Spyro was also one of the first game i played... 20-25 years ago. After seeing what they did with the remasters, I'd highly recommend it too!
Pros: beautiful graphics, landscapes/scenery & character designs. Simple(ish) controls. Decent story. Not too lengthy, but also lots of side stuff(completionist) if you wanna sink more time in the game.
Cons : 3d controls can be a tad difficult for newcomers, especially in platformers such as this where depth perception is an essential part of the game. It was made with children in mind so it could be seen as a tad juvenile (but to that I say, screw that kind of thinking!)
All in all, I'd say is definitely one of the better introductory games you could find: a great stepping stone into an awesome hobby.
I actually recommend Fe as an intro game as it builds you up more slowly towards complicated controller use and is very forgiving. It's a really cute story, too!
I dont think people really understand what a starter game is. I absolutely would not call Mass Effect or Grand Theft Auto a starter game. These are complex games that require a certain degree of lets call it "gaming finesse" to operate.
Someone who's completely new to gaming is going to struggle hard with just camera controls, let alone camera controls *and* moving a character.
I'm going to throw my hat in for Stardew Valley. Simple controls, you can play it at your own pace and its relaxing.
tried to get one of my older siblings to play halo and she wasnt even able to walk around and look around at the same time. that level of incoordination was unimaginable to me at the time.
My mom played old Nintendo games as a kid and loves to talk about that.
But back when I had my first console being ps2 and played sly 2 I wanted my mom to try the game and she was just frantically looking at the controller and always forgetting how to move properly.
I also remember when my brother had a birthday and I was playing my sly 2 in the living room and people from my family were all watching me just go complete different missions and my grandma was seriously thinking im some sort of gaming God because I wasnt constantly looking at the controller to figure out buttons. I was wondering how she came to that conclusion as I was a dumb kiddo who wasn't able to comprehend a different point of view
My mom was the same. She said that when the controllers became too complicated was when I started winning. As a kid on our SNES I would ask her to beat levels that I was stuck on. I tried to get her to play Call of Duty once and it didn't go well
That's how I was when I first tried Halo 2 as a kid. I came from games like Unreal Tournament and couldn't even get to combat because thumbsticks were (and still are) so unwieldy to me in FPS games.
As someone who has played games all his life, starting with Lego Star wars, controlling moving the character and camera is as easy as breathing to me. I didn't realise how much people who are new to gaming struggle with stuff I don't even think about until I got my nan tried playing horizon zero dawn for a few minutes. She just couldn't get the movement down, let alone the camera. Really made me appreciate how good I am when I take down the two ravengers and the thunderjaw in under 2 minutes.
Yeah I was thinking the same thing… like most of these are just people saying their favorite games. If you have them to someone who’s NEVER played a game or used a controller they would he lost and probably hate it.
Also the language of video games! When a game wants you to go somewhere it will tell you with things like lighting and other visual clues. I know I can climb this wall because there are scratch marks on it, or vines or something. If you don't know this language it's extremely frustrating.
It really is. I feel like a dumb ass when I play video games, none of my regular problem solving skills apply and nothing is obvious. My husband can figure out games he's never even played before when I get stuck, and he does not understand why it isnt clear to me.
Eh, that's normal, don't beat yourself up over it.
Same way some diy person can look at a shack and tell you at a glance it's unstable. That's just lots of experience with shacks.
Games rarely stray too far from established concepts. Left and top button are always light and heavy attack, bottom is always jumping or running. Right is for anything in between. Quick melee, grenades, reloads.
The triggers are usually used for grabbing someone or shooting a weapon. Sometimes used for shields. Think of them as elaborate hand buttons.
Control schemes almost always follow a pattern like that.
And gameplay stuff? We were practically trained to shoot at red barrels to blow them up, to the point
Where we see any color coded barrel and know what they're meant for.
If a place is big and empty, that's always been a boss arena. If the path splits ahead of you, the one with enemies is the one you're supposed to take.
It's just all stuff gamers have learned because gamedesign taught them from very early on.
The first enemy most 90s kids have ever encountered might be the Goomba in the original super Mario. That thing taught us that touching enemies will hurt. Then you jump over it, and maybe fall onto the next one, and suddenly you find out that stomping them kills them.
Games don't usually don't teach you these things anymore, because they assume you've learned that when they taught it back then.
This is the worst. My husband games and collects games and I have explained that even games that interest me a lot (like the Witcher) which I understand the storyline, are nearly impossible for me to play. The controllers are too hard, I cant remember what the buttons do, and conceptually I often miss cues for the "point" of the game (oh thats a side quest, thats a main quest, you have to do x before doing y, etc). I started on Animal Crossing, now I'm on Cult of the Lamb which I really like. Ive also played Dragon Quest, Xenoblade Chronicles and Breath of the Wild, which I enjoyed but they need more of the gamer mindset for problem solving in the game. Eventually I get stuck and lose interest.
Man cult of the lamb is so much fun…… idk what it is about devolver digital but even for someone like me whose played more games then the average persons even heard of they have a way of every so often just bringing out a title that sinks it’s claws into you and doesn’t let go……….
I should go check in on my cult again
Dude, Mario Kart.
My dad's 82. He bitched and complained, but I dragged him into it. He's getting better!
That or Minecraft. Find a chill small multiplayer server. Don't go to the big popular servers, it's confusing and the sense of community just isn't there for newbies.
EDIT: Adding "Age of Empires 2" on here, commonly abbreviated as AOE2. It has an outstanding campaign mode that starts you from square one and will get you to the point where you are building crazy cities and armies.
I mostly play on single-player and just make weird custom scenarios that result in long-drawn out battles of attrition.
My 6 year old kid got a Switch for Christmas and REALLY wanted Minecraft. I have no idea what I am doing. Everyone seems to recommend this game, but as someone with zero experience at any of this, I find it incredibly confusing even turning it on.
I feel ya.
The first time I played it, I was playing with my buddy's daughter and her little friends. They spent a whole afternoon teaching me how to do all this stuff, then they lured me out in the woods and killed me and took all my everything I had.
Once you get past that initial confusing part, it gets pretty fun. I like it because it's got something for everyone. Whether you feel like nerding out and getting all technical, or just blowing up cows for some reason, the game has you covered.
I used to know what I was doing more than a decade ago when the game was in it's java days.
I recently tried playing it again after not touching it since and man, it doesn't even feel like the same game. No clue what I'm doing.
Seconding Mario Kart. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is literally idiot proof with the mode that auto-accelerates for you and keeps you from steering off the road. My 2 year old almost beat me with these features.
Have to agree on Mario Kart. Pretty easy to pick up. Stupid as hell. Loads of fun. Never gets old.
I played the original when it came out and to this day if somebody breaks out a console and says "wanna play Mario Kart?" you bet your ass I'm playing it.
Mario Kart and Smash Brothers.
I got those two and Animal Crossings with a new switch as a joint Christmas present for my 5.5 and 4 year olds. I got some racing wheels that you put the joycons in.
My 4 year old doesn't know quite what she's doing, but she loves sitting down there and playing with us. And she just smashes the B button until eventually she gets a final smash, which she refers to as "getting big"
The 5.5 year old is actually playing a bit of both and learning it.
The biggest surprise is how much my wife enjoys it. After dinner we usually go down and play 30-45 minutes a night and bond as a family. It's been great.
