I’m a casual gamer who’s been largely inactive for the past few decades, and so I’m looking for some some good game recommendations. I don’t mind if they’re old as long as they came out after 2003 (because that’s when graphics of many games really started improving), maybe between 2008-2019. I’m also quite a picky gamer.
Here is a list of games that I’ve played before and that I liked (in no particular order):
The Stanley Parable
Counter-Strike: Source
Counter-Strike Global Offensive
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Grand Theft Auto V (just started playing this one)
Freeways
The Wizard’s Pen
Need for Speed: Most Wanted
Need for Speed: Heat
Shadow of the Tomb Raider
Simon Tatham’s Puzzle Game Collection
Minecraft
Hamsterball
Sifu
Tekken 6
SuperHOT
Papers Please
Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3
Accelerator (by TenebrousP)
The Professional
Paraopticon
Socrates Jones: Pro Philosopher
ir:rational
Viewport
Lyxo
Shadowess (by playchilla)
Duet (by Kumobius)
Chain Reaction
Gumslinger
Intersectiion Controller
Little Alchemy
Magic Survival (by Leme)
Spy Tactics
Kick Buttowski: Suburban Daredevil
Cyclomaniacs 2
Learn 2 Fly 2
Piano Tiles 2
The Sims 3
Plants vs. Zombies
Tetris (on Facebook)
Solitaire on Windows 7
Space Cadet Pinball
Purble Place
Here are games that I’ve played that I didn’t like:
Quake II RTX
Doom (1993)
Counter-Strike 1.6
Left 4 Dead
Half-Life
Speed Dreams
Assault Cube
Terraria
Minetest
Xonotic
Piano Tiles
Geometry Dash
Payback 2
Touchgrind Skate 2
Pixel Wheels
NBA 2K11
Defense of the Ancients
Dota 2
Sim City 2000
OpenRCT 2
OpenTTD
The Sims 4
Doki Doki Literature Club
Tetris (any other implementation I’ve tried)
Solitaire on Windows XP
Here are games I would like to avoid:
Battle Royale / Deathmatch- style games (Fortnite, PUBG, etc.)
MOBAs (League of Legends, Mobile Legends, etc.)
Hero shooters (Overwatch, Rainbow Six Siege, etc.)
Games with fantasy-based elements (Skyrim, The Witcher, Souls games etc.)
RPGs
Side-scrollers / Shoot-em-ups / Top-down games
Platformers
Horror/supernatural games (Resident Evil, Silent Hill, etc.)
Management games (Civilization, Cities: Skylines, etc.)
Artillery games
Outer-space/post-apocalyptic games (Halo, Fallout, etc.)
Cookie clickers / Walking simulators
Rhythm games
Sports games
Game adaptations of existing media (Star Wars games, Arkham games, etc.)
Board/card/gambling/collectible/gacha games\
Games that have microtransactions/required DLCs
Text adventures / Visual novels
Trivia games
VR games
Other than that, everything is fair game. I don’t have any aversion towards graphic language/gore/sex.
My tastes might be too specific, but I hope someone here may be able to provide me with a recommendation!
I’ve seen my friend play Sekiro before, and it did look pretty and fun. It seems similar to Sifu,. but with swords (?). I’d love to play it if it wasn’t so difficult.
"In the physics-based gameplay, the player swings large melee weapons and relies on centripetal force to give the object enough kinetic energy to destroy enemies. The demo release had six main types of weapons - four melee and two ranged.
The different weapon types offer a certain variety. To be a slow, but well-armored powerhouse using hammers or maces to deliver slow, but crushing blows, or a nimble, but poorly protected sword-wielder, delivering quick, but weak attacks, is entirely up to the player. The game also contains a few different play modes, such as a hunt on worms or a Hammerball game."
Definitely play The Beginner’s Guide. It was written by the same guy as The Stanley Parable, and it’s only about 1.5 hours long. It has one of the best endings I’ve experienced.
I get you, but the device can only render at its max frame rate, I don’t personally get satisfaction out of higher numbers than optimal.Either way I’m not worried about the less than 5% frame difference Ive got in testing. If I do, I can dual boot into my VM.
Totally fair! I’m just saying, none of my devices can surpass 144FPS on an Index, so it’s definitely better to boot native. It’s a lot more than 5% when you’re trying to hit as high of framerate as you can on an index hahaha
Wow! This would have been right up my alley if it wasn’t for the need of a VR headset! I’ll try to revisit this game in a few months once I get myself some gear.
I would just recommend you to refer to metacritic and see the best games of all time for PC if you’re using PC. My personal recommendation is certainly Baldur’s Gate 3. If you prefer multiplayer but would like to avoid the toxic community, then I suggest Deep Rock Galactic.
