part of the game.
Available On: PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Nintendo Switch
Carmen Sandiego 40th Anniversary Edition
Rating: E
About the Game: Carmen Sandiego is another one of those properties that have been around since today’s parents were yesterday’s kids. Although it is regularly updated (this version was released in January 2025), the main idea hasn’t changed significantly. However, in this version, instead of playing as yourself and chasing Carmen all around the world, you get to play as Carmen and chase other bad guys using her distinct gadgets.
Lessons Taught: The easy answer is geography and history. There are entire generations of kids who learned more from the Carmen Sandiego franchise than they did from textbooks. Along with that general knowledge, kids are forced to use problem-solving and critical thinking skills to catch the bad guys.
Available On: PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Nintendo Switch
Civilization VII
Rating: E10+
About the Game: The Civilization franchise has been around since MS-DOS, and it’s safe to say it has only improved since then. This world-building game is everything the title says. You are tasked with building a civilization turn by turn until you have a thriving empire.
Lessons Taught: The lessons learned from this game are all real-life lessons that will help kids in the real world as they grow. There is a touch of learning about history, but the game is way more about what it takes to build a thriving civilization, so kids learn about diplomacy, economics, and governance.
Available On: PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Nintendo Switch
Nintendo Game Builder Garage
Rating: E
About the Game: The title says it all. This game is designed to help kids learn how to build their games through a series of fun challenges. Kids love being able to build and test games they made themselves.
Lessons Taught: This game teaches children basic visual coding skills that they can apply in real-world settings, both in school and in the workplace.
Available On: Nintendo Switch
Microsoft Flight Simulator
Rating: E
About the Game: Flight Simulator is precisely what the name suggests. Players get to simulate flying airplanes around the world. This never gets boring, but there is a variety of planes to choose from, so you get a different experience every time.
Lessons Taught: Obviously, learning the mechanics of flying a plane in a safe environment is priceless. It also teaches geography, improves reaction time, and promotes situational awareness.
Available On: Xbox One, Xbox Series X
Rocksmith+
Rating: T
About the Game: When I was my kids’ age, Guitar Hero was all the rage. I had grown out of it by the time Rockband came around, and I was always a little jealous of the kids who got to play drums. Those games were literal child’s play compared to Rocksmith+, which teaches you how to play real instruments the way Guitar Hero and Rockband taught us to play cheap plastic ones.
Lessons Taught: This one is laser-focused on the critical skill of learning how to play an instrument. It works with pianos and keyboards in addition to acoustic, electric, and bass guitars.
Available On: PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X
Roller Coaster Tycoon Adventure Deluxe
Rating: E
About the Game: Believe it or not, this game was the inspiration for this piece. This unassuming game, where you build your amusement park, is full of life lessons for kids. The object of the game is simple: you want to create the best amusement park you can imagine and continue to bring in new guests. While the idea is simple, running an amusement park and keeping guests happy is more challenging than one may think.
Lessons Taught: Rollercoaster Tycoon offers numerous real-life lessons, including risk management. For instance, your new roller coaster may look cool and exciting, but is it hurting your guests? The most important lesson is financial literacy, as kids learn how to take out a loan, how to budget, how to plan for expansion, and what return on investment is. In addition, kids gain a taste of work experience as they are responsible for keeping customers happy and addressing any complaints that arise.
Available On: PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Nintendo Switch
Family Trainer
Rating: E
About the Game: Family Trainer is a straightforward exercise game that the whole family can enjoy. Players can participate in mini-games that require physical activity, such as jumping, squatting, and stomping.
Lessons Taught: Fitness is a lifelong lesson and great to learn at a young age. In addition, kids get to “experience” and learn about activities like kayaking and snowboarding in a safe environment, which may stoke more interest in those activities in the future.
Available On: Nintendo Switch
Minecraft
Rating: E10+
About the Game: Minecraft is big in my house because I have an aspiring architect who can’t get enough of digging and building. Her current obsession is building hidden rooms in houses. For the uninitiated, Minecraft is a 3D sandbox game where kids can play by themselves or online and mine for minerals to build various items, from tools to buildings. You can also interact with other players online and watch out for little gremlins called creepers that blow up and destroy your hard work.
