What game do you play to just chill?

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?

FontMasterFlex, (edited )

I’m really in the same boat. Lately it’s been these:

Dorfromantik

Mini Motorways

Halls of Torment

Vampire Survivors

Brotato

Firewatch was great but it’s really a one or two sitting game. Same with Unpacking.

What I’m REALLY looking for but having trouble finding is something like a city builder or house builder that there is no money, nothing like that. Just creativity in building. Way back when I first tried the Sims, I loved the house building part more than anything.

I’ve been searching for something new though. I tried Satisfactory but really just wish it had a creative mode. I tried Terraria but I can’t get the Minecraft allegory out of my head so this game infuriates me.

TheFonz,

There was a neat city builder a year back that had no end goal - just the building itself. I can’t remember what it was called. You could pick like three themes: medieval, modern. ,or renaissance (?). I wish I remembered the name.

FontMasterFlex,

I’d be interested if you wind up remembering the name.

zalgotext,

What I’m REALLY looking for but having trouble finding is something like a city builder or house builder that there is no money, nothing like that. Just creativity in building.

Not sure if it’s quite what you’re looking for, but building in Valheim is quite fun, and it has a creative mode, so you can just go crazy without having to grind for materials.

abouttocomealive,
@abouttocomealive@lemmy.world avatar

Not a city builder / house builder, but Planet Zoo might scratch that itch. Takes a bit to really learn the building mechanics, but people can build amazing things in it.

FontMasterFlex,

i’ll look into it. thanks for the recommendation.

ArmokGoB,

No Man’s Sky has a very chill vibe. I don’t play it super often, but it’s probably the chillest game I play semi-regularly.

modifier,

And by its very nature, it’s forgiving of long absences. It’s so easy to just pick it back up, probably take some time to admire the 10 new updates Hello Games has released since you last played, and then settle in for some chill gameplay.

I’ll never finish No Man’s Sky, and I wouldn’t even say I play it, exactly. But it’s one of my very favorite places to visit, and I will probably continue to visit for years and years to come.

Hamartiogonic,
@Hamartiogonic@sopuli.xyz avatar

This type of forgiving design is the main difference between modern games and older ones. Nowadays, there’s no shortage of games that are trying to manipulate you into grinding every day.

TheFriar,

For me it’s Red Dead 2. All that horseback riding and camping and herb picking and Pinkerton killing? It’s like I’m the one camping and horseback riding and killing pinkertons.

morphballganon,

Either ACNH or TotK

FontMasterFlex,

Why use acronyms when people are looking for suggestions? What did you do with the 30 seconds you saved by typing acronyms instead of just typing out the name?

morphballganon,

Are you not familiar with Animal Crossing New Horizons and Tears of the Kingdom?

FontMasterFlex,

I had to look up Animal Crossing by the acronym. But it’s not just about ME, or YOU. You’re attempting to HELP someone, why would you post something that they then have to go look up? Just type out the words for fucks sake.

YeOldeDickTwist,

Gonna cry about it?

FontMasterFlex,

I already forgot about you. IDGAF about you. I don’t think about you. I simply don’t care.

morphballganon,

Chill bruh. Maybe play some ACNH.

MargotRobbie,
@MargotRobbie@lemmy.world avatar

I play farming games on emulators on my phone usually.

But when I’m too stressed or tired, I don’t really have the energy to play games, just lay on my bed, put something on in the background, and sleep.

vudu,

Hey! which farming games are your favorite? I've been looking at this genre

MargotRobbie,
@MargotRobbie@lemmy.world avatar

Stardew Valley, Rune Factory 4, Friends of Mineral Town, and that’s pretty much it.

SuperSpruce,

Forza Horizon 5. I like to just drive around the map for a while, and maybe do a race or two, until I inevitably get bored after an hour or so. Repeat every week.

(until I bought a real life motorcycle to scratch that itch, and no, I’m not racing or being dangerous on my motorcycle)

SheDiceToday,

Ah, but which one do you have? Because you know, there’s this other motorcycle that can do X…

Slightly kidding, but “the correct amount of motorcycles is N+1, where N is your current amount” mentality is a real thing.

SuperSpruce,

I currently have a '06 Suzuki GZ250. I got it 3 months ago and already have put 1600 miles on it.

I’m already getting the itch for a faster motorcycle, though. I first test rode a Harley Davidson Sportster 48, which was fun and tourquey but kind of heavy and not as comfortable as I expected (Harley = cruiser = comfortable so I thought). I then made the decision (mistake?) of test riding a Triumph Trident 660, and holy crap that was so much fun, I need it in my life lol even though I can’t afford it.

