The 15 best simulator games to play in 2026

If you're looking to get stuck into the best simulator games currently available in 2026, then you've come to the right place.

As a genre that's fit to bursting with fantastic experiences that capture everything from running your own businesses to piloting planes, and much more besides, we've done the leg work for you by bringing together the 15 best simulator games around.

From games like The Sims, to some of the best city building games, you'll find plenty of picks here that simulate all kinds of experiences, so you're sure to find something to suit you here. Happily, we're seeing new games land in this genre all the time, so we'll be keeping new considerations in mind as more releases come our way - such as the likes of the spellbinding magic school life sim, Witchbrook - but while we await fresh arrivals, read on below to check out our pick of the best simulator games you can play right now.

The 15 best simulator games of all time, starting with...

15. Fruitbus

Developer: Krillbite Studios
Platforms: PC, Xbox Series X/S, PS5, Switch

If you're looking for an adorable, laidback simulation experience that revolves around the culinary arts, you can't go wrong with Fruitbus. Set in the open-world of Gustum, which is yours to forage for ingredients, you set up your very own food truck.

With a menu to create and home-cooked delights to make, you venture from place to place serving up your dishes to locals and foster a customer base as you plate up their orders. As you progress, you can also work to upgrade your kitchen and refine your recipes. It's one satisfying foody adventure that's well worth checking out.

14. Thief Simulator

Developer: Noble Muffins
Platforms: PC, PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch

Are you a hardened criminal? Then Thief Simulator by Noble Muffins isn't the game for you. But if you're just a regular normie dreaming of a life of villainy, this open-world burglary simulator may be just what you’re looking for.

Scout out the neighborhood for houses to hit and spy on their occupants to work out their daily routines. Then it's time to go in with your janky black van and your diverse set of thieving tools and nick everything that's not nailed down. Pick locks, rejig security systems, and cut holes in windows to become the best bad guy on the block. Just make sure you don't get caught! If you are a fan of sneaking about, you can also check out our list of the best stealth games of all time.

13.  Euro Truck Simulator 2  

Developer: SCS Software
Platforms: PC

Who knew a game about driving a truck could be so addictive? SCS Software did, clearly, as their trucking sim sequel is currently one of the highest-rated games on Steam, sitting above the likes of Dishonored, Civilization V, and Half-Life 2. The reality is that Euro Truck Simulator 2 offers that devastating blend of being both immensely relaxing and fiercely captivating, with the pleasant journeys along your designated trade routes segmented by junctures of deep strategy as you consider factors such as fuel, finance, and furbishing your ride with new upgrades.

Euro Truck Simulator 2's greatest achievement is that it isn't just a game made for transport enthusiasts, but the appeal extends to anyone with even the slightest appreciation for the simple pleasures of the open road. It may just be one of the best relaxing games that you can play right now.

12. Chef Life: A Restaurant Simulator

Developer: Cyanide
Platforms: PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, PC, Nintendo Switch

Chef Life: A Restaurant Simulator gives you all the control - from the look of your restaurant all the way down to the placement of individual peas on a plate. There's a lot to do when you're running a restaurant, so beyond learning how to make and subsequently plate each dish, you'll also have to manage your suppliers to ensure you've got enough ingredients and organize your team's shifts.

Get it wrong, and you'll be overwhelmed by the dinner rush, but get it right, and you'll feel the rush of running your restaurant to perfection. If you do it well enough, you'll see your place go from humble cafe to Michelin-starred establishment in no time.

11. Not for Broadcast

Developer: NotGames
Platforms: PC, PS5, PS4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S

The world of television is a fast-paced, high-stress place at the best of times, let alone in a dystopian alternate 1980s where broadcasts are actively censored. Although you're only the cleaner, you've accidentally found yourself behind the mixing desk of the biggest news program on TV, National Nightly News. Underqualified and at risk of falling foul of the shady powers behind the scenes, it is your job to select camera feeds, bleep out foul language, and choose the headlines that will be broadcast to the world.

