I have this loosely defined made-up genre I call “Summer Games”.

It started a long time ago subconsciously. At some point I realized that during the hottest time of the year I gravitate to certain games that I mostly play on a small device (laptop/switch/steamdeck), laying in bed, late at night, when I have trouble sleeping because it’s too hot. A friend of mine once said that the reason she loves super high temperatures so much, is that what you experience leaves more vivid, burned in, memories. I think she has a point.

The criteria aren’t super rigid but I hope you get the “vibe” and might know some games that fit:

  • Low-stakes/chill gameplay. I’m already sweating, I don’t need sweaty gameplay right now

  • a warm aesthetic/color palette and/or setting. My outside experience shouldn’t feel too different to the games inside experience aesthetic-wise.

  • It feels like a road trip, adventure or vacation. I want to get a summery memory out of this.

  • the game leaves some kind of impact.

Games I played in the past that evoked that vibe perfectly:

  • Kentucky road zero
  • oxenfree
  • road 96
  • firewatch
  • sable
  • rime
  • steins: gate
  • life is strange

Games that have fit okay-ish

  • tunic
  • journey
  • citizen sleeper
  • nightcall
  • no umbrellas allowed
  • the talos principle
  • the solus project
  • the witness
  • the vanishing of Ethan Carter

If anyone has a recommendation, I’d be thankful. This year I have started to play chants of Sennaar and it seems to fit the criteria so far.

  • Malix@sopuli.xyz
    3·
    2 months ago

    A Short Hike. Essentially a short, cute animal-characters “collectathon” walking-sim/3d-platformer with some low-stakes “arcade” bits here and there. The low-res pixel-effect can be turned off.

    AER: Memories of old. Quite a bit in same vein as Rime/Sable, travel between floating islands and participate in low-stakes puzzles/platforming. Pretty charming, imo… and short. Can be finished under 2 hours.

  • Okami@lemmy.worldEnglish
    2·
    2 months ago

    Psychonauts (the original, not the sequel, though the sequel is also good) is a Summer Camp themed 3D platformer. It doesn’t quite meet your “low stakes/chill gameplay” criteria as it does have combat and mildly challenging boss fights and platforming, but it nails the rest. It’s easier than Tunic. Maybe worth checking out.

    Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons strictly meets all the criteria listed, but it’s ultimately a tragic story. If “some kind of impact” includes leaving you in tears, check it out.

    Okami is a Zelda style adventure set in feudal Japan with immaculate vibes. You play as the sun goddess Amaterasu in the form of a wolf bringing light and life to a land ravaged by demons. The world is cold and dark at first, but you bring spring and summer on your heels.

    Finally, two favorites from my childhood are the Spyro series and the Ty the Tasmanian Tiger series. These are 3D Platformer collectathons and neither of these series are even close to any of the examples you provided, but they are bright and colorful and in my heart they have feelings of Summer Vacation and staying home all day to play video games.

    • nanoUFO@sh.itjust.works
      01·
      2 months ago

      Ty the Tasmanian Tiger is peak summer game. It’s basically set in a setting inspired by the Australian outback.

  • dwindling7373@feddit.itEnglish
    1·
    2 months ago

    “A Short Hike” for sure, “What Remains of Edith Finch” could fit and nobody mentioned it.

    Superflight is great and quite different from most of the suggestions you are getting.

    (The Stanley Parable I don’t think fits but if you want to try it out I suggest you do not take the “Deluxe” version and sitck to the original one)

    • Paradigm_shift@sh.itjust.worksOP
      1·
      2 months ago

      I’ll definitely put short hike on the list. Superflight looks amazing as well! I already played the Stanley parable and the other famous game from that developer. Totally forgot about that. I also played Edith Finch but didn’t like it

  • filister@lemmy.world
    1·
    2 months ago
    • Slay the princess
    • Until then
    • Coffee talk
    • Detroit Become human

    The last one is more like an interactive movie than a visual novel, but it is still pretty cool

  • ryo@lemmy.eco.br
    0·
    2 months ago

    Funny that you mention Life of Strange because it’s actually set in Autumn, but it does kinda have the vibes you describe. What does have way more summer vibes though is the prequel, Before the Storm, totally worth it if you’ve haven’t played it.

    • Paradigm_shift@sh.itjust.worksOP
      1·
      2 months ago

      My opinion of life is strange is kinda complicated I liked it as a “Summer Game” because it had the right vibes while I played it but after I was done I was disappointed. The game hypes it’s “your action have consequences” system up constantly but it’s usually just a different dialogue or short scene which doesn’t affect the story in a major way. Which is fine for a game in general but not when it pretends it’s different.

  • traches@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
    0·
    2 months ago

    If you haven’t played outer wilds yet, do it. Go in blind, read/watch nothing unless you are absolutely stuck. It truly is one of the best video games ever made, and it’s definitely a cozy adventure (for the most part).

    Edit: the reason you need to go in blind is because all progress happens in your own head. Once you know something you can’t un-know it. Replayability is pretty much zero.

    Also, controller is 100% mandatory. Not keyboard and mouse, not even HOTAS. Controller, preferably with axes for the triggers (not buttons like the switch)