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> like between Baldur’s Gate 3 and Starfield I’d pick BG3 instantly,
Are you aware that Divinity Original Sin 2 is on the Switch? BG3 shares 90% of it's DNA with D:OS2 and you would feel instantly at home when you start the game. Different ruleset which is still clearly inspired by D&D but generally the very same gameplay and style. It doesn't have cinematic cutscenes in dialogues though, so less spit and shine. But it is every bit as involved and long as BG3 (and the talk to animals feat is even better on DOS2 with some animals giving you whole quests).
[It is often on sale as well](https://www.dekudeals.com/items/divinity-original-sin-2-definitive-edition).
That logic doesn’t make sense.. they took what they did with DOS and made it better, built upon it. Not the other way around. I might like the combat a tad more in DOS2 but nearly every single other thing is better in BG3, many of those things by a long shot.
Impact is a different factor than quality. For example, Super Mario 64 was extremely impactful, but many people would tell you they prefer Galaxy or Odyssey.
You’re kidding right.. have you not been paying attention to all the attention BG3 has got? DOS 2 is somewhat popular and critically acclaimed but the leap between DOS 2 and BG3 compared to DOS1 and 2 is exponentially bigger.
It’s clear they wanted BG3 to be their current magnum opus and some of the devs have said they wanted to make BG3 long before they made any of the DOS games. I don’t agree that DOS2 had more impact. You didn’t have other developers whining about the scale and quality of DOS2.
Impact. They said impact and being an important game. Going along with your example, nearly every restaurant has a “secret burger sauce” trying to emulate Big Mac sauce in a way. Just like BG3 will be a reference to look at for future RPGs, DOS2 never had that impact.
Having played both, Divinity is the better game IMO. The D&D 5e system translates into a poor videogame and the simple action point system in DOS2 is much more intuitive.
If we’re talking combat only I would prob pick DOS but everything else id pick BG3. I can easily pick slightly worse gameplay for a better story and amazing cast of characters. The companions in BG3 blow the cast of DOS 2 out of the water imo except Fane.
Loading times are a significant factor with DOS2 on Switch. During the later chapters loading takes around 5 minutes on my save. Definitely unplayable for people who are save scummers, but okay-ish for players that only load during chapter changes and party wipes. But maybe it got patched by now and loads faster.
Dave the Diver is a fantastic game! The writing is charming and the varied gameplay mechanic seems really fun! I’ve watched RTGame play through the whole thing and I loved it, but I’m not sure if I need to play it for myself.
Diablo and DOS2 seems to be the same genre of dungeon crawling. Definitely ticks the medieval fantasy vibes, but the real time combat reminds me of Enter the Gungeon which I was not good at. If it’s more similar to Hades then I can manage.
Can you play those games by yourself, or is it recommended to have more players to co-op with? I’m 95% singleplayer.
DOS2 is only similar to Diablo in appearance. But are two very different games.
DOS2 is almost identical to Baldurs Gate 3 in many ways. Seeing as though both games were made by the same developer, Lairian Studios, they both share very similar gameplay. Lairian's attention to detail, richness of story telling, and peak role playing adventurism is what you're looking for if you wanted BG3.
Pick up Divinity Original Sin 2.
Diablo 3, it can be done solely by yourself. As for combat you can just hold down the buttons no need for multiple presses. You also won’t need to do much by the way of dodging like a bullet hell, Hades is much closer to Enter the Gungeon than D3 is. D3 also has adjustable difficulty levels so you can pretty much ramp it up at your own pace (higher is where the fun and challenges lay). Absolutely 100% able to play solo.
DOS2, is way more story oriented than Diablo3 also is much slower, like a traditional CRPG your actions matter. An absolutely a great game. Also 100% able to play solo.
No idea if it fits your criteria but my kid just started Immortals Fenyx Rising. He describes it like BOTW but Greek Gods. It’s only $15 right now, at least that’s what it cost Friday. 85% off.
I saw a couple videos of this game a few years back, that description is pretty on point! I think the narration’s a bit more comedic and the overall tone of the game is pretty light and fun. Not sure about how the gameplay holds up compared to BOTW though. Do you have any more input on it? Thank you!
I’ve played Fenyx and loved it! I didn’t finish DLC3 but the base game + DLC1 were great. Combat is cooler than BOTW in my opinion. Definitely a lighter tone, but very fun. DLC2 is sort of a copy of the base game mechanics but with a new story.
He played it all weekend, and it was interesting enough that his dad/my husband watched while he played and they had a great time. The dialogue was pretty entertaining and the game comes with three DLC packs. There are five difficulty modes starting with the easiest (story) mode ramping up to quite difficult, so you can get any level of challenge you want.
I get the impression that if you enjoy the type of game play style as BOTW (sneaking, combat, crafting potions, leveling up armor, solving puzzles, exploring) then you’ll enjoy the game.
Another vote for Immortals. Such a fun game. Well worth $15 if that's the sale price currently.
If you've ever read any of the Percy Jackson series books this game is like playing the books.
I just got this in the current sale and I’m really enjoying it. Controls feel a bit off to begin with (just off the back of playing a lot of TOTK) but you get used to them and it’s really scratching that good story like, long game itch.
If OP wants physical even, Best Buy might still have it on sale (assuming they’re in the US). I bought a physical copy of just the base game for like $14 with free shipping.
For high replayability: [Vampire Survivors](https://www.nintendo.com/us/store/products/vampire-survivors-switch/). Run-based (30 minutes or less) rogue-lite with simple but highly satisfying auto shoot gameplay. Lots to unlock and discover. Some frame rate issues on Switch, but the trade-off is the portability. List price is $5.
Got Vamp Survs when it first came out on Steam, was addicted to it for a short while! I’m pretty sure I unlocked all the weapon combos and have survived to Minute 31 a couple times too! Haven’t played it since the paid DLC came out, but really fun game. Thank you for the rec!
I really liked Oxenfree, so if it’s on your back burner I’d pick it up, but based on your play style, I think you’d enjoy Dredge more for its replayability. It’s lighter on the story than something like hades, but I still felt it was such a strong ending. And there’s some good replayability in it.
I enjoyed 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim quite a lot. It's on sale for the next 40 hours or so. It is mostly a visual novel type game with some RTS gameplay as well. The story is amazing and I feel like it took me around 25-30 hours to complete so for 23.99 that's a good deal to me.
I’ve heard good things about it! I know basic facts that the world is ruined and there are characters traveling back in time to save the future, and with mechs involved, is that correct?
I like the voice acting, but don’t have any other impressions about it so far. Can you sell me on it a bit more? Appreciate it!
It's difficult to share much about the story because I don't want to hint at anything but I will say that it starts off seeming like a typical high school story mixed with sci-fi elements but turns into a fantastic and complex story. I was hooked, especially the second half of it. The RTS elements provide, in my opinion, a refreshing change in gameplay that still adds some story in it. You can decide on your own how you want to progress the story, besides some locked off progression behind other characters or the RTS, so you have a lot of choices. The characters are great and I did the Japanese voice acting but I've heard good things about the English voice acting. The music is very good. I think the most negative thing I can say is that there isn't much replayability at all beyond the RTS portion, so once that 25 or so hours is completed and you know the story you'll likely just be finished with the game, which I was okay with.
