GGEZ
April 3, 2020 10:15 PM
I love single-player PC games, especially RPGs, but I am useless without automatic targeting and an easy difficulty mode. I like a good story, amazing graphics and walking around talking to people. What game would you recommend? I asked you this six years ago, and you really came through for me -- what's new? Please suggest only new games -- games from the last six years or so.
Of recent games, I loved Witcher 3 (favorite game of all time), Dragon Age Inquisition, Assassin's Creed Odyssey and Origins. I didn't like Mass Effect 3 or GTA V because aiming the gun myself was too damn difficult. I suspect Red Dead Redemption 2 is out for the same reason. Of the games recommended last time, my favorite ended up being Dear Esther, so interactive-story/games (what do you call them?) like that are welcome.
Thanks for any suggestions!
Of recent games, I loved Witcher 3 (favorite game of all time), Dragon Age Inquisition, Assassin's Creed Odyssey and Origins. I didn't like Mass Effect 3 or GTA V because aiming the gun myself was too damn difficult. I suspect Red Dead Redemption 2 is out for the same reason. Of the games recommended last time, my favorite ended up being Dear Esther, so interactive-story/games (what do you call them?) like that are welcome.
Thanks for any suggestions!
I would definitely recommend disco Elysium, I think it would suit you perfectly. If you liked dear Esther definitely check out firewatch, Tacoma and what remains of Edith Finch
posted by Cannon Fodder at 12:00 AM on April 4, 2020
posted by Cannon Fodder at 12:00 AM on April 4, 2020
> Of recent games, I loved Witcher 3 (favorite game of all time), Dragon Age Inquisition, Assassin's Creed Odyssey and Origins.Horizon Zero Dawn is an amazing game that you will love! It's like if you took Witcher 3, sprinkled in some Assassin's Creed and Tomb Raider and Fallout, and then made it much better than any of those games. I can't speak highly enough about it. Currently only on PS4, but expected for PC in summer 2020.
posted by Syllepsis at 12:29 AM on April 4, 2020
Ditto Firewatch, Tacoma, and Edith Finch. Adding Everybody's Gone to the Rapture which is another game from the studio behind Dear Esther.
posted by juv3nal at 3:20 AM on April 4, 2020
posted by juv3nal at 3:20 AM on April 4, 2020
Kentucky Route Zero is excellent.
posted by transitional procedures at 3:49 AM on April 4, 2020
posted by transitional procedures at 3:49 AM on April 4, 2020
You sound like me. I suck at the actual mechanics of games, but I love the world exploring. I just finished a run through of Outer Worlds on easy/story mode and really enjoyed it, would highly recommend. If you like interactive story games, definitely both Life is Strange games.
posted by thewrongparty at 6:37 AM on April 4, 2020
posted by thewrongparty at 6:37 AM on April 4, 2020
Outer Wilds? The endgame gets a bit platformy, but the exploration mechanic is amazing. Also, seconding Tacoma with its really nice, intimate character work.
posted by rhamphorhynchus at 6:40 AM on April 4, 2020
posted by rhamphorhynchus at 6:40 AM on April 4, 2020
Ys VIII is Japanese Action RPG with anime-style visuals. It's fast-paced with traditional game difficulty levels: easy, normal, hard, & nightmare. Fairly forgiving on easy. You needn't worry about coming in on the eighth game of the series; each one is almost completely self-contained. This one has the main character shipwrecked on a deserted island, and in typical Ys fashion, over the course of the game the story transitions from the local and mundane, to apocalyptic, with mysteries stretching across aeons and the fate of the world hanging in the balance. Opening cinematic.
posted by glonous keming at 7:34 AM on April 4, 2020
posted by glonous keming at 7:34 AM on April 4, 2020
If you like JRPGs, I’ve sunk about 40 hours into Dragon Quest XI and it’s really really fun. One of the best DQ games I’ve ever played. Gorgeous, monsters and overall design is super cute and cozy, and the story is really engaging.
You can automate combat to a large degree. I don’t believe there are difficulty levels, but the automated combat makes that a bit of a non-issue. And you can see enemies and avoid them easily.
posted by Automocar at 8:29 AM on April 4, 2020
You can automate combat to a large degree. I don’t believe there are difficulty levels, but the automated combat makes that a bit of a non-issue. And you can see enemies and avoid them easily.
posted by Automocar at 8:29 AM on April 4, 2020
Of the games recommended last time, my favorite ended up being Dear Esther, so interactive-story/games (what do you call them?) like that are welcome.