I also had an unexpected “adventure” getting stuck in the mud recently when trying to go off the beaten path. Dual sports have way too high seat heights for me but maybe I should get an ADV bike?

God help me the day I try a supersport bike. Make sure I don’t submit to squid-dom…

SheDiceToday,

Lol, fast is nice, but my favorite bikes are smaller. My 125 scooter is my current favorite if I don’t need to go above 50mph, and I sorely miss my ninja400. As for the comfortable issue with cruisers, it’s supposedly an issue because of the leaned back, pressure-on-tailbone seating position. Neutral (upright) seems to be the most comfortable for the majority, and you know what’s king of those right now? ADVs ;) They’re basically the luxury bikes right now, with all the fancy electronics on the newer models, lots of suspension, and fast enough to do anything highway/street. Your goldwing types might technically be plushier, but ADVs are popular for a reason.

I have a supersport-lite: an older sport tourer with waaaay too big of an engine for what I want to do with it, but unless you find yourself acting silly now, you won’t have much to worry about. The occasional urge to catch that stupid muscle car blowing past with an exhaust tuned to sound loud passes you by just as quickly as you pass them by…

SuperSpruce,

The uncomfortable part about the Sportster was actually how unexpectedly aggressive the riding position was. I expected laid-back similar to my GZ250 which is also a cruiser.

I am starting to think of ADVs as the SUVs of motorcycles. Usually, big, tall, off-road capable, comfortable, not particularly sporty, expensive, and trendy.

At the moment I am extremely budget-conscious so I’ll be sticking with my 250 unless I find a smoking deal for another motorcycle. Currently I’m a college student that doesn’t really need a motorcycle, but I really wanted one. Where I will be able to get a nice motorcycle is if I can spend my future car budget on a motorcycle instead…

littlecolt,

Weirdly, Satisfactory, a game about thanklessly building a factory for a faceless corporation to exploit an alien wilderness.

But you get a coffee mug and there are lizard doggos.

FontMasterFlex,

I just tried this game. While i ‘get’ it now, i really wish there was just a ‘creative mode’.

JakenVeina,

There is. Just released last week.

FontMasterFlex,

really? i’ll have to dig into it then.

littlecolt,

Yep! There’s a box you click for advanced options or something like that when creating your world, and you can enable the use of various cheat toggles such as flying, God mode, all tech unlocked, zero cost everything

SheDiceToday,

Lol, you sold me. That’s been on my backburner for a while. Now I just need to download it.

Presi300,
@Presi300@lemmy.world avatar

Warframe, it’s my “no thought, head empty, just shoot things” game

CluelessDude,

As a veteran of the game I keep coming back to it from time to time it’s a really nice way to relax.

Presi300,
@Presi300@lemmy.world avatar

What MR are you?

CluelessDude,

I stopped at L1, I play on and off nowadays.

Presi300,
@Presi300@lemmy.world avatar

Damn, how many hours didit take you to reach LR1?

CluelessDude,

Well I’ve been playing since closed beta so like 10y and something at this point, but you can definitely go over my MR fairly easily, MR is about collecting things not really skill related, of course there’s still some time invested.

Presi300,
@Presi300@lemmy.world avatar

Damn, I’ve been playing semi-consistently since 2021 and just cannot bring myself to rank MR above 16 lol

CluelessDude,

Easiest way would be to go to your codex, select a category, melee for example and make and level up every single weapon there, sentinels, warframes you get the idea, anything you can level up gives mastery, even completing the star chart by unlocking every mission, somethings will be harder or expensive to get or behind multiple days of farm aka most of stuff in open world but that’s how everyone does it.

Bitswap,

Stardew valley and/or kerala space program.

milicent_bystandr,

Is Kerala Space Program similar to Mumbai Flight Simulator?

Bitswap,

Never heard of mumbai flight simulator. In KSP you design, build and then fly rockets, planes, space planes and spacecraft. It’s a one of a kind game.l

milicent_bystandr,

Just joking from your typo: you wrote “kerala space program”, not “kerbal space program” ;-)

Bitswap,

LOL. Didn’t notice at all. I tip my hat to you, sir!

milicent_bystandr,

I also like Egypt Scrolls V: Seattle; Zimbabwe: Breath of the Wilds; Age of Emirates II; and Maryland Kart.

Bitswap,

I’m also into RaWorld!

postmateDumbass,

Cheif Sealth gonna kick some Ramesses ass.

