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So I find myself entering my 3rd month of sick leave thanks to workplace stress, anxiety and burnout (making Prof under 40 and the workplace culture has broken me). I’m taking positive steps: antidepressants and therapy are helping, I’m spending a lot of time in the garden or walking (can’t bring myself to do gym/biking as yet) and I’ve given in my notice at work to leave in the summer. So guess I can now call myself a recovering academic.
Have bought myself a Switch to aid the sitting still. I’m not a huge gamer but enjoyed those I have had - previously owned a Wii and PS One. Enjoy platform games (currently reminiscing a lot with Crash Bandicoot), and some sports games, but realise gaming has moved on and open to suggestions. Any recommendations? As a millennial I am tempted by the Harry Potter game.
Mario Kart
Metroid Dread
Hades
New Star GP
I've played these on my steam deck and they are enjoyable games but depends what type of games you like?
RPG, shooters, platform games. Haven't played Harry Potter games though but heard it's a good game.
Pikmin
Legend of Zelda
I'm not sure if they're all on Switch but if you're suffering from burnout you could opt for some more sedate and chill games to help keep your nerves in check. Stuff like
FAR,
Sable,
The Witness,
Abzu,
Heavenly Bodies
None of them are AAA games but are good to play and not get wound up by.
I also really enjoyed Plague Tale series, they up the ante with stress but the story is amazing, and as it's not an open world game you can just follow the narrative.
Harry Potter was an awesome game with an engaging story (just don't go out and buy the Quidditch game afterwards thinking it's in the same league...it's not)
Just bought https://www.cdkeys.com/new-super-lucky-s-tale-switch-eu for my better half. Yet to install.
https://www.dekudeals.com/items/dead-cells?platform=all (great site to spot deals) is supposed to be good, I bought it a few months back, but I struggled to get into it (not my usual type of game and I'm generally struggling to find games I like these days).
I've looked at https://www.cdkeys.com/giana-sisters-twisted-dreams-owltimate-edition-switch-eu recently (seems fast paced) and https://www.cdkeys.com/super-chariot-switch-eu
Not a platform game, but I've loved playing https://www.dekudeals.com/items/sky-force-reloaded recently, the difficulty is very progressive, currently trying to get the achievements on nightmare.
Endless Ocean Luminous - no story, you just swim around and look at fish.
Thanks all - some nice ideas there
Another recommendation for the Zelda games, it's the main reason I bought a Switch! Breath of the Wild is great but Tears of the Kingdom is even better, they are huge story driven games but still easy to dip in and out of when you only want to play for a bit.
Subnautica and Below Zero - its like an adventure, mystery version of Minecraft but with a proper story, great graphics..
If you like something slower-paced and story driven,
Another vote for Zelda. I picked up Breath of the Wild 2nd hand in January and found it incredibly rewarding. I’ve got some mental health challenges at the moment as well and I’ve found it to be really helpful to give my brain a break from the real world for a while. It definitely doesn’t solve any of the problems in life but it gives me a bit more in the tank to deal with things. It’s definitely healthier than doomscrolling!
If you’re after something less immersive then Mario Wonder is just pure fun.
Untitled Goose Game
solve environmental puzzles with an obnoxious goose... HONK!
If you’re after something less immersive then Mario Wonder is just pure fun.
My wife really enjoyed Wonder but I found the platforming incredibly frustrating and not fun at all.
Lot of good recommends up there - I'll throw in a couple of oldie but goody puzzlers that you can download for Switch - Portal (Companion Collection) , with both of the original games available, the second one is particularly fantastic. And 'Inside', a short atmospheric side-scrolling puzzle game which you'll either adore or find a little too dystopian.
Stardew Valley
Its chill and lovely with a brilliant retro feel
Other than that 2nd the Zelda Games
Not exactly chilled but a fantastic platformer/Metroidvania and one of the best games of the last decade in my opinion. Hollow Knight, absolutely great game. Lonely Mountain Downhill is a fun little MTB game and the two Zelda games mentioned are good for switching off from the real world for a bit.
Loads for me to check out.
Based on the number of shouts out, I went and bought a copy of Zelda tears. I’ve never played a Zelda before, or really much in way of 3D games. Played an hour this evening and super impressed. Very different gaming to what I’m used too.
Another vote for untitled goose game! In a similar indie vein, Pikuniku is relatively short, but brilliant.
Zelda tears of the kingdom is fantastic. Really fun game you can pick up and play in half an hour sessions. Not overly hard, but great fun.
I enjoy Splatoon, it does require Nintendo online though.