The term for the specific style of Dear Esther is 'walking simulator'! I think you would really like The Old City: Leviathan, which I personally didn't like for all the same reasons I didn't like Dear Esther, but it would probably be right up your alley. The Vanishing of Ethan Carter has a similar feel, though I personally liked that one a lot more (I'm picky about narrators/story in my walking simulators). Dittoing Kentucky Route Zero, which is an absolute work of art and one of my favorite games of all time. Also dittoing Tacoma, which has a fantastic story and exploration mechanic, one of my favorites. Gone Home is the quintessential walking simulator; it's set in the real world, so that might not be up your alley, but I quite enjoyed it. The Stanley Parable is hilarious and a lot of fun.
You might also enjoy choice-based games, which are essentially all story and world-exploration. Dreamfall Chapters (you really don't need to play the previous two games first, though you might enjoy them!) has an amazingly rich story, world, and characters. One of my absolute favorites. Oxenfree is similar to Kentucky Route Zero, again with a fantastic story and characters. I played this one probably 4 or 5 times to explore all the different options and choices, it was that enjoyable. The Wolf Among Us is a great choice-based game with a unique art style.
Games along the lines of Witcher 3 and Dragon Age Inquisition include Bioshock Infinite (don't need to play the other two Bioshock games first, though I recommend them) and Dishonored. They both have modifiable difficulty levels. I'm not sure about aim assist, I mostly got through Bioshock by running up to people and shooting them point blank, which requires very little aiming, haha. Also by summoning crows to eat their faces. Dishonored doesn't even really require much shooting, especially if you're doing a stealth run.
Okay, now a few suggestions that don't fit any of the games you referenced, but do fit a lot of what you're looking for. The play style is pretty different from action/shooter-type games, but you might enjoy Bastion and Transistor which are both absolutely gorgeous in terms of art, story, and characters. I didn't find the gameplay too difficult. Pyre is by the same team and is also fantastic, but requires a little more reflexes (you're basically playing fantasy soccer). I think there's an easy difficulty mode, though?
How do you feel about puzzles in your games? There are a lot of point-and-click or puzzle-oriented games that are very story focused and don't require you to be good at action. Memoria, Night of the Rabbit, and Year Walk are some I've liked. I've also enjoyed detective-type games like Murdered: Soul Suspect and Sherlock Holmes: the Devil's Daughter.
posted by brook horse at 8:52 AM on April 4, 2020
The term for the specific style of Dear Esther is 'walking simulator'! I think you would really like The Old City: Leviathan, which I personally didn't like for all the same reasons I didn't like Dear Esther, but it would probably be right up your alley. The Vanishing of Ethan Carter has a similar feel, though I personally liked that one a lot more (I'm picky about narrators/story in my walking simulators). Dittoing Kentucky Route Zero, which is an absolute work of art and one of my favorite games of all time. Also dittoing Tacoma, which has a fantastic story and exploration mechanic, one of my favorites. Gone Home is the quintessential walking simulator; it's set in the real world, so that might not be up your alley, but I quite enjoyed it. The Stanley Parable is hilarious and a lot of fun.
You might also enjoy choice-based games, which are essentially all story and world-exploration. Dreamfall Chapters (you really don't need to play the previous two games first, though you might enjoy them!) has an amazingly rich story, world, and characters. One of my absolute favorites. Oxenfree is similar to Kentucky Route Zero, again with a fantastic story and characters. I played this one probably 4 or 5 times to explore all the different options and choices, it was that enjoyable. The Wolf Among Us is a great choice-based game with a unique art style.
Games along the lines of Witcher 3 and Dragon Age Inquisition include Bioshock Infinite (don't need to play the other two Bioshock games first, though I recommend them) and Dishonored. They both have modifiable difficulty levels. I'm not sure about aim assist, I mostly got through Bioshock by running up to people and shooting them point blank, which requires very little aiming, haha. Also by summoning crows to eat their faces. Dishonored doesn't even really require much shooting, especially if you're doing a stealth run.
Okay, now a few suggestions that don't fit any of the games you referenced, but do fit a lot of what you're looking for. The play style is pretty different from action/shooter-type games, but you might enjoy Bastion and Transistor which are both absolutely gorgeous in terms of art, story, and characters. I didn't find the gameplay too difficult. Pyre is by the same team and is also fantastic, but requires a little more reflexes (you're basically playing fantasy soccer). I think there's an easy difficulty mode, though?
