Gaming

Pajama Sam! That was my introduction to gaming and I still run through them every once in a while. Pure nostalgia

Bloons TD 6. Just so incredibly addicting, and there's depth to the different monkeys and how they interact, especially when you think about all the upgrades.

For me it's Ridge Racer Type 4 for the PS1. I think what comforts me is that soundtrack (listen to it everyone), but also it's the nostalgia kicking in for me

Through the years the one game I keep going back to when I just need a place to lose time

Elder Scrolls Online

Man I wish I had better tastes

Factorio. The base must grow

MS Flight Simulator (Xbox Gamepass) - I often fire it up, pick a place in the world I've never been but would like to go and fly around. I never take off or land, just get low to the ground and buzz.

Haven't put any time into it for a little while, but TF2 (the one with the hats) has always been my go-to.

As silly as it may be, city builders or transport managers. I find it very relaxing and easy to just lose a day a in. I usually play with sandbox modes because I just like to design. It's kind of like digital model building I guess

Final Fantasy 15 in the beginning for the bro-adtrip and RDR2

3.5k hours in EU4 and counting. Removing Kebap never gets old.

Probably World of Warcraft for. Feels like pulling on a pair of worn comfortable jeans when you haven't touched it in ages.

Streets of Rogue.. I don't know what it is about that game, but I always find myself picking back up and getting lost in all the different ways you can play. I can't wait for the sequel, definitely, the game I am anticipating the most.

Black Ops Zombies games.... at least until I found out every game has very well known hacks that allow for remote code execution of your PC. Yikes! Not touching those games anymore sadly

I'm playing The Big Con at the moment and it's loads of fun! I love the quirky graphics and witty humor.

My classic go-to is The Witcher 3 - honestly I beat this game like 4 times at least. The story (apart from the main quest which is a bit lacking to me) is absolutely amazing. The music, setup and dialogues really help you to sink in the world.

Oh! And GTA San Andreas - always a blast!

Fallout 76. Nice community, and I really enjoy the open world game and the dark humor that's Fallout.

Sims 4 is my comfort game for sure

Dragon Age Origins - love the world, love the story, love the soundtrack, love the companion interactions.

I'll boot up Outer Wilds and go chill in space for a while sometimes.

Just cruising around some cars listening to the radio in Forza Horizon. Fishing in Shadowprey Village in World of Warcraft. Improving flow of traffic in City Skylines or Transport Fever 2.

Cities Skylines tends to be the game I return to when I just need to chill for a bit. I'll come up with some silly idea for a city, fire up a map I haven't built on yet, and see what I can make work. There's no endgame, no goals aside from what I feel like doing, just a sandbox and some toys to play with.

Believe it or not, Warcraft 2. There are three scenarios I like to play through. They are pretty mindless, have varying degrees of challenge, and are very low stress.

I have several comfort games to put my mind at ease sometimes.

At least once a year it is Skyrim with mods to improve the scenery.

But I love playing the Atelier series too. Crafting and optimizing stuff in these games is great.

And then there are puzzle games like Baba is You where I often just close the game and think about solving the problems for a long time. Helps to keep your mind occupied.

Journey and Flower

For me it’s definitely Pokémon. When I was a kid I used to spend so much time just going through a million sapphire playthroughs. Even now if I’m having a bad day I’ll boot it up and play it a little.

Also special shoutout to factorio and stardew valley. It’s so easy to just lose all sense of time with those games lol

XCOM 2 on the lowest difficulty. Sacrilege, I know, but there's just no better feeling than waltzing through some aliens with my whole squad intact at the end while feeling like a tactical genius. And even the weird Chimera Squad is just fun at times for a bit of a changeup.

Microsoft Flight Simulator. Flying Cessna around my town.

I simply cannot get over simcity 2000. forever in my heart

World of Warships. It is the game I play for years with friends. In times that is hard for us to meet face to face we jump on the game for some battles, during which we share our news and chat. It's almost like a coffee or a beer.

For me, for some strange reason, any resource management/city building game really soothes me. There is something about making thing ‘balanced’ and ‘streamlined’ that really puts my mind at ease and can distract me from just about anything.