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Post by skalpadda on Oct 31, 2023 15:41:19 GMT
My mother fell down an escalator and broke her leg yesterday. It's not too serious and it seems like she'll be fine, but she won't be able go get out and about much for a while. I'm going to visit tomorrow to check in and give her some flowers and cinnamon rolls, but I also thought since she sometimes likes to play games on her laptop it would be a good opportunity to get her something new to play. I don't have a lot of ideas for what might be good for her though, so I'm hoping you guys might have some suggestions.
Some info: * She's 67, a pensioner, no serious disabilities and has fairly broad tastes.
* Has a not particularly powerful Windows laptop, so can't play anything terribly demanding, hardware-wise.
* She's okay but not great at English and has mild dyslexia, so games with lots of reading are going to be hard. Some reading is fine though.
* She doesn't have an account on any gaming platforms. I can of course set up a Steam account or something for her, but if it's on GOG or somewhere else where I can just grab an installer and put it on her machine that would be ideal.
Games I've gotten her in the past that she's really liked include Torchlight, Little Inferno (she liked burning things to an almost worrying degree) and Regency Solitaire. She also used to like playing NES games like Mario and Zelda II with me when I was a kid, but I have a feeling most modern platformers that are available on PC (especially with KB&M) will be too hard for her.
I've given her some puzzle and adventure games in the past but I don't think she got very far in them. I think she just didn't get along with that particular kind of problem solving. She also played some casual mobile-style city building/management games she got in the Windows store for a while, but I think she got a bit disillusioned with them and annoyed at the F2P model of begging her for money all the time (made me proud).
I've already grabbed Torchlight II from GOG which should be a pretty safe bet since she played the first for months, but beyond that I'm out of ideas. Any suggestions are very welcome!
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EMarkM
Junior Member
Well, quite...
Posts: 2,150 
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Post by EMarkM on Oct 31, 2023 15:43:39 GMT
Sorry to hear the news, and wishing for a swift recovery!
In the meantime, if puzzles games aren't going to do it (I was going to suggest Tricky Doors before I read that bit), how about sports games like snooker/pool?
Good luck!
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KD
Junior Member
RIP EG
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Post by KD on Oct 31, 2023 15:46:48 GMT
Peggle
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dmukgr
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Post by dmukgr on Oct 31, 2023 15:47:46 GMT
Go down the emu route then you can do things like Professor Layton, Harvest Moon etc.? /Peggle - that is a good shout. World of Goo too  |
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Frog
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Post by Frog on Oct 31, 2023 15:51:08 GMT
Which is also an anagram for peg leg. |
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KD
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RIP EG
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Post by KD on Oct 31, 2023 15:54:51 GMT
Knitting needles and a ton of wool.
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Post by Fake_Blood on Oct 31, 2023 15:56:59 GMT
Firewatch and What Remains of Edith Finch.
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jono62
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Post by jono62 on Oct 31, 2023 15:58:27 GMT
Immortality. It's a puzzle game.
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Post by Vandelay on Oct 31, 2023 16:00:20 GMT
If she liked Regency Solitaire, there is a sequel. There is also Shadowhand, by the same developer. I don't know much about those games, but hear they are good. Shadowhand looks a little more of an RPG, so could be more video gamey, which might not be her thing.
You said no to puzzle games, but if logical sodoku-like puzzles aren't off-putting, then Hexcells is excellent. I'm sure there are lots of picross games about, in similar vein (Murder by Numbers is pretty good, from what I've played, but does have visual novel elements, so quite a bit of reading).
What about a proper city builder, like Anno or the original City: Skyline (new one is probably a bit taxing)?
Edit - Immortality might not be a good choice if she is in a public ward. She might get some weird looks...
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minimatt
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hyper mediocrity
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Post by minimatt on Oct 31, 2023 16:46:17 GMT
Stardew Valley, Minecraft, Dorfromantik (puzzle, but very puzzle-lite) - of course, this all runs the risk of massively patronizing a sweet old lady who really just wants to 360 noscope headshot n00bs in Call of Duty
edit: oh, and Chuchel
edit 2: dorfromantik and chuchel both have swedish translations, but both are very visual games anway, you might be stuck with english for stardew vally (unless german is easier?)
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Ulythium
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Post by Ulythium on Oct 31, 2023 16:48:29 GMT
skalpaddaSorry to hear about your mum, and hope she gets better soon. How about Slay the Spire?