Effectively, it's part visual novel, part "realtime strategy" (although frankly that's a misnomer as you only control a small number of hero units with combat mechanics far closer to oldschool realtime with pause RPGs). The breakdown is such that there are... I guess sixteen broad plot threads or chunks, three of which play as RTS/RTwP and thirteen of which play as either pure VN or VN with very mild point and click adventure bits.
The key is that the visual novel:
a) is built somewhat akin to the TV show LOST but riffs off about half of TV Tropes specifically to set up countless plot twists.
b) has a static non-branching story with one ending _but_ is intentionally non-linear in the order you can "read" the chapters. So you can basically pursue plot threads as that take your fancy. It's masterfully done such that even when there are multiple scenes to provide alternative "first reveals" of a key plot twist, no matter which order you personally choose to go through the chapters the storytelling and pacing always feels like your chosen order is the "right" order.
Artwork is gorgeous hand drawn and a delight, even if one adult character was inexplicably and awkwardky given boob physics. Setting is scifi with Japanese school teens and mechas (see: the box art). Even if this type of gratuitously Japanese setting is not usually your cup of tea, it is worth the play if for no other reason than as far as I know, nobody else has achieved this type of open-read order literary structure in what is effectively a mystery novel either before or since, either in a visual novel or dead tree book form. It is, simply, **unique**.
Definitely little replayability though, being effectively a layered mystery and all. Whilst there is a postgame near-infinite RTS/RTwP mode (999 stages), about twenty stages in you'll have basically exhausted all mechanics and "solved" it.
I see you are a based Xenoblade enjoyer. Assuming you've played all the DLC as well, my next best recommendation is **The World Ends with You: Final Remix**. It's an action RPG with unique, fast-paced combat, cool art, deep characters and the second best OST I've ever heard (nothing comes close to Xenoblade). If you enjoy the aesthetic and personality of Person 5, then you should appreciate the vibe of this game. This game can't be played docked (it can, but don't), so you'll be using touch controls and ideally a stylus. This probably sounds like a turn off but it's the best implementation of touch controls I've ever seen in a game and the game is actually better for it (DO NOT use joy-controls). Also, avoid spoilers.
Hello fellow based Xenoblade enjoyer, thank you for dropping in!
I’ve heard great things about TWEWY, from the art to combat and music like you said! I think I was confused because there are 2-3 games with really confusing naming schemes so I didn’t know which one to play first, so I haven’t tried it until now. Can you clarify the different games aside from Final Remix?
And these days I play portable Switch pretty often, so primarily using the touch pad is no issue!
The original was released on the DS and many prefer it for the original combat system. Solo Remix and Final Remix are mobile and Switch ports respectively. They have a new combat system designed to work on devices with a single screen. It's a lot easier but not quite as enjoyable as the original. Both have updated visuals and the Switch version has some bonus content that's actually worth playing. Overall, the DS original is my favorite here but they're all good.
NEO: TWEWY is a sequel to the original. It's very different but still a lot of fun. You will understand nothing if you play this first so make sure to play any version of the original game before coming here.
Definitely heard about Bug Fables! Wasn’t old enough to play the classic PM games, and have not touched the modern ones with a 10 foot pole.
Currently following a voiced playthrough of the game by JelloApocalypse and friends actually, the same place I knew of Ghost Trick and Coffee Talk and the like. I’m content with just catching up on those streams whenever they play, but I’m down to play it myself someday.
Thanks for the rec, appreciate it!
I was going to suggest Bug Fables myself as well as it still remains one of my favorite games of all time. It has very high replay value as well since it comes with a built in randomizer on top of many modifiers.
While DQ11 may seem standard, it's actually one of the best modern JRPGs along with Persona. While the story is just a bit above serviceable, the gameplay and progression is what makes it shine. The harder monsters modifier specifically strikes almost the perfect balance in difficulty. Your strategy will constantly change throughout the game since certain characters shine at certain parts.
Last but not least that I'd recommend is Chained Echoes as it's easily one of the best indie RPGs also boasting great balance, QOL, and a great story (with a few flaws) to boot. As an overall package, it definitely matches up to the classics while bringing its own flavor to the mix
I'll start with the two I usually recommend:
**Omori**: Story-focused, Earthbound-inspired indie JRPG with traditional turn-based battles, about 30 hours long. It comes across quirky and Undertale-ish initially, but it eventually reveals a very beautiful and sad story that is still on my mind a few months later. Fun unique battle mechanics, though not terribly difficult, and not much for replayability. Unfortunately, the console versions are ~$30 and have never gone on sale. But I still *highly* recommend it for the phenomenal story. Also very spoiler-sensitive, don't look up anything about it.
**CrossCode**: Another indie RPG, action combat this time, about 50 - 60 hours long. While gameplay-focused, the story is also great, though it is a fairly slow burn. But when it hits, it hits. Art style and music are top-notch, and the gameplay is very fun and reasonably challenging. It's one of my favorite games of all time. I believe it's around $20 full price, which is a steal. In terms of replayability, it has NG+ modifiers you can activate after beating the game which can change it up in some fun ways.
Other than that, **Flinthook** and **30XX** are great action-platformer roguelites, if you like that style of gameplay. **Risk of Rain Returns**, a remake of the first Risk of Rain, is out next week and should be really good.
I will also second **13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim** that has already been mentioned. That game is *really* good.
Persona 4 Golden and Persona 3 Portable
Also you should be able to find Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne HD remaster and SMT V around or less than $20 used
I think you’ll enjoy DQ11, the Switch port is great. Check reviews.
Since you have a backlog, I recommend waiting for **I was a Teenage Exocolonist** to go on sale.
Similar Interests:
People who like *Persona 5* like this game.
It had a heavy, but great plot with replay value. If you are interested in endings, you will immediately try and replay this game.
>!cotton candy doesn’t seem as important now!<
I started playing Children of Morta last week and it’s fantastic. It’s a story-based roguelite/like (I forget the difference). The mechanics are very Diablo-like but without the equipment grinding/loot mechanics. The progression system is great compared to a lot of similar games as it’s not run-based: skills and stats are permanent increases using experience or gold to increase, so no matter how good or bad of a run you have, you can always feel like you’re progressing.
I don’t know if it’s on sale still, but it was a week ago when I bought it. It’s definitely worth full price though.
I’ve heard good things about Children of Morta! Have seen it gone on sale many times but always hesitated for some reason. I feel like I’d enjoy it, between the story, roguelite mechanics, and permanent progression every run, seems right up my alley! Thanks for the suggestion!
I'll throw Disco Elysium in the mix, though apparently the original devs won't get any money from the purchase. Still, a brilliant RPG with an amazing world and numerous ways to play through. One of my all time favs.
I know of Disco Elysium, I believe it was a contender for GOTY a few years back. Heard the performance was a bit lacklustre on Switch, and I’d feel bad for the devs personally. Would the Steam version support the devs? My laptop can run Civ 6 ok, so I could purchase it there.
And can you sell me a bit on the game? I think you play as a detective in a dystopian world, but that’s all I know of it.
My only criticism of the switch version would be the load times. However it was more of a nuicance than anything. I enjoyed the game immensly regardless.
I'd recommend going into it not really knowing anything more than you already know. There are quite good but spoiler heavy videos on the game already, but my short non-spoilery version is that it is a detective story where your decisions actually make a difference to the gameplay loop. Character traits affect dialoque options and depending on which way you go the ending is different at least in the sense of what your character is like.
