6 Easy Coding Games For Programming Beginners
Coding games are a fantastic option if you’re new to programming and looking for a quick and enjoyable way to get started. The primary objective of coding games is to make the learning process engaging and entertaining, keeping learners focused longer than traditional video or text tutorials.
Numerous studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of coding games in helping people learn programming more efficiently. Plenty of easy coding games are available that cater to beginners at any age, whether adults or children, regardless of their prior coding experience.
To assist you in finding the perfect game within your budget and to meet your specific learning requirements, we will explore some of the most popular and beginner-friendly coding games that have helped millions of learners kick-start their coding journey.
1. CodeSpark Academy
CodeSpark Academy is another coding platform created to help children learn programming fundamentals. This platform mainly targets kids between 5 and 9 years old but can also be used by those older than this. The platform offers a collection of video games and interactive tasks, each designed to teach specific sets of coding skills.
Children as young as five can enjoy games like The Foos, RoboPlay, or Spritebox, which foster problem-solving skills and introduce basic coding concepts. Fortunately, CodeSpark Academy is available on all major mobile platforms, including iOS and Android.
Regarding pricing, CodeSpark Academy offers a 7-day free trial and two subscription options at $4.17 per month if you pay for two years or $5.83 per month billed annually at $69.99.
2. CodeKarts
This is among the top-rated coding games on almost every mobile platform. The game is for kids aged four and above. CodeKarts aims to teach young children programming basics and logical thinking.
The game’s main feature is the ability to design and program a car to move around an obstacle course. Using drag-and-drop coding blocks, children can navigate their car through the track, solving increasingly challenging puzzles.
The first ten levels of CodeKarts are free, but an in-app purchase of $0.99 is required to access the remaining levels. CodeKarts is available on all popular mobile platforms, including iOS, Android, and the Amazon App Store.
3. Kodable
With over 23 million users in the US alone, Kodable is one of the most popular coding games. Its intuitive and straightforward interface makes it easy for beginners to learn programming concepts through drag-and-drop programming blocks. Players control an adorable fuzzball creature and guide it through various actions and movements on the screen.
Kodable has several levels that gradually increase in difficulty as the player progresses. Playing games on this platform allows students to learn several concepts, including loops, sequencing, functions, and conditionals.
Kodable is available for iOS devices (iPhone and iPad) and is at $9.99 per month or $79.99 per year. Alternatively, anyone can purchase a lifetime access for $149.99. We hope Kodable will create an Android app as well soon.
4. Robocode
Robocode is an open-source desktop coding game designed for beginners of all ages. When playing this game, learners are required to control tanks in virtual battles. They control these tanks by coding their tank’s movement, aiming, firing, and engaging in last-man-standing battles within virtual arenas.
Robocode provides APIs that allow players to interact with the virtual environment. The game is free to play and available on all major desktop platforms, including Windows, macOS, and Linux.
This game aims to teach learners fundamental programming concepts, including logic, algorithms, and object-oriented programming. Players of Robocode also have the opportunity to collaborate and learn from others.
5. Human Resource Machine
Human Resource Machine (HRM) is a puzzle-type Steam coding game set in an office environment. It is one of Steam’s top-rated (9/10) games, thanks to its intuitive interface and relatively shallow learning curve. This game aims to teach programming basics without requiring any prior programming experience.
When playing the game, players control an employee of the “Tomorrow Corporation” and learn programming concepts by writing programs to control their character’s actions. HRM uses a visual programming language with icon sets representing programming concepts.
The game is available on all the major mobile and desktop platforms, including Nintendo Switch, Android, Windows, iOS, Linux, and macOS. The game is priced at $5.99 if you buy it from Steam.
6. 7 Billion Humans
7 Billion Humans is another top-rated Steam coding game built to help individuals learn the fundamentals in a fun and engaging manner. This game is basically a puzzle that focuses on optimizing a large corporation’s workflow by writing code. When playing this game, players must program a workforce to perform tasks in specific orders, aiming to achieve maximum efficiency.
This game has over 60 levels of programming puzzles, making it ideal for complete beginners by offering a challenging experience after every level. Like most Steam coding games, 7 Billion Humans is available on all the major platforms, including Nintendo Switch, Android, Windows, iOS, Linux, and macOS.
Final Thoughts
We have provided an overview of popular coding games perfect for beginners who want to learn how to code. These games are for children as young as four or five years old.
They offer different difficulty levels, allowing players to tackle increasingly complex problems and develop problem-solving and critical-thinking abilities. You can select any of the six games we’ve discussed depending on your budget, specific learning needs, and preferred platform.
