8 Cool Car Games for Kids Who Love Technology
Tech gadget – ON. Brain – OFF? Help your kids do things differently this summer. We’ve researched the top on-the-go games for kids who can’t get enough of their tablet, smartphone, or Nintendo Switch—just in time for your next family road trip.
Keep in mind that some of these games are for younger kids, while others are for big kids and pre-teens. Also, some games are specific to certain devices like Asus and Lenovo tablets, Apple or Android smartphones, or the Nintendo Switch. Read on to learn about kid-friendly car games, their recommended age ranges, and device compatibility!
Fun Car Games for Kids
1. Sago Mini World (Amazon, Apple App Store, Google Play)
Price: Free
Ages: 2-5 years
This is a great all-in-one game app for toddlers and younger kids. Sago Mini World contains more than 25 games.
In Sago Mini World, you can travel with Harvey, Jinja, Robin, and Jack as you explore space, fly through a forest, build a robot, design a monster, drive a firetruck, go deep-sea diving, transform into a superhero, and more.
2. Toca Life: Vacation (Amazon, Apple App Store, Google Play)
Ages: 4+ years
Price: $3.99
What’s more appropriate than playing a vacation app while you’re on vacation?
In Toca Life: Vacation, your child (or you) can dash through the airport to catch a flight, jump on a hotel bed, hunt for buried treasures on the beach, and much more. On top of that, they can find out who inhabits the seafloor, hunt for secret compartments, and investigate a mysterious statue.
Plus, they can work their creative minds with an in-app recording feature that enables kids to create original videos up to two minutes long.
3. Professor Astro Cat’s Solar System (Amazon, Apple App Store, Google Play)
Ages: 7-10 years
Price: $3.99
Your kid can blast off into space and learn about the wonders of the universe—from the safe comfort of their booster seat. With Professor Astro Cat and his Friend Astro Mouse, children can delve into fun, educational content on planets, moons, spacecrafts, and more. Your child can even build a rocket, creating it by winning “jetpack challenge” medals that serve as currency for spaceship parts. Talk about a meow-velous car game!
4. Minecraft (Amazon, Apple App Store, Google Play)
Ages: 7+ or 13+ years old*
Price: $26.95
In Minecraft, a player can explore infinite worlds, building everything from “the simplest of homes to the grandest of castles.”
“Play in creative mode with unlimited resources or mine deep into the world in survival mode, crafting weapons and armor to fend off dangerous mobs. Create, explore, and survive alone or play with friends on all different devices,” the game’s maker says.
The game even lets you play to earn unique maps, themes, and texture packs developed by Minecraft engineers.
*Age restrictions vary by the generation of Minecraft being played. Additionally, the multiplayer nature of the game makes it difficult to age-rate precisely. The best practice for Minecraft and other multiplayer games is to set up preferences and privacy settings with your kids to regulate the content they can and can’t see.
5. Zoombinis (Amazon, Apple App Store, Google Play)
Ages: 8+ years
Price: $4.99
In Zoombinis, a player guides little blue creatures through fun, increasingly challenging puzzles as they venture to Zoombiniville while trying to escape the evil “Bloats.” Each of the 12 puzzles has four levels, with the first level being the easiest and the fourth being the hardest.
6. Monument Valley (Amazon, Apple App Store, Google Play)
Ages: 7+ years
Price: $3.99
In Monument Valley, a player manipulates architecture and geometry, and guides a silent princess through a “stunningly beautiful world.” Along the way, the princess encounters mysterious monuments, hidden paths, optical illusions and, worst of all, the strange Crow People.
7. Color Zen (Nintendo Switch and Google Play)
Ages: All ages
Price: Free
This puzzle game “invites you to put on your headphones, relax, and find your way through an abstract world of colors and shapes.”
“There are no points or penalties for failure; just an abstract world of color to move through at your own pace,” the game’s maker says.
8. Build a Bridge! (Nintendo Switch)
Ages: 5+ years
Price: $14.99
In Build a Bridge!, your child can develop his or her engineering and ingenuity skills by constructing bridges for cars, trucks, buses, and even monster trucks.
A player plans and builds a bridge in 2D mode, using materials like wood, metal, and cables, and then watches a vehicle attempt to cross it in 3D mode. Whether the vehicle makes it across the bridge or not depends on the physical integrity of the bridge! The game features more than 80 levels.
With a little planning and an arsenal of tech and car games for kids, you can make sure your next road trip achieves next-level fun. Head to your nearest Rent-A-Center for a new Lenovo or Asus tablet, smartphone, or Nintendo Switch. We’ll get your kids set up with the right on-the-go technology so you can buckle up for a few miles of peace and quiet!