Have you played any of the Red Dead Redemption games? The second one is on PC and doesn’t require digging out an xbox 360/Playstation 3 to play the first if you don’t want to. You may find the story of the second slightly more rewarding if you are able to play the first, though, as the second game is a prequel to the first. Both are some of the best stories in video gaming, imo.
If you enjoyed Papers Please, you might enjoy Lucas Pope’s other major work, Return of the Obra Dinn. It’s a “solve the mystery” game, possibly the best one I’m aware of. It’s very engaging, it’ll make you feel like a genius, and it has basically no replay value.
One of my very, very favorite games is Subnautica. It is a survival game set on an ocean planet, and few games have captured me the way Subnautica did. I think you should go into Subnautica as blind as possible, but I will reveal a few things about it so you can decide if it’s for you: Unlike most survival games it is not inherently open-ended; it has a story that has an end, there is a victory condition to work toward. I would not call Subnautica “a horror game” because horror/scariness isn’t the point of the game, but it does have some scary things in it. By its nature it is also a trigger for thalassophobia aka fear of deep water.
You might enjoy Infinifactory by Zachtronics. It has Minecraft-like block placing gameplay, but you are given fixed immutable environments in which to build little assembly lines out of conveyors, welders, pushers, grinders etc. Of the Zachtronics games I think this is the most accessible, though like many of their games I think the difficulty curve is a little steep.
Among the three games you listed, Return of the Obra Dinn seems most interesting. Subnautica and Infinifactory still looks a little too sci-fi/alien-y for my tastes. Though regarding Infinifactory, I may seem to have played something like it before (which I forgot to include in the first list): 7 Billion Humans. I guess Infinifactory is more of a mechanical version of that…?
ObraDinn was really engaging but the graphics gave me a helluva headache, which is a shame because it seems like a great story with a lot of potential. I would recommend RoadWarden if you like games like this. It was so addicting. Its short but I fell in love with it.
The framing device for Infinifactory is you were abducted by aliens and they make you build little assembly lines. The story is very unimportant to the gameplay, it’s an excuse plot you can safely ignore. I’m not familiar with 7 Billion Humans, looking up a let’s play real quick…no Infinifactory isn’t much like that. First Infinifactory is first person 3D, it controls a bit like Minecraft. You have solid blocks, conveyors, rotators, welders and other such blocks you place in a 3D grid. When you press Run, ingredient blocks start popping out of dispensers, and there’s a goal that shows you what shape you need to make them into; and you have to build an assembly line that will continuously run; aka it’s possible to make an assembly line that works the first time but jams itself and can’t make the second one; to beat a level your factory has to produce ten correct samples in a row.
Subnautica is set in a future universe where humans have space travel, your player character is a crewman on a space ship that crashes on an alien ocean planet. It is a bit Sci-Fi but it is an incredibly good game.
If you can get Saints’ Row 2 or 3 working you may like them.
I know you don’t like management games but you might still enjoy Frostpunk as it’s a bit more like an RTS since it’s about build order when you really get down to it. It is apocalyptic but it’s hopeful rather tgan depressing (for the most part) or “haha you can do anything cus no laws”.
Man your list of nos really eliminates most of my repertoire… :P Have you considered XCOM, XCOM 2 or XCOM Chimera Squad?
Oh! Prey (2016) is a good immersive sim you might- oh it’s set in a space station, nvm…
Ah! Okay, this is a space game, but since you liked Stanley Parable you might be okay with this… Outer Wilds. Don’t look it up, you’ll spoil it. Just get it and play it, seriously. Get it on steam and use a timer so you can refund it if you hate it, but you really really really need to give it a shot.
Outer WIlds is a first person mystery adventure game. Knowledge is the only progression, so you must go in blind or you’ll really miss out on some of the experience. I love it, I hope you do too.
Also the DLC Echoes of the Eye is basically a sequel, and very very good too.
Not a specific game recommendation, but you should look into Xbox game pass. For $10-15 a month, you get access to a huge library of games. You’ll be able to try a bunch of stuff without having to commit to any purchases.
https://www.xbox.com/en-US/xbox-game-pass
How bout some Naughty Dog games? The Last of Us us more thriller (not horror), and while it has some scary moments, it happens to be post-apocalyptic, so naturally, the scary thriller aspect is there.
The whole Uncharted series is also great. It’s essentially a playable movie with dope character development and direction.