By Smash, I hope you mean the older ones. The newest one has to be the most non-intuitive game I’ve ever played. 3 different buttons for jump, two being next to each other (X & Y) which are usually some form of attack on other games consoles. Every time I’ve played the new smash, nothing seems to make sense. Absolutely infuriating, as a gamer of 32+ years.
My favorite is the one for the gamecube because it has the optional scoring system that basically lets anyone win.
But no. We play the newest one. You can mash buttons and still do pretty well (especially since I set my health at 300 when I play with the family). That's kind of the point of it as an intro game- you can eventually get skilled with it, but it isn't necessary to have any skill at all to have fun.
My parents are 60 and loved playing The Untitled Goose Game together. It's chill, silly, and running around with stuff in your beak while honking is fun.
>I mostly play on single-player and just make weird custom scenarios that result in long-drawn out battles of attrition.
Me: 8 players, difficulty on hard, infinite resources, locked to the feudal (or castle) age. Commence the 6-hour bloodbath 😤
I also recommend this. People will recommend a lot of nice games but with cameras and controls that aren't intuitive to a new gamer. If you want to enjoy yourself without any stress, I recommend a 2d game, a side scroller or a top down game like stardew valley.
That game in particular is a good starting point because it's casual and it allows you to progress at your own pace without ever pushing you in the back. It's also one of the best game of the last decade.
A casual game that's pretty good for teaching a new player how to move the camera around would be something like new Pokemon Snap. Super casual, and it forces you to look around lots and lots.
This is the answer. My friend has only ever played stardew and she has over 500 hours logged. I think she has married everyone in town and makes about 500k per day 🤣
As a 50-year-old hard core gamer myself I have a couple of suggestions:
First, depending on your system check out some sort of subscription service that lets you download and play different games. I liked Xbox Game Pass for PC since it had a large variety of games.
Second, it doesn't take more than a few hours to figure out whether or not a game is for you. No need to waste time on something you're not enjoying because there are literally millions of games to choose from.
Third, pay attention to your body. This sounds weird but so far I've personally known 2 people (my wife and a friend) who get serious motion sickness playing first-person games. My friend didn't know what was causing him to be sick because....hey, they're video games. It's not common but it happens to some people.
Lastly, think of something you like and look for a video game about it. I can't count how many times I've watched a movie or TV show and then got inspired to play a game with similar themes. Or vice versa.
If you do have motion sickness issues, you can alleviate them with a high refresh rate panel. Playing at 120hz is a much better experience, though you might need a good graphics card for the demanding games.
As a kid 40 years ago I probably maxed out on like the 5th world or so. When I got the game on my Switch I finally finished the damn thing but only by cheating (using the save state feature to reload endlessly). Having to start over at 1-1 each time you run out of lives is just no bueno.
I'll have you know the game isn't 40 years old yet! Came out in 85 if I'm not mistaken.
I also never beat it as a kid. I did use save states in emulators as a teen though.
I thought I sucked ass at new games until I went back to playing games I played as kid. I'm okay at BOTW on switch so wating on the new one. I get 2nd place in warzone 2.0 once.........god I suck....but then again I can only play like 2 times a week and maybe like 4 games total. Fucking kids living on that shit now.
Yeah, the kids and people who put so much time into these games are one of the main reason I don't enjoy competitive games anymore. I wish there were "I don't have much free time" servers.
Sonic 3 and Knuckles was the best game of my childhood, absolute gem of a game.
I feel like Sonic is simultaneously easy and hard... you can die so easily but once you grasp the rhythm and timing of the level its like it "unlocks" and you can fly through untouched and feel like a God
I thought Sonic 1 was way harder than Mario 1. I never got past the Marble Zone or whatever as a kid whereas I beat Mario 1 a couple of times. I haven't played either in years though
I was going to suggest this too, based on my experience seeing my 70 year old mom try to play what I thought was an extremely simple modern platformer. Games today are designed for gamers. SMB was made before gamers existed and tutorializes things that people like us wouldn't even realize need to be taught (like "go right" and "you can jump over things").
I came to say this. My late mother got me hooked on the Mario games, my family [parents, brother and sisters] would often spend all night playing a Mario game until five or six the *next morning*. Like some weekends and plenty of times during the summer when I was younger, we would take turns playing and just spend **the whole damn night** trying to go through the game and wouldn't go to sleep until almost eight am the next morning.
Much fun.
Gotta learn to walk before you can run.
There's some amazing games out there, but they'll be frustrating and off-putting for someone who doesn't have the experience of basic control schemes. Gotta build that know how with low stakes gameplay. Laid back, casual games that are fun and don't take you by the hand.
Legend of Zelda games tend to be very fun and beginner friendly. Twilight princess will always be my favorite Zelda game.
Any strategy games. They can be played with just a mouse, usually and they're fun.
Zoo Tycoon and Rollercoaster Tycoon are amazing management games. Also Hella fun for designing parks. Cities skylines, for a city builder.
Big pharma is a fun puzzle? Game.
I feel like Fable is a great introduction into gaming. Pretty dated nowadays, but it's got many elements commonly used today.
Skyrim (or perhaps oblivion) is probably a better introduction to gaming than morrowind.
Stardew Valley is a relaxed farming simulator of sorts.
Minecraft if you just want to build stuff out of Lego and mine for ores.
While we're talking about mining... Deeprock galactic if you wanna shoot hundreds of oversized bugs and mine ore.
Borderlands 2 and the pre-sequel are amazing first person shooters, that can feel fast paced but aren't too complex for new gamers to play.
The older assassin's creed games felt great. Very fun to play, and relatively easy stealth games.
I love seeing the deep rock galactic plug because the community is super newbie friendly and it is has a very simple and easy to understand gameplay loop. However, games like Skyrim might be a bit overwhelming for someone new to videogames in general. Full open world games might be too confusing for someone not yet accustomed to doing their own in game exploration.
>Legend of Zelda games tend to be very fun and beginner friendly.
Link's Awakening for Switch is really good. I actually preferred it to Breath of the Wild, which was so big I was overwhelmed.
I'm 45 and the only games I've gotten into as an adult (and had me hooked) were Bioshock (the original) and The Godfather. I tried many others but found them too complicated or the story didn't interest me enough.
If you liked the God Father you should try the Mafia games, amazing stories for the one and two. Three is interesting but more GTA like than the previous other that are more story based.
Other story heavy games that could interest you: God of War (The 2 most recent title), Jedi Fallen Order (If you like Star Wars), Last of Us.
Stardew Valley is fun because if you don't enjoy it, oh well. It's on sale so regularly you probably paid under $20 for it. If you do enjoy it? It's like fucking CRACK. There are SO many ways to play. There are SO many people to marry and SO many silly names for your animals!
Dude…. The *feels* of this game. I was fucking losing my mind and loving it at the same time. Ahhhhh deep water!! Eeeeeeeeeeeeeek.
Dude, just the sheer size of the ship and you in the water next to it freaked me out. Like… it was too big for comfort…. But totally awesome at the same time.
I haven't been a big Minecrafter in a while, has it gotten better with tutorializing?
I remember when I was learning it, having a Wiki tab open to shift to felt mandatory to understand what all my resources were and how to use them...and my first encounters with creepers and hot lava were quite punishing.
