Nowadays I find a lot of games feel like too much work and/or anxiety when I just want to relax for like, 30 minutes to an hour after a long day. On the other hand, the games specifically designed to help you unwind just feel boring imo.
In the past I’ve felt like Outer Wilds scratched this itch, cause the whole experience was engaging but generally relaxed. There was a mystery that kept me hooked and the exploration and movement was fun in and of itself. I also felt like Subnautica filled this role since it was very much at my own pace, with anxiety producing portions which could for the most part be avoided or minimized, and also there was a clear objective to fulfill, get off the planet.
So what games do you play when you just wanna relax?
I’ve just become aware of Noita recently. It looks kind of insane in a good way, but looks really hectic and anxiety inducing. But what you’ve said is pretty convincing, maybe I can make the journey to death fun.
It’s one of those games where, if it looks interesting to you, I can’t recommend it enough.
I got on the hype train when it came out. I’ve played it maybe twice. Too much random chance for me.
It’s not for everyone, but I absolutely adore it. It’s incredibly hard, but once you get the idea of what’s going on, if it’s still too hard I highly recommend checking out the steam workshop. I tend to play with a couple mods to make it a bit easier and then go wild with mods for spells, enemies, world gen, etc. Even without mods every single run is wildly different.
Anyway, again it’s not for everyone, but the combination of a simulating every pixel, endless spell combinations, and the hilarity that ensues because I tried something new that I thought was safe, well, it’s a recipe for either a really good time or throwing a controller at the wall. For me, good times. And I say that when I loathe games that are too hard for me most of the time.