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Looking for some engrossing single-player experience I may have missed.

Zeze

Zeze

Lifer
I don't play games much nowadays. It's been awhile since I got 'SUCKED IN' and I couldn't wait to play another hour.

The last decent fun I had fun were Skyrim & Crysis 3. The last time I got HOOKED was Torchlight 1 and Path of Exile.

Nowadays I just play Dota 2 here and there, which I've been playing since 2007 (WC3 original).

I also liked some indie games... FTL, Bindings of Isaac, & Risk of Rain were exellent.

However I do miss getting sucked into the world a game creates... Skyrim & Torchlight were magical. What do you guys recommend? RPG, FPS, anything.

Games I tried and didn't like much:
-Fallout 3 (just couldn't get into it).
-Bioshock Infinity (I was surprised I didn't like it, too passive gameplay, felt like just watching a storytelling).
-Metro2033 (meh)


Games I kind of interested in:
-Resident Evil 1 remastered
-GTA5 PC port
-Singularity
 
Bioshock (original)
Deus Ex (both original + Human Revolution were much less "railroady" and no QTE's if that's why you didn't like Metro?)
Dishonored
Divinity Original Sin
Far Cry 3/4
Mass Effect
Oblivion (Skyrim's predecessor)
Portal 1&2
Shadowrun Returns / Dragonfall
Shadow Warrior
Thief trilogy modded with HD packs can still be pretty engrossing if you like slow-moving stealth FPS
Torchlight 2 (different char classes (Engineer / Outlander / Beserker / Embermage vs original's Destroyer / Vanquisher / Alchemist) but it still has the same great "feel", similar soundtrack & high moddability)
Transistor
The Witcher

A lot of older RPG's have a great feel to them and long 40-80hr gameplay (if you don't mind older GFX) : Baldur's Gate 1&2 EE, Icewind Dale, Planescape Torment, Neverwinter Nights 1&2, Dragon Age Origins, etc. If it's "story" you're after there's quite a few adventure games out there (old & new). For old school RTS, many still get "sucked into" sessions of Age of Empires 2, Age of Mythology, Rise of Nations, etc. As you say, a lot of Indie's out there.
 
Also STALKER series...modded i.e SOC Complete
If never played, Planescape Torment Still considered one of best RPG's ever made
 
I'm with you on Metro OP, so I would skip Stalker, it feels about the same. I could not get into either of them.

KT
 
Singularity is an awesome story-driven FPS. A forgotten gem! It's only 8-9 hours but damn the hourney is fun.

I kind of enjoyed The Witcher 2 but I think it's not for everyone. IMO it's hard to get in but once you're hooked you can't turn back.

Dishonored was fun but the story was meh.

One game that took me by surprise is Divinity 2: Developer's cut (Ego Drakonis when it came out). This one is a blend of everything awesome: story, gameplay, some silly narrative and NPCs, lots of cool and weird places to explore, huge world, dragon flying, interesting plot, bizarre villains...really love that game.
 
Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons is a beautiful indie game with unique gameplay that once I started, I couldn't stop playing. It's only 6 hours long but requires a dual-stick controller (we'll...doesn't require it, but I can't see how anyone could play that game without one).

Other stories that I really enjoyed:

Battlefield Bad Company 2 - if you like FPS combat, settings all over the world, and characters you will remember.....this is the game. The story is pretty generic...bad guy with super weapon needs to be stopped. But there are twists and turns.

I also enjoyed the story in the 3rd person sci-fi game Red Faction: Armageddon
 
BSim500 said:
Bioshock (original) Is this on for PC? A sidenote, I was a focus group for this game and was paid $150 to play the first 30 mins of opening about a year before release.
Deus Ex: HE This was excellent, too bad I finished.
Dishonored Will look into it
Divinity Original Sin Will look into it.
Far Cry 3/4 Couldn't get into 3, too much 'fetch this, fetch that, collect 5 coconuts'
Mass Effect From what I've seen, doesn't grab my interest
Oblivion (Skyrim's predecessor) The graphics might put me off, Skyrim was gorgeous although people say gameplay was much shallower than Oblivion.
Portal 1&2 Loved both, didn't 'suck me in' though.
Shadowrun Returns / Dragonfall Will look into it.
Shadow Warrior Meh, felt too consoley. Similar but Crysis 2 & 3 were excellent which meshed a bit of RPG depth and FPS.
Thief trilogy modded with HD packs can still be pretty engrossing if you like slow-moving stealth FPS Will look into it.
Torchlight 2 (different char classes (Engineer / Outlander / Beserker / Embermage vs original's Destroyer / Vanquisher / Alchemist) but it still has the same great "feel", similar soundtrack & high moddability) I just couldn't get into TL2 for some reason. 1 was cozy and just perfect. That 1 town, 1 dungeon appeal was nostalgic to Diablo 1. I got hooked into PoE by this time (which I'm now sick of).
Transistor What is this?
The Witcher Couldn't get into it. Too much 'in your face' depth and lots of unoptimized skills/spells. I like games with some optimization & streamlined gameplay (imo)
Click to expand...
See bolded. Thanks for great suggestions.
 
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Zeze said:
See bolded. Thanks for great suggestions.
Click to expand...
TBH sounds like it's time for you to find a new hobby outside of video games. If getting "sucked in" is a requirement you are in for a lot of disappointment, it's kind of how the human brain gets when you get older. That or learn to just play games on the side as complete entertainment only without the immersion factor.
 