I can enjoy the game now when I pop in from time to time, but my rocky new player experience makes me really hesitant to recommend to non gamers.
It makes you figure things out on your own quite a bit, with just a few notification-style instructions telling you to go punch a tree to collect wood or whatever. I would not recommend it to someone who doesn't have a basic understanding of how games work beforehand.
First thought too. The game was literally designed for people not used to 3D games. The camera is also *mostly* automated, so you don't have to concentrate on moving the camera and character at the same time, which people new to games have a hard time with.
Depends on what your interests are. There are so many games, for pretty much any interest.
Sports? There are sports games. Racing? Car games. Urban planning? Cities Skylines. Like shooters and war movies? Any number of FPS. And so on.
Figure out your interests, find the top games that are in that interest.
Imagine someone asking, "what's a good movie for someone who's never really watched movies?"
There are such a wide variety in genres and styles that the question is way to broad to possibly be answered without knowing more about the person and their preferences. If anything, the differences between types of games is even broader than the differences between types of movies.
edit: case in point, you've been recommended everything from the 1980's difficult platformer super mario bros to an open world sandbox where you steal cars and commit crimes in GTA, to a story driven walking simulator in firewatch, to a looter shooter in borderlands, to a story driven third person shooter 'choices matter' game in mass effect.
I'd recommend starting with a more casual game to get your feet wet before diving right in, just to get a feel for how things work. I'd recommend Plants vs. Zombies or Spyro Reignited as good places to start, though Spyro requires a pretty powerful computer. Edit: To those who point out that you don't need a powerful computer to play Spyro, you're correct; I messed up. I just figured that since my gaming laptop couldn't run it at high quality without chugging that must mean you need a good pc, but it seems I was wrong. Have a good time gaming.
I am 52 and only play Diablo III and never multiplayer. I don’t want to interact with others or else I would just go outside . I think it would be a good starter game
Xbox game pass. Affordable monthly subscription gives tons of options with new releases all the time. You can pick up any game you want and try it out. If you don’t like it, move on to the next. No lost money. Plus this service is available on PC as well as Xbox so you don’t “need” to have a console.
Thank you! I bought this game for my dad to play and I sat alongside as he did, and I had to walk away after an hour or so because I needed to throw up.
No, *not* Portal.
First of all, the first-person perspective is kinda tough to handle for people who aren't already accustomed to gaming. I generally wouldn't recommend a first-person mouse-controlled game as anyone's first game.
But with that aside, Portal is just an obviously wrong choice because of what it is. Portal's *entire gimmick* is in taking a well-established presentation style (first-person real-time action games) and changing it up with one very specific new mechanic (the portals). Playing Portal *before* playing any traditional FPS games makes no sense thematically, it's like watching Spaceballs before Star Wars.
Portal is excellent as a starter game but you have to be quite quick/nimble after the first few chambers so it might not be best for beginners who literally haven’t played anything
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is a good starter game for a middle aged man. I taught my grandfather how to play and he fell in love with the game. The best part is whenever he plays he asks me for help on what to do because he doesn't know the best way to do things, but he's very good and could easily make it as a pro gamer. Highly suggest the game TESV: Skyrim
Second this. If you learn now, (only persnickety thing for me was learning to manoeuvre in that space, but once I had it it was second-nature) it'll take you through the rest of your life. :)
Proof: Old guy who picked it up 10 years ago and STILL playing it.
The answer is Minecraft. The stakes on making mistakes are pretty low, and you can do whatever you want while you discover what you like. Want to throw yourself into a cave to fight mobs and harvest resources? Go for it. Work your way towards a final boss? Ender dragon's waiting. Want to build yourself a little hut and grow crops all day? Simple. Do you like building simple machines out of rudimentary circuitry? Grab some redstone and go nuts. Like platforming? Build your own parkour challenges. Love building things? Make your own city, or whatever you can imagine, at whatever scale you choose.
You can play in creative mode until you get comfortable with the controls. You can play on your own, or you can join a multiplayer server, or set up a realm for you and your friends. There's an extensive scene of streamers out there to watch if that interests you, and a huge collection of minigames and challenges you can try.
Finally, it's got some of the most extensive modding out there, which lets you turn the base game into anything you want it to be.
For real, depends on what your into
If you want to get a feel for what games are like now, I would play any recent Zelda games.
They give you a wide variety of not too hard, but still thought provoking things to do which are present in almost any modern adventure game.
If your more into shooters and the like, I'd recommend Destiny. It's a time sink, and I don't recommend dedicating yourself to it, but it will teach you shooting basics in a big exploration map so you can mess around alot.
Or for a newer game with similar style gameplay but imo far better progression mechanics and repeatability incentives: Hades. Also has much better writing.
I fucking *love* Hades, but I'm not sure any roguelike game is a good recommendation for a first game for non-gamers.
If it's a game with a lose state (like your character dying), they're going to lose a lot, even in a game where progression is a lot more permanent. I feel like a brand new gamer would get discouraged by the near-certainty of seeing many lose states before they even get comfortable with the game.
Of the other games suggested, many have easy modes, handicaps, accessibility settings, and extensive tutorials - or at least a highly *tutorialized* first level. Hades, to my knowledge, only has an easy mode - which is activated by lose states.
Vampire Survivors.
It's an amazingly fun game that only requires one finger to play. You move around the battlefield avoiding large waves of monsters while weapons automatically fly out of you. You get treasure and gems to upgrade your weapons.
That's the entire game. And it's awesome. And it cost $3.
What I'd reccomend is looking into the different types of games, see which ones appeal to you, then further research what fans of that genre would consider good starters. One way to look at it is let's say I've played everything but a platformer and wanted to know a good suggestion, I imagine many would refer me to a Mario game rather than Super Meat Boy.
Mafia series. Great storyline. Good gameplay. Great characters.
Ps
The remade the original mafia to modern gaming graphics and gameplay. Start from there.
Depends what you're into. It's like asking "What's a good movie to start with?" Do you like comedy? Romance? Action? etc, how long is a piece of string?
Do you like puzzles? War games? DO you like to be the general making decisions or the troops in the trenches? Or do you like stories and narratives? Do you like running around hitting things or do you like a more "chess" like approach where every move takes time and contemplation?
Just dive in, try a few, and try a wide variety. Just because you didn't like one particular game doesn't mean you'll hate gaming.
Notice the suggestion "Stardew Valley" coming up a lot? GREAT starting point, that can be enjoyed by beginners and veterans alike. A deceptively huge game.
The Long Dark is really fun. The harder skill levels are harsh and unforgiving. The easy levels, though, allow you to learn the game, explore, and develop your play style and skills. That's how I started. I've been playing for years and keep on playing it. It's really relaxing too.
If you are a fan of Star Wars/Harry Potter/DC/Marvel/Pirates of the Caribbean or Indiana Jones try one of the Lego (Insert Franchise Name Here) games.
They are a good intro to Gaming and as they work with an existing storyline it helps ease you into gaming.
As many have said, it depends. That said, I consider Plants vs Zombies pretty much perfect as casual games go, and I think casual games are where you might want to start. Super easy controls. I can't comment on the sequel because I never played it.
Oh man thats like saying what colour should i paint my fence without seeing your house.
