I had a moment to think about why I like certain games, and I have figured out some criteria for myself,
- Vibrant colours
- Simple/Cartoon-ish looks
- Mid/High level of complexity in mechanics
That’s why my current favourite game is Splatoon 3, followed by Minecraft, and the list consists mostly of Nintendo games.
What’s your criteria?
The first thing I check for is if a game is Terraria. If it isn’t, I play Terraria instead.
All kidding aside, I tend to enjoy games that involve exploration, character development, and pleasent visuals. Good sound design is also a must, and I prefer games to be at least somewhat action oriented.
None of these things are hard and fast rules for me, of course. I like a lot of different games.
I only really play VR games anymore, so that narrows things down considerably. Is it a shooter? If so, does it play just like every other shooter? Does it have bullshit that breaks immersion? Does it have co-op? Does it offer standard VR mechanics/preferences?
Those are the key things I look at. Sadly, very few companies understand how to make a good VR game.
I wish we played with our VR headset more. We have had an occulus rift for years and have barely used it. I was really enjoying the new half-life game too. We just forget about it in our home
It’s not even that hard honestly. Like I would pay good money for new levels of games I already have. It’s got to be cheaper to simply use the same everything except for map, than to build a new game. I’d spend so much money, ongoing, for new battlefield maps for example.
I don’t care about new game mechanics at all. I just want new places. New buildings. New variations on the same theme.
If one video game were one instrument, I just want more piano music. I could spend a lifetime enjoying more and more piano music and it would never get old as long as the actual sequence of notes changes.
The Factory. Must. Grow.
I’m really into Factory games atm. Factorio, Dyson Sphere Program, Astro Colony…
Same
- zombies
- shooter
- wasteland
-> fallout3
As I’ve gotten older and had more sporadic time windows to play games (kids, work, life), I’ve gravitated more and more to rogue-like/lites and soulsborne style games. Having games that have a core gameplay loop that is 20 minutes to an hour is perfect for me, and I can kind of pick up and put down whenever I want without losing my place in a grand overwhelming open world that is miles wide, but inches deep (Starfield, I’m looking at you…).
With the rogue-like/lites, I can do a run and just go to bed and say “I’ll get further next time”, while with soulsborne games I can clear out an area and do a boss, then come back to do the next area/boss another time. If the lore seems interesting, vatividya will probably have a video on it some point to catch me up on whatever I missed.
Not that hard for me, but it’s a process I’ve developed over the years. I like RPGs, open worlds, exploration, space themes, things related to historical stuff I like. I like a little strategy in gameplay, some puzzl solving. I also like innovation (new ways of playing a game), and good storytelling driven games such as Detroit Become Human. I dislike multiplayer, so I always go for single player. Not a big fan of FPS, but if it’s not the sole dimension of the game, I’ll tolerate it.
My game selection process is quite easy though : I watch game trailers, I remember those that feel good to me. Then I look/wait for gameplay trailers, which is quite important. The more I’m excited about it, the more likely I’ll buy the game.
I will exceptionally preorder a game. Otherwise, I’ll look for the “Before you buy” type of reviews. If I’m still convinced, I’ll buy it the day it comes out. Otherwise I’ll give it some time.
My favorite game are Mass Effect series, Assassin’s Creed Series, lots more also. Right now, I’m having a blast with Starfield.
I think in general I tend to ask myself these questions:
- can I role play as someone else?
- is there a branching storyline that can be replayed in different ways?
- is there an open world with tons of nooks and crannies to explore?
- can I dress up? :)
- is there a fun and novel gameplay mechanic?
Usually I’m invested if it ticks several boxes. I love long, story heavy rpg’s like BG3. But also visual novels like Roadwarden, open world like Shadow of Doubt, or more experimental like Book of Travels.
Have you played the Shadowrun games? They also have some custom campaigns in the steam workshop.
Oh yes, definitely!
Though I haven’t thought of trying the custom campaigns. Thank you for reminding me! :)Some of them are really good. Same quality as an actual game.
I love Trackmania because you drive tracks of 20-60 seconds, one constantly improves in details, it’s quick to learn but still has a high skill ceiling. I encountered it in a YouTube video, discovered some streams and downloaded the game. Not really based on criteria because I’m not a fan of F1 for example.
Hmm.
