What game do you play to just chill?
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?
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.
Especially in the winter,I like to fire up The Long Dark. I put on the exploration setting where the wildlife doesn't attack. You still have to deal with the need for food and warmth, so there are still stakes. Just not the anxiety inducing animal attacks. There's a sort of bleak beauty to the game.
Personally, i just need a game that lets me do something pretty. Satisfactory was mentioned, or City Skylines. Or something that is highly nostalgic and familiar, like Skyrim, Halo or Minecraft. I don't intrinsically need to think in these cases, which is my goal. I'm a programmer, so anything that lets me shut my brain off and just exist is great. Sometimes BloonsTD is also a great game for this, but it's situational.
Counter intuitively, most "casual" games like Stardew don't really fit this vibe for me because of the daily time limit. I need to pick and choose what tasks to do in a day, and I always fall into a min-max schedule, which requires effort. Much as I love them, I also avoid story driven games like Baldur's Gate when I need to unwind, because I really need to pay attention to progress, and there kinda isn't any mindless grinding. Multiplayer games with randos is also strictly out. No League, COD, Battlefield, Fortnite etc... Just in general. Don't like 'em, never did, hate that they are so prolific. They're just stressful.
Burnout Paradise
There are few games where winning and losing are equally fun, but Burnout Paradise pulls it off flawlessly.
You hit that turn with the perfect drift? Hell yeah. Oh shit, there was a car waiting for you at that intersection and now you have to watch your car and their car get smashed, crumpled, and tossed like a bag of moldy tangerines in slow motion? Hell yeah.
Breath of the Wild. I mean, yes, there are quests, bosses, temples, shrines, minigames and whatnot, but it is also completely fine to just fetch your favorite horse from the stable and ride across Hyrule, hunting wildlife, watching the sunset, cooking food for your character, maybe have Wolf Link accompany you on a hunt, just taking in the scenery, foarge for mushrooms, looking for shooting stars at night ... a little bit of reality escape helps to unwind after a long, hectic day. And this game is unreasonably beautiful as well, despite the simplyfied graphics.
No Man's Sky.
After the mildly stressful intro (which isn't bad, just uses more sticks than carrots in the tutorial section), you basically just pick a direction and go.
If you wanna quest, there are quests available in (almost) every system.
If you wanna farm, pick a nice planet and get to building.
If you wanna fight, go find a planet with hostile Sentinel presence.
There's always something interesting to do, but you can also just find a nice view on some planet, build a couch and just watch the iridescent grass blow in the wind for a bit.
I have a few.
Zelda on the switch. (BotW and TotK)
Terraria and Stardew Valley are pretty fun to play for relaxing.
Valheim with console options enabled so I have unlimited resources and can kill any enemies if I'm feeling lazy. I mostly like to just build and I'm slowly building an entire island with buildings, and other features.
I got deeply into this (genre?) when I burned out on a combination of playing big/tough games and the stresses of life. I also enjoyed the pace of Outer Wilds and Subnautica. Some other favourites:
- Supraland 1/2 (low combat, light hearted metroidvania, I loved it)
- Psychonauts 2 (amazing adventure game, big but not hard. I loved collecting everything, it was a great balance)
- Tinykin (similar adventure, a bit like Pikmin, which is also great. Lots of chilled collecting)
- Spiritfarer (lots of freedom, loose plot, not overwhelming)
- Breath of the Wild (do what you want, very nice discovery elements)
- TOEM, A Short Hike, GRIS and Cocoon (light adventure / puzzle games, peaceful but could be boring if you want action)
- Yokus Island Express (lovely metroidvania, chilled gameplay, not overwhelming)
- It Takes two (humour, light combat - played with my young son)
- Unravel 1/2 (easy-ish puzzles)
- Weirdly, I found Sniper Elite 4/5 fairly chill, lots of scoping out areas
- Overcooked 2 (zero stress if you play practice mode a ton before attempting a level. I found it a very zen/flow game)
- Peggle 1/2 (can be frustrating, but is very low stakes and arcadey. Lovely for short sessions)
- Wilmots Warehouse (can be stressful if you take the timer seriously, but I loved all the organising. Very satisfying)
- Vampire Survivors (can get a bit much, but pretty simple and disposable)
There are tons more, I deal with a lot of anxiety!