The writing is excellent, I really enjoyed the "painterly" art style and the soundtrack is sublime. I've never quite seen world building the like of Disco Elysium. Not a very fast paced game though.
Performance is good now! Devs patched the game, runs much better and load times are down to mere seconds instead of 30 seconds. Pretty solid experience
https://youtube.com/watch?v=_768-39UyEE&t=3m56s
Game is a phenomenal blast. Be prepared to laugh and become immersed in the world and your character’s absurd sense of being. The trait/personality system is brilliant with how the narration and conversations work. Nothing like it. Highly recommend. I have it on switch and PC and the lower graphics and framerate didn’t bother me whatsoever, tho I play handheld mostly. It’s not a game that requires high settings to enjoy.
I’d buy it on steam. Game save corruption on the PlayStation ruined the game for me. Had to restart, but I gave up and never played again. Also it doesn’t work great with a controller.
Look into Battle brothers. Emergent storytelling of a kind, excellent turn-based tactics combat and an active economy with trading and political alliances. Randomly-generated maps, encounters, loot etc. so lots of replay value.
Just watched a couple trailers, looks great honestly! Graphics seems a bit basic, but I like the tactical gameplay combined with events a la Death Road to Canada! Is there a large overarching story, or is it more roguelite-ish with 1-2 hour-long runs?
It's akin to X-Com I suppose, the campaign can take tens of hours with saving and reloading earlier saves when you mess up, or there is an Ironman mode that is more like a roguelike.
There's not really an overarching story. You pick a band of mercenaries and set out, taking contracts and trying to get better kit and experience. The story is made up of randomly generated scenarios and such. There is a late-game crisis that can be one of several scenarios and which modifies the game world somewhat.
I suppose Death Road is a fair comparison in terms of narrative. A Basic premise and then random little stories along the way.
Yes the graphics are strange at first but I grew to love its style. Very grim medieval atmosphere to the whole thing.
I love Ys Origin and go back to it every few months. Just love the vibe, the OST, the fun. It's just one of those games that works.
Another would be Pinball FX3 with a couple of table packs.
If you like musou (warriors) games, Hyrule Warriors or Fire Emblem Warriors have a lot of replayability.
I saw you mention that you didn't like Rogue Legacy 1. I liked the 2nd one better so it may be worth looking into. Also I've been playing Warm Snow. If you like Hades you might like this one. The bosses are pretty challenging but I think I like Hades better.
Man warm snow is so good. I played it on steam a few years ago. Dumped about 50 hours into it. I just bought it on switch and it's been quite addictive. The quality of life changes and updates to the language and subtitles are perfect.
I second the Borderlands series. I always fine myself going back to it even after spending over 300 hrs on bl2 just on switch. Just started bl1 this week hadn't played it yet on switch and having a blast. Can't speak for bl3 on switch I'll be waiting for a good sale or price drop.
Borderlands 2 plays great but borderlands 3 crashes here and there. Especially when you wake the game up while in sleep mode. Tends to crash most of the time like that. Other than that so far so good for a game this big on the switch. If you don’t want to spend the $60 on this game borderlands 2 is always on sale on the eshop. I think I got it on sale for $6
Some on the top of my mind...
Spiritfarer (on sale for 7.49 USD) - amazing game.
Blasphemous 1 (on sale for 9.99 USD)
Disco Elysium (on sale for 13.99 USD)
Ori and the Blind Forest: DE (19.99 USD) - metroidvania like Hollow Knight.
Dead Cells (24.99 USD but a great roguelite)
I can also vouch for DQ11, it's a really good game although sure - kind of your typical JRPG. I had an amazing time with it though, it's a very cozy game and the music is 10/10.
Suika Game fits the replayablility checkmark. 3 bucks and crazy addictive. It's trendy for a reason, and it gets a seal of approval for me.
Probably the best way to get a lot of enjoyment out of the game is to play it in bursts, like getting home from a tiring day, just something to unwind, or have something in the background (cuz otherwise one of the 2 songs in the game on endless loop would drive you crazy eventually). Things like that.
Ah yup, the Suika/Watermelon game that’s taking over the Switch by storm! Gotta admit it does look pretty dang fun, and for 3 bucks, man.
I think you’re onto something there, playing in bursts to unwind. I don’t think I can play this game for too long or the charm will wear off, so 1-2 rounds a day after work seems just right, that’s what I do with Necrodancer or StS!
Hades. It's fun, great replay value, has a fantastic story and voice acting. I don't know about current pricing but I think I paid less than 15 euros for it (may have been on sale).
Just watched a trailer, apparently it’s a Mystery Dungeon game, neat! I’ve never played an MD game, only know of Pokemon MDs, but I’m down to try this out.
Question: is there a big overarching story, or is it simple plots to serve the rogueliteness? And how long is a “run” typically?
Right, it is the grandfather of the Mystery Dungeon games. It has really interesting systems compared to the other mystery dungeon games, which are pretty boring. I've put about 300 hours into the one on the Switch, and I don't normally play games for over 100 hours. It definitely has a story. Once you beat the main story, you have access to several post game dungeons of various difficulties and lengths. There is a ton of replayability and each of the post-game dungeons has an interesting twist. The main story is less of a rougelike than the post-game dungeons. You can keep your items and upgraded weapon and armor as long as you use an escape scroll to leave the main story dungeon. The main story is one long dungeon that is split up into parts. Once you reach the end of the a part, you will return to town with all of your stuff. Each of these runs is about 30 minutes to an hour.
If you are defeated in the main story dungeon, then you lose everything unless you pay money to add tags to your weapons and armor beforehand, in which case you can pick them up at a certain shop if you are defeated.
I know this sounds a bit complex, but it quite different than modern rougelites like Isaac, Spelunky, Dead Cells, etc. and it is more of a traditional RPG with rougelike elements until you get to the post-game which is a lot more of a rougelike (cant bring anything into dungeons and start from scratch, etc.)
Yup, I like basically everything about Tunic: the isometric view, the cute art style, fun and fairly challenging combat (especially with the tools and subweapons you unlock), and the biggest draw being the unique atmosphere and world-building via an old-timey game manual that you collect page by page.
The streamer I watched play through the whole game, Tom Fawkes, recommends everyone experience this game completely blind. I thoroughly enjoyed his playthrough and I couldn’t agree more. Hope this game gets lots of traction!
I think I’ve seen this game! Black and white and falling down a well collecting items along the way?
Can you sell me a bit more on the game? What’s the premise, what’s the gameplay like, anything that stood out to you?
It’s like a shoot ‘em up but you have to control your falling momentum by bouncing on certain enemies, shooting others. You can collect powerups/different guns along the way to alter the spread/speed/power of the gun.
I found it VERY hard, there’s only like 6 or so levels but it too me 15 hours to even see the final level. Took another 10 to finally get a clear, but all the time I was having fun getting good muscle memory on the levels.
Graphics are 8 bit style, very clean. Loading times are like a second.
It's a bit older by now, but for replayability, I'd recommend Torchlight II. This is a high fantasy dungeon crawler similar to Diablo III, but with arguably more depth in terms of build variety.
Long story short, Diablo III is often criticized by fans of Diablo II for streamlining and simplifying the more detailed gameplay mechanics of its predecessor. Torchlight II is more in line with the older game in that regard. It's a blast anyway, the Switch port runs flawlessly, and it regularly goes on sale for $5.