Surdon, (edited )

FTL, Stardew valley, No mans sky, Minecraft, Old rpgs like Chrono Trigger

shamrt,

I don’t exactly experience a tonne of chill while playing FTL

DashboTreeFrog,

FTL is a great chill out game for me. The only problem is I’ve put in so many hours that I’ve practically seen everything! I looked into some interesting mods but just haven’t tried them out yet. When I think about it, FTL shouldn’t be that chill, but there’s a certain simplicity in the gameplay, and the ability to pause all the time, even during combat, gives me the ability to take my time thinking through what I’m gonna do.

Underrated chill out game, agreed, maybe I’ll finally get around to trying some mods.

Surdon,

Yeah I haven’t tried the mods either and I kinda suck at the game but I’ve always felt like it has a low cost to entry, which is why it feels chill to me. A lot of death anxiety in games is due to time investment and, frankly, like BOTW, fear of long loading screens more than any in game punishment.

Ftl has such a satisfying and similar gameplay loop and allows so much pausing that it doesn’t really feel stressful for me. I still hate dying and do it a lot in the game, but I can play ftl with a sort of soft mental focus that many other games don’t allow me to do

pomodoro_longbreak,
@pomodoro_longbreak@sh.itjust.works avatar

Minecraft, Doom (first two), Cities Skylines, and more recently, Unpacking.

FontMasterFlex,

unpacking is great.

Cmar,

How’s Minecraft as a singleplayer chill game? Been debating on getting it, just to explore and survive pretty much.

Seems like it can go a long way.

pomodoro_longbreak,
@pomodoro_longbreak@sh.itjust.works avatar

It’s an almost perfect chill game. If you want to be creative, you can build all kinds of cool stuff. You can work from a homebase that you build up over time, or stay on the move. Or dig a big hole, just because.

It’s become one of those games that I go back to every couple of years.

Cmar,

I’ve seen quite a few mods making it even more immersive. Also seems to be quite playable on the steam deck even with mods.

Thanks for the reply.

pomodoro_longbreak,
@pomodoro_longbreak@sh.itjust.works avatar

I used to mess with mods, but even just vanilla it’s a great experience. But whatever floats your boat :)

wjrii, (edited )
@wjrii@kbin.social avatar

Don't overthink it. Minecraft. Vanilla survival world. Don't try to optimize and automate everything (unless you find that relaxing). Make your farm look like a farm. Mine until until your inventory is full. Build towards an Ender Dragon or Wither fight if you have time. Go mining or fishing or do base chores or a beautification project if you don't.

Khrux,

I used to love doing a weird automated laboratory under my classic farm, but yeah it did suck out the fun once I could reliably do it again and again.

I used to specifically farm the ingredients for pumpkin pie, this was just after hoppers and repeaters were added which meant you could use those and pistons to make an automatic egg collector, sugare cane breaker and pumpkin breaker. I’d build the most picturesque farm with a secret trapdoor somewhere that would lead to my food automation zone. I haven’t really played properly since 2017 though, with a brief comeback in 2020.

NorthWestWind,
@NorthWestWind@lemmy.world avatar

Automation is really fun with mods. They are kind of like puzzles and I chill out thinking about them.

wjrii,
@wjrii@kbin.social avatar

In the right mood, I like setting things up and tweaking them, but I don't find it "chill". If I fire up Minecraft to chill, I usually think of it almost like a model railroad or something, occasionally it literally is a virtual model railroad if I want to build nether transit or something. I also find it satisfying to fill in that last patch of a map and put a copy of it on a wall next to its mates. It is very satisfying to get that auto smelter or adjustable enchanting room just right, though, and I can easily see that stuff being a goal in its own right.

What I find brilliant about the concept of Minecraft is the way it hits a sweet spot of being just complex enough to be immersive, but abstract and simplified enough that the open world is actually open and rewards a hundred different play styles.

DashboTreeFrog,

I tried Minecraft way back, so maybe it’s changed, but I don’t do to well in setting my own goals in a game. I liked Subnautica because there was an interesting story element and mystery that kept you engaged as you moved towards your goal of getting off planet. In the process of reaching the goal, yeah, I wanna make my base look nice, wanna build some cool things, but my overall actions were still being compelled by the storytelling and world-building of the game. I don’t see those elements in Minecraft but again, it’s been a long time since I played.

