Which genres actually fit a five-minute break

We don't all play in long cozy stretches. A lot of mobile gaming happens in the gaps — waiting rooms, lifts, the last five minutes before a meeting. Some genres handle that beautifully and others punish you for it.

Casual and arcade games are the obvious winners. They load fast, they save instantly, and losing a round costs you nothing. That's why something like a quick mini-game bundle keeps earning space on my phone over flashier titles.

Strategy and RPGs are trickier. The good ones let you queue actions and save mid-turn, so a five-minute dip still moves you forward. The bad ones trap you in a battle you can't pause, which is a fast way to get a game uninstalled.

My rule of thumb: before committing to a game for commute play, check how fast it suspends and resumes. If closing the app loses progress, it's a sofa game, not a pocket game.