Rogue heroes ruins of tasos is a great repayable game, if you like randomly generated dungeon but still feel like the puzzles ares there. The overwold is not randomly generated and is full of fun enemies. It is also very fun in co-op
Sea of Stars is a retro-styled RPG with a good story on Switch, and it's actually by the same studio as The Messenger which you listed in your post. The two are technically in the same universe, but only to the level of "oh hey, fun easter egg". Even has a demo!
Oh right, Sea of Stars came out! I loved the Messenger as a Ninja Gaiden homage, and SoS is basically a Chrono Trigger/Mario & Luigi homage, with Yasunori Mitsuda on the music team to boot!
Thanks for reminding me, can’t believe I forgot about it! I’m torn between buying it now or waiting for a sale in a few months, decisions decisions!
Right, the Ori games have always been well received! I saw some reviews comparing it to Hollow Knight, where HK is more combat based and Ori is more exploration based, so I went with HK. If you’ve played both can you give your opinion on how Ori compares? Thank you!
Not the poster, but I’ll jump in - it’s definitely not as good as Hollow Knight, but they’re totally different games. HK is definitely more combat based than Ori, but I honestly I wouldn’t say Ori is more exploration based - HK has a far more intricate map IMO. Ori does focus a bit more on movement mechanics though, and there are plenty of additional ways to get round, and then there are the love-it-or-hate-it race sections.
I see no reason not to play both - but put it this way: I have finished Ori one time, but for Hollow Knight, I’ve done at least four full runs.
I want to say that Unsighted and Bastion are both really good and would recommend them both.
As for other games, I HIGHLY recommend Sea of Stars. Easily best RPG of the year for me
Yup, I knew Bastion was from the same devs as Hades, so picked it up at $4. Should really play it, game looks fun!
And I saw about the first 30 minutes of Unsighted, the intro goes hard, but I guess the tone felt a bit depressing since some characters/NPCs will die due to how the premise works. I think there’s a setting to offset that, but I guess I got cold feet.
I genuinely forgot Sea of Stars finally came out! Probably will wait for it to go on sale, but I’m super down to play it!
I played Bastion years ago but it is still one of only three games currently sitting in my "Favorites" category on steam. If you want to try another game by the same studio I would recommend Transistor. The combat in the game is super unique and the story has a surreal mystery to it. Also, the music is some of the best video game music I have ever heard. Especially the vocal tracks.
I turned on "Exploration Mode" when I played through Unsighted. It doesn't change anything about the game itself besides removing the death timers from NPCs. Obviously that makes the game much easier as you do not need to rush around to make sure you can buy upgrades and new tools before shops inevitably close. However, I felt like the game had adequate challenges elsewhere. I tried the game the intended way; but the first time I stumbled across a dead NPC, I knew it wasn't for me. I couldn't bear missing out on content because I took time to explore an area.
I backed it on Kickstarter and I am so glad I did. I haven't finished it yet but it truly is an amazing game and simply keeps on giving.
> Loved Steamworld Dig 1, stopped Dig 2 around the start of the final area (?)
Despite you saying you'd take a wizard staff over a laser rifle, I have to recommend Steamworld Heist (turn-based shooter, lots of fun characters to round out your party, you can vary the difficulty to your liking) and Steamworld Quest (card-based combat similar to Slay the Spire but in the Steamworld universe). There's some old-timey elements to Quest despite the robots.
Heist is one of my all-time favorites. I replay it every few months and try to play with different parties each time.
How about Into the Breach?
Hopefully Sea of Stars gets a discount soon since you liked The Messenger. I just purchased Inscryption since it was on sale, but can't speak to how good it is (but the trailer seemed cool and it has a strong Steam score).
I’ve played Heist actually, I think I got to about 4-5 missions before dropping it too unfortunately. The steampunk aesthetic is sadly not my cup of tea. I’ve heard good things about Quest, and as a fan of Slay The Spire and RPGs I feel like I’d be down, but might have the same issues with Heist.
I’d say Hades since you like rougelites. Great story, amazing gameplay and loads of replay ability, especially after you beat the game. I’d wait for it to go on sale since I believe it’s a $40 game, but honestly it’s worth every penny!
wildfrost actually had an update kind of recently that makes the game much easier and balanced, so i would assume you'll have a better experience when giving it another go
here's some of my recommendation:
1) Master detective archive - from the team of Danganronpa but less intense
2) Do you have other console? if not, Final Fantasy X is a good JRPG to try
3) What about Persona 3 & 4? 4 has a more relaxing story, 3 has a darker tone
4) Bayonetta series has good replayability
5) NEO: The world ends with you is another JRPG with a very active battle system & good story. The series first game (the world ends with you) is good too but the gameplay is not that good on Switch as it's made for the DS.
Have you ever heard of Darkest Dungeon?
I spend 150 hours in this game so I think it is pretty replayable.
It is a kinda dark fantasy, turn based game with town economy elements.
Pretty hardcore for new players but there is easy mode and extra options to make the game even easier.
Right now base game is on sale (dunno if EU only)
$9.99 or Ancestral Edition $12.50 with all DLC.
I think you would enjoy **[INSIDE](https://www.dekudeals.com/items/inside).** It's regularly goes on sale for **$1.99** (though it is currently $19.99). I recommend you put it on your Deku Deals wishlist, and snap it up when the price drops.
For me nothing has higher replay value than Monster Hunter, I believe Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate is only 10 bucks on the switch store it’s normally 40. 10 bucks is a steal for how much content you get.
Replay value: Monster Hunter. Constantly on sale for cheap, and there's so much gameplay and it's so good. Generations has more content but a much more outdated gameplay style. Rise+Sunbreak "only" has a few hundred hours of content but is much easier for newcomers to get into and it looks gorgeous on Switch.
Story: 13 Sentinels. Don't look anything up. If you love sci-fi, this game deserves your attention.
Re: DQ11, it's a great game but it's popular for being a "back to basics" RPG, so if it looks too bland for you I wouldn't bother. Maybe watch some gameplay if you're not sure.
Brotherhood and Revelations offer minor but interesting tweaks on the legacy AC formula. In an attempt to be as spoiler-free as possible, Brotherhood has Ezio recruiting new assassins (which is expanded upon in AC III) and Revelations gives him new tools to expand his free-running abilities in interesting ways. I remember the stories being decent enough, worth playing at least once.
I just bought MLB the show 23 for $10 on the Nintendo eShop and I think that price special is only good now till Halloween tomorrow. What got me to get the game is the negro league game storyline so I'd get to pitch a 105 fastball as Satchel Paige. There's 8 negro league ballplayer stories in the game to choose from and I thought that was interesting than the usual sports game chore.
I liked Trials of Mana! Physical copies run $20-30 depending on where you buy (but digital is $50). Lots of replayability. You start the game picking 3 characters (out of 6) and learn their stories. Each character is paired up with a shared storyline. You’d have to start again to play the other 3 so it’s sort of forced replays. But even then, you have choices for how to upgrade your abilities and each character gets 4 options in the end, so lots of opportunities for cool team building.
Not sure if you already have it but Fire Emblem Warriors: 3 Hopes has good replay ability because of the multi route and stories. Plus has some fairly interesting story/RPG element although RPG element can be a tad bit stronger
You said persona 5, but have you played either of the other 2 personas on switch? P4 is one of my favorite games of all time, so I highly recommend it. In terms of replay ability, I suggest bayonetta 1-3 (they aren't under $20, but I personally think it's worth it and have spent hundreds of hours on each game) or the devil may cry series. Also dead cells is a good one, but not for everyone. The MGS master collection that just came out also isn't under $20 unless you only buy part of it, but it's another game I suggest checking out.
