What's your go-to 'feel good' game?

[Siresly]

Wreckfest
Physics of destruction has always been fascinating and satisfying to me. And Bugbear is great at making nailing other drivers feel really rewarding and dynamic.
Its physics are relatively realistic, so smacking the crap out of someone and getting away cleanly generally requires some actual thought, precision and timing.
So when I manage a proper wallop and watch the fucker tumble off into the woods, those are genuine moments of glee for me.

Battlefield is good for cleansing my mind, replacing whatever's in there with thoughts of battles and fields. It works because I can choose how to engage, at what pace. Goof around, get serious, or somewhere inbetween. It requires focus that pulls my mind into it, but it's only ever stressful if I make it so. And so it's just pleasant escapism.

 

[SiegeDamage]

A Link to the Past. I go back and do a 100% playthrough a couple times a year. Runner-up is Majora's Mask.

 

[Star-Lord]

Currently...
Overwatch
Fall guys
Halo collection multiplayer

 

[Biteren]

Doom 93

 

[Feign]

For a long time it was Part 1 of Night in the Woods. I've replayed up to the party too many times to count. However, I haven't in a while. I don't know if things changed or what, but time will tell.

Returning to Fire Emblem Three Houses the past week or so has been amazing. Persona 5 Royal felt magical. But I haven't really returned since. I'm curious if 13 Sentinels will ever feel that way, because it has the potential to. I watch Farscape all the way through every couple years and I can see myself doing that with 13 Sentinels in the future. Possibly Paper Mario The Origami King, too, but that may be recency bias.

 

[Boy]

Street fighter 2/super mario world

 

[Ryuelli]

Animal Crossing
Jackbox
Rock Band (Haven't played this in years though, what I would give for another full-band set release).

 

[UshiromiyaEva]

Crash 3 is a game I can complete on auto pilot at this point, I remember the level order, the layouts, everything to make replays pretty effortless, but I love the game to death in spite of its faults and it rekindles some memory of when life was far far simpler for me.

Mega Man X, X4, Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3, and Tony Hawk 2 also fill very similar voids as comfort food games

 

[DeliciousSunnyD!]

The original Spyro the Dragon is my ultimate, go-to feel good game. I just love how it looks, sounds, and feels to play. It's a simple game that isn't very long or too challenging. Stewart Copeland's soundtrack is just blissful. Charging and flaming enemies and treasure chests to gather all the gems is both satisfying and relaxing. Gliding feels good.

If there's a game that encapsulates "good vibes" and nostalgia for me, it's that original Spyro on the PlayStation.

Breath of the Wild is a good modern game that hits a lot of the same kinds of feelings for me honestly, surprisingly.

 

[Last_colossi]

Beyond Good & Evil.

 

[smurfx]

i think its either contra for the nes or mario 2 for the nes. both are some of my fav games and i can pass them pretty quick. i used to love speed running monkey ball 2 but since i no longer have a gamecube i can't do that anymore. i really want a monkey ball collection for the ps4 or ps5 in the future.

 

[Iucidium]

Foraging on Monster Hunter World, soaking in the world around or Time Trial on GT Sport.

 

[Mobius 1]

Yakuza 0 for some reason.

Click to shrink...

I did exactly that yesterday. Cabaret management for relaxation.

 

[Hzsn724]

Anything metroidvania. I just get lost in them and nothing else matters. Currently playing Bloodstained and my God...

But if I had to be specific then:

 

[Duxxy3]

Probably Gears of War Judgement.

 

[Father Kratos]

Not one particular game but a series...and thats Yakuza.

 

[Murr]

Old School Runescape, Animal Crossing, and private classic Maplestory servers.

They all feel like being slowly lulled to sleep. Like a cat's purr. Like a gentle midnight breeze.

 

[BriGuy]

Megaman X. The first one is more or less the perfect action platformer. I quit when I hit the Sigma stages because they're not as interesting, but tackling the eight bosses in random orders with self-imposed handicaps is always a hoot.

 

[ConfusedOwl]

Farming sims like Stardew Valley and Story of Seasons (or old Harvest Moon). I find Final Fantasy XIV is a good game to chill out to as well. Following MSQ or just doing some gathering is nice.

Old School Runescape, Animal Crossing, and private classic Maplestory servers.

They all feel like being slowly lulled to sleep. Like a cat's purr. Like a gentle midnight breeze.

Click to shrink...

That's a good one too. I haven't been a member for a bit but whenever I return it's like reuniting with an old friend.

 

[OneOpinionatedMan]

Rocket League for mindless fun and frustration reducing challenge.

Half-Life 2 for old school goodness and getting lost in one of my favorite post-apocalyptic worlds.

 

[ToddBonzalez]

Sayonara Wild Hearts. Chill gameplay, great visuals and tunes.

 

[Multievolution]

These days I rarely play games In that way but I would probably say it varies, skyrim, animal crossing, dark cloud, or any Pokemon game from 2010 or earlier are what come to mind.

 

[Deleted member 17990]

Mordhau, always end up in a lobby where shit happens and just makes me laugh out loud. Never fails.

 

[ghibli99]

Whatever I happen to be playing at the time, really. The whole point for me anyway is that games are for enjoyment, and if I'm not having a good time or it's making me forget about other worries in life, it's time to play something else.