Some games I was recommended for this purpose that didn't land for me:
- Powerwash sim / other simulators (these feel like a second job for me. Constant grind and focus on perfection wasn't helpful)
- Tetris Evolution / Lumines (either gets too fast / hard, or gets boring)
- Stardew / Terraria (in theory these look great, but I find huge sandboxes too overwhelming. Always feels like I should be doing more stuff / doing it better)
- Roguelikes (I like Hades, Dead Cells, etc, but they're very stressful and frustrating when so much hinges on survival)
Finally, I'd suggest trying a solo board game. More tactile and relaxing alternative to screen time.
Factorio, Minecraft, and... Counter Strike. I exclusively play with a full squad of friends and even if we have a bad game, at least I'm spending time with my friends. Keeping contact with your friends is super important and getting harder every year. So it's quality time.
Skyrim. I played vanilla a bunch and now I'm working through the Living Skyrim 4 mod. I had to tweak a bunch of the settings, but I really enjoy it. I also love the Witcher 3, both actively playing quests and just wandering across the map listening to the howling wind and the soundtrack. I've loaded into that game after a long day with every intention of playing and just sat there with my headphones on and stared into space while the trees crackle together in the wind and the music plays.
Animal Crossing. I still play NH for 15 minutes a day just to go round my island and see what’s happening. My island is pretty much how I want it and I have collected nearly everything I want, but to take 20 minutes out the day just to walk around catch a bug or two and talk to an islander is a great way to relax.
Witcher 3, I love riding roach around and exploring and listening to the music. I like cruising in cyberpunk 2077 listening to the radio stations. There's also spiritifarer.
Deep Rock Galactic online with randoms. I listen to a podcast in the background.
slay the spire
Civilization. While it CAN be a stressful game if you crank up the difficulty to Deity, at prince or king, it's just so much fun.
With the advanced setup options, you can set up a game for however you are feeling at the time, explore a large world (however full or empty you want it), expand and watch your empire cover the map, learn and find all the new stuff in the world, conquer everybody, be a neutral power broker, launch into space.
It just feels nice.
Lately I have been playing Crypt of the Necrodancer. It was quite chill until I reached zone 4. It doesn't get me worked up or anything, but the last level of zone 4 does get me a bit tense with the speed.
In general, Deep Rock Galactic is pretty chill. If I really just want to take it easy I can pick up a mission on Hazard 3 or 4.
Rocket League. And then I'm not chilled.
It might be more catharsis than unwinding, but dark souls/sekiro. I've been through them enough times that it's just comfortable.
Damn, was gonna say subnautica but you already put that
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
American Truck Simulator or Euro Truck Simulator 2. Pick a long hual, throw on a podcast or some music, and just cruise.
The Talos Principle (+ DLC) and its just-released sequel really fit this niche for me. I'm fighting severe burnout and was specifically looking for a game without time pressure, reflex-based gameplay, or (because I keep bouncing off of turn-based strategy games even though I believe that I love them) complicated stats-based systems.
TTP is about first-person puzzles in the vein of Portal. While some of the puzzles can be difficult, you can work through them at your own pace. The level structure makes it easy to drop in and out of the game whenever, and the gorgeous environments and soundtrack make the world just a generally soothing and immersive place to walk around in.
Tetris Effect. The funny thing is I used to hate Tetris with passion, but somehow Tetris Effect has won me over. The music and sound effects are so ASMRish it's almost trance-inducing...
Outer Wilds
I will always shill for Outer Wilds, simply because it's such a niche that only 2 games have come out in its unnamed genre: Majora's Mask and Outer Wilds.
Yes, Outer Wilds is a spiritual successor to Majora's Mask.
And the worst part is that talking about the game would probably spoil half of it. All I can say that it's an adventure like Majora's Mask.
If you ever were to trust an internet stranger to buy a game blind, now is the time. If you loved MM, you'll at least like OW.