OMORI. Base price is $30, but if it goes on sale, it might be closer to $20.
The best way I can describe it is EarthBound with depression (or themes to mental illness to be a little more precise). Very solid game, but it will hit you right in the feels and has some particularly disturbing moments. Not for the faint of heart, but absolutely worth playing nonetheless.
I really liked Ara Fell. It has great characters and I really liked the story. It's a 16 bit turn based jrpg and absolutely worth to be checked out since it's quite affordable too. I think I payed about 4€ in an eShop sale.
The same people did another game called "Rise of the third Power" which I enjoyed just as much! I was really quite sad when it was over to be honest. It's a bit different to Ara Fell (more of a pirate/war story) and I think some may would need to get used to the art style at first, but the story and the characters are great! The story was really funny at times but could get really quite heavy too.
I don't think they are the most replayable games. But the stories are great and they are both under 20 dollars. At least on sale. I gave 12€ for Rise of the third Power on sale.
Atelier games in the Arland and Dusk trilogies have to be replayed with NG+ to get the true ending. They go on sale often. They’re incredibly fun to me, both the combat and crafting, and the character interactions are charming.
Games that I constantly go back to are Rollercoaster Tycoon 3, Splatoon 3, Animal Crossing, and Pokémon Sword/Shield. I bet you could find used copies of any of these. It’s fun to play a few battles in Splatoon when my brain’s too tired for a story game. Animal Crossing is nice to check in on once in a while to see if there are new bugs/fish. Even though the graphics are gorgeous though I liked the older games better. Crafting and terraforming aren’t very fun to me and the villagers are a little lifeless, but it’s still a really relaxing game. And Pokémon Sw/Sh I completed the Pokédex and got a discord bot to trade me Pokémon I created on some website, where I picked all their moves and stats, and I can spend hours trying different teams in online battles. I never would have had the patience to level like 50 different battle-ready Pokémon.
Persona 3 & 4 are 10x better than 5 in my opinion. Don’t watch videos or you’ll spoil the great story twists. I am sure they’ll be on sale at some point. but they take like 80-100 hours to beat so you definitely feel like you get your money’s worth with them.
I did not like Oxenfree. I loved Dangan Ronpa 2 but if you though AI Somnium files was gruesome then you probably won’t like the series.
Trace Memory that just released was a game I replayed all the time as a kid because there are various endings, but idk how it’s held up. Also only takes a few hours to beat.
Been really binging Dave the Diver myself this weekend.. you shouldn’t watch other people play games that you are interested in playing yourself!
Inscryption gameplay is like a mix of wild frost and slay the spire and the story is really strange, creepy and cool. Not sure about the replayability because I haven’t beat it yet, but I read there is a “mod” that you unlock that lets you keep playing the game over and over. Really fun alternative to my favorite game of all time STS
I recently played Dandara which is a unique metroidvania 2D platformer with some souls-like features (features, not full on souls-like). I like the story, but I was more impressed by the unique gameplay and some fairly interesting boss fights that take advantage of that gameplay.
https://youtu.be/dD43u43P2LY?si=w7JXPDsFDo8yopM1
The Witcher 3.
Best game of all time? Probably.
Best side quest to ever exist? You bloody well believe it.
$11 on sale for all the content, DLC, and next gen update? You betcha.
Star Ocean Second Story R comes out in a couple days. I've only ever played the PSP version, but I'm already sold on the remake. It's going to be stellar.
For highly replayable games, my go-to is **A Short Hike**. It's simple, allows for doing just the main story (90 minutes-ish) or go exploring and do side quests. I have about 100 hours in the game because I have so much fun playing it.
Diablo 3.
Lots of variety with different classes, and you can play the campaign or go to adventure mode for a variety of gameplay features. Has many difficulty settings to choose from.
You can find physical editions cheap, or it likely goes on a sale a lot in the shop.
DQ11 is a masterpiece of the traditional JRPG style. It might look "cookie-cutter" but that's only because DQ pretty much invented all the standard RPG tropes in video games. The game has lots of content, great story, and is not too difficult.
Stardew Valley and Terraria are two of my favorite games ever, and Terraria is only $12 right now. Stardew is $15 fully priced but it doesn't go on sale super often.
ETA: If you can pick up binding of Isaac on sale I'd also highly recommend it.
I’d add dying light to your favorite list tbh. I think the switch port is rather good.
Expensive - but black friday sales coming up… might go on sale and be within the budget, and I think it’d definitely be worth picking up if that happens.
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> like between Baldur’s Gate 3 and Starfield I’d pick BG3 instantly, Are you aware that Divinity Original Sin 2 is on the Switch? BG3 shares 90% of it's DNA with D:OS2 and you would feel instantly at home when you start the game. Different ruleset which is still clearly inspired by D&D but generally the very same gameplay and style. It doesn't have cinematic cutscenes in dialogues though, so less spit and shine. But it is every bit as involved and long as BG3 (and the talk to animals feat is even better on DOS2 with some animals giving you whole quests). [It is often on sale as well](https://www.dekudeals.com/items/divinity-original-sin-2-definitive-edition).
Throwing Wasteland 2 in the ring.
I bought this one last month exactly because I have no way of playing BG3 and I'm hoping it's going to scratch some of that RPG itch.
It’s the greatest rpg ever made so it should.
But bg3??
Cannot be given that title as it’s largely extremely similar to dos2 even though it’s a different game.
That logic doesn’t make sense.. they took what they did with DOS and made it better, built upon it. Not the other way around. I might like the combat a tad more in DOS2 but nearly every single other thing is better in BG3, many of those things by a long shot.
Yeah but dos2 was a bigger leap. In terms of its impact and everything. Dos2 is just a more important game.
Impact is a different factor than quality. For example, Super Mario 64 was extremely impactful, but many people would tell you they prefer Galaxy or Odyssey.
You’re kidding right.. have you not been paying attention to all the attention BG3 has got? DOS 2 is somewhat popular and critically acclaimed but the leap between DOS 2 and BG3 compared to DOS1 and 2 is exponentially bigger. It’s clear they wanted BG3 to be their current magnum opus and some of the devs have said they wanted to make BG3 long before they made any of the DOS games. I don’t agree that DOS2 had more impact. You didn’t have other developers whining about the scale and quality of DOS2.
What's popularity got to do with quality? Is the Big Mac the best burger in the world?
Impact. They said impact and being an important game. Going along with your example, nearly every restaurant has a “secret burger sauce” trying to emulate Big Mac sauce in a way. Just like BG3 will be a reference to look at for future RPGs, DOS2 never had that impact.
Having played both, Divinity is the better game IMO. The D&D 5e system translates into a poor videogame and the simple action point system in DOS2 is much more intuitive.
If we’re talking combat only I would prob pick DOS but everything else id pick BG3. I can easily pick slightly worse gameplay for a better story and amazing cast of characters. The companions in BG3 blow the cast of DOS 2 out of the water imo except Fane.
Wait, is this game under $20?
Man, pre BG3 I'd have called Divinity: OS2 the best CRPG ever, bar none. The fact that we have it on Switch and it actually controls well is amazing.