How do you feel about puzzles in your games? There are a lot of point-and-click or puzzle-oriented games that are very story focused and don't require you to be good at action. Memoria, Night of the Rabbit, and Year Walk are some I've liked. I've also enjoyed detective-type games like Murdered: Soul Suspect and Sherlock Holmes: the Devil's Daughter.
posted by brook horse at 8:52 AM on April 4, 2020
I'm also really enjoying Disco Elysium right now. ATOM RPG might also work for you.
posted by humboldt32 at 9:15 AM on April 4, 2020
posted by humboldt32 at 9:15 AM on April 4, 2020
> Of recent games, I loved Witcher 3 (favorite game of all time), Dragon Age Inquisition, Assassin's Creed Odyssey and Origins.
Witcher 3 is so good. So much depth and wonderful characters and side quests. It was my favorite by far too, until I played Horizon Zero Dawn, as someone said above. Witcher 3 is now a distant second. I have to say, going back to playing games where the main protagonist is male after playing HZD was a major buzzkill for me personally though. I tried RDR2 and detested the men in it, couldn't play it. I tried GoW and really hated the main guy, Kratos (ugh) and couldn't make myself play it. The main protagonist of HZD is just...amazing, and so is the whole experience. Trust, get HZD as soon as it's available on PC. I envy you ;)
posted by the webmistress at 11:33 AM on April 4, 2020
Witcher 3 is so good. So much depth and wonderful characters and side quests. It was my favorite by far too, until I played Horizon Zero Dawn, as someone said above. Witcher 3 is now a distant second. I have to say, going back to playing games where the main protagonist is male after playing HZD was a major buzzkill for me personally though. I tried RDR2 and detested the men in it, couldn't play it. I tried GoW and really hated the main guy, Kratos (ugh) and couldn't make myself play it. The main protagonist of HZD is just...amazing, and so is the whole experience. Trust, get HZD as soon as it's available on PC. I envy you ;)
posted by the webmistress at 11:33 AM on April 4, 2020
I just finished Witcher 3, which I also loved, and started Divinity 2: Original Sin.
It's a western style RPG but what I like about it is the combat is turn based. I liked the combat ok in Witcher 3 but I definitely am enjoying going back to a more tactical, turn-based RPG without having to play a JRPG.
posted by bradbane at 5:57 PM on April 4, 2020
It's a western style RPG but what I like about it is the combat is turn based. I liked the combat ok in Witcher 3 but I definitely am enjoying going back to a more tactical, turn-based RPG without having to play a JRPG.
posted by bradbane at 5:57 PM on April 4, 2020
Some more walking simulator type games:
Observer - cyberpunk body horror noir stuff.
Layers of Fear, Layers of Fear 2 - spooky light horror jump scare. The sequel is a bit less clear, story-wise.
Observation - space horror, some interesting mechanics, some puzzles.
What Remains of Edith Finch; Draugen; Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice are all atmospheric story-telling walking simulators.
Others:
Detroit: Become Human is mostly about making choices with your characters, interspersed with quicktime events which do affect outcomes to some degree. No real combat or aiming.
Prey is like Bioshock and Dishonored, I think? First person POV, a lot of combat but you can choose your skills + combat styles yourself so it doesn't have to include guns. Could be challenging.
posted by automatic cabinet at 11:34 PM on April 4, 2020
Observer - cyberpunk body horror noir stuff.
Layers of Fear, Layers of Fear 2 - spooky light horror jump scare. The sequel is a bit less clear, story-wise.
Observation - space horror, some interesting mechanics, some puzzles.
What Remains of Edith Finch; Draugen; Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice are all atmospheric story-telling walking simulators.
Others:
Detroit: Become Human is mostly about making choices with your characters, interspersed with quicktime events which do affect outcomes to some degree. No real combat or aiming.
Prey is like Bioshock and Dishonored, I think? First person POV, a lot of combat but you can choose your skills + combat styles yourself so it doesn't have to include guns. Could be challenging.
posted by automatic cabinet at 11:34 PM on April 4, 2020
Red Dead was amazing and you can turn on automatic targeting to help with the gun aim (I have the same problem, aiming with a joystick.)
posted by soonertbone at 11:37 AM on April 7, 2020
posted by soonertbone at 11:37 AM on April 7, 2020
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by zeee at 11:10 PM on April 3, 2020