Happy adventuring, stranger ;)
Rimworld for me.
openRCT2.
BeamNG. Logged hundreds of hours just mindlessly driving around crashing into stuff and fucking around with vehicle customisations.
Terraria
Celeste
Dwarf Fortress
Animal Crossing New Leaf, Stardew Valley, Starfiled, Minecraft and Fortza Horazion 3,4 or 5.
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.
Terraria. I started a new character/world probably 200 times. Music is also bang on.
I only played it to try it out, and it isn't 100% in my range of games I'd care that much for, but I've gathered that Pokémon Mystery Dungeon (especially the first few pairs of games in the series) is the king when it comes to escapism. If someone said a psychologist made the games, I'd believe them.
Persona 5 Royal.
I love the social element, characters and such.
Since everyone has already said more well known games, here are my Indie/small games
Islanders
Race the Sun
Skye
Superflight
Potion craft is great for this, just running a little potion shop making potions to order.
I really liked playing Talos Principle 2 the past days. makes you think not just about logic but also some aspects of philosophy. which, at least to me, is pretty relaxing.
The Hunter: Call of the Wild. I have nothing to do with hunting. I'd never thought a hunting simulation could be my type of game, but putting headphones on and running through the woods is so relaxing.
I play high intensity first person shooters, mostly Battlefield, to unwind.
The faster paced the better because it allows me to escape.
It used to be I’d get so worked up over competitive games. I had to be doing PvE to relax. Not so any more.
Weirdly, this happened after I had a completely horrible medical experience that left me with permanent (figurative) scars on my nervous system. Like, I still have stress problems four years after the event.
But at that moment, suddenly competitive games became refreshing to me.
I think I understand what you mean lol.
Lately for me it's been: Mass Effect legendary edition, Mount & Blade 2, Crusader Kings 3, Dishonored 1 and 2, and Hitman 3.
Splatoon. Don't ask why, I don't know. My gf calls it "yelling at 12 year olds"
But seriously it's like watching your own team score against you in soccer ;___;
Recently got back into my childhood favorite, Simcity 2000.
It's just a classic for me. Amazing city builder with a chill soundtrack. Super rewarding planning out your city and watching it develop across the map. And it's super stress free if you just play with disasters off
Age of Empires 2 custom games. Can't beat a classic, and you can save whenever you're done
Slay the spire
Forza and Rocket League
Cities Skylines 2 has been great for this. Just log in and tinker with your city! Very relaxing creative problem solving..
I find most games can be relaxing if Ive already played them a lot, even comp shooters. Quake Champions is relaxing for me at this point
Caves of Qud is something I love to relax with. It's full of stuff to explore and you can take your time since its turn based. I don't even mind so much when I die, because you get to create a completely new weird mutant and try again.
Minecraft. Sky Factory 3 - a void world modpack. Nothing exists without my having created it. I can allow mobs to spawn on my platform or not, depending on how I feel.
World of Warcraft Retail.
burnout paradise. I'll just put on a podcast and drive around. Sometimes I'm seeking out races, or new best times on roads. Sometimes I'm just driving around more or less obeying traffic laws like a reasonable citizen.
Mars First Logistics & Animal Crossing
Dead Cells. I can just... Zone out and go. It's really cathartic, and if I do particularly bad during a run, I just... Die and start over. You don't lose anything you've gained, (unless you pick something up in a biome and don't make it to the exit), and each run is practically a new game that requires nothing to learn it. It's my Zen game.
Path of exile for a few weeks every league
But I'm enjoying rogue lites / vampire survivors like games. There's a billion of them so you can just chill with one of them. I usually find a new one every other day too, some demo or whatever
Risk of rain 2 is also not something I would call a chill game. But it's definitely something you can just fire up and play for an hour
Honestly, some visual novels like Ace attorney, Katawa shoujo, Steins Gate, Clannad are very chill.
C&C Generals World Builder. I just make maps while I'm in discord.
It's stimulating enough that it keeps my mind from wandering from a conversation, but brainless enough to be engaged in the conversation.
