Smash your to-do list while watching the world roll by in free train window productivity tool On Track

Once upon a time, my favourite place to write was on trains. Specifically, laidback intercity services with nobody else in the quiet car and certainly, none of those screeching smaller bipeds, or "children" as they are scientifically known. That idyll is now lost to me thanks to Covid: I have vulnerable family members and continue to be careful about social distancing. As such I spend most train journeys these days lurking between carriages, trolling the door sensors and scowling furiously at anybody who visits the loo. But now, thanks to the obscene magic of video games, I can get my fill of authorial locomotivation once again.

The video game in question is On Track (Steam link), which isn't a game at all but a productivity booster that consists of a blissful carriage view of Proteus-esque hillsides, lakes and forests. I'm not convinced by "productivity-boosting software" - I think the whole thing is a massive con, frankly. But I'll happily choo choo choose this one.

The productivity element of On Track consists of a to-do list, perched below the window, and a timer. There's optional lo-fi music (no thanks) and Sir Or Madam's Choice of ambient audio - you can make the train louder and even turn up the hubbub from other, unseen passengers. The geography evolves a little as you complete tasks. Expect "surprises", though probably nothing that'll jolt you out of your seat, such as a nudist in a passing locomotive, or finding yourself unexpectedly in the world of Metro Exodus.

You can slow down or stop the train at any time to investigate these surprises - ideal for simulating the classic LNER experience of having your journey delayed by 45 minutes, because a solitary potato crisp fell out the rear window of the next train along. Many great novels have been written during such lulls, though so far not by me.

On Track launches today, and will be free to play. Phoenix, Arizona-based developers GigaTank3000 are also the creators of the relatively unchill Kaiju Catastrophe, in which you run around procedurally generated SimCities as Godzilla. There's a demo for that - perhaps it'll help you reach inbox zero, if you take Godzilla for a rampage in carefully controlled, endorphin-boosting five minute bursts? For a cuddlier variety of productivity tool, check out Weyrdlets.