Since Dishonored and System Shock was already mentioned, I’ll also recommend the Thief trilogy (Thief: The Dark Project, Thief 2: The Metal Age and Thief: Deadly Shadows). Thief along with System Shock is one of the series which started the Immersive Sim genre, which Dishonored belongs to also. The third game came out in 2004 but I also recommend the first two because despite a lot less detailed graphics they imo have a lot better atmosphere and objectively better gameplay (a lot of the gameplay depth was cut in the third one to make it more playable on consoles, but it’s still a good game).
Another one I always tell people about is INFRA. It’s a pretty unknown puzzle/exploration game with excellent atmosphere and very high on my top of all time list. Highly recommend if exploring crumbling or long forgotten urban environments sounds like your thing.
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Please play the souls games.
Dark souls 1,2, and 3. And sekiro.
They are all super good
No microtransaction, good difficulty, and just fun af to play
I’ve seen my friend play Sekiro before, and it did look pretty and fun. It seems similar to Sifu,. but with swords (?). I’d love to play it if it wasn’t so difficult.
It’s really not too bad once you figure it out. There are active subreddits for each game as well so u could probably find someone to Co op with you.
Sekiro is hard af to me but so rewarding. Probably my favorite game of all time
If you liked red-alert you might like other RTS games such as Age Of Empires 2 (remaster came out in 2019, very active community) or starcraft2.
Delayed response, but based on you liking Minecraft, survival type genre might be good.
Valheim and Project Zomboid are great games. Subnautica is very immersive. Stardew Valley is a lot of fun.
BTW, have you tried MineClone2 on Minetest. It’s a Minecraft clone so much more fun than Minetest.
Hammerfight.
"In the physics-based gameplay, the player swings large melee weapons and relies on centripetal force to give the object enough kinetic energy to destroy enemies. The demo release had six main types of weapons - four melee and two ranged.
The different weapon types offer a certain variety. To be a slow, but well-armored powerhouse using hammers or maces to deliver slow, but crushing blows, or a nimble, but poorly protected sword-wielder, delivering quick, but weak attacks, is entirely up to the player. The game also contains a few different play modes, such as a hunt on worms or a Hammerball game."
You might like Superliminal
Absolutely love that game.
Definitely play The Beginner’s Guide. It was written by the same guy as The Stanley Parable, and it’s only about 1.5 hours long. It has one of the best endings I’ve experienced.
Baby Hands.
https://store.steampowered.com/app/708820/Baby_Hands/
Oooo once I have my dedicated VR machine set up, I’ll give this a shot. I won’t run Facebook code on my main machine though lawl
You could buy a VR headset from another company?
I have an Index, I would never touch an Oculus.
The game is Facebook code. I uninstalled Beat Saber when FB bought it, I don’t touch anything Facebook…. I miss Beat Saber so much though.
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Eh we have a dedicated machine for it. Just been lazy.
VMs will always have a performance hit.
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Not saying ya do, just saying an identical system would run at a higher framerate and more even frametimes if Windows was running natively.
I get you, but the device can only render at its max frame rate, I don’t personally get satisfaction out of higher numbers than optimal.Either way I’m not worried about the less than 5% frame difference Ive got in testing. If I do, I can dual boot into my VM.
Totally fair! I’m just saying, none of my devices can surpass 144FPS on an Index, so it’s definitely better to boot native. It’s a lot more than 5% when you’re trying to hit as high of framerate as you can on an index hahaha
Wow! This would have been right up my alley if it wasn’t for the need of a VR headset! I’ll try to revisit this game in a few months once I get myself some gear.
Not exactly the same, but I get similar vibes (if slightly more adult) from Squirrel With A Gun.
This looks fun, let’s wait for it to be released.
Yeah, I’m slightly miffed there’s no release date yet…
I would just recommend you to refer to metacritic and see the best games of all time for PC if you’re using PC. My personal recommendation is certainly Baldur’s Gate 3. If you prefer multiplayer but would like to avoid the toxic community, then I suggest Deep Rock Galactic.
Rock and stone !
Rock and stone to the bone!
Have you played any of the Red Dead Redemption games? The second one is on PC and doesn’t require digging out an xbox 360/Playstation 3 to play the first if you don’t want to. You may find the story of the second slightly more rewarding if you are able to play the first, though, as the second game is a prequel to the first. Both are some of the best stories in video gaming, imo.
If you enjoyed Papers Please, you might enjoy Lucas Pope’s other major work, Return of the Obra Dinn. It’s a “solve the mystery” game, possibly the best one I’m aware of. It’s very engaging, it’ll make you feel like a genius, and it has basically no replay value.