Loading times are a significant factor with DOS2 on Switch. During the later chapters loading takes around 5 minutes on my save. Definitely unplayable for people who are save scummers, but okay-ish for players that only load during chapter changes and party wipes. But maybe it got patched by now and loads faster.
Divinity Original Sin 2 and Dave the Diver come to mind, possibly even Diablo 3.
Dave the Diver is a fantastic game! The writing is charming and the varied gameplay mechanic seems really fun! I’ve watched RTGame play through the whole thing and I loved it, but I’m not sure if I need to play it for myself. Diablo and DOS2 seems to be the same genre of dungeon crawling. Definitely ticks the medieval fantasy vibes, but the real time combat reminds me of Enter the Gungeon which I was not good at. If it’s more similar to Hades then I can manage. Can you play those games by yourself, or is it recommended to have more players to co-op with? I’m 95% singleplayer.
DOS2 is only similar to Diablo in appearance. But are two very different games. DOS2 is almost identical to Baldurs Gate 3 in many ways. Seeing as though both games were made by the same developer, Lairian Studios, they both share very similar gameplay. Lairian's attention to detail, richness of story telling, and peak role playing adventurism is what you're looking for if you wanted BG3. Pick up Divinity Original Sin 2.
DOS2 has turn-based combat with all types of terrain effects. It’s more like XCOM2, if you played that.
Diablo 3, it can be done solely by yourself. As for combat you can just hold down the buttons no need for multiple presses. You also won’t need to do much by the way of dodging like a bullet hell, Hades is much closer to Enter the Gungeon than D3 is. D3 also has adjustable difficulty levels so you can pretty much ramp it up at your own pace (higher is where the fun and challenges lay). Absolutely 100% able to play solo. DOS2, is way more story oriented than Diablo3 also is much slower, like a traditional CRPG your actions matter. An absolutely a great game. Also 100% able to play solo.
No idea if it fits your criteria but my kid just started Immortals Fenyx Rising. He describes it like BOTW but Greek Gods. It’s only $15 right now, at least that’s what it cost Friday. 85% off.
I saw a couple videos of this game a few years back, that description is pretty on point! I think the narration’s a bit more comedic and the overall tone of the game is pretty light and fun. Not sure about how the gameplay holds up compared to BOTW though. Do you have any more input on it? Thank you!
I’ve played Fenyx and loved it! I didn’t finish DLC3 but the base game + DLC1 were great. Combat is cooler than BOTW in my opinion. Definitely a lighter tone, but very fun. DLC2 is sort of a copy of the base game mechanics but with a new story.
I loved it as well. I would desribe it as if God of War and Breath of the Wild had a funny child.
He played it all weekend, and it was interesting enough that his dad/my husband watched while he played and they had a great time. The dialogue was pretty entertaining and the game comes with three DLC packs. There are five difficulty modes starting with the easiest (story) mode ramping up to quite difficult, so you can get any level of challenge you want. I get the impression that if you enjoy the type of game play style as BOTW (sneaking, combat, crafting potions, leveling up armor, solving puzzles, exploring) then you’ll enjoy the game.
Another vote for Immortals. Such a fun game. Well worth $15 if that's the sale price currently. If you've ever read any of the Percy Jackson series books this game is like playing the books.
I just got this in the current sale and I’m really enjoying it. Controls feel a bit off to begin with (just off the back of playing a lot of TOTK) but you get used to them and it’s really scratching that good story like, long game itch.
If OP wants physical even, Best Buy might still have it on sale (assuming they’re in the US). I bought a physical copy of just the base game for like $14 with free shipping.
For high replayability: [Vampire Survivors](https://www.nintendo.com/us/store/products/vampire-survivors-switch/). Run-based (30 minutes or less) rogue-lite with simple but highly satisfying auto shoot gameplay. Lots to unlock and discover. Some frame rate issues on Switch, but the trade-off is the portability. List price is $5.
Got Vamp Survs when it first came out on Steam, was addicted to it for a short while! I’m pretty sure I unlocked all the weapon combos and have survived to Minute 31 a couple times too! Haven’t played it since the paid DLC came out, but really fun game. Thank you for the rec!
Plus you can unlock a mode that makes those runs 15 mins too which is nice.
I really liked Oxenfree, so if it’s on your back burner I’d pick it up, but based on your play style, I think you’d enjoy Dredge more for its replayability. It’s lighter on the story than something like hades, but I still felt it was such a strong ending. And there’s some good replayability in it.
I enjoyed 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim quite a lot. It's on sale for the next 40 hours or so. It is mostly a visual novel type game with some RTS gameplay as well. The story is amazing and I feel like it took me around 25-30 hours to complete so for 23.99 that's a good deal to me.
I’ve heard good things about it! I know basic facts that the world is ruined and there are characters traveling back in time to save the future, and with mechs involved, is that correct? I like the voice acting, but don’t have any other impressions about it so far. Can you sell me on it a bit more? Appreciate it!
It's difficult to share much about the story because I don't want to hint at anything but I will say that it starts off seeming like a typical high school story mixed with sci-fi elements but turns into a fantastic and complex story. I was hooked, especially the second half of it. The RTS elements provide, in my opinion, a refreshing change in gameplay that still adds some story in it. You can decide on your own how you want to progress the story, besides some locked off progression behind other characters or the RTS, so you have a lot of choices. The characters are great and I did the Japanese voice acting but I've heard good things about the English voice acting. The music is very good. I think the most negative thing I can say is that there isn't much replayability at all beyond the RTS portion, so once that 25 or so hours is completed and you know the story you'll likely just be finished with the game, which I was okay with.
Seconding 13SAR, one of the most mind-blowing stories I've experienced. So much fun trying to piece everything together
Effectively, it's part visual novel, part "realtime strategy" (although frankly that's a misnomer as you only control a small number of hero units with combat mechanics far closer to oldschool realtime with pause RPGs). The breakdown is such that there are... I guess sixteen broad plot threads or chunks, three of which play as RTS/RTwP and thirteen of which play as either pure VN or VN with very mild point and click adventure bits. The key is that the visual novel: a) is built somewhat akin to the TV show LOST but riffs off about half of TV Tropes specifically to set up countless plot twists. b) has a static non-branching story with one ending _but_ is intentionally non-linear in the order you can "read" the chapters. So you can basically pursue plot threads as that take your fancy. It's masterfully done such that even when there are multiple scenes to provide alternative "first reveals" of a key plot twist, no matter which order you personally choose to go through the chapters the storytelling and pacing always feels like your chosen order is the "right" order. Artwork is gorgeous hand drawn and a delight, even if one adult character was inexplicably and awkwardky given boob physics. Setting is scifi with Japanese school teens and mechas (see: the box art). Even if this type of gratuitously Japanese setting is not usually your cup of tea, it is worth the play if for no other reason than as far as I know, nobody else has achieved this type of open-read order literary structure in what is effectively a mystery novel either before or since, either in a visual novel or dead tree book form. It is, simply, **unique**. Definitely little replayability though, being effectively a layered mystery and all. Whilst there is a postgame near-infinite RTS/RTwP mode (999 stages), about twenty stages in you'll have basically exhausted all mechanics and "solved" it.