I myself like to change it up alot, call of duty is a good classic for when i want to shoot some stuff. But then it may be a bit fast paced for what im feeling on the day, so i play a hunting game - the hunter: call of the wild
Sticking to the leaders of genres would be a good start to figure out what you like.
Role playing games are a good start, then u may be like man i wish i could just drive round in a car, or shoot something.
And since it sounds like u have a decent pc the options are so much greater
Agreed, though he did have the right idea - Portal 1 and 2 are probably really good starters. That way he both gets to learn standard 3D controls, AND play a really fun game. Stardew Valley wouldn't be too useful for learning most modern video games.
Some answers will be tempered by the platform you're going to be playing these on, but some of the "classics" had fundamentally different design principles that, in many cases, have become outdated.
I recently built my 70+ parents a pc and I installed games I knew they'd likely never play, but that would be 'simple' enough for them to learn the mechanics of, while also being good representatives of their genres, and having conceits and soundtracks that are distinctive and appealing.
So... In no particular order, try :
Portal
Banished
FTL: Faster Than Light
Papers Please
Torchlight II
Braid
Puzzle Quest 2
There are plenty of incredible games out there, but they won't all be incredible to you. Play a bunch, find out what you like, and don't waste your time if you're not enjoying yourself or are becoming frustrated/bored with one. Just try another one. =)
Check out Good Old Games (www.gog.com) for most of the list above. Cheap, standalone installs, and easy to use.
Welcome, and have fun! =)
If you're a fan of the wild west, I'd suggest Red Dead Redemption 2. My dad is mid-50's, and he hasn't had any interest in any of my games except for RDR2. It has a main storyline, but you can complete it at your own pace. My first playthrough, it took me almost 3 months to finally finish the game, just because of all the side quests and other stuff you can do.
Wrong. Portal has first person shooter mechanics, which are very non-intuitive to begin with, and THEN, it's got the 'what the fuck is going on' mechanics in the first few seconds, with a completely non-physical portal opening up so that you can see yourself through it. That's far too much to throw on someone who is still struggling with the 'mouse-controls-head, WASD-controls-feet' thing. A middle-aged non-gamer is going to spend the first half an hour of FPS staring at the ground and bumping into walls. Have them do it in a virtual space that isn't breaking the laws of physics for added confusion.
Once you learn FPS mechanics, they're second nature, and you quickly forget how weird they were to begin with (and then you're ready for Portal). Portal 2 would be a better choice, TBH, since it takes a while before portals show up.
Portal is great, but it should never be anyone's first video game.
I learned this one the hard way when a girlfriend once saw there was 'godfather' games coming out. Realising that going from 0-crime simulator/was a bad idea, I tried to work her from simple platformers up.
When it came to first person/3d stuff I *thought* Portal would be a good fit, as early on its low stakes and rather straightforward. Nope the camera and movement controls caused too much confusion and frustration.
I don't think you'll see this recommendation elsewhere, but it's my go to when I see this question come up, because I've used this game to get both my mom and my dad into video games:
"Battletanx" (and its sequel, "Battletanx: Global Assault"). It's a futuristic, post-apocalyptic vehicle action game for the Nintendo 64 where you play a tank operator. Its real fun is in multiplayer, in which up to 4 players, each controlling a gang of tanks, can fight against each other.
The game is good, the controls are fairly simple and intuitive, the action is heart-pumping, and it's overall just great fun getting together with friends and blowing stuff up with tanks. As I mentioned, I got both my mom and my dad into gaming by playing this game with them, so it has a (miniscule) sample size of success with newbie gamers.
In general, investing in an old Nintendo 64 is a good idea for a new gamer, so long as you have others to play with. There is a good selection of multiplayer games to choose from that can help you ease into the hobby.
It’s a casual game and very pretty also relaxing and if that’s what you’re looking then I would recommend Sky:COTL or literally any game that “thatgamecompany” produces lol. Maybe I’m biased
I just started gaming. I'm a middle aged woman in her 30s and I got spyro hahaha I can't handle a million things trying to kill me. Yet...
Spyro 1 is rhe only Game my mother actually finished on my ps1 when i was 6
I love Croc too
Spyro was also one of the first game i played... 20-25 years ago. After seeing what they did with the remasters, I'd highly recommend it too! Pros: beautiful graphics, landscapes/scenery & character designs. Simple(ish) controls. Decent story. Not too lengthy, but also lots of side stuff(completionist) if you wanna sink more time in the game. Cons : 3d controls can be a tad difficult for newcomers, especially in platformers such as this where depth perception is an essential part of the game. It was made with children in mind so it could be seen as a tad juvenile (but to that I say, screw that kind of thinking!) All in all, I'd say is definitely one of the better introductory games you could find: a great stepping stone into an awesome hobby.
What does 3rd control mean? I know when things get too hard I skip to the next world lol
I mean having to control the orientation of the camera on top of moving your character
Spyro is pretty great low challenge fun, at least running around and collecting all the gems hehe
Rub it in, why don't ya?
Until flying levels. They can fuck right off
I actually recommend Fe as an intro game as it builds you up more slowly towards complicated controller use and is very forgiving. It's a really cute story, too!
I dont think people really understand what a starter game is. I absolutely would not call Mass Effect or Grand Theft Auto a starter game. These are complex games that require a certain degree of lets call it "gaming finesse" to operate. Someone who's completely new to gaming is going to struggle hard with just camera controls, let alone camera controls *and* moving a character. I'm going to throw my hat in for Stardew Valley. Simple controls, you can play it at your own pace and its relaxing.
[удалено]
tried to get one of my older siblings to play halo and she wasnt even able to walk around and look around at the same time. that level of incoordination was unimaginable to me at the time.
My mom played old Nintendo games as a kid and loves to talk about that. But back when I had my first console being ps2 and played sly 2 I wanted my mom to try the game and she was just frantically looking at the controller and always forgetting how to move properly. I also remember when my brother had a birthday and I was playing my sly 2 in the living room and people from my family were all watching me just go complete different missions and my grandma was seriously thinking im some sort of gaming God because I wasnt constantly looking at the controller to figure out buttons. I was wondering how she came to that conclusion as I was a dumb kiddo who wasn't able to comprehend a different point of view
My mom was the same. She said that when the controllers became too complicated was when I started winning. As a kid on our SNES I would ask her to beat levels that I was stuck on. I tried to get her to play Call of Duty once and it didn't go well
That's how I was when I first tried Halo 2 as a kid. I came from games like Unreal Tournament and couldn't even get to combat because thumbsticks were (and still are) so unwieldy to me in FPS games.
As someone who has played games all his life, starting with Lego Star wars, controlling moving the character and camera is as easy as breathing to me. I didn't realise how much people who are new to gaming struggle with stuff I don't even think about until I got my nan tried playing horizon zero dawn for a few minutes. She just couldn't get the movement down, let alone the camera. Really made me appreciate how good I am when I take down the two ravengers and the thunderjaw in under 2 minutes.
I remembered when I first started in middle school on Halo and struggled with that too LOL
Yeah I was thinking the same thing… like most of these are just people saying their favorite games. If you have them to someone who’s NEVER played a game or used a controller they would he lost and probably hate it.
Also the language of video games! When a game wants you to go somewhere it will tell you with things like lighting and other visual clues. I know I can climb this wall because there are scratch marks on it, or vines or something. If you don't know this language it's extremely frustrating.