Like its fellow bureaucrat simulator Papers Please, you can choose to play the dutiful pawn, or deliberately cause trouble. Whatever you decide, you only have a few seconds to act, because the news is going out live. The game's retro flavor, as well as its unusual use of live-action TV footage, creates a very engaging tone that compliments the tricky gameplay and the ethics of your new career as a propagandist.

10. Farming Simulator 25

Developer: Giants Software
Platforms: PC, Xbox Series X/S, PS5

The core of Farming Simulator's experience remains the same: buy more fields, upgrade equipment, and enjoy your day-to-day routine among the green hills as you raise crops and develop your land. The range of machines and equipment available to you is broad, with the kind of brands that are familiar household names (if you are a farmer).

As one of the most authentic farming experiences, the game is only enhanced in the latest iteration thanks to updated graphics, more crop varieties, and fresh features such as the addition of new weather challenges to contend with like hail and even twisters. Not only is it one of the best farming games you can play, but it's also one of the strongest entries in the long-running series that you can even enjoy with your pals.

9. Planet Coaster 

Developer: Frontier Developments
Platforms: PS5, PS4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PC

Of course, we couldn't have a best sims list without the sound of screams coming from a frankly dangerously designed theme park ride. But hey, it's what your guests are paying for, right? Planet Coaster, from management sim specialists Frontier Developments, is here to scratch all your old-school Rollercoaster Tycoon itches. Building your own Disneyland or Universal Studios has never been this much fun as you craft the park of your dreams from the flowerbeds up.

It can be a little intimidating for first-time players as there's just SO much to get to grips with as you build, organize, and staff your park. But once you've got the basics, Planet Coaster feels limitless and is easily one of the best single player games out there. There's also no chance of running out of new items with all the endless DLC packs on offer, so whatever kind of park you want to build, you'll find everything you want here. If you love this game, find out about its sequel in our Planet Coaster 2 review.

8. Jurassic World Evolution 3

Developer: Frontier Developments
Platforms: PC, PS5, Xbox Series X/S

Jurassic World Evolution 3 is the best dinosaur park simulator you can currently buy. Taking cues from Frontier Developments' other title, Planet Zoo, this sequel lets you breed dinosaurs for the first time ever and also comes with modular building, letting you truly create the park of your dreams. Be it campaign or sandbox mode, there is plenty for you to worry about and manage as well. As you can guess, having exhibits with dangerous reptiles sometimes results in escapes and guests being eaten, so you'll have to keep things safe. You'll also need to discover new DNA, research a bunch, and make sure your park is profitable as well.

In our Jurassic World Evolution 3 review, we did point out how this sim is on the easier side of things, but even if it doesn't offer a massive challenge to genre veterans, it's full of charm, and again, baby dinosaurs are the big ticket seller here as well.

7. Arcade Paradise

Developer: Nosebleed Interactive
Platforms: PC, Xbox Series X/S, PS5

Arcade Paradise is a multilayered simulation experience, since you're effectively trying to run two businesses, but its satisfying sense of progression and nostalgic feel (thanks to its '90s setting) make this one of the biggest highlights in the genre. Simulating the tasks of running a laundromat, you'll wash and dry clothes, keep the place tidy by collecting litter left by customers, and even keep the guest toilet spick and span.

But all the while, you're trying to flip the business into an arcade paradise. In the back room, you start out with just a few arcade machines that customers can play on while they wait. You can also spend your time playing on the machines to kill time while clothes are drying. As you earn more cash from the laundry and your machines, you can work to purchase more games and build your own arcade empire.

6. Tiny Bookshop

Developer: neoludic games
Platforms: PC, Switch

If you're after a cozy, laid-back simulation experience, Tiny Bookshop absolutely fits that bill. With a small, mobile bookstore that's attached to that back of your car like a trailer, you set up shop in various picturesque locations and sell second-hand books to the locals.

With life sim elements that come into play as you get to know the residents who pop by, there's also a level of management as you identify what kind of genres appeal to the customers who frequent each location and stock your shelves accordingly. Every now and then, a customer might ask for a recommendation, and it's up to you to point them to the best option. If love shop management or reading, you absolutely shouldn't skip this one.

