Nowadays I find a lot of games feel like too much work and/or anxiety when I just want to relax for like, 30 minutes to an hour after a long day. On the other hand, the games specifically designed to help you unwind just feel boring imo.
In the past I’ve felt like Outer Wilds scratched this itch, cause the whole experience was engaging but generally relaxed. There was a mystery that kept me hooked and the exploration and movement was fun in and of itself. I also felt like Subnautica filled this role since it was very much at my own pace, with anxiety producing portions which could for the most part be avoided or minimized, and also there was a clear objective to fulfill, get off the planet.
So what games do you play when you just wanna relax?
Yeah I haven’t tried the mods either and I kinda suck at the game but I’ve always felt like it has a low cost to entry, which is why it feels chill to me. A lot of death anxiety in games is due to time investment and, frankly, like BOTW, fear of long loading screens more than any in game punishment.
Ftl has such a satisfying and similar gameplay loop and allows so much pausing that it doesn’t really feel stressful for me. I still hate dying and do it a lot in the game, but I can play ftl with a sort of soft mental focus that many other games don’t allow me to do