Lessons Taught: According to my 12-year-old, the biggest lesson that Minecraft teaches is the importance of being creative. Creativity is the primary goal of Minecraft, but kids learn all kinds of lessons from this game, including rationing resources, problem-solving, collaboration, and earth science.
Available On: PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Nintendo Switch
Trancelation
Rating: E
About the Game: Trancelation comes dangerously close to breaking its cover as an educational game, but it’s so fun your kids won’t care if they are learning. Players navigate brightly colored balls through a trippy background, collecting points by pairing matching words from different languages.
Lessons Taught: This is a language-learning game disguised as an arcade-style romp. Kids will learn a life-long skill that positively changes the structure of their brains.
Available On: Nintendo Switch
Overcooked: All You Can Eat
Rating: E
About the Game: At night, if you are quiet, you can hear my neighbors yelling at each other over this game. It’s all love, and they can’t get enough of Overcooked, where families are thrust into the dinner rush of a restaurant. Players work together to prep, cook, serve, and clean, all while trying to keep customers happy. The fact that this is a four-player couch co-op is incredible because it brings the whole family together. My neighbors, a family of five, say they usually have a non-player who acts as the manager, calling out what needs to be done and motivating the players.
Lessons Taught: This game teaches a wide range of real-life lessons, including the work that goes into cooking, how to handle high-stress environments and the importance of multitasking. My neighbor, however, says that the main life lesson this game teaches is the importance of practical communication skills and coordination.
Available On: PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Nintendo Switch
Niche – A Genetics Survival Game
Rating: E10+
About the Game: This is another game that masterfully tricks kids into learning. This time, it’s about biology, as players are tasked with breeding animals to survive in different environments and avoid predators. It’s a pretty simple game but more fun than you’d imagine.
Lessons Taught: Kids will love breeding generations of unique animals they create in their imaginations. Niche introduces the ideas of genetics and Darwin’s Theory of Evolution without getting into how those genetics combine. Players also learn the importance of adaptability and the strength and beauty that comes with diversity.
Available On: PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Nintendo Switch
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Rating: E
About the Game: While they aren’t the same, the Animal Crossing series could be described as a kid-friendly version of The Sims. Players are tasked with creating an island with families of animals that all work collaboratively to make the island a better place. Unlike The Sims, Animal Crossing is a lot more laid back and focuses more on decorating than day-to-day tasks.
Lessons Taught: Many of the lessons taught in this game are similar to those taught in other games. Kids will learn about rationing resources, problem-solving, and the importance of hard work. Additionally, what sets this game apart from the rest is its focus on building a community that works together to achieve goals and fosters a happy, thriving environment.
Available On: Nintendo Switch
Crusader Kings 3
Rating: T
About the Game: Crusader Kings 3 is by far the most mature entry on this list, but it does offer some legitimate life lessons. At its core, this game is about kingdom expansion. Players begin as characters from medieval times and build dynasties over generations while using diplomacy, war, and deceit to achieve their goals.
Lessons Taught: This one is intended for older kids, featuring more advanced lessons. Teens will have no idea that they are learning about history, religion, and government while playing Crusader Kings 3. The essential life lesson this video game imparts to players is that actions have consequences, and even decisions made with the best intentions can have adverse results.
Available On: Xbox Series X and PS5
Slime Rancher 2
Rating: E10+
About the Game: It may be rated E10+, but this game is perfect for the littles in your home. It’s a simple and relaxing game, but it still has lessons to learn. At its heart, this game is a farm simulator where you raise slime “livestock,” but it mainly relies on visual cues, so even your pre-readers can play.
Lessons Taught: You can make some stretches about what this game teaches, but the most essential thing Sllime Rancher 2 teaches is how to care for others, even if they look or act differently than you.
Available On: Xbox Series X and PS5