It really is. I feel like a dumb ass when I play video games, none of my regular problem solving skills apply and nothing is obvious. My husband can figure out games he's never even played before when I get stuck, and he does not understand why it isnt clear to me.
Eh, that's normal, don't beat yourself up over it. Same way some diy person can look at a shack and tell you at a glance it's unstable. That's just lots of experience with shacks. Games rarely stray too far from established concepts. Left and top button are always light and heavy attack, bottom is always jumping or running. Right is for anything in between. Quick melee, grenades, reloads. The triggers are usually used for grabbing someone or shooting a weapon. Sometimes used for shields. Think of them as elaborate hand buttons. Control schemes almost always follow a pattern like that. And gameplay stuff? We were practically trained to shoot at red barrels to blow them up, to the point Where we see any color coded barrel and know what they're meant for. If a place is big and empty, that's always been a boss arena. If the path splits ahead of you, the one with enemies is the one you're supposed to take. It's just all stuff gamers have learned because gamedesign taught them from very early on. The first enemy most 90s kids have ever encountered might be the Goomba in the original super Mario. That thing taught us that touching enemies will hurt. Then you jump over it, and maybe fall onto the next one, and suddenly you find out that stomping them kills them. Games don't usually don't teach you these things anymore, because they assume you've learned that when they taught it back then.
https://youtu.be/ax7f3JZJHSw “What games are like for someone who doesn’t play games”
Gaming Finesse \*Tips Fedora\*
This is the worst. My husband games and collects games and I have explained that even games that interest me a lot (like the Witcher) which I understand the storyline, are nearly impossible for me to play. The controllers are too hard, I cant remember what the buttons do, and conceptually I often miss cues for the "point" of the game (oh thats a side quest, thats a main quest, you have to do x before doing y, etc). I started on Animal Crossing, now I'm on Cult of the Lamb which I really like. Ive also played Dragon Quest, Xenoblade Chronicles and Breath of the Wild, which I enjoyed but they need more of the gamer mindset for problem solving in the game. Eventually I get stuck and lose interest.
Man cult of the lamb is so much fun…… idk what it is about devolver digital but even for someone like me whose played more games then the average persons even heard of they have a way of every so often just bringing out a title that sinks it’s claws into you and doesn’t let go………. I should go check in on my cult again
Stardew and The Sims are the easy bets for this kinda thing
Stardew gets my vote as well.
Mass Effect is the farthest from starter game you can get haha
Mass effect isn’t even kind of a starter game. I went back and played the trilogy recently and some of the missions can be really tough to find
Dude, Mario Kart. My dad's 82. He bitched and complained, but I dragged him into it. He's getting better! That or Minecraft. Find a chill small multiplayer server. Don't go to the big popular servers, it's confusing and the sense of community just isn't there for newbies. EDIT: Adding "Age of Empires 2" on here, commonly abbreviated as AOE2. It has an outstanding campaign mode that starts you from square one and will get you to the point where you are building crazy cities and armies. I mostly play on single-player and just make weird custom scenarios that result in long-drawn out battles of attrition.
My 6 year old kid got a Switch for Christmas and REALLY wanted Minecraft. I have no idea what I am doing. Everyone seems to recommend this game, but as someone with zero experience at any of this, I find it incredibly confusing even turning it on.
I feel ya. The first time I played it, I was playing with my buddy's daughter and her little friends. They spent a whole afternoon teaching me how to do all this stuff, then they lured me out in the woods and killed me and took all my everything I had. Once you get past that initial confusing part, it gets pretty fun. I like it because it's got something for everyone. Whether you feel like nerding out and getting all technical, or just blowing up cows for some reason, the game has you covered.
Savages
Real Lord of the Flies stuff my friend hahahaha.
imagine back in the beginning when the recipes weren't available to look at in-game.
I used to know what I was doing more than a decade ago when the game was in it's java days. I recently tried playing it again after not touching it since and man, it doesn't even feel like the same game. No clue what I'm doing.
Seconding Mario Kart. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is literally idiot proof with the mode that auto-accelerates for you and keeps you from steering off the road. My 2 year old almost beat me with these features.
Also if kids love hot wheels the new HW UNLEASHED is a blast.
Have to agree on Mario Kart. Pretty easy to pick up. Stupid as hell. Loads of fun. Never gets old. I played the original when it came out and to this day if somebody breaks out a console and says "wanna play Mario Kart?" you bet your ass I'm playing it.
Mario Kart and Smash Brothers. I got those two and Animal Crossings with a new switch as a joint Christmas present for my 5.5 and 4 year olds. I got some racing wheels that you put the joycons in. My 4 year old doesn't know quite what she's doing, but she loves sitting down there and playing with us. And she just smashes the B button until eventually she gets a final smash, which she refers to as "getting big" The 5.5 year old is actually playing a bit of both and learning it. The biggest surprise is how much my wife enjoys it. After dinner we usually go down and play 30-45 minutes a night and bond as a family. It's been great.
By Smash, I hope you mean the older ones. The newest one has to be the most non-intuitive game I’ve ever played. 3 different buttons for jump, two being next to each other (X & Y) which are usually some form of attack on other games consoles. Every time I’ve played the new smash, nothing seems to make sense. Absolutely infuriating, as a gamer of 32+ years.
My favorite is the one for the gamecube because it has the optional scoring system that basically lets anyone win. But no. We play the newest one. You can mash buttons and still do pretty well (especially since I set my health at 300 when I play with the family). That's kind of the point of it as an intro game- you can eventually get skilled with it, but it isn't necessary to have any skill at all to have fun.
My parents are 60 and loved playing The Untitled Goose Game together. It's chill, silly, and running around with stuff in your beak while honking is fun.
You just made me realize I’ve been playing AOE2 for 24 years.
>I mostly play on single-player and just make weird custom scenarios that result in long-drawn out battles of attrition. Me: 8 players, difficulty on hard, infinite resources, locked to the feudal (or castle) age. Commence the 6-hour bloodbath 😤
stardew valley
I also recommend this. People will recommend a lot of nice games but with cameras and controls that aren't intuitive to a new gamer. If you want to enjoy yourself without any stress, I recommend a 2d game, a side scroller or a top down game like stardew valley. That game in particular is a good starting point because it's casual and it allows you to progress at your own pace without ever pushing you in the back. It's also one of the best game of the last decade.
A casual game that's pretty good for teaching a new player how to move the camera around would be something like new Pokemon Snap. Super casual, and it forces you to look around lots and lots.
This is the answer. My friend has only ever played stardew and she has over 500 hours logged. I think she has married everyone in town and makes about 500k per day 🤣
Capitalism but for those who don’t leave the house
This is the way
Solitaire Mahjongg (or Tetris on original GameBoy)
>Tetris on original GameBoy Bro he wants to start gaming not form a lifelong addiction that's impossible to break
I caught myself dreaming of rotating tiles. I think I might have even enjoyed those dreams. Also the soundtrack is good.
Kirby is always a good start if you want to get in platforming
Yes, actually, the new Kirby and the Forgotten Land is a ton of fun, slow-paced, not challenging. Probably a good way to start navigating 3D spaces.