I'm also partial to Minecraft. Just decorate a little section then log off until tomorrow
Harvest Moon /Story of Season games.
Stardew Valley.
Diner Dash series of games.
Dwarf Fortress.
Theme Hospital.
The Sims.
Games that I can mostly play hands off.
Skyrim or Fallout 4 when I want to chill as an adventurous muderer
Earth Defense Force when I want to blow shit up
Dinkum is a really good Stardew Valley/Animal Crossing mix. If you like either, you'll likely end up like me, playing "just a bit" and realizing over 4 hours flew by.
Weirdly, Yakuza. Not even to thrash thugs, just to have a virtual night out with some karaoke, pool, darts... sexy bug-lady wrestling... I love most of the mini games in the series.
I play Hades, but I cheat.
It's super fun to see what kind of ridiculous combinations of powers and weapons you can create when you aren't worried about money or resources in any way shape or form.
I had a Hermes Build for Max speed that did bonus damage based on speed bonuses, Ares for Blade rift when dodging, and some Athena for some invulnerability.
Sprinting around the levels like the flash and absolutely nuking everybody with blade rifts is just too much fun.
I don't play Tetris usually but when I get bored or just wanna relax then I play Tetris[Highest Score: 500k in 8 Hours]
Oxygen Not Included. - !oxygennotincluded@lemmy.world
Just started a new colony yesterday because an update was released with new tools and content. The colony I was playing up until that point was almost 3000 cycles old.
Nethack or DROD
Just starting to get into genshin impact, though, and it seems pretty cool.
I've just started Snake Pass and it's a no bullshit old-style puzzle platformer (think PS1 platformers such as Croc, Crash Bandicoot or Rayman) with a unique movement mechanic that feels very chill. There's little in the way of worldbuilding though
Any of the building/management games like Factorio or Dyson Sphere Program or RimWorld. You can definitely make those games extremely challenging (speed runs, achievements, ultra hard modes/challenges). But for me they're cozy games where I can chip away at a small project or part of a larger project, like, I don't know, slowly building a scale model or something.
DOTA2 turbo mode, done in 20-30 minutes, and the try bards that take the mode serious are hilarious
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.
For me, it is Nova Drift. It has been the game I go to when I just want to relax and chill.
These days it's Baldurs Gate 3 but before that, it's Grimdawn for ARPG itch or Stardew valley if I just want to turn a game on and afk alot. (Sometimes that's Grimdawn too)
Stacklands, inscription, forza.
Stacklands was surprisingly addicting
Inscription was fun and challenging but not too crazy if you get creative ;)
Forza - I mean really any game where I can drive around. Fun to try to hit some corners sharp or do some tricks in gta.
Spend hours downloading / messing with proton / configuring, and then play for 15 minutes...
At this point I'm almost convinced I just like the setup process.
Otherwise probably quake.
Stardew Valley, Animal Crossing, My Time at Portia, Cozy Grove or Good Pizza, Great Pizza!
Earth Defense Force or Creeper World 3
I usually listen to music and play driving games like Forza Horizon, BeamNG, or Dirt.
Also roguelike games like Deadly Days.
Basically Loopy in Simon Tatham's Puzzles, available on Linux, Windows, and Android (F-Droid), when I don't want to be stressed.
Otherwise I just play some retro/old school games like Final Fantasy (started IV a few days ago), (Free)Doom, AssaultCube or Cave Story when on my laptop.
Not a long or super replayable game like some of these answers but Jusant is super chill.
Sometimes I feel like I'm the only person on here who plays Hollow Knight. When I want to chill, I like to start a new game and just go through the early-mid game exploration phase. No pressure, skip bosses if I feel like it. Just run around and enjoy the atmosphere and music. Love it.
I have several games for a lazy evening on the sofa, so it depends on the mood.
I hoard virtual cars, tanks and ships, so I pick CSR2 when I want to do an event there (daily boring grinding tasks are automated). When I want to shoot I either junp in World of Tanks Blitz or World of Warships Blitz.
When in a mood where I want to just tap around, I dust off Hay Day.
Gershwin Impact has been on the tablet, but after a few attempts to play it, it's removed again. Looks nice, but not my style, yet.
