Games for Long Car Rides
Talking games for the whole car, and how to set up the iPad for the long stretch.
Read more →Games for Kids Without Wifi
For planes, road trips and grandma's house: how to make sure a game really works offline before you leave, and what to do when the battery runs out.
"Offline" on a game's description doesn't always mean what you'd hope. Some games need a connection to start, to load the next level, or to show the ads that pay for them. The only way to be sure is to test at home, which takes two minutes.
Our own game, Oopsies, works in airplane mode: levels play offline, and progress syncs when you're back online.
The two-minute airplane-mode test
Do this at home, the day before you leave, for every game your child might ask for.
- Download and update on wifi. Big games can take a while. Oopsies is a 45.4 MB download, according to its App Store listing.
- Open each game once while online. Some games finish setting up on the first launch.
- Turn on airplane mode. Open Control Center (swipe down from the top-right corner, or up from the bottom on iPhones with a Home button) and tap the airplane. Check that wifi is off too: airplane mode can leave it on.
- Close the game completely and reopen it. Swipe it away in the app switcher. A game that was already running can hide problems.
- Play a full level, then start the next one. Watch for a "no connection" message, a level that won't load, an empty box where an ad should be, or a sign-in screen.
- Turn airplane mode off and check the progress is still there.
Oopsies offline: what to expect
Oopsies is free, rated 4+, with no ads and no in-app purchases, on iPhone, iPad, Mac (M1 or later) and Apple Vision Pro. Without a connection, every level still plays. Progress and leaderboard times wait on the device and sync when you're back online, so nothing is lost.
How long a level takes: each level is a single search, a crowd that starts small at the beginning of a world and grows by the end. Nobody can fail a level, and after 30 seconds without a find the game gives a hint (in most worlds, the Oopsie giggles and glows), so a level never drags on. With over 100 levels in many worlds, there's plenty for a long trip, and your child can stop between any two levels.
Which worlds for which moment
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Oopsies are hiding in the dark.
The screen is dark and your finger is the flashlight. Slow, absorbing searching for the long middle of a flight.
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Find every Oopsie of the family.
Find every Oopsie with glasses, or a hat, or a mustache. The trait is shown as a drawn icon, so kids who can't read yet can play alone.
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Two Oopsies are exactly alike.
Nobody tells you who to find: spot the two identical Oopsies in the crowd. The hardest kind of search, for older kids with time to fill.
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Wipe the window to find the Oopsie.
Wipe the steamed-up window with a finger to see who's behind it. Very hands-on, good for restless moments.
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Pop the bubble with the right Oopsie.
Oopsies float up in bubbles and you pop the right one. Quick and lively, for short bursts between snacks.
Settings to change before you go
- Sound: the speaker button at the top right of Oopsies' home screen turns off every sound in the game. On a plane, that or headphones.
- Timer: the stopwatch button on the home screen hides the timer and the "+10 s" for a wrong tap. Useful when a race would end in tears.
- Stay in one app: Guided Access keeps the iPad in Oopsies until you enter a code. Turn it on in Settings, then Accessibility, then Guided Access, and set a passcode. Open the game, triple-click the side button (or the Home button), and tap Start. Its options can also set a time limit.
- Battery: lower the brightness and pack a charger or battery pack. A screen that's off saves more than any setting.
When the battery runs out
Keep a few games that need nothing at all:
- I spy, with colors for the youngest and first sounds for early readers. Our I spy page has more variations.
- 20 questions: one person thinks of an animal, the others ask yes-or-no questions.
- Draw an Oopsie: a square, a face, and one silly detail (glasses, a mustache, a tiny hat). Then give it a name and a ridiculous life story.
- Story chain: everyone adds one sentence to the same story.
- Printed puzzles: print a few of our free search-and-find sheets before you leave.
Questions about games without wifi
Does Oopsies need wifi?
No. Oopsies works in airplane mode: levels play offline, and your progress and leaderboard times sync once you're back online. Download it, and open it once, while you still have a connection.
Will my child lose progress playing offline?
No. Progress is kept on the device while you're offline and syncs the next time the iPhone or iPad is online.
Does it work on a plane?
Yes, it works in airplane mode. Turn the sound off with the speaker button on the home screen, or use headphones.
Are there ads that need the internet?
Oopsies has no ads and no in-app purchases, so there's nothing to load and nothing to buy. Some free games behave differently when they can't load ads: the airplane-mode test above will show you.
Does it work on a wifi-only iPad?
Yes. It's the same as an iPhone in airplane mode: download it at home, then play anywhere.
Download Oopsies before you go
Free, no ads, no in-app purchases, and it works in airplane mode. Progress syncs when you're back online.
Oopsies facts come from the game itself and its App Store listing. Last edited October 16, 2026.