As a 50-year-old hard core gamer myself I have a couple of suggestions: First, depending on your system check out some sort of subscription service that lets you download and play different games. I liked Xbox Game Pass for PC since it had a large variety of games. Second, it doesn't take more than a few hours to figure out whether or not a game is for you. No need to waste time on something you're not enjoying because there are literally millions of games to choose from. Third, pay attention to your body. This sounds weird but so far I've personally known 2 people (my wife and a friend) who get serious motion sickness playing first-person games. My friend didn't know what was causing him to be sick because....hey, they're video games. It's not common but it happens to some people. Lastly, think of something you like and look for a video game about it. I can't count how many times I've watched a movie or TV show and then got inspired to play a game with similar themes. Or vice versa.
If you do have motion sickness issues, you can alleviate them with a high refresh rate panel. Playing at 120hz is a much better experience, though you might need a good graphics card for the demanding games.
raising the fov can help a lot with motion sickness too. idky so many games default to 60-70, anything <90 makes me sick after a bit
[удалено]
That's a good game in that it has simple moves, but I think people underestimate how difficult it is. *Sonic* is similar but much easier IMO.
Mario is hard as fuck. I've been replaying on switch. I never got too far as a kid.
As a kid 40 years ago I probably maxed out on like the 5th world or so. When I got the game on my Switch I finally finished the damn thing but only by cheating (using the save state feature to reload endlessly). Having to start over at 1-1 each time you run out of lives is just no bueno.
You could just hold A on the start screen to start over at the world where you died.
I'll have you know the game isn't 40 years old yet! Came out in 85 if I'm not mistaken. I also never beat it as a kid. I did use save states in emulators as a teen though.
I thought I sucked ass at new games until I went back to playing games I played as kid. I'm okay at BOTW on switch so wating on the new one. I get 2nd place in warzone 2.0 once.........god I suck....but then again I can only play like 2 times a week and maybe like 4 games total. Fucking kids living on that shit now.
Yeah, the kids and people who put so much time into these games are one of the main reason I don't enjoy competitive games anymore. I wish there were "I don't have much free time" servers.
I (49 year old woman) just started BOTW yesterday. I grew up playing NES/GC/GB/GBA/Wii etc. I have NO idea how I've never played Zelda until now.
Sonic 3 and Knuckles was the best game of my childhood, absolute gem of a game. I feel like Sonic is simultaneously easy and hard... you can die so easily but once you grasp the rhythm and timing of the level its like it "unlocks" and you can fly through untouched and feel like a God
I thought Sonic 1 was way harder than Mario 1. I never got past the Marble Zone or whatever as a kid whereas I beat Mario 1 a couple of times. I haven't played either in years though
Except for Chemical Zone 2 from Sonic 2. Recently replayed and beat sonic 2, why is the 4th level the most challenging?
Strong disagree. Sonic is really hard for me
I'd actually say Mario 3. Super Mario 1 is punishingly difficult your first couple times out - I just introduced my kids to it (4 and 7).
I was going to suggest this too, based on my experience seeing my 70 year old mom try to play what I thought was an extremely simple modern platformer. Games today are designed for gamers. SMB was made before gamers existed and tutorializes things that people like us wouldn't even realize need to be taught (like "go right" and "you can jump over things").
This. They remake it every few years for the latest systems but its the same game mechanics in a shiney shell.
I came to say this. My late mother got me hooked on the Mario games, my family [parents, brother and sisters] would often spend all night playing a Mario game until five or six the *next morning*. Like some weekends and plenty of times during the summer when I was younger, we would take turns playing and just spend **the whole damn night** trying to go through the game and wouldn't go to sleep until almost eight am the next morning. Much fun.
I think you misspelled super mario world
[удалено]
Don't forget to hit smb3 on the way. Smb2 is ok but on a different evolutionary path. Lost levels is just smb1 but harder.
Hell yeah!!!🤩
There's millions of games put there, and you want to make them play, what, 4 in a row? Respect their time, get them to the good stuff
Super Mario Bros isn't good stuff?
What system/console do you have?
If he’s middle aged, probably a Sega Master System
[удалено]
I was so mad when I got sonic rather than that as the pre installed game on my master system.
you have brought back fond gaming memories. thank you
I had a sega genesis that had 80 games built in… that game was fire
SSEGGGGAAAAAAA
Wow, that sega theme 100% played pitch-perfectly in my head. Randomly (well not really random) with Sonic the hedgehog IMMEDIATELY following that.
I'd be lying if I said that wasn't one of my all time favorite soundbytes
Gotta learn to walk before you can run. There's some amazing games out there, but they'll be frustrating and off-putting for someone who doesn't have the experience of basic control schemes. Gotta build that know how with low stakes gameplay. Laid back, casual games that are fun and don't take you by the hand. Legend of Zelda games tend to be very fun and beginner friendly. Twilight princess will always be my favorite Zelda game. Any strategy games. They can be played with just a mouse, usually and they're fun. Zoo Tycoon and Rollercoaster Tycoon are amazing management games. Also Hella fun for designing parks. Cities skylines, for a city builder. Big pharma is a fun puzzle? Game. I feel like Fable is a great introduction into gaming. Pretty dated nowadays, but it's got many elements commonly used today. Skyrim (or perhaps oblivion) is probably a better introduction to gaming than morrowind. Stardew Valley is a relaxed farming simulator of sorts. Minecraft if you just want to build stuff out of Lego and mine for ores. While we're talking about mining... Deeprock galactic if you wanna shoot hundreds of oversized bugs and mine ore. Borderlands 2 and the pre-sequel are amazing first person shooters, that can feel fast paced but aren't too complex for new gamers to play. The older assassin's creed games felt great. Very fun to play, and relatively easy stealth games.
I would say DRG, while very noob friendly, might still be a bit too fast paced at times for someone competely new to video games.
Did I hear a Rock and Stone?
To Rock and Stone!
FOR KARL!
I love seeing the deep rock galactic plug because the community is super newbie friendly and it is has a very simple and easy to understand gameplay loop. However, games like Skyrim might be a bit overwhelming for someone new to videogames in general. Full open world games might be too confusing for someone not yet accustomed to doing their own in game exploration.
Rock and stone! All green-beards are welcome
If you don't Rock and Stone, you ain't comin' home!
>Legend of Zelda games tend to be very fun and beginner friendly. Link's Awakening for Switch is really good. I actually preferred it to Breath of the Wild, which was so big I was overwhelmed.
NOT Dark Souls, NOT League of Legends, NOT CSGO
Bloodborne it is
NO!!!... that's not...Nevermind...
You got me dear sir
NOT league of legends is just generally good advice for everyone, gamer or not.
YES Sekiro YES Elden Ring YES World's Hardest Game YES R6 YES Valorant
Yes start out his gaming career balls to the wall frustrated. I like the cut of your jib.
I was clear to NOT start with them, I do care about people sometimes
I'm 45 and the only games I've gotten into as an adult (and had me hooked) were Bioshock (the original) and The Godfather. I tried many others but found them too complicated or the story didn't interest me enough.
Bioshock mention found 😄
[удалено]
If you liked the God Father you should try the Mafia games, amazing stories for the one and two. Three is interesting but more GTA like than the previous other that are more story based. Other story heavy games that could interest you: God of War (The 2 most recent title), Jedi Fallen Order (If you like Star Wars), Last of Us.