But in terms of what I'd consider gaming "comfort food", it's the super scaler Sega games of the '80s (Space Harrier, Out Run, Super Hang-On, Power Drift, etc.). Those take me back to simpler times that always make me smile.

 

[RetroGameGuy]

Stardew Valley and most 1st party Nintendo games. Also, pretty much anything from the 16-bit era.

 

[SirNinja]

Diablo III.

Every time I need a stress-relief game I just select my best character and just rampage through endless random dungeons, gain a couple extra Paragon levels, make my character that much more powerful...maybe even see if I can push my best legendary gems up a level or two if I want a challenge.

 

[TMC]

skate 3 for me. I could easily skate around for hours and try different gap and trick combinations until I nailed them. I still hook up my PS3 for the occasional session every once in a while. Can't wait for this series to come back.

 

[bixente]

Tetris 99 is the main one. Dicey Dungeons is another. Animal Crossing of course. Clubhouse Games.

 

[GamerJM]

Don't have one. I manage to make the most chill games stressful to myself in some way. Music and gaming forums is my "chill" gaming related activity.

 

[Izanagi89]

Definitely Final Fantasy XV. Love being in that world. Also driving around while playing classic FF tunes is a mood <3

 

[dubc]

Mostly sports games from when I was young and had time to play them a bunch. Also Contra.

Tecmo Super Bowl
Contra
NHL '94
NBA Live '95

 

[JumbiePrime]

Diablo 3 . Turn on game , shut off brain. Put on some music , podcast , movie , whatever and just do rifts . Very relaxing for me

 

[Booshka]

Dark Souls 1 for me. I have multiple characters I can play for PvP or co op. Or I can just start a new play through and enjoy that.

I have played that game for thousands of hours so it's super chill unless I want to tryhard pvp. But even that has a rewarding rhythm of wins and losses. Even if I get clapped up and tossed nothing is new or surprising, I have seen it all for 9 years now.

 

[LossAversion]

Spyro The Dragon.

 

[Rendering...]

Lately, Final Fantasy 15. It feels so nice to run around the beautiful landscape with my bros, cruise the roads, or stroll through different towns, snapping pictures and listening to that nostalgia inducing music.

And thanks to all of the post-release support, the combat is great with all of the different playable party members. The last 20 hours or so, my main activity has been dozens of monster hunts that take me to all corners of the world.

I feel like I could play the post-game chapter forever. A neverending road trip.

The thought of Final Fantasy 7 Remake Pt. 2 capturing even a slice of that magic with a more open map has me thrilled.

 

[Morrigan]

Souls games

 

[Yuntu]

Genshin Impact.

 

[Flygon]

Probably OpenTTD, there's just something weirdly satisfying about populating that map.

 

[Larrikin]

Diddy Kong Racing. Although A Short Hike may have supplanted it.

 

[turbobrick]

Overwatch. Just chill quickplay or deathmatch games with music on.

Or some Link to the Past randomizer. Either works.

 

[slorelli]

 

[Zaki2407]

Astro's Playroom.

 

[Unicorn]

Animal Crossing since the GameCube came out when I was in high school. There's nights I would just go to sleep while on the beach, listening to the crashing waves on the shore.

 

[Gray]

Something about playing Remnant: From the Ashes really relaxes me and calms me down. I've had moments when this was the only game I could play for weeks after certain events in my life, and in general it's been an anchor to me in a very shitty year.

 

[Mollymauk]

Bloodborne

It's fun to do 1.00 runs using the dupe glitch to get OP

 

[Kinketsu]

Playing Day of Defeat helps me relax. It is familiar enough that I just fall into the loop and can tune things out for hours of necessary. Harder to find non-terrible servers which I can still connect to, but I have my few.

 

[poptire]

 

[Navidson REC]

The Forza Horizon games never fail to put a smile on my face, and I'm not even a huge racing fan.

 

[oldzac]

PS2 era games do it for me, I guess because of the age I was when I first played them.

So, Bully, the Jak series, the Sly series, Shadow of the Colossus, the Ratchet series, and Metal Gear Solid 3. I find myself going back to those games the most.

 

[Rodney McKay]

Borderlands.
Doesn't really matter which one, I just love the gameplay loop of leveling my character, doing quests, and getting loot. Sure they aren't as technically impressive as Destiny 2, but I just find them fun as hell.

Also Idle games like Tap Titans 2.
If I'm really stressed out and don't feel like doing much of anything, they're perfect to just let my brain wind down with the satisfaction of making numbers go up.
TT2 even has some RPG stuff like character builds and stuff to tweak how you want to play which I appreciate.

Diablo III.

Every time I need a stress-relief game I just select my best character and just rampage through endless random dungeons, gain a couple extra Paragon levels, make my character that much more powerful...maybe even see if I can push my best legendary gems up a level or two if I want a challenge.

Click to shrink...

Yeah, Diablo 3 is such a great game for this. For me having it portable on Switch finally made the game click for me. So easy to just pick up and play while watching TV, listening to music, or podcasts.

D3 has become my go-to "palate cleanser" game of I finish something and I can't decide what to play next. I just play it until I finally decide which game to start up next.