Edit 2: got a notification about Cronos: The New Dawn as I was launching Steam and decided to go for it. So far… holy hell, yep! Soo much yep! Just, uuh… turn off ray-tracing…
Edit: thanks so much to everyone who chimed in, there are some awesome recs in this thread! Also, really sorry to hear so many of you can relate to such games, good thing we have’em!
I apologise if I missed anyone’s comment.
OP: So, going through It™ again and my mood’s really gloomy. Anyone got any good recommendations to go with my mood?
To specify, PC-only, and I’m mostly asking for atmosphere, though some mechanical goodness will not go unappreciated. Thinking of stuff like Observer, Silent Hill, Darkwood, Arx Fatalis, Fallout: NV, Bloodborne, Dark Souls, Elden Ring, etc. Played most of these except Bloodborne, gathering the patience to deal with emulation.
Edit: oh, and if the story’ll shred my soul to pieces, all the better! Hit me with your best shot!
These are basically ancient, but if you want to feel like crap.
- The walking dead, from telltale
- spec ops the line
- this war of mine
- papers please
Thank you! Have’em all in my library, I really should check my backlog…
I’m reluctant to suggest What Remains of Edith Finch.
It will shred you.
That’s what I was going to recommend too. And very short too. It’s just a rainy afternoon.
Good! Hope it does thin slices, thank you!
Limbo
Inside is great as well
Limbo and Inside, noted! Thank you both!
I say Inside. Mostly because I never beat Limbo because I got stuck, and Inside was graphically superior and super gloomy.
Oh, I don’t mind outdated graphics, grew up in the 90s and it’s all we had:)) Mechanical difficulty isn’t a problem, either, because it plays into my masochistic tendencies!
How about The Long Dark? A struggle to survive in a cold, dead world. The atmosphere is superb and I think it pairs well with a melancholy mood. Sorry to hear you’re dealing with crap.
Came here to post this, as well.
Thank you both! Gonna look into it, had it in the back of my mind for a while.
I’ve heard Spiritfarer is quite emotional.
Ooh, and it looks so sweet and wholesome!❤️ Thank you, will give it a whirl!
Oh boy, this is a game that absolutely ripped my heart out. I’ve never been great at saying goodbye, I did everything I could before the first goodbye and then I quit. I loved the game, but it hits me in a strange soft spot.
Brothers is kinda similar to provide a recommendation.
It is. Its also maybe not the best game to play when you’re struggling. I played it when I lost a close family member and I became a wreck for weeks
It helped me process the loss, but it drew all of my emotions out in the process
Well, that’s what I’m looking for, honestly. Trying to burn the hurt out in a way, and it’s easier to process when in a context where such issues are analysed.
It doesn’t have much of a pre-defined story to it, but I would say Project Zomboid is pretty moody and has a lot of gameplay depth.
Really does look moody, and I love the strategy bits! Thanks, definitely wishlisted!
Awesome! If this is your type of thing, you may be in for some amazing experiences, particularly if you can play it multiplayer with friends or on a good server. Look up some good Project Zomboid video reviews or fan trailers to get an idea.
Sunless Sea is moody, gloomy, weird and beautiful. Music is hauntingly disturbing and nostalgic at the same time. It’s a weird mix of roguelike, trading&combat sim that’s heavy on choose your own adventure narratives while exploring lots of unique locations.
Yet another one I already own and completely forgot about, thank you!
Dying Light
Hardspace Shipbreaker (Solid story, Hating on a Doloris Umbridge type character)
Dredge
Thank you! I’ve played quite a bit of Dying Light back when it came out, lots of fun in co-op!
As for Hardspace Shipbreaker and Dredge, the first I wanted to try for a while (big fan of Space Engineers), and the second looks like “life as a background character in a Lovecraftian story,” so awesome!
Last of us is an obvious answer I think if you haven’t played either of those games. The exact opposite of your request, when I am feeling as you describe I really recommend wandersong. The game is like therapy, it looks campy and stupid at first but the dialogue has incredible depth and uplifting vibes.
Thank you! Wanted to play those two when they released them for PC, but then I’ve read about technical issues and I kinda’ forgot about both.
As for playing games which fit my mood, I prefer to let things burn themselves out, make sure there’s no unfinished business left. Pouring more fuel on the fire genuinely helps, horror/gloom makes me feel less alone.
Have you played Control? It was on sale recently on Steam
Yepyep! On my NG+ currently, it’s my form of Story Mode:))
Just finished that one, I fucking loved it, but that story just sort of brick walls at the end in a way that made me want a sequel really bad. I want more SCP inspired games like Control, the setting and anomalous items alone make for a great game.
Thomas Was Alone
It’s not at all like the examples you give but it is such a good game that I think fits nicely here.
Never heard about it until now, but it does sound very interesting from the Steam blurb! Thank you!
Hollow Knight (more so than Silksong tbh)
Night in the Woods (not the same vibe as the games you mentioned but absolutely a “had a bad day” vibe)
I immediately thought of NitW too!
Hollow Knight looks absolutely gorgeous, but I’m intimidated by it:))
Night in the Woods is on my list, likewise looks gorgeous, and from the few things I’ve heard about it, it sounds deeply thoughtful!
Maybe the little nightmares games?
I’ve had my eye on them for a while, but they look so cute to me that I feel I need a better mood to really enjoy them.
I suppose they could be looked at in that way…
I found them to be both thrilling and frightful.
Blasphemous (only the first one), This War of Mine, Valiant Hearts, Papers Please, Pathologic
Edit: Strange Horticulture, Arctic Eggs, and Lies of P
Thanks so much, this is certainly a lot of material!
I have an off-and-on playthrough of Blasphemous going on my Deck, I love the atmosphere and the story, plus the art direction is gorgeous!
Have played a bit of Papers Please and Pathologic, but didn’t have the proper mood for the first, and found it hard to get over the traversal hump in the latter.
Is Blasphemous 2 not as good? I haven’t played either but they’re on my wishlist
The second game feels to me much less unique, compared to the first, especially the atmosphere. It’s still a good game, just not what I expected from the sequel
For both rich atmosphere and unique game mechanics, you could do a lot worse than Return of the Obra Dinn.
If you’re unfamiliar, the presentation evokes early PC (or Mac, more specifically) black and white “1 bit” games, but real time 3d. This already is very distinctive, but the gameplay also sets it apart.
You are an insurance investigator with a magic pocket watch which allows you to travel back to the moment in time that someone expired, if you find their corpse. From these brief flashes (and by cross-referencing the ship manifest) you piece together what happened to all the crew and passengers on the ships ill-fated voyage, before it’s baffling reemergence years after the fact.
Oh, I’ve known about this one, been avoiding Grim Beard’s review of it since it came out=)) This one looks so artful that I need to be in the right state of mind, otherwise I’d do it a disservice.