TheSlamma said:
TBH sounds like it's time for you to find a new hobby outside of video games. If getting "sucked in" is a requirement you are in for a lot of disappointment, it's kind of how the human brain gets when you get older. That or learn to just play games on the side as complete entertainment only without the immersion factor.
Click to expand...

I really don't want this to be true. You are right. As an adult, 'experienced gamer', I read ahead too well for game plot as well as game mechanic.

I do have other 'RL' hobbies, but nothing beats getting sucked into a game world and spending hours on it.

🙁

I mean it was mere 4 years ago when I was sucked into Skyrim. What a beautiful open sandbox game... I truly felt like I was a survivor man in the wild.
 
I was honestly in the same boat until I found Dragon Age: Origins last year. Everything I tried I would get bored with very quickly and just go and do other things, so I thought I would just kind of give up games, at least for a while, but that game grabbed me unlike anything in recent years.

KT
 
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I found both Far Cry 3 and 4 to be fairly engrossing. They actually have pretty good stories with great villains and the world around you changes as you make progress through the story and map quests.
 
Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines
Max Payne 1 and 2

Both cheap on Steam.
 
If you have never played Star wars Knights of the old republic (the RPG from the early 2000s not the MMO) then you may want to give it a playthrough if you are a star wars fan/geek. Lots of lore and history that is very well done and a fantastic story paired with a really well done combat, loot and item system. Very immersive game, if you can get over the xbox 1 era graphics it's a good deal of fun. KOTOR 2 is also a good game, but felt more rushed and has a less complete story, still a good western RPG though.
 
shadowrun/dragon fall are awesome.......loved the first one; but the expansion - *its really not just an expansion its a full on game the improves everything on the first including storywise*

If you're cyberpunk fan; they are a must for the collection specially dragon fall.....I'm near the end got my arse kicked on one part; need to go back and finish it....lol *enjoying DA:I and Secret World right now.....and got TOR expansion to mess with my guild*

but honestly I can't recommend Shadowrun Returns/DragonFall enough...plus all the player made stories you have with Shadowrun Returns/Dragonfall 😀 its a gift that keeps on giving
 
2nd on Bioshock and Infinite, Mass Effect, Deus Ex:HR, FC3 and 4

If you haven't played it HalfLife2 still deserves a mention, even now one of the most compelling experiences imo.

If you like the gameplay style (sRPG) XCom Enemy Unknown and Valkyria Chronicles are both great. XCom has a very tense atmosphere and VC is extremely charming with a solid story and great characters. Civ V is worth a mention as well.

Depends what you're looking for though, you sound like you're just looking for a game you don't want to put down whereas to me 'engrossing' is a really story-centric idea, basically whether you really get into it and how much you care and feel connected. Eg: Torchlight, PoE are about as far from engrossing as it gets for me.
 
Zeze said:
Bioshock (original) Is this on for PC? A sidenote, I was a focus group for this game and was paid $150 to play the first 30 mins of opening about a year before release.
Click to expand...

You got PAID $150 to play just 30mins of Bioshock? That's so wrong... :biggrin: I still enjoy replaying it more than Infinite.

Zeze said:
Far Cry 3/4 Couldn't get into 3, too much 'fetch this, fetch that, collect 5 coconuts'
Click to expand...
I finished FC3 but it was a struggle (side quests too repetitive, silly plot ending choice). I mentioned it purely because a lot of other people rated it highly and you quoted two open-world games you like.

Zeze said:
Oblivion (Skyrim's predecessor) The graphics might put me off, Skyrim was gorgeous although people say gameplay was much shallower than Oblivion.
Click to expand...
Oblivion can still look great modded. Example.

Zeze said:
The Witcher Couldn't get into it. Too much 'in your face' depth and lots of unoptimized skills/spells. I like games with some optimization & streamlined gameplay (imo)
Click to expand...
Fair enough. I found the combat over-complex and clunky on The Witcher as well, but mentioned it because again, a lot of others find it quite popular and are in high anticipation of Witcher 3.

Zeze said:
I really don't want this to be true. You are right. As an adult, 'experienced gamer', I read ahead too well for game plot as well as game mechanic. I do have other 'RL' hobbies, but nothing beats getting sucked into a game world and spending hours on it.
Click to expand...

It's hard to know how to define "sucking you in" as a metric by itself as there are different types, ie, "What an awesome plot - I want to see what happens next, just 1 more hour!" vs "This plot-less puzzle game is so damn addictive!"), and you're going to get different recommendations based on which one has more priority. Immersion can also depend on what mood you're in, how long / short your gaming sessions are, even the time of day for some genres (horror games at night with headphones vs someone chattering away in the next room during the day, etc). Plots which "sucked me in" the most were RPG's and Bioshock, Deus Ex, etc, style FPS's, but "Don't Starve" racked up a huge amount of hours in terms of addictive gameplay. Other games look great on the surface, but all it takes is an iffy game mechanic that irritates you personally (for me it's QTE's and badly ported consolized mouse input) to destroy immersion even with a good plot / good GFX.
 
I liked Splinter Cell: Black List. Its not very long and the story isn't the best but one of the more enjoyable single-player games I've played in recent memory. Its also been on sale quite a bit so you may be able to pick it up on the cheap.
 
OP: Have you considered any of the Batman games?

Arkham City is still considered the best, but starting with Arkham Asylum is still a blast and a great introduction to the series. Arkham Origins is also good... Plus the new one is coming in June, and it looks like it's going to be the best of the bunch.

Also, how about Shadow of Mordor?

I've been feeling age change my interests in gaming, as you have (I'm 41) - but I got totally sucked into this one. I really enjoyed the gameplay and the story was decent, especially if you like LOTR.
 
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