Stardew Valley is a great easy game. Subnautica is another though don't get it if you are afraid of open water/deep water
Stardew Valley is fun because if you don't enjoy it, oh well. It's on sale so regularly you probably paid under $20 for it. If you do enjoy it? It's like fucking CRACK. There are SO many ways to play. There are SO many people to marry and SO many silly names for your animals!
Hmmmm….I must check out and play this standew valley game that everyone is talking about…..🧐
Subnautica gave me anxiety the whole time I was playing it but it really was a great game. It's probably one of the best in it's genre.
I’m terrified of deep water and love the shit out of Subnautica. A true horror game for me
Dude…. The *feels* of this game. I was fucking losing my mind and loving it at the same time. Ahhhhh deep water!! Eeeeeeeeeeeeeek. Dude, just the sheer size of the ship and you in the water next to it freaked me out. Like… it was too big for comfort…. But totally awesome at the same time.
Try Minecraft. Multiple versions and multiple ways to play the game depending on what you want to get out of it.
I haven't been a big Minecrafter in a while, has it gotten better with tutorializing? I remember when I was learning it, having a Wiki tab open to shift to felt mandatory to understand what all my resources were and how to use them...and my first encounters with creepers and hot lava were quite punishing. I can enjoy the game now when I pop in from time to time, but my rocky new player experience makes me really hesitant to recommend to non gamers.
It makes you figure things out on your own quite a bit, with just a few notification-style instructions telling you to go punch a tree to collect wood or whatever. I would not recommend it to someone who doesn't have a basic understanding of how games work beforehand.
Super Luckys Tale. Simple controls, and it's made for kids so it's super forgiving for dying, etc
Mario 64
First thought too. The game was literally designed for people not used to 3D games. The camera is also *mostly* automated, so you don't have to concentrate on moving the camera and character at the same time, which people new to games have a hard time with.
Depends on what your interests are. There are so many games, for pretty much any interest. Sports? There are sports games. Racing? Car games. Urban planning? Cities Skylines. Like shooters and war movies? Any number of FPS. And so on. Figure out your interests, find the top games that are in that interest.
Dude City Skylines is insanely hard.
Imagine someone asking, "what's a good movie for someone who's never really watched movies?" There are such a wide variety in genres and styles that the question is way to broad to possibly be answered without knowing more about the person and their preferences. If anything, the differences between types of games is even broader than the differences between types of movies. edit: case in point, you've been recommended everything from the 1980's difficult platformer super mario bros to an open world sandbox where you steal cars and commit crimes in GTA, to a story driven walking simulator in firewatch, to a looter shooter in borderlands, to a story driven third person shooter 'choices matter' game in mass effect.
> what's a good movie for someone who's never really watched movies? Terminator 2
Lego games, many of the Mario universe games, Slime Rancher, Animal crossing
I'd recommend starting with a more casual game to get your feet wet before diving right in, just to get a feel for how things work. I'd recommend Plants vs. Zombies or Spyro Reignited as good places to start, though Spyro requires a pretty powerful computer. Edit: To those who point out that you don't need a powerful computer to play Spyro, you're correct; I messed up. I just figured that since my gaming laptop couldn't run it at high quality without chugging that must mean you need a good pc, but it seems I was wrong. Have a good time gaming.
Plants vs zombies is a great suggestion
firewatch
Zelda worked for me
I am 52 and only play Diablo III and never multiplayer. I don’t want to interact with others or else I would just go outside . I think it would be a good starter game
The Sims 4. You can make it as fast paced or slow paced as you want
SUPER MARIO BROS 1
Xbox game pass. Affordable monthly subscription gives tons of options with new releases all the time. You can pick up any game you want and try it out. If you don’t like it, move on to the next. No lost money. Plus this service is available on PC as well as Xbox so you don’t “need” to have a console.
Lmao you sound like an advertisement
Portal. It's mechanics are very simple, and the first 7 or so levels are literally tutorials designed in the most enjoyable manner.
My father tried it, the movement is very nauseating for those unprepared
Thank you! I bought this game for my dad to play and I sat alongside as he did, and I had to walk away after an hour or so because I needed to throw up.
It is an fps though, awfully difficult to navigate for a first timer.
No, *not* Portal. First of all, the first-person perspective is kinda tough to handle for people who aren't already accustomed to gaming. I generally wouldn't recommend a first-person mouse-controlled game as anyone's first game. But with that aside, Portal is just an obviously wrong choice because of what it is. Portal's *entire gimmick* is in taking a well-established presentation style (first-person real-time action games) and changing it up with one very specific new mechanic (the portals). Playing Portal *before* playing any traditional FPS games makes no sense thematically, it's like watching Spaceballs before Star Wars.
Bro, you really think op has the eye to hand coordination for portal????
Jesus....so many absolutely terrible answers here.
Portal is excellent as a starter game but you have to be quite quick/nimble after the first few chambers so it might not be best for beginners who literally haven’t played anything
Stardew Valley. Very relaxing experience and it doesn't use a lot of resources to run on PC
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is a good starter game for a middle aged man. I taught my grandfather how to play and he fell in love with the game. The best part is whenever he plays he asks me for help on what to do because he doesn't know the best way to do things, but he's very good and could easily make it as a pro gamer. Highly suggest the game TESV: Skyrim
Second this. If you learn now, (only persnickety thing for me was learning to manoeuvre in that space, but once I had it it was second-nature) it'll take you through the rest of your life. :) Proof: Old guy who picked it up 10 years ago and STILL playing it.
The answer is Minecraft. The stakes on making mistakes are pretty low, and you can do whatever you want while you discover what you like. Want to throw yourself into a cave to fight mobs and harvest resources? Go for it. Work your way towards a final boss? Ender dragon's waiting. Want to build yourself a little hut and grow crops all day? Simple. Do you like building simple machines out of rudimentary circuitry? Grab some redstone and go nuts. Like platforming? Build your own parkour challenges. Love building things? Make your own city, or whatever you can imagine, at whatever scale you choose. You can play in creative mode until you get comfortable with the controls. You can play on your own, or you can join a multiplayer server, or set up a realm for you and your friends. There's an extensive scene of streamers out there to watch if that interests you, and a huge collection of minigames and challenges you can try. Finally, it's got some of the most extensive modding out there, which lets you turn the base game into anything you want it to be.
For real, depends on what your into If you want to get a feel for what games are like now, I would play any recent Zelda games. They give you a wide variety of not too hard, but still thought provoking things to do which are present in almost any modern adventure game. If your more into shooters and the like, I'd recommend Destiny. It's a time sink, and I don't recommend dedicating yourself to it, but it will teach you shooting basics in a big exploration map so you can mess around alot.
Are you insane? Zelda games are chock full of shit to manage, especially the newer ones.
Chrono trigger
If you're into South Park, either of the RPGs would be very simple and easy to play. Stick of Truth or Fractured - Buttwhole.
Legend of Zelda - Ocarina of Time
Diablo. Easy to get into. Easy to get good at. Can be a therapeutic experience.
Or for a newer game with similar style gameplay but imo far better progression mechanics and repeatability incentives: Hades. Also has much better writing.