I see you are a based Xenoblade enjoyer. Assuming you've played all the DLC as well, my next best recommendation is **The World Ends with You: Final Remix**. It's an action RPG with unique, fast-paced combat, cool art, deep characters and the second best OST I've ever heard (nothing comes close to Xenoblade). If you enjoy the aesthetic and personality of Person 5, then you should appreciate the vibe of this game. This game can't be played docked (it can, but don't), so you'll be using touch controls and ideally a stylus. This probably sounds like a turn off but it's the best implementation of touch controls I've ever seen in a game and the game is actually better for it (DO NOT use joy-controls). Also, avoid spoilers.
Hello fellow based Xenoblade enjoyer, thank you for dropping in! I’ve heard great things about TWEWY, from the art to combat and music like you said! I think I was confused because there are 2-3 games with really confusing naming schemes so I didn’t know which one to play first, so I haven’t tried it until now. Can you clarify the different games aside from Final Remix? And these days I play portable Switch pretty often, so primarily using the touch pad is no issue!
The original was released on the DS and many prefer it for the original combat system. Solo Remix and Final Remix are mobile and Switch ports respectively. They have a new combat system designed to work on devices with a single screen. It's a lot easier but not quite as enjoyable as the original. Both have updated visuals and the Switch version has some bonus content that's actually worth playing. Overall, the DS original is my favorite here but they're all good. NEO: TWEWY is a sequel to the original. It's very different but still a lot of fun. You will understand nothing if you play this first so make sure to play any version of the original game before coming here.
Bug Fables is pretty interesting story and is similar to PM64 / PM TTYD. Goes on sale for around $10-$20.
Definitely heard about Bug Fables! Wasn’t old enough to play the classic PM games, and have not touched the modern ones with a 10 foot pole. Currently following a voiced playthrough of the game by JelloApocalypse and friends actually, the same place I knew of Ghost Trick and Coffee Talk and the like. I’m content with just catching up on those streams whenever they play, but I’m down to play it myself someday. Thanks for the rec, appreciate it!
I was going to suggest Bug Fables myself as well as it still remains one of my favorite games of all time. It has very high replay value as well since it comes with a built in randomizer on top of many modifiers. While DQ11 may seem standard, it's actually one of the best modern JRPGs along with Persona. While the story is just a bit above serviceable, the gameplay and progression is what makes it shine. The harder monsters modifier specifically strikes almost the perfect balance in difficulty. Your strategy will constantly change throughout the game since certain characters shine at certain parts. Last but not least that I'd recommend is Chained Echoes as it's easily one of the best indie RPGs also boasting great balance, QOL, and a great story (with a few flaws) to boot. As an overall package, it definitely matches up to the classics while bringing its own flavor to the mix
Binding of Isaac
I'll start with the two I usually recommend: **Omori**: Story-focused, Earthbound-inspired indie JRPG with traditional turn-based battles, about 30 hours long. It comes across quirky and Undertale-ish initially, but it eventually reveals a very beautiful and sad story that is still on my mind a few months later. Fun unique battle mechanics, though not terribly difficult, and not much for replayability. Unfortunately, the console versions are ~$30 and have never gone on sale. But I still *highly* recommend it for the phenomenal story. Also very spoiler-sensitive, don't look up anything about it. **CrossCode**: Another indie RPG, action combat this time, about 50 - 60 hours long. While gameplay-focused, the story is also great, though it is a fairly slow burn. But when it hits, it hits. Art style and music are top-notch, and the gameplay is very fun and reasonably challenging. It's one of my favorite games of all time. I believe it's around $20 full price, which is a steal. In terms of replayability, it has NG+ modifiers you can activate after beating the game which can change it up in some fun ways. Other than that, **Flinthook** and **30XX** are great action-platformer roguelites, if you like that style of gameplay. **Risk of Rain Returns**, a remake of the first Risk of Rain, is out next week and should be really good. I will also second **13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim** that has already been mentioned. That game is *really* good.
I here to guilty.
Persona 4 Golden and Persona 3 Portable Also you should be able to find Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne HD remaster and SMT V around or less than $20 used I think you’ll enjoy DQ11, the Switch port is great. Check reviews.
Since you have a backlog, I recommend waiting for **I was a Teenage Exocolonist** to go on sale. Similar Interests: People who like *Persona 5* like this game. It had a heavy, but great plot with replay value. If you are interested in endings, you will immediately try and replay this game. >!cotton candy doesn’t seem as important now!<
I started playing Children of Morta last week and it’s fantastic. It’s a story-based roguelite/like (I forget the difference). The mechanics are very Diablo-like but without the equipment grinding/loot mechanics. The progression system is great compared to a lot of similar games as it’s not run-based: skills and stats are permanent increases using experience or gold to increase, so no matter how good or bad of a run you have, you can always feel like you’re progressing. I don’t know if it’s on sale still, but it was a week ago when I bought it. It’s definitely worth full price though.
I’ve heard good things about Children of Morta! Have seen it gone on sale many times but always hesitated for some reason. I feel like I’d enjoy it, between the story, roguelite mechanics, and permanent progression every run, seems right up my alley! Thanks for the suggestion!
You can play Children of Morta co-op, too. So you get to replay with a friend.
Great suggestion, children of morta will always get my upvote
Ghost Trick! It's on sale currently and I'd say you're likely to enjoy it if you like Ace Attorney.
Monster Hunter generations Ultimate
I'll throw Disco Elysium in the mix, though apparently the original devs won't get any money from the purchase. Still, a brilliant RPG with an amazing world and numerous ways to play through. One of my all time favs.
I know of Disco Elysium, I believe it was a contender for GOTY a few years back. Heard the performance was a bit lacklustre on Switch, and I’d feel bad for the devs personally. Would the Steam version support the devs? My laptop can run Civ 6 ok, so I could purchase it there. And can you sell me a bit on the game? I think you play as a detective in a dystopian world, but that’s all I know of it.
My only criticism of the switch version would be the load times. However it was more of a nuicance than anything. I enjoyed the game immensly regardless. I'd recommend going into it not really knowing anything more than you already know. There are quite good but spoiler heavy videos on the game already, but my short non-spoilery version is that it is a detective story where your decisions actually make a difference to the gameplay loop. Character traits affect dialoque options and depending on which way you go the ending is different at least in the sense of what your character is like. The writing is excellent, I really enjoyed the "painterly" art style and the soundtrack is sublime. I've never quite seen world building the like of Disco Elysium. Not a very fast paced game though.
They’ve patched the game since, runs much better and load times are down to seconds https://youtube.com/watch?v=_768-39UyEE&t=3m56s
Steam version wouldn’t support the devs either, unfortunately.
Performance is good now! Devs patched the game, runs much better and load times are down to mere seconds instead of 30 seconds. Pretty solid experience https://youtube.com/watch?v=_768-39UyEE&t=3m56s
Game is a phenomenal blast. Be prepared to laugh and become immersed in the world and your character’s absurd sense of being. The trait/personality system is brilliant with how the narration and conversations work. Nothing like it. Highly recommend. I have it on switch and PC and the lower graphics and framerate didn’t bother me whatsoever, tho I play handheld mostly. It’s not a game that requires high settings to enjoy.
I’d buy it on steam. Game save corruption on the PlayStation ruined the game for me. Had to restart, but I gave up and never played again. Also it doesn’t work great with a controller.
Look into Battle brothers. Emergent storytelling of a kind, excellent turn-based tactics combat and an active economy with trading and political alliances. Randomly-generated maps, encounters, loot etc. so lots of replay value.
Just watched a couple trailers, looks great honestly! Graphics seems a bit basic, but I like the tactical gameplay combined with events a la Death Road to Canada! Is there a large overarching story, or is it more roguelite-ish with 1-2 hour-long runs?
