Hello everyone
I recently upgraded my PC and I’m excited to explore new games that can take advantage of my improved hardware. Previously, my old PC was limited, and I had to be selective about the games I played. I also have a Steam Deck, but I’m looking for offline single-player experiences on my PC.
I’m looking for games that offer an unforgettable experience and high replay value. I enjoy open-world games that give me the freedom to explore, similar to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. I know it’s not a PC game, but it gives you an idea of my playstyle.
Here are some games I’ve enjoyed in the past:
• The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild - My favorite game, I love the freedom to explore without being bound to quests.
• Far Cry 3 - Great open-world experience that didn’t get boring.
• NieR: Automata - Engaging story, but it got a bit repetitive.
• Scarlet Nexus - Great story, high replay value, and a beautiful world, although it can be repetitive.
• ULTRAKILL - Challenging and high replay value.
• Portal 2 - High replay value.
• Portal 1 - Enjoyed it, but didn’t love it.
• Subnautica - Absolutely loved it.
• The Witcher 3 - Didn’t enjoy it, but I’m giving it another try soon.
• Doom Eternal - Liked it.
• Horizon Zero Dawn - It’s an average game, with a mid-story and a beautiful world.
For me, a good story is often the top priority, but I also enjoy games like Breath of the Wild where I can relax and play without thinking too hard.
If you’re curious about my specs, here they are:
New PC:
• CPU: AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D 16-Core
• GPU: AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX
• RAM: 64GB DDR5 Memory
Old PC: • GPU: AMD Radeon RX 480 4GB
• CPU: Intel Core i7-4770K @ 3.50GHz
• RAM: 4GB DDR3 Memory
I’d appreciate any game recommendations that fit my preferences.
Edit: Thanks already for the recommendations, I might also add, that I love the Halo games. Except the newer ones.
It would be a massive shame to not throw Fallout: New Vegas a nod.
Cruelty squad, balatro, broforce, yakuza games, ghostwire tokyo, gta 4, deep rock galactic, risk of rain 2, binding of issac are some of my personal reccomendations
Ghost of Tsushima, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, Cyberpunk
i should play valhalla
Honestly I thought Valhalla was pretty meh…
It’s not a bad game, I just didn’t find it interesting enough to keep me engaged.Ghost of Tsushima is amazing! I’m not usually the biggest open world fan, but that one really worked for me
Dishonored is pretty good, although not truly an open world, there are side quests and areas to discover in each mission
i would recommend titanfall 2, its a masterpiece
Factorio
And then after you get wore out on factorio, you can try factorio mods. Between the two it should hold you over for forever.
It ain’t called Cracktorio for nuthin’!
None of the one suggested.
https://libregaming.org/play-libre-games/
luanti
0ad
endless sky
mindustry
wesnoth
Xbox Game Pass for PC is an incredible value, even with the caveat of having to run windows (which sucks so bad). That’s always my top rec for PC gamers.
Elden Ring is still my number one game. It’s awesome and will run great on your new PC as well as your deck. It’s also got a lot in common with your listed games.
Grounded is a great game as well! It’s a reasonably difficult survival crafting game (like Subnautica). Same goes for Return to Moria.
Probably some stigma associated with it but Genshin Impact is kind of in the vein of Breath of the Wild with the open world exploration and puzzle solving. Tons of story arcs, and they are pretty dang good. While it’s not offline, it’s not multiplayer unless you want it to be.
I always have to recommend Vampire: The Masquerade, Bloodlines. Cheesy AF game from the early 'aughts, but it holds a special place in my heart and is a fantastic RPG. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZAIR9faz9pM
Sorry didn’t even finish reading yet. You thought nier was repetitive?! Like maybe if you playing through it again to get the other endings but damn that first playthrough is a fresh experience. As you progress it feels like a different genre. Shit was great.
Sounds like somebody didn’t see all the endings. Seriously though, Yoko Taro loves bullying gamers and there is a lot of painful grinding involved in some of the endings - the scrapyard, flower, and fishing side quests particularly come to mind. Oh, and the one side quest where the item is right outside the door to the final bosses, so you have to go through the final dungeon, backtrack through the dungeon to turn in the quest, then go through the final dungeon again to get to the final fights.
I found the combat to be quite annoying personally, so I can see where this is coming from. And having to replay for other endings was also annoying. I ended up just looking up the endings
Open World, meaningful (and hard choices), excellent writing. It’s the best game I’ve played in recent years. It can also run on a potatoe, but that shouldn’t be a problem for you. :)
You might want to check out Red Dead Redemption 2 in story mode. The graphics and physics are pretty incredible. It’s a little old now, but I think it still holds up well, especially if you like the “old west cowboy” aesthetic.
Thanks for the suggestion. Might be a hot take, but what I dislike about Red Dead Redemption 2 and also Horizon Zero Dawn is that it is like a movie. Just a cutscene after another and I feel like that you aren’t really free in RDR2. But I didn’t play it so it might be better than expected!
I’ve played both and horizon definitely gives that feeling but red dead does not, as it has many more cool things to immerse you in
fwiw I felt that RDR2 gives you an incredible amount of freedom. You can do so much even outside the main story. You can spend hours just traveling through the world and discovering things, helping / robbing people, hunting, etc. It’s the best game I’ve ever played and even after finishing the main story, there’s still lots to do out in the open world. The main story is usually done with cutscenes, yes, but it usually let’s you do the “active” parts yourself. Just the atmosphere of the game alone is absolutely worth it.
Just Cause 3 is great fun.
I recently picked up Metro Exodus and it’s been a great experience.
God of War is OK,looks nice but felt a bit constrained and formulaic.
Baldurs Gate 3 seems like a no brainer
Not open world at all. As a fan of all the games OP mentioned, I give Baldur’s Gate 3 a pretty low score due to its linear physical world.
OP said story was their main priority.
They did indeed say that was often their priority. Is for me too. And you’re right, it has a decent story for sure, and replay value for that matter given how easily you can change the story radically.
