I was in the waiting room at the dentist — one of those quiet, timeless zones where every second crawls. I opened the app store, expecting nothing, and downloaded the first game that didn’t look like a candy clone. It had a penguin. That’s all I noticed.

The moment the game started, I was racing down icy slopes, dodging fish crates, and jumping frozen gaps like my life depended on it. That tiny bird was moving fast, and so was my heartbeat. It didn’t take long for me to realize I wasn’t just passing time anymore — I was fully in it.

I later found out the name was Penguin Rush Game https://penguinrush.com/, though by then I’d already played half the levels. It had that perfect mix of cute and chaotic. You mess up, you restart. No pressure, no drama — just momentum and instinct.

It’s now a daily habit. Morning coffee? One run. On hold with customer service? Two runs. Waiting for the microwave? You guessed it.

Some games ask too much. This one just asks for your thumbs and gives you a rush in return. I downloaded it on a whim. I kept it because — unexpectedly — it made waiting feel like flying.