One of my very, very favorite games is Subnautica. It is a survival game set on an ocean planet, and few games have captured me the way Subnautica did. I think you should go into Subnautica as blind as possible, but I will reveal a few things about it so you can decide if it’s for you: Unlike most survival games it is not inherently open-ended; it has a story that has an end, there is a victory condition to work toward. I would not call Subnautica “a horror game” because horror/scariness isn’t the point of the game, but it does have some scary things in it. By its nature it is also a trigger for thalassophobia aka fear of deep water.
You might enjoy Infinifactory by Zachtronics. It has Minecraft-like block placing gameplay, but you are given fixed immutable environments in which to build little assembly lines out of conveyors, welders, pushers, grinders etc. Of the Zachtronics games I think this is the most accessible, though like many of their games I think the difficulty curve is a little steep.
Among the three games you listed, Return of the Obra Dinn seems most interesting. Subnautica and Infinifactory still looks a little too sci-fi/alien-y for my tastes. Though regarding Infinifactory, I may seem to have played something like it before (which I forgot to include in the first list): 7 Billion Humans. I guess Infinifactory is more of a mechanical version of that…?
ObraDinn was really engaging but the graphics gave me a helluva headache, which is a shame because it seems like a great story with a lot of potential. I would recommend RoadWarden if you like games like this. It was so addicting. Its short but I fell in love with it.
The framing device for Infinifactory is you were abducted by aliens and they make you build little assembly lines. The story is very unimportant to the gameplay, it’s an excuse plot you can safely ignore. I’m not familiar with 7 Billion Humans, looking up a let’s play real quick…no Infinifactory isn’t much like that. First Infinifactory is first person 3D, it controls a bit like Minecraft. You have solid blocks, conveyors, rotators, welders and other such blocks you place in a 3D grid. When you press Run, ingredient blocks start popping out of dispensers, and there’s a goal that shows you what shape you need to make them into; and you have to build an assembly line that will continuously run; aka it’s possible to make an assembly line that works the first time but jams itself and can’t make the second one; to beat a level your factory has to produce ten correct samples in a row.
Subnautica is set in a future universe where humans have space travel, your player character is a crewman on a space ship that crashes on an alien ocean planet. It is a bit Sci-Fi but it is an incredibly good game.
If you can get Saints’ Row 2 or 3 working you may like them.
I know you don’t like management games but you might still enjoy Frostpunk as it’s a bit more like an RTS since it’s about build order when you really get down to it. It is apocalyptic but it’s hopeful rather tgan depressing (for the most part) or “haha you can do anything cus no laws”.
Man your list of nos really eliminates most of my repertoire… :P Have you considered XCOM, XCOM 2 or XCOM Chimera Squad?
Oh! Prey (2016) is a good immersive sim you might- oh it’s set in a space station, nvm…
Ah! Okay, this is a space game, but since you liked Stanley Parable you might be okay with this… Outer Wilds. Don’t look it up, you’ll spoil it. Just get it and play it, seriously. Get it on steam and use a timer so you can refund it if you hate it, but you really really really need to give it a shot.
Saints’ Row seems perfect for me! Outer Wilds has been recommended by another user so I’ll be checking that out as well.
Outer WIlds is a first person mystery adventure game. Knowledge is the only progression, so you must go in blind or you’ll really miss out on some of the experience. I love it, I hope you do too.
Also the DLC Echoes of the Eye is basically a sequel, and very very good too.
Not a specific game recommendation, but you should look into Xbox game pass. For $10-15 a month, you get access to a huge library of games. You’ll be able to try a bunch of stuff without having to commit to any purchases. https://www.xbox.com/en-US/xbox-game-pass
How bout some Naughty Dog games? The Last of Us us more thriller (not horror), and while it has some scary moments, it happens to be post-apocalyptic, so naturally, the scary thriller aspect is there.
The whole Uncharted series is also great. It’s essentially a playable movie with dope character development and direction.
Since Dishonored and System Shock was already mentioned, I’ll also recommend the Thief trilogy (Thief: The Dark Project, Thief 2: The Metal Age and Thief: Deadly Shadows). Thief along with System Shock is one of the series which started the Immersive Sim genre, which Dishonored belongs to also. The third game came out in 2004 but I also recommend the first two because despite a lot less detailed graphics they imo have a lot better atmosphere and objectively better gameplay (a lot of the gameplay depth was cut in the third one to make it more playable on consoles, but it’s still a good game).
Another one I always tell people about is INFRA. It’s a pretty unknown puzzle/exploration game with excellent atmosphere and very high on my top of all time list. Highly recommend if exploring crumbling or long forgotten urban environments sounds like your thing.
I’ll be checking Thief and INFRA out!
Enjoy!
also if you’re liking gta V you may like Red Dead Redemption 2