Space games are great time wasters for Windows 10, allowing you to tap into your imagination regarding what the future may hold (minus the body-snatching alien hordes).
The Windows Store has a huge selection of games in which space is the backdrop, ranging from mobile installments of the Halo franchise of games to Angry Birds Space. It is a broad genre of games, but we looked high and low in the Windows Store for the best games available that send you into the final frontier.
That includes games that have you exploring a mysterious planet, piloting a starship across the depths of out space or using the Force to defeat the Dark Side. We kept the console titles, such as Gears of War, Titanfall or COD Infinite Warfare, out of the mix. Instead, we focused on titles that are available for Windows 10 Mobile or PC.
Updated March 8, 2017: We made a few changes to this article based on new releases, reader input and staff debate. There are some new titles in the mix, as well as those that we continue to view as the best from the Windows Store.{.update}
Angry Birds Space
The Angry Birds franchise is filled with entertaining games to spend a little down time with. Angry Birds Space takes the endless battle between pigs and birds to the depths of outer space with over 300 levels of play that span 10 planetary systems.
Gameplay follows suit with other Angry Birds titles, with you launching an assortment of birds, each with unique abilities, from a slingshot to destroy enemy pigs and their fortresses. What sets Angry Birds Space apart from the original game is the role gravity has to play in lining up your shots.
Levels have you launching birds through gravity-free zones, into atmospheric conditions where a planet's gravity impacts a shot or a combination of the two. The planet's gravitational pull helps with trick shots when a straightforward approach isn't possible.
Along with the primary levels of gameplay, Angry Birds Space includes daily missions that when completed unlock additional levels of play. You have three missions to complete per day. The overall experience with Angry Birds Space is a fun challenge for your skills at strategy, patience and timing. It is a free game, with in-app purchase opportunities, and it is available for Windows 10 Mobile.
Download Angry Birds Space from the Windows Store
Star Wars Commander
You cannot talk about space games without having a Star Wars title in the mix. While Angry Birds Star Wars is a fun game, we went with the more traditional approach with Star Wars Commander. You can choose to fight for the Rebellion or the Empire, and you build your base and strike out against the enemy.
Available for Windows 10 PC and Mobile, Star Wars Commander includes iconic characters such as Darth Vader, Han Solo, Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia. You command units to deploy AT-ATs, Speeder Bikes, legions of Stormtroopers and more into battle.
The Windows 10 game's backdrop includes the likes of Hoth, Yavin 4 and Dandoran, to give it a classic Star Wars feel. Troops, heroes and gear can be upgraded as you progress through the game to enhance their skills and abilities. You can also team up with friends and allies to form the ultimate force. A recent update to the game has brought characters and locations from the Star Wars Rogue One movie.
Star Wars Commander is a free game with the customary in-app purchase opportunities. While I would love to see Star Wars Battlefront come to Windows 10 Mobile, Star Wars Commander is still a challenging strategy game.
Download Star Wars Commander from the Windows Store
Space Racing 3D
Space Racing 3D is a fast-paced, arcade racing game for Windows 10 that sends you to the depths of space for gravity defying laps around the track. Available for Windows 10 PC and Mobile, the free game offers three game modes and more than 40 races to compete in.
Space Racing 3D includes eight different ships that can be unlocked and upgraded with your racing earnings. You can also arm your ships with rockets to take out your opponents or defeat them the old fashion way by out racing them. You also have speed boosts and shields to help you survive the race tracks.
Graphics are detailed and offer a nice sci-fi atmosphere for the game. Controls include the option to use your tilt sensors for steering or on-screen controls, with the PC version supporting keyboard controls. While not as intense as other racing games in the Windows Store, Space Racing 3D offers a fun mixture of racing and combat elements.
Download Space Racing 3D from the Windows Store
Los Aliens
Los Aliens is an addictive space-based puzzle game that is available for Windows 10 PC and Mobile. The game is from the creative group over at Game Troopers and has you exploring new worlds, encountering new life forms and discovering civilizations.
This Windows 10 game has 170 handcrafted levels, 18 different gamepads and creatures to add challenges to the game, and two types of game modes.
Gameplay has you bouncing your alien around a game board to create connections that span the board, capture alien creatures and more. Each level has defined goals that need to be met within a limited number of moves or against a game timer.
Los Aliens is a free game with colorful graphics and a challenging difficulty level. While it may lack the action and adventure of other space games in the Windows Store, it provides a boatload of strategic outer-space puzzles to lose track of time with.
Download Los Aliens from the Windows Store
Halo: Spartan Assault
It may be a little dated, but the Halo series of games has stood the test of time, and Halo: Spartan Assault delivers an entertaining chapter of the Halo saga to your Windows 10 PC or Mobile device. You battle through 30 action-packed missions against the Covenant in this Xbox Live Windows 10 game.
Halo: Spartan Assault includes weekly challenges, new customizations to unlock and Xbox achievements to earn. You also have the ability to earn emblems that carry over to the Halo 4 console game.
You play this strategy game from overhead view with simple, touchscreen controls and detailed graphics. If you are playing from a non-touchscreen device, Halo: Spartan Assault also supports keyboard and mouse controllers, as well as Xbox controllers.
Logging in with your Microsoft account allows you to synchronize gameplay between devices. While the game plays out nicely from the mobility of your Windows Phone, a larger screen pulls out more detail with the game.
Halo: Spartan Assault costs $2.99, and if you are on the fence about taking the leap with the game, there is a Lite Version available for free. The Lite Version offers you access to the first mission, which is more than enough to let you decide if the full game is for you.
Download Halo: Spartan Assault from the Windows Store
Rabbids Big Bang
Rabbids Big Bang is a physics-based game for Windows 10 Mobile in which you must complete a series of missions by sending a rabbit into orbit. The Xbox Live game offers up 150 silly and challenging missions that span 10 galaxies. The missions range from collecting coins that are suspended in space to successfully orbiting a planet multiple times.
Gameplay is simple. You send a rabbid into orbit by smacking him (or it) with a baseball bat. Once in orbit around the planet and at the mercy of the planet's gravitational forces, you can use a jetpack to steer the rabbid around to complete each mission. Space cows and ducks appear from time to time to help guide your rabbid, much like a pinball bumper guides the ball around the pinball table.
Coins collected and earned during gameplay can be used to customize your rabbid's jetpack, as well as unlock new bats, helmets and other appearance customizations. Rabbids Big Bang is an odd sort of Windows 10 game, but it's also addictive and entertaining.
Currently priced at $0.99, this Windows 10 game is a fun challenge, not only for your skills at strategy but also for your imagination and creativity in discovering a successful flight path for your rabbid.
Download Rabbids Big Bang from the Windows Store
If you have tried any of the games listed in today's roundup, let us know what you think in the comments. We only scratched the surface of all the entertaining space games in the Windows Store, and if we overlooked your favorite Windows 10 space game, feel free to toss out your recommendation.