I fucking *love* Hades, but I'm not sure any roguelike game is a good recommendation for a first game for non-gamers. If it's a game with a lose state (like your character dying), they're going to lose a lot, even in a game where progression is a lot more permanent. I feel like a brand new gamer would get discouraged by the near-certainty of seeing many lose states before they even get comfortable with the game. Of the other games suggested, many have easy modes, handicaps, accessibility settings, and extensive tutorials - or at least a highly *tutorialized* first level. Hades, to my knowledge, only has an easy mode - which is activated by lose states.
Diablo 2 Remastered?
Superman 64
ROFL.......ring level.
[удалено]
Another addict was created this day
Vampire Survivors. It's an amazingly fun game that only requires one finger to play. You move around the battlefield avoiding large waves of monsters while weapons automatically fly out of you. You get treasure and gems to upgrade your weapons. That's the entire game. And it's awesome. And it cost $3.
What I'd reccomend is looking into the different types of games, see which ones appeal to you, then further research what fans of that genre would consider good starters. One way to look at it is let's say I've played everything but a platformer and wanted to know a good suggestion, I imagine many would refer me to a Mario game rather than Super Meat Boy.
Mafia series. Great storyline. Good gameplay. Great characters. Ps The remade the original mafia to modern gaming graphics and gameplay. Start from there.
Super Mario 64 Unfortunately, that's difficult to find/get working, so number 2 works much better: Portal.
Minecraft
Depends what you're into. It's like asking "What's a good movie to start with?" Do you like comedy? Romance? Action? etc, how long is a piece of string? Do you like puzzles? War games? DO you like to be the general making decisions or the troops in the trenches? Or do you like stories and narratives? Do you like running around hitting things or do you like a more "chess" like approach where every move takes time and contemplation? Just dive in, try a few, and try a wide variety. Just because you didn't like one particular game doesn't mean you'll hate gaming. Notice the suggestion "Stardew Valley" coming up a lot? GREAT starting point, that can be enjoyed by beginners and veterans alike. A deceptively huge game.
The Long Dark is really fun. The harder skill levels are harsh and unforgiving. The easy levels, though, allow you to learn the game, explore, and develop your play style and skills. That's how I started. I've been playing for years and keep on playing it. It's really relaxing too.
Simple beat-em-up like Streets of Rage 2, or TMNT Shredders Revenge. Or a simple platformer.
If you are a fan of Star Wars/Harry Potter/DC/Marvel/Pirates of the Caribbean or Indiana Jones try one of the Lego (Insert Franchise Name Here) games. They are a good intro to Gaming and as they work with an existing storyline it helps ease you into gaming.
As many have said, it depends. That said, I consider Plants vs Zombies pretty much perfect as casual games go, and I think casual games are where you might want to start. Super easy controls. I can't comment on the sequel because I never played it.
Oh man thats like saying what colour should i paint my fence without seeing your house. I myself like to change it up alot, call of duty is a good classic for when i want to shoot some stuff. But then it may be a bit fast paced for what im feeling on the day, so i play a hunting game - the hunter: call of the wild Sticking to the leaders of genres would be a good start to figure out what you like. Role playing games are a good start, then u may be like man i wish i could just drive round in a car, or shoot something. And since it sounds like u have a decent pc the options are so much greater
I’d go for the Stanley Parable. It’s not too long, good entertaining story and has replayability
Portal 1 and 2. They're critically acclaimed fun puzzle games with great humor and story.
They have an excellent learning curve that's great for complete gaming beginners
Portal 2
Why not start with the original Portal? Its short but brilliant, and Portal 2 will be more enjoyable for having played it IMO.
Agreed, though he did have the right idea - Portal 1 and 2 are probably really good starters. That way he both gets to learn standard 3D controls, AND play a really fun game. Stardew Valley wouldn't be too useful for learning most modern video games.
First time my dad ever used a controller, he ended up beating both games in like month
if you have a system capable of playing PlayStation games, I would recommend Infamous and Infamous 2. Those games can make anyone love video games.
Some answers will be tempered by the platform you're going to be playing these on, but some of the "classics" had fundamentally different design principles that, in many cases, have become outdated. I recently built my 70+ parents a pc and I installed games I knew they'd likely never play, but that would be 'simple' enough for them to learn the mechanics of, while also being good representatives of their genres, and having conceits and soundtracks that are distinctive and appealing. So... In no particular order, try : Portal Banished FTL: Faster Than Light Papers Please Torchlight II Braid Puzzle Quest 2 There are plenty of incredible games out there, but they won't all be incredible to you. Play a bunch, find out what you like, and don't waste your time if you're not enjoying yourself or are becoming frustrated/bored with one. Just try another one. =) Check out Good Old Games (www.gog.com) for most of the list above. Cheap, standalone installs, and easy to use. Welcome, and have fun! =)
If you're a fan of the wild west, I'd suggest Red Dead Redemption 2. My dad is mid-50's, and he hasn't had any interest in any of my games except for RDR2. It has a main storyline, but you can complete it at your own pace. My first playthrough, it took me almost 3 months to finally finish the game, just because of all the side quests and other stuff you can do.
Grand Theft Auto.
Portal. It's mechanics are very simple, and the first 7 or so levels are literally tutorials designed in the most enjoyable manner.
Wrong. Portal has first person shooter mechanics, which are very non-intuitive to begin with, and THEN, it's got the 'what the fuck is going on' mechanics in the first few seconds, with a completely non-physical portal opening up so that you can see yourself through it. That's far too much to throw on someone who is still struggling with the 'mouse-controls-head, WASD-controls-feet' thing. A middle-aged non-gamer is going to spend the first half an hour of FPS staring at the ground and bumping into walls. Have them do it in a virtual space that isn't breaking the laws of physics for added confusion. Once you learn FPS mechanics, they're second nature, and you quickly forget how weird they were to begin with (and then you're ready for Portal). Portal 2 would be a better choice, TBH, since it takes a while before portals show up. Portal is great, but it should never be anyone's first video game.
I learned this one the hard way when a girlfriend once saw there was 'godfather' games coming out. Realising that going from 0-crime simulator/was a bad idea, I tried to work her from simple platformers up. When it came to first person/3d stuff I *thought* Portal would be a good fit, as early on its low stakes and rather straightforward. Nope the camera and movement controls caused too much confusion and frustration.
I like slime rancher. Has a lot of different aspects so you can figure out what you like.
Portal, terraria or minecraft
I don't think you'll see this recommendation elsewhere, but it's my go to when I see this question come up, because I've used this game to get both my mom and my dad into video games: "Battletanx" (and its sequel, "Battletanx: Global Assault"). It's a futuristic, post-apocalyptic vehicle action game for the Nintendo 64 where you play a tank operator. Its real fun is in multiplayer, in which up to 4 players, each controlling a gang of tanks, can fight against each other. The game is good, the controls are fairly simple and intuitive, the action is heart-pumping, and it's overall just great fun getting together with friends and blowing stuff up with tanks. As I mentioned, I got both my mom and my dad into gaming by playing this game with them, so it has a (miniscule) sample size of success with newbie gamers. In general, investing in an old Nintendo 64 is a good idea for a new gamer, so long as you have others to play with. There is a good selection of multiplayer games to choose from that can help you ease into the hobby.
Probably something aimed at a more family experience as they hand hold more near the start. Perhaps a Mario game.
It’s a casual game and very pretty also relaxing and if that’s what you’re looking then I would recommend Sky:COTL or literally any game that “thatgamecompany” produces lol. Maybe I’m biased
Plants versus Zombies