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·
    4 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·
    4 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.

    • Zahille7@lemmy.world
      2·
      1 month ago

      This post is months old now, but I fucking love Psychonauts. It shaped me into the person I am today. I’ve replayed it so many times I’ve lost count, and I can tell you at what point in the game each song of the soundtrack plays. Also the sequel takes place only days after the first, so it could still technically be called a summer game. Also the sequel is honestly a damn masterpiece imo.

      Also, Ty is absolutely fantastic. Any of the water levels are absolute summer vibes imo. And the soundtrack is fantastic as well. I 100% the first three on steam.

    • nanoUFO@sh.itjust.works
      11·
      4 months ago

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

  • reallykindasorta@slrpnk.net
    2·
    1 month ago

    Have you enjoyed any of the recommendations OP? I like your original list/taste and am wondering what else fit the aesthetic

    • Paradigm_shift@sh.itjust.worksOP
      3·
      1 month ago

      Just saw your message. I ended up replaying the old spyro games in the remastered version and loved the nostalgia trip.

      Tried to get into Outer Wilds again, stopped almost instantly because I just can’t figure out the movement.

      Then I saw that Oxenfree 2 had released at some point, played that but wouldn’t recommend ( if you played the first game you already know the big “mystery” and the new smaller mystery isn’t that interesting)

      I played chants of sennaar, loved it, fit the vibe perfectly. Would absolutely recommend!

      I played planet of lana, it was somewhere between okay and good. Visually perfect gameplay a bit boring. Even for a short game it felt too long at the end.

      Then I made the mistake of opening rimworld again and this became my (gaming) life again.

      I don’t know if I played it before my post or after but Talos Principle 2 was perfect just like the first one.

  • dwindling7373@feddit.itEnglish
    1·
    4 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·
      4 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·
    4 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·
    4 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·
      4 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·
    4 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)