5. The Sims 4 

Developer: Maxis
Platforms: PS4, Xbox One, PC, Xbox Series X/S, PS5

Maxis has added so many Expansion Packs, Stuff Packs, and Game Packs over the years that The Sims 4 now feels like hundreds of games in one. Maybe you want to look after an entire family of vampires or werewolves, or perhaps build yourself the ultimate tiny home, or live by the beach, or take on the lives of rich and famous sims, or even spend hours constructing the ultimate countryside mansion.

Whether you want to build or really want to dive into the lifestyle element that's constantly being updated with more diversity and depth, The Sims 4 is still the cream of the management crop. Comme en sna nah? Want to know which DLC is right for you? Head over to our list of the best Sims 4 expansion packs.

4. Two Point Museum

Developer: Two Point Studios
Platforms: PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PC

Not only is Two Point Museum the best simulator in the already fantastic Two Point series, but it has marked itself as one of the best games of 2025, so far. Holding all the cartoony whimsy and charm of past outings in the series, here you'll have to manage a variety of different museums with their own challenges and requirements. From sending experts out on expeditions for dangerous artifacts to trying to stop thieves from stealing your perfectly decorated and themed exhibits, there's a ton to do here.

You can manage guided tours, build up aquariums, ghost rooms, and check in with guests to make sure you hit their conditions for a profitable "dream visit." In short, no Two Point game has given you as much control and creative freedom as it does in Two Point Museum. For more details, read our Two Point Museum review.

3. Microsoft Flight Simulator 

Developer: Asobo Studio
Platforms: PC, Xbox Series X/S

The 2020 release of Microsoft Flight Simulator was the first time the series appeared on a console, and it was immediately right at home on Xbox Game Pass. If you've always wanted to take to the skies but never had the gaming PC to power your cloudy dreams, Asobo Studio's incredible sim is here to switch your brain to Airplane mode.

The game is a visual marvel, and the level of realism applied to the technicalities of flying is simultaneously impressive and terrifying. The nice thing, though, is the understanding that you might just want to take off and see the sights, in which case you can just turn on ALL the assists, and the game just becomes beautiful tourism. As a pilot, you can take in a photorealistic 4K planet Earth, complete with realistic weather, and whether you want to see the wonders of the world or just find your house, Microsoft Flight Simulator will happily oblige.

2. Cities: Skylines

Developer: Colossal Order Ltd.
Platforms: PS5, PS4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PC, Nintendo Switch

Cities: Skylines came along in 2015 to restore the city-sim genre to its former glory, offering a contemporary reworking of Maxis' original SimCity formula. Skylines feels like a modern city-sim in every sense of the word, and watching your metropolis expand and thrive in real-time has never looked so good. Seriously, this is one of the best city-building games you can play right now.

But don't worry, not too much has changed. Your city dwellers still REALLY don't like it if they live too close to the sewage plant or don't have clean water. Fussy. Cities: Skylines is also one of the growing number of simulator games that's available on console, too, and the sleek user interface turns the comfort of a controller into a totally viable, not to mention enjoyable, option for those less au fait with a mouse and keyboard. For more on this series, check out our Cities: Skylines 2 review.

1. PowerWash Simulator 2

Developer: FuturLab
Platforms: PC, PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch 2

The best simulation games serve us something that should be a chore and turn it into something dangerously compelling. PowerWash Simulator perfected this formula, keeping us hooked as we cleaned away mountains of dirt and grime. And, since its gameplay loop didn't need much tweaking PowerWash Simulator 2 gives us more of the same, only this time with a few extra features and a bunch of fresh content.

There's something truly meditative about tackling the maps of career mode as the muck disappears under gallons of water, with a rewarding pling as you finish each section, giving you a little soapmamine - wait, no dopamine - hit. Just another few hundred of those and this place will be sparkling… Oh, and you can even ask a friend to join you in co-op mode to get together for some good, clean fun.

If you are after more classics, check out our list of the best strategy games of all time.