The 5 best simulator games to play right now (part 2).

 

The 20 best simulator games to play right now

15.  Cities: Skylines 

Available on: PC, Xbox One, and PS4

After the much fêted but flawed SimCity reboot, Cities: Skylines thankfully came along in 2015 to restore the city-sim genre to its former glory. By offering contemporary reworkings of Maxis’ original 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. 

It’s one of the few simulator games that’s also available on console, too, and Cities: Skyline’s sleek user interface turns the comfort of a controller into a totally viable and enjoyable option for those less inclined to the mouse and keyboard. 

14. Thief Simulator

(Image credit: Noble Muffins)

Available on: PC and 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, then 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!

13. Football Manager 2020

(Image credit: SI Games)

Available on: PC, Nintendo Switch, Mac, iOS and Android

The classic sports managing sim returns to the pitch for another game. With over 200 teams and 116 leagues across 51 nations, Football Manager 2020 offers an in-depth football experience. Splash the cash on big-name transfers, or train the stars of the future through the all-new Development Centre. As a manager, create new play strategies for upcoming matches and watch the game unfold, and define your vision for the club’s future, molding its culture, objectives, and long-term plan for success. With such wide-ranging possibilities at your fingertips, this really is a Beautiful Game.

 12. Silent Hunter 3 

Available on: PC

It’s still a relatively unknown piece of trivia that one of the best submarine simulator games out there comes from a Ubisoft studio, but don’t worry, there isn't a watchtower to be found in the open seas of Silent Hunter 3. Instead, the third game in the WWII-set series was praised for its attention to detail and action-oriented battles. 

Even if the ins and outs of historical watercraft aren't your thing (understandably), Silent Hunter 3’s meaty campaign is worth playing for its enrapturing atmosphere and open-ended pace. There’s a somber beauty to the destruction too, with the lavish detail designed to draw you in and keep you there, even when the intensity of the warfare becomes almost overwhelming. 

11. PC Building Simulator

(Image credit: Irregular Corporation)

Available on: PC, Xbox One, PS4 and Nintendo Switch

Taking its title ultra-seriously is PC Building Simulator by Romanian indie developer Claudiu Kiss. Aiming to create the most realistic experience you can get without having to wield a can of pressurized air, the game benefits from a long list of real-life components from hardware producers such as Intel, AMD, and Nvidia. Choose between career mode, where you’ll be upgrading, repairing, and virus-zapping according to the needs of your clients, or build the gaming PC of your electric dreams in free build mode.