- Usually open world. I like occasional other types, but a world with an explorable world map is more likely to keep my attention.
- Has to at least start more green than city. Cityscapes/Sci-fi settings bore me visually. This applies to real life too.
- Bright. If I need to play at night with lights off to see where the heck I’m going, I don’t like it.
- Usually some creature in the world to catch my interest. Like (inklings/octolings/salmonids in Splatoon).
- A good story is nice but not at all needed. I like environmental storytelling and aimless wandering.
- No “game complete”. I want to keep my save file forever.
Not hard rules of course, I have exceptions.
Like Metroid sounds perfect for me in some ways, but because it’s so dim and sci-fi, I can’t stay interested. Unlike Zelda, which usually starts with brightly lit forests that keep me in.
Splatoon has amazingly dark lore that’s only visible past it’s bright happy exterior that I LOVE. Stardew Valley/Minecraft/Animal Crossing are in my alley.
It’s hard to pin down because I like different types of games.
I like:
Puzzle games that are 100% logical, difficulty increases, there is no timer running and ideally there is a way to improve my solution (Zachtronics games hit this perfectly but also games like Human Resource Machine, Hexcells)
Automation Games like Factorio
Simple and fair arcade on iOS, with high scores I can compare with my brother or, if I’m really good at it, the global leaderboard. Examples are Ollies Arcade, Jetpack Joyride, Tiny Wings, …
Sneaking games like Alien Isolation, Metal Gear Solid, Sniper Elite,…
„Realistic“ jobs that I can tune out to like Shipbreaker, Mudrunner, transport missions in Elite Dangerous.
Rhythm games on PSVR2 (though I hate that I have to buy the music)
Good old point and click adventures
City builders
But I will try and may like many other games that don’t fall into those categories and, for some reason or another, get me excited.
How a game looks rarely matters to me but I won’t consider games that look unfinished or cheaply made (exceptions exist like Prison Architect)
In general I don’t like games that are too hard, too long or too artsy. I don’t enjoy online multiplayer anymore and I will certainly not play anything that wants me paying more and more money to progress.
I like shooters and other combat sims that have matchmaking and allow me to enter a flow state.
I’ve got a twitch channel with exactly one fan. No idea who it is. They seem to like Mechwarrior 5 (ie they show up quick whenever I play) so I’ve been playing a lot of that.
It’s so fun because it’s actually kind of a slow-paced game. But it does have a flow. Something so satisfying about locking onto enemy after enemy and dispatching them according to the rhythm of my recharging weapons.
Also it’s a pleasant surprise that Mechwarrior (this is the first MW game Ive played) is the board game Battletech, which I used to play in the 90s. I never realized these were the same game with all the same rules.
I can stand in forest to make shots miss me, I can use my lasers to cut down trees, I have LRMs and autocannons, I can stand it water to dissipate heat faster.
It’s my fortune to have an eidetic memory, so I remember Battletech as clear as day despite not playing it since the 90s. It’s kind of fun to load up my personality from when I was 9 and show him the video games of the future, where I’m playing that same board game but in real time.
Good story, good graphics, good audio, has to run at 60fps with a decent resolution on PS5.
Hmm.
- Usually open world. I like occasional other types, but a world with an explorable world map is more likely to keep my attention.
- Has to at least start more green than city. Cityscapes/Sci-fi settings bore me visually. This applies to real life too.
- Bright. If I need to play at night with lights off to see where the heck I’m going, I don’t like it.
- Usually some creature in the world to catch my interest. Like (inklings/octolings/salmonids in Splatoon).
- A good story is nice but not at all needed. I like environmental storytelling and aimless wandering.
- No “game complete”. I want to keep my save file forever.
Not hard rules of course, I have exceptions.
Like Metroid sounds perfect for me in some ways, but because it’s so dim and sci-fi, I can’t stay interested. Splatoon has amazingly dark lore that’s only visible past it’s bright happy exterior that I LOVE. Stardew Valley/Minecraft/Animal Crossing are in my alley.
I tend to play a lot of problem solving games over just pure skill/luck, i also prefer ones with great sound/music
I am someone who likes to solve problems, so strategy / management games tend to be my preferred. For instance I recently did a run of Factorio with no belts.
I also like trying new things even if failure is an option, in fact failure should be expected if you’re trying hard enough. So KSP is another one of my favorites.
