What PC game will make me squeal with glee?

September 15, 2007 2:21 PM

What is the most fun I can have with a PC and a gamepad? I'm looking for something reasonably modern (probably not more than 5 years old) and polished that delivers uncomplicated arcade style gameplay with the absolute minimum of fiddling about or frustration.

This is for stress relief, so I really am looking for something that will make me smile; if there's some element of humor in the game, that would be a definite bonus. I'm open to almost everything but I'm not really interested in emulators right now.

posted by tomcooke to sports, hobbies, & recreation (17 comments total)

Grand Theft Auto
posted by jontyjago at 2:23 PM on September 15, 2007

Peggle
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 2:30 PM on September 15, 2007 [1 favorite has favorites]

uncomplicated arcade style gameplay

Why re-invent the wheel? Have you exhausted all the emulator content, MAME, Amiga, C64, Atari, PS1, SNES, etc?
posted by meehawl at 2:39 PM on September 15, 2007

The Worms series of games combine arcade combat with really strange kooky references and noises.
posted by l33tpolicywonk at 2:58 PM on September 15, 2007

Grid Wars is an excellent Geometry Wars clone that really comes alive with a dual-analog-stick gamepad.
posted by arto at 6:11 PM on September 15, 2007

Worms would be my answer too, but the games are 10 years old by now. Still great games.

If you want fast-and-heavy arcade action, try Grid Wars, but this is likely to increase your stress.
posted by neckro23 at 6:14 PM on September 15, 2007

My wife says Psychonauts. Definitely fun and funny.
posted by O9scar at 8:11 PM on September 15, 2007

Seconding Peggle, Worms and Psychonauts. You should also take a look at N.
posted by A Kingdom for a Donkey at 10:24 PM on September 15, 2007

Also, both Peggle Deluxe and Psychonauts are available from Steam, so you don't even have to leave your house to get them.
posted by A Kingdom for a Donkey at 10:26 PM on September 15, 2007

Get Beyond Good And Evil for 20 bucks on PC. It is one of the best games that no one has ever played, but incredibly fun and a wonderful story.
posted by slavlin at 10:28 PM on September 15, 2007 [1 favorite has favorites]

you won't even need a gamepad for Jardinains 1 or 2. Jardinains is a break-out style game with fun bonuses and devilish gnomes who like to throw potted plants at your paddle. You can beat them up with the ball, making them fall, and bounce them on your paddle until they pop. All for points!!

Catchy music, good level design, neat features, and good twists on a classic concept. What more could you want?
posted by whatzit at 11:01 PM on September 15, 2007 [1 favorite has favorites]

Grid Wars is delightful. Thanks for the other answers too, I'll check some of them out.
posted by tomcooke at 5:02 AM on September 16, 2007

GTA 2 - Free from Rockstar

Need for Speed Underground - my favorite driving game

2nding Psychonauts
posted by zackola at 8:06 AM on September 16, 2007

Imperishable Night (gameplay video)
Also get MAME and its thousands of arcade games.
posted by PowerCat at 8:42 AM on September 16, 2007

Another vote for Psychonauts, it's really amazing although the levels towards the end tend to be frustrating.
Also Prince of Persia : The Sands of Time, it has been rereleased as a free ad-supported game recently. The ads only shows up during the loading and menu screens.
You can get it here amongst other places.
posted by SageLeVoid at 10:31 AM on September 16, 2007

I'm addicted to Rival Ball Tournment, www.LDA.com. Hours of obsession for the whole family.
posted by JimN2TAW at 4:56 PM on September 16, 2007

Since I posted this question, I've discovered Mutant Storm which is tons of fun and not expensive.
posted by tomcooke at 6:09 AM on September 28, 2007