The gaming industry has absolutely boomed in the past 10 years. The amount of titles you can play is simply astonishing. As games become easier and easier to make, and indie companies’ games become more and more popular, we are seeing a shift in gaming.
However, this also comes with a bit of a problem. A first-world problem (which we are happy are our biggest problem) but still a problem. There is just too much to choose from! Games with great reviews and beautiful art are all vying for our attention!
However, we don’t have all of the time in the world to play every single game on Steam. So, someone could end up spending hours sifting through titles looking for something new to play. Next thing they know, they have no game to play and wasted the past 2 hours looking for something to play.
It’s enough to make anyone want to just go back to their old classics like Everygame poker and give up on looking for new games entirely! However, there are a lot of excellent titles out there! Don’t let a little rough patch steal your spirit!
Ark: Survival Evolved
Ark got a bit of a bad start at release. There were a lot of bugs, it didn’t run on any but the most top-of-the-line machines, and the developers didn’t seem to want to address any of the communities issues.
More and more content was added to the games while peoples’ requests for simple bug fixes and optimization were not headed. However, I think that after 7 years of development, for someone who wants to get into it, here is what to enjoy!
Before I get too much into it, I should probably tell you what the game is about! Ark: Survival Evolved is an open-world sandbox survival game where one tries to survive the perils of the various maps available to the player.
Oh, and did I mention? The creatures all over the map are dinosaurs! That is kind of the game’s whole shtick. You can tame dinosaurs to help you with all the various tasks you need to do. Whether it be defeating monsters, collecting resources, or protecting you, Dinos can help you out.
You eventually try to work your way to a point where you can take on the bosses of the game. However, be warned! You are going to want to bring some powerful dinos with you! Like, a lot of powerful dinos!
Terraria
Another sandbox game, but this time not a survival game! Terrarium is a 2-dimensional open-world sandbox action-adventure game. You spawn in a new world and are greeted with only basic tools to build your way up.
Eventually, the player is going to get better and better gear and will be able to beat harder and harder bosses! This is essentially how the game will go. The player gets better gear, fights new bosses, and unlocks even better gear.
You will work your way until you can finally defeat the final boss of the game (no spoilers!). This may sound somewhat repetitive and boring, but I assure you, you will have a blast playing the game! All of the bosses are unique and fun in their own ways, and it keeps it interesting.
And, once you feel like you’ve become a seasoned adventurer, you can take your hand at the games challenge mods. Hard mode is certain to give a new player a run for their money. Literally, as you will drop a lot of money when your character is defeated…
And, the newly released Expert Mode is certain to give even the most seasoned of players a fun challenge to test their skills at combating the monsters and bosses that Terraria has to offer!
Deep Rock Galactic
Have you ever dreamed of putting your life on the line for a company? Diving into dangerous caverns and caves in search of rare minerals and resources for a buck? Have you thought about fighting hordes of monstrous insects to secure some profit and make your boss proud?
No? Oh, well, I suppose that makes sense… But you can still pretend if you want! Welcome to Hoxxes IV! Home of rare resources worth a fortune if you can get to them! Unfortunately, it is also home to hostile environments, and just as hostile local fauna.
Collect rare minerals, eggs, gems, kill dangerous monsters, or whatever other tasks your boss sends you off to do. Earn money and experience and become a better miner! The better you are, the more challenging missions you can do.
Go it alone, or with up to 3 other people in 4 Player Co-Op. Blast away at things as the heavy assault class, zip around as a scout to collect pickups, access new paths as the engineer, or simply dig your own as the driller!
No matter which class you choose, you are sure to have tons of fun. I don’t know if you can tell, but I really like this game. There is just something about its simplicity that leads to hours on hours of fun with friends (or even random people. The community is great).
Hollow Knight
In the words of Hollow Knights developers, “Beneath the fading town of Dartmouth sleeps a vast, ancient kingdom. Many are drawn beneath the surface, searching for riches, or glory, or answers to old secrets. As the enigmatic Knight, you’ll traverse the depths, unravel its mysteries and conquer its evils.”
In Hollow Knight, you play the role of the Knight (as mentioned above) and you simply begin your journey into Hollow Nest (the ancient kingdom also mentioned above). You will descend deeper and deeper uncovering secrets of your past to save the kingdom.
As you make your way through the gorgeous environments of Hollow Nest, you are certain to be taken away by the outstanding graphics and beauty of this game. All the art was drawn by hand by the artists of the game, giving it a unique and very stylistic look.
You will also enjoy all the interesting characters and creatures you can find throughout the game! The bits, pieces, and shreds of information they give you will leave you absolutely begging for more information about the game’s mysterious lore.
Other than the story and lore of the game, the gameplay itself is really fun! The combat is really simple to learn, but you will soon find it hard to master! This gives the game a really addicting level of challenge. It feels like it should be so simple, but that boss keeps killing you!
You will slowly defeat more and more bosses, and unravel more and more of the mystery of the game. Finally, beating the game’s final boss, you will feel proud of yourself. You did it! You beat the game!
Then, you will realize you only scratched a tiny nick into the surface of the depth of this game. So, you will grit your teeth and load a new save, starting all over again. Don’t even think about lying. You are gonna love every second of it.
Scribblenauts: Unlimited
Scribblenauts: Unlimited is a really cute game meant to help teach kids words and vocabulary. It was rather popular a while back, and a lot of big-name YouTubers played it on their channels.
The basics of the story are that you play as Maxwell. Your twin sister lily got cursed and is slowly turning to stone. You need to collect things called Starites out in the world to save her. Starites are gotten by doing nice things for people.
So, Maxwell will use his magic notepad to help people with their problems. You can find creative solutions to problems, or simply do things as cut and dry as possible. But, just know you have the choice to do the tasks as you see fit (within certain limits). Be creative with it!
Minecraft
It’s hard to believe Minecraft is 12 years old already. It’s just simply such a nostalgic game. For a lot of people growing up in the recent generations, Minecraft was (or still is) their childhood. Crafting diamond swords and slaying mobs was a favorite pastime.
However, as some of us got older, we may have put this game on the back shelf. Moving on to new titles and the like. However, there is just so much new to this game, I cannot let this list finish without recommending you take another look at Minecraft.
It’s still the same old game you remember, don’t worry. You can build, destroy, craft, and fight to your heart’s content. However, there is just so much more that makes the world feel vibrant, alive, and challenging!
New End areas (well, not so new now…), deeper and more spooky caves to soon be added, Llamas, parrots, and so much more! You really just have to take a look and see! I definitely think that this is something you are going to want to have another crack at.
Journey
A bit different than the other games on this list, Journey is not a game where you fight bosses, build things, or really do much of any of that kind of stuff. It is, as the title suggests, simply a Journey.
The game is 2 players, but you will never know who you played with. There is no way to communicate. You are simply on a Journey with another person somewhere out there on Earth and that’s beautiful
When I played this game for the first time all the way through (it’s very short, and I would recommend doing it in 1 sitting) I was floored when I finished. There was something so beautiful about just playing a simple adventure with someone else.
I don’t know who it was I played with, but I felt like we made a strangely really human bond. Not being able to talk, but knowing it’s another real human. There is just such a basic feeling to that. It’s just really worth giving it a try if you think that will be your cup of tea.
Or, you can try any of the other games on this list! Don’t feel obligated to listen to what I have to say. I just think these are really nice games to start with.