Zidane,

Modpacks with a good quest line might be something you’re into

Klanky,
@Klanky@sopuli.xyz avatar

You sound like me. I don’t do well with sandbox games, I like a story related objective to work towards. Subnautica and Outre Wilds are also both favorites of mine. I also think a great chill game is Forza Horizon 4 or 5. Driving around the open world with changing time of day and popping into different events is so relaxing to me, especially if I mute the in-game radio and play some Spotify instead. My only regret is I bought it through the Microsoft Xbox app (to keep my progress I made during a Game Pass free trial) and now I can’t play it on my Steam Deck.

wjrii,
@wjrii@kbin.social avatar

The two big boss fights are the closest thing to a "goal," but yeah, even in survival mode I guess it's as much lego as it is video game. In your case, maybe a Bethesda game but focusing on side and companion quests until you're so overpowered that wrapping up the main plot will feel like one more.

Shinzid,

I like to play any type of horde clearing game where I can shut my brain off and just swing/shoot my way through a bunch of enemies. Some examples of this are deep rock galactic and vermintide 2. One scratches the shooty itch and the other scratches the swingy itch

If I ain’t shooting or swinging I like to play roguelites. Slay the spire and faster than light are classics I keep returning to. Interested in trying out cobalt core soon which looks like a mix of STS and FTL

Doxatek,

I’m glad someone knows ftl I really like that game. Played it for a lot of years and is nostalgic to me. Recently tried the multiverse mods for it which revitalized it for me

Shinzid,

Huh. Never occurred to me to try out modded ftl. Didn’t even know it had a modding scene. Will definitely check out this multiverse mod you mentioned

Doxatek,

It’s really polished and expansive. New races and new ships and quests weapons and everything. It’s pretty sweet!

popekingjoe,
@popekingjoe@lemmy.world avatar

Solitaire oddly enough. Just sit there, throw up a YouTube playlist on my second monitor, open up the game on my main, and just unwind.

Suck_on_my_Presence,

Freecell for me :B

iheartneopets,

Similarly, nonogram/picross puzzles. I have one on my phone that’s called Hungry Cat Nonogram that I really like. It mixes up the formula by introducing different colored pixels into each row and columns. It’s hard to explain, but very fun. It’s the only game I keep on my phone

penquin,

Absolutely. I have a ton of games and solitaire is one of the ones I play to chill.

AlexWIWA,

Solitaire is a 10/10 game tbh. I got a little too good at the iPod Video version of the game because it was addicting.

tetris11, (edited )
@tetris11@lemmy.ml avatar

To be fair though, you can get same relaxation by doing any mindless task with music.

Hell, one of the highlights of my week is putting on a history podcast and then just cleaning the hell out of the bathroom, bedroom, mopping the floors, etc.

Its a relaxing personal moment where you’re lost in your own world, you learn something new, and your apartment looks great at the end.

dm_me_your_boobs,

Sounds like somebody else grew up with windows 3.1.

Litany,
@Litany@lemmy.world avatar

Where are my Satisfactory Pioneers at?

zalgotext,

Man I really wanted to like Satisfactory and play it all the way through, but it’s just that much worse than factorio in a lot of ways, it didn’t quite hook me in the same way. It got really repetitive/grueling in the late game, I think the tier after aluminum, and I just got bored with it.

Litany,
@Litany@lemmy.world avatar

I think the great thing about Satisfactory is you don’t have to “beat it”. Just do what you want in it, proceed as far along the tech tree as you please, and if you happen to get all the way through it, congrats.

I’ve played almost 1000 hours and haven’t beaten the last Space Elevator tier. But I’m not bothered by it. I like so many of the other aspects of the game that I don’t need to “beat” it. I like making every production line 100% efficient, I like building beautiful buildings, and I think the game is so much fun to simply run around in. It’s honestly the game I’ve had the most fun moving around in since Titanfall. Titanfall definitely edges Satisfactory out in this department, comfortably, but Satisfactory is still a blast to simply explore the world in.

That’s just my take on it though. Your opinion of it is definitely valid. It is a big grind to get all the way through the last Space Elevator tier.

SendMePhotos,

Descenders (oddly satisfying mountain biking game)

Life is Strange was a good one to chill and enjoy the unfolding of events (any of them are good. The 1st and Colors were my favorites)

Grand Turismo I’ve been on. Never really been a racing fan but for a few races I’m actually relaxed and enjoying myself.

noxy,
@noxy@yiffit.net avatar

Descenders is such a fun game! I love doing suicide trick jumps into the finish area so the level successfully ends with my rider crashing through the barriers in the background

Also some great tunes. And the crazy obstacle course levels are a blast

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