Just one more level

It's 10 pm. The TV is on, but you're not really watching. On your phone, coloured bubbles pop, jewels line up, a little tune plays: level 1,347. You lose by one move. "Just one more." Forty minutes later you're out of lives, and the game offers you five more for €0.99, or a 30-second ad. It's only a harmless little game. So why is it so hard to put down?

Not just a kids' thing

When people picture "gamers," they imagine teenagers with headsets. The reality is very different. In a large 2022 survey by AARP, the American organisation for people over 50, 45% of adults aged 50 and over played digital games, and almost half of them played every day. Their favourite device by far was the smartphone (84%), and their favourite games were exactly the simple ones: puzzle and logic games (73%), card and tile games (69%) and word games (58%).

They also played a lot: on average 12 hours a week, up from 8.5 hours in 2019. Women were more likely than men to play daily (52% vs 37%). These are US figures, and I couldn't find comparable Greek data, but anyone who has looked over a shoulder on a Greek bus, in a waiting room or on a balcony in the evening will recognise the picture.

Why something so simple is so sticky

Casual puzzle games look innocent, and mostly they are. But many of them are built by large companies with one goal: to keep you coming back. Here is how.

1. Tiny levels, no natural end. Each level takes a couple of minutes, and the next one starts with a single tap. There's never a moment where the game says "that's enough for today." Just like a social media feed, the stopping point has to come from you.

2. The "so close!" feeling. Losing by one move feels very different from losing badly. In a study of 60 regular Candy Crush players, researchers measured heart rate and asked players how they felt after each round. Near-misses, where they were just one step short, made their hearts beat faster, were rated the most frustrating outcome, and produced the strongest urge to keep playing of any result, even more than winning. It's the same trick slot machines use. The authors concluded it may help explain why people play longer than they meant to.

3. Unfinished business. The map of levels stretches ahead, a star is still missing on level 212, and a "daily reward" waits if you log in tomorrow. Streaks, collections and progress bars all give your mind something left to finish, and an unfinished task keeps tugging at us.

4. Lives and timers. When you run out of lives, you can wait, pay or watch an ad. Waiting sounds like a break, but it's really an appointment. The game notifies you when your lives are full, and you're pulled back in at regular intervals throughout the day.

5. It feels calming. Matching colours takes just enough attention to push worries aside, but not so much that it feels like work. That gentle "switch-off" is real, and it's a big part of the appeal. It's also why, on a lonely or anxious evening, one game can quietly become two hours.

Where the money comes from

Most of these games are free to download. The money comes from ads and small purchases: extra lives, boosters, "gold bars" or "gems." Those virtual currencies are no accident. When you pay in gems instead of euros, it's harder to feel what you're actually spending. In the AARP survey, older gamers spent on average $49 every six months on games and gaming equipment. That's modest for most, but averages hide the few who spend much more.

Regulators have noticed. In March 2025, the EU's network of consumer protection authorities adopted key principles on in-game virtual currencies: prices should be clear and transparent, games shouldn't hide what content really costs or force players to buy currency, and vulnerable consumers deserve particular protection.

Is it an addiction?

The WHO recognises gaming disorder: a pattern, usually lasting at least a year, where you lose control over playing, gaming takes priority over other interests and daily duties, and you keep going despite clear harm. For most people who pop bubbles in the evening, that's not what is happening. The more common problem is quieter: time that slips away without you choosing it, hours that could have gone to a walk, a phone call, a book or sleep.

The bottom line

There's nothing wrong with enjoying a puzzle game. The question is the same as for every habit in this series: do you decide when to stop, or does the game? If "one more level" regularly turns into an hour you didn't plan, the game is doing exactly what it was designed to do. Noticing that is the first step to playing on your own terms.

If gaming has started to feel out of control, or you notice you play mainly to avoid loneliness or worry, it's worth talking to your doctor or a psychologist. Those feelings deserve attention in their own right.

Educational guidance, not diagnosis or medical care.