Fishdom

Most match-3 games give you points. Fishdom gives you tenants. Every level you beat earns the means to furnish an aquarium — plants, ornaments, backdrops, the works — and your fish move in and judge the result. Playrix took the standard swap-and-match board and bolted it to a virtual pet tank, and the combination has outlasted nearly everything else from its era.

The loop is honest: puzzles pay, decorating spends. Thousands of match-3 levels with the usual arsenal of boosters stand between you and each new piece of furniture, and new aquariums keep unlocking with new themes to interpret. The fish themselves are the feedback — dozens of species and pets to collect, swimming through whatever interior design decisions you've made for them.

Because this is a modern Playrix game, there's a social layer: team up with other players, compete in events and expeditions, and chase rewards like extra lives, boosters, and exclusive decorations. None of that is required for the core pleasure, though, which remains arranging fake plants for an audience of digital guppies.

The main game needs no internet connection at all — only competitions and some extras do — and it's free with optional purchases, including randomized items. If you like your puzzle games with something to show for them afterward, Fishdom leaves you a tank full of evidence.