Genshin Impact has been my comfort game the last 2 years
Bloons td6 is pretty cool and laid back.
Diablo II Resurrected. I've been playing it (Diablo II) for 20 years now. Even though I know the game inside out, a new rare rune drop can still make my day. I usually listen to podcasts meanwhile.
Vampire Survivors was tons of fun until I unlocked pretty much everything, but it also goes great with podcasts.
Clone Hero. Even though I only have a keyboard (so say goodbye to the fast strum bits), It often takes me from 'I just want to chill' to 'this song was FIRE'.
Pokemon Fire Red or Dark Souls
So what games do you play when you just wanna relax?
Solitaire
I guess whatever Kairosoft sim game I'm playing at the moment. Right now that's Tropical Resort Story. I am entirely addicted to their formula. I love watching my little guys do things and helping them succeed.
Or maybe Shadow of the Colossus. It's the game I know better than any other. I'll never not be able to jump into at least normal difficulty. And I can just ride around the Forbidden Lands having thoughts and feelings for hours sometimes. The Forbidden Lands are a very placid, pensive place for me. I have known them since I was a teenager, for nearly 20 years. And occasionally I can tackle a Colossus or two.
civ 5 - random everything & just do whatever.
I can't name a specific game because they all get old, boring, and unsatisfying after a while. However in terms of genre, it tends to be roguelites and poker.
Super smash. The intense gameplay draws me in away from whatever is keeping me from relaxing.
I am biased as I am the Imagineer of my title, but I get a lot of comments that it is a great place to just chill, even with a loved one or good friend. It is a VR Theme Park focused on highly detailed, story driven dark rides like the ones you find at Disney. The first ride is out and it sent me to the top of charts on the Meta Quest App Lab Store. Even if you do not have VR yet, that is fine as I am not done developing yet as I have years of work ahead of me, but if/when you do, come check it out. It really does feels like you are in a Theme Park on a nice sunny day, walking around the grounds, exploring the ride queues and of course boarding the dark rides…well one dark ride, but the second one is coming along nice,”The Haunted Castle” and I will be updating the store with a tease soon.
Phasmophobia
When I'm on the go, I like to just chill with games like Fire Emblem Heroes on my phone (the parts that don't require you to potentially pair up and play against sweats with no life who can make a lvl.1 3 star character nuke your lvl.40+10 5 star unit). Or if I'm not on a bus and am just in a car, I might just pull out my switch if I have it on me and do some raids in Pokemon Violet (offline since I don't have the online pass).
If I'm at home on my desktop, I like to chill from time to time building rollercoasters (Rollercoaster Tycoon 3 Platinum) of either doom (mostly those) or ones could feasibly be made in the real world without healthy people dying while riding it. That, or do some casual peglin runs.
iOS / iPad game called "Flight Pilot". Dumb, not even a simulator, just get off the ground and hit hot air baloons for points kind of game. It's just a mindless time for me to relax a bit. You can run "missions" if you want, but you don't have to, and if you're patient, you can level up without making any purchases using real money. It's really great.
Im going to hijack op post.
Im looking for game to chill just like OP described, but im looking for something with online multiplayer. Ideally something like a builder like minecraft or no man sky, where I can just connect and find randomly people and help them build shit. I dont want to have to search for specific servers to interact with people, something that would randomly put me in worlds with other people.
Euro truck simulator. Just hit the road and drive.
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Project Zomboid https://lemmy.world/c/projectzomboid
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beamng https://lemmy.world/c/beamng
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dying light 1+dlc
Love to sit down and smash shit up in beamng also play around in beamng mutitplayer mod kissmp
acrynom for keep it simple stupidI would love to give beammp a proper go my but beammp is woefully unoptmised and I've got some already pretty low end hardware-
geometry dash
Mini Metro
I play Tibia. It's an old 2d MMORPG with endless grinding. Loads of quests and a playerbase where the average age is like 28.
Wurm Unlimited
Cities Skylines and Civ
I like playing on the minecraft server "diamondfire". You can make minigames and play minigames made by other players
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