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Post by skalpadda on Oct 31, 2023 17:43:32 GMT
Thanks for the suggestions so far. Lots of stuff to look up that I'm not familiar with. Hadn't considered walking simulators like Firewatch either. She might like that. Sorry to hear the news, and wishing for a swift recovery! In the meantime, if puzzles games aren't going to do it (I was going to suggest Tricky Doors before I read that bit), how about sports games like snooker/pool? Good luck! I don't think all puzzle/adventure games are out of the question, just the ones I've given her in the past don't seem to have clicked even though it's kind of the obvious genre for "mom games". I'll give Tricky Doors a look. Knitting needles and a ton of wool. I think she bought almost half the shop when the textile store near her had a closing sale, so she's sorted on that front. Edit - Immortality might not be a good choice if she is in a public ward. She might get some weird looks... She got home the same day, just has a cast on her leg. Stardew Valley, Minecraft, Dorfromantik (puzzle, but very puzzle-lite) - of course, this all runs the risk of massively patronizing a sweet old lady who really just wants to 360 noscope headshot n00bs in Call of Duty edit: oh, and Chuchel edit 2: dorfromantik and chuchel both have swedish translations, but both are very visual games anway, you might be stuck with english for stardew vally (unless german is easier?)
I don't think military shooters would be her jam, but I was a little surprised she liked Torchlight so much. I guess it's light on mechanics for an action RPG and has a friendly art style, but there's still a lot of non-stop murdering and nerdy numbers. Chuchel is a good shout. I can't remember if I gave her Botanicula at some point, but that might also be worth a go. Dorfromantik looks nice, will check that out too. skalpadda Sorry to hear about your mum, and hope she gets better soon. How about Slay the Spire? Slay the Spire might be promising. I've been meaning to give it a go myself and it's even on sale at the moment so will grab it regardless. |
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Post by Phattso on Oct 31, 2023 17:45:05 GMT
Human Fall Flat! Too soon? |
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Post by crashV👀d👀 on Oct 31, 2023 17:48:16 GMT
Powerwash simulator
The witness
Bejewelled/Montezuma's revenge
Tower defense games like BloonsTD
Into the Breach
Turn based like xcom or mutant year zero
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Oct 31, 2023 17:48:24 GMT
How about a modern platform game such as the Ori games or even Rayman if she fancies challenging her reflexes. That one will at least make her laugh. And they do say that laughter can repair broken bones. Or something similar.
EDIT: I hate my phone’s aggressive predictive text
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Post by Vandelay on Oct 31, 2023 18:04:41 GMT
If she enjoyed Torchlight, maybe Titan Quest might be a good pick. It isn't quite as cartoony as Torchlight, but it is much brighter than the usual grim dark of the genre.
In a similar vein, Hades could be a good shout. Light on the number crunching, but shares some similarities with ARPGs.
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hicksy
Junior Member
I'm good for some but I'm not for everyone
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Post by hicksy on Oct 31, 2023 18:07:27 GMT
World of Warcraft!
Torchlight with a social side…
Hope your mum gets well soon!
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Post by dfunked on Oct 31, 2023 18:12:23 GMT
TD games are a good shout. Both Defence Grid games should work on a fairly potato machine.
Peggle?
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Post by Reviewer on Oct 31, 2023 18:23:20 GMT
Diablo 3.
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Post by BeetrootBertie on Oct 31, 2023 18:24:31 GMT
Perhaps an online Poker game? I've not played much but Poker HD on Steam was okay when I last played it and you got plenty of free credits to play with.
If snooker and/or pool would interest her, Cue Club 2 is decent, and mouse/keyboard friendly.
Maybe a Worms game too?
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Post by crashV👀d👀 on Oct 31, 2023 18:46:09 GMT
Get good enough a poker and she could accidentally stumble into a new revenue stream :-)
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zephro
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Post by zephro on Oct 31, 2023 18:51:38 GMT
Sorry to hear about your Mum.
Dorfromantic is a good shout though!
Also Dorf Fortress, the one true game.
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X201
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Post by X201 on Oct 31, 2023 19:47:45 GMT
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KD
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RIP EG
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Post by KD on Oct 31, 2023 20:24:09 GMT
Do those mobile apps that make you play games for amazon vouchers actually work? I seen the ads while covering for my dads golf game while he went on holidays. Also Microsoft Rewards.
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Post by Nanocrystal on Oct 31, 2023 21:38:31 GMT
Cookie Clicker
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mrpon
Junior Member
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Post by mrpon on Nov 1, 2023 7:04:22 GMT
Human Fall Flat! Too soon? Jesus Phats! Vampire Survivors? Sorry. |
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Post by skalpadda on Nov 1, 2023 15:37:31 GMT
Mum says thank you and to tell everyone that you're very nice. I didn't have time to go through everything today, but I will look at all of them to have suggestions for her in the future. I got her Torchlight 2, Slay the Spire (which I also bought for myself), Dorfromantik and a little minimalistic building game called Islanders. Should be a good mix of things to try out for now. |
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