Red Dead 2
Inscryption. I thought it was a poor man's Slay The Spire using janky escape-room mechanics as a cheap, nifty gimmick to lend it some value.
It appeared on Game Pass, and upon trying it I sneered a little at it, as Spire and Monster Train were my only experiences with deckbuilders and I had been spoiled. I had no idea how good it really was. Gameplay mechanics it can't match up, but it contains a story thats shot straight into my top 10 of all time.
It shares an exclusive room in my memory alongside Bioshock, Deus Ex, KOTOR and the like.
Unfortunately it can't take me by surprise twice. The shock, suspense and mystery have been depleted and I cant feel it again. Ive been told the dev has more games that are all gold like that, but I cant look them up. I went into Doki Doki knowing that something happens and youll just have to find out and its spoilers and iykyk etc, and when it did it it just felt kinda neat but thoroughly underwhelming. I just need to hope that I stumble onto one of the devs other projects like a beautiful landmine in the future.
What a fantastic game. I played it for 20 hours straight when I first got it. Absolutely magnificent.
Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines.
Either that, or Fallout: New Vegas
Portal. I played the whole thing on the first sit down as soon as it downloaded, but the audio had glitched so I missed the voice over. Missed a huge part of the experience.
the audio had glitched so I missed the voice over
This was not a triumph.
That was my vote! There's little to no replay value, but damn what a ride. Spent 2 or 3 weeks imagining portals IRL. "I could snatch the TV remote without moving if..."
"Now you're thinking in Portals!" was the most accurate tagline I've ever experienced.
The correct answer to this question is always Outer Wilds.
It's a game that can be beaten in five minutes if you already know the solution. But the process of discovering that solution, and unearthing the incredible story around it, is one of the most unbelievable gaming experiences you will ever have.
It's an absolute masterpiece and if you haven't played it yet, you really, really need to.
Final Fantasy 7 Chronotrigger Secret of Mana
Untitled 🪿 Game
Deus Ex. A strangely prescient game that had shaped how I view the world.
The need to be observed and understood was once satisfied by God. Now we can implement the same functionality with data-mining algorithms. You will soon have your God... and you will make it with your own hands.
try the Randomizer mod https://mods4ever.com/project/DXRando
Whelp, time to reinstall it again! Thnaks!
Disco Elysium for sure
Transformative narrative experience..
Im almost not sure if I want that. Most of the games I would do that for are older games from like 25 years ago, and I honestly can't see playing them today and ever having those fond moments like I did then. In my case, the time of playing them also mattered a lot.
Most of the games I would do that for are older games from like 25 years ago, and I honestly can’t see playing them today
I'll take the opposite side of that
I bought an old Radio Shack Color Computer off EBay and had a total blast playing Dungeons of Daggorath with my kids. Plus, it's educational: it teaches you to type "A L " really really fast

Day of the Tentacle
hypnospace outlaw without question
Death Stranding
I went it to that totally blind and holy shit was it amazing. It's not even my usual type of game so I have no idea why I picked it up.
I love it when that happens with a game. Getting blindsided by something truly exceptional is such a surreal experience.
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess.
Because I'm halfway through it right now, and I think it'd be really funny if I started the game "for the first time" only to find that 1. there was already a save, 2. named what I name him, 3. with 12 hearts, and 4. on a Wii used only by me.
In terms of modern games, both of the Last of Us games and Alien: Isolation. I'm sure there's loads of old games but my memory is awful.
Bioshock.
'Stanley examined the question carefully, he knew the answer he gave would be important'
Maybe the Stanley parable or the Beginners guide, but I'm not sure what undoing there effect on me would be.
I want to say "Baldur's Gate 1+2", but I'm honestly not sure that I'd have the patience to learn the fight system nowadays. I still never finished the Throne of Bhaal expansion (even though it actually finishes the story of the first two games, it's basically Baldur's Gate 3), because high level play becomes such a hassle.
Second retro favourite after that is probably Pillars of Eternity 2, the atmosphere wasn't as good as in PoE 1 but the gameplay is way better. I'd definitely be up for playing that right now.
Return of the Obra Dinn.
EDIT: Aaand Lucas just went and posted a two and a half hours narrated modeling mega timelapse.
Well. It's not like I had plans for the rest of the evening or anything...
Syberia
Surprised no one mentioned it
Splintercell Chaos Theory.
Good lord...
Outer Wilds
Nier: Automata. God, if I could feel that pain again... what a fucking game.
Even just the goddamn soundtrack.
The entire game is flawless.
The soundtrack quickly became one of my favorites. It's on rotation with Chrono Trigger/Cross, Xenogears, Expedition 33, and Hades.
KOTOR
Okay, now that I have thought about it, I have realized it Has to be a game that fits the following bullet points:
• Isn't part of a franchise I've played multiple games in. That would ruin my first time experience playing a sequel or plenty of games in a series.
• Not something someone I watch online makes content on.
So I'm thinking a good answer for me would absolutely be a game like SuperTuxKart. It's its own individual thing and I don't really watch channels that play it. It's the prefect candidate for me that I would absolutely love to pick up for the first time. Especially since the 1.5 update ( if it's out already ).
The whole Mass Effect series
Outer Wilds. I never beat it, but I played through a lot of it. I went in completely blind, not knowing what it was, and my mind was blown away.
I wish I could experience all of it brand new whenever I go back to finish it up.
Myst! An oldie, but I had basically done this when the remastered version came out a few years ago and it was still a 10/10.
OUTER WILDS! If you've played it, you know why. (If you haven't, do not ask. Play it.)
It would be like the one upside of a TBI.
But really, due where I was in life when I played it and how much it helped me process things, I'm not sure I would give up the experience I already had.
I’ve tried to play this game twice. I get confused and have no idea what to do or where to go or what to do when I get there. Spent about 12 hours playing and just feel lost. And everytime I bring it up. People reccomend I just keep playing. And yet I’m still lost haha
That's surprising that you feel so lost. Did you perhaps miss the journal / discovery board in the back of your ship? Basically just need to look at that and try to flesh out any of the plot threads you see on there. Whenever one isn't progressing, take a break and try a totally different direction or just wander wherever you can for a cycle or two and you'll have stumbled on to some new leads probably.
Its pretty intentional that most players hit a stall around the middle because you have to start challenging things you THINK you know but haven't actually proven to be certain yet.
Discovery board?
Well. That makes things make a little more sense I had no idea about it. I just thought it was various ways to experience a death loop over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over
I just looked it up and it's actually called the Rumor Map apparently. It's pretty important to organize all the things you find in a loop and check yourself to see if there is more to uncover on some plot point.
If you get in your ship it's opposite the pilot seat. I'm sure it was pretty maddening to not have that tool and hear people say such high praise about the game lol.
If you haven't been spoiled on it, you might find the game a lot more enjoyable giving it another shot some day!
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