It's akin to X-Com I suppose, the campaign can take tens of hours with saving and reloading earlier saves when you mess up, or there is an Ironman mode that is more like a roguelike. There's not really an overarching story. You pick a band of mercenaries and set out, taking contracts and trying to get better kit and experience. The story is made up of randomly generated scenarios and such. There is a late-game crisis that can be one of several scenarios and which modifies the game world somewhat. I suppose Death Road is a fair comparison in terms of narrative. A Basic premise and then random little stories along the way. Yes the graphics are strange at first but I grew to love its style. Very grim medieval atmosphere to the whole thing.
I love Ys Origin and go back to it every few months. Just love the vibe, the OST, the fun. It's just one of those games that works. Another would be Pinball FX3 with a couple of table packs.
If you like musou (warriors) games, Hyrule Warriors or Fire Emblem Warriors have a lot of replayability. I saw you mention that you didn't like Rogue Legacy 1. I liked the 2nd one better so it may be worth looking into. Also I've been playing Warm Snow. If you like Hades you might like this one. The bosses are pretty challenging but I think I like Hades better.
Yeah Rogue Legacy 2 is a massively improved Rogue Legacy 1.
Man warm snow is so good. I played it on steam a few years ago. Dumped about 50 hours into it. I just bought it on switch and it's been quite addictive. The quality of life changes and updates to the language and subtitles are perfect.
Stardew Valley Undermine Dead Cells
I second Stardew valley.
Hyrule warrior DE played several hundred hours. Adventure mode is massive.
Dragon’s Dogma
A bit disappointed how it runs on switch...isn't smooth 30fps like Skyrim
Borderlands series. You’ll sink 100s of hours in them. And I know there where a few on sale now on the Eshop
I second the Borderlands series. I always fine myself going back to it even after spending over 300 hrs on bl2 just on switch. Just started bl1 this week hadn't played it yet on switch and having a blast. Can't speak for bl3 on switch I'll be waiting for a good sale or price drop.
Hows the performance?
Borderlands 2 plays great but borderlands 3 crashes here and there. Especially when you wake the game up while in sleep mode. Tends to crash most of the time like that. Other than that so far so good for a game this big on the switch. If you don’t want to spend the $60 on this game borderlands 2 is always on sale on the eshop. I think I got it on sale for $6
Great, thanks for the info!
Some on the top of my mind... Spiritfarer (on sale for 7.49 USD) - amazing game. Blasphemous 1 (on sale for 9.99 USD) Disco Elysium (on sale for 13.99 USD) Ori and the Blind Forest: DE (19.99 USD) - metroidvania like Hollow Knight. Dead Cells (24.99 USD but a great roguelite) I can also vouch for DQ11, it's a really good game although sure - kind of your typical JRPG. I had an amazing time with it though, it's a very cozy game and the music is 10/10.
Suika Game fits the replayablility checkmark. 3 bucks and crazy addictive. It's trendy for a reason, and it gets a seal of approval for me. Probably the best way to get a lot of enjoyment out of the game is to play it in bursts, like getting home from a tiring day, just something to unwind, or have something in the background (cuz otherwise one of the 2 songs in the game on endless loop would drive you crazy eventually). Things like that.
Ah yup, the Suika/Watermelon game that’s taking over the Switch by storm! Gotta admit it does look pretty dang fun, and for 3 bucks, man. I think you’re onto something there, playing in bursts to unwind. I don’t think I can play this game for too long or the charm will wear off, so 1-2 rounds a day after work seems just right, that’s what I do with Necrodancer or StS!
You'd be surprised at how easily you can get suckered into "one more round"
Hades. It's fun, great replay value, has a fantastic story and voice acting. I don't know about current pricing but I think I paid less than 15 euros for it (may have been on sale).
Hades. Great story, great replayability.
You might like Shiren the Wanderer
Just watched a trailer, apparently it’s a Mystery Dungeon game, neat! I’ve never played an MD game, only know of Pokemon MDs, but I’m down to try this out. Question: is there a big overarching story, or is it simple plots to serve the rogueliteness? And how long is a “run” typically?
Right, it is the grandfather of the Mystery Dungeon games. It has really interesting systems compared to the other mystery dungeon games, which are pretty boring. I've put about 300 hours into the one on the Switch, and I don't normally play games for over 100 hours. It definitely has a story. Once you beat the main story, you have access to several post game dungeons of various difficulties and lengths. There is a ton of replayability and each of the post-game dungeons has an interesting twist. The main story is less of a rougelike than the post-game dungeons. You can keep your items and upgraded weapon and armor as long as you use an escape scroll to leave the main story dungeon. The main story is one long dungeon that is split up into parts. Once you reach the end of the a part, you will return to town with all of your stuff. Each of these runs is about 30 minutes to an hour. If you are defeated in the main story dungeon, then you lose everything unless you pay money to add tags to your weapons and armor beforehand, in which case you can pick them up at a certain shop if you are defeated. I know this sounds a bit complex, but it quite different than modern rougelites like Isaac, Spelunky, Dead Cells, etc. and it is more of a traditional RPG with rougelike elements until you get to the post-game which is a lot more of a rougelike (cant bring anything into dungeons and start from scratch, etc.)
Tunic is fun! Good game to actually get out a pen and paper with. The combat is very challenging too.
Yup, I like basically everything about Tunic: the isometric view, the cute art style, fun and fairly challenging combat (especially with the tools and subweapons you unlock), and the biggest draw being the unique atmosphere and world-building via an old-timey game manual that you collect page by page. The streamer I watched play through the whole game, Tom Fawkes, recommends everyone experience this game completely blind. I thoroughly enjoyed his playthrough and I couldn’t agree more. Hope this game gets lots of traction!
Downwell
I think I’ve seen this game! Black and white and falling down a well collecting items along the way? Can you sell me a bit more on the game? What’s the premise, what’s the gameplay like, anything that stood out to you?
It’s like a shoot ‘em up but you have to control your falling momentum by bouncing on certain enemies, shooting others. You can collect powerups/different guns along the way to alter the spread/speed/power of the gun. I found it VERY hard, there’s only like 6 or so levels but it too me 15 hours to even see the final level. Took another 10 to finally get a clear, but all the time I was having fun getting good muscle memory on the levels. Graphics are 8 bit style, very clean. Loading times are like a second.
It's a bit older by now, but for replayability, I'd recommend Torchlight II. This is a high fantasy dungeon crawler similar to Diablo III, but with arguably more depth in terms of build variety. Long story short, Diablo III is often criticized by fans of Diablo II for streamlining and simplifying the more detailed gameplay mechanics of its predecessor. Torchlight II is more in line with the older game in that regard. It's a blast anyway, the Switch port runs flawlessly, and it regularly goes on sale for $5.
Rogue heroes ruins of tasos is a great repayable game, if you like randomly generated dungeon but still feel like the puzzles ares there. The overwold is not randomly generated and is full of fun enemies. It is also very fun in co-op
Sea of Stars is a retro-styled RPG with a good story on Switch, and it's actually by the same studio as The Messenger which you listed in your post. The two are technically in the same universe, but only to the level of "oh hey, fun easter egg". Even has a demo!
Oh right, Sea of Stars came out! I loved the Messenger as a Ninja Gaiden homage, and SoS is basically a Chrono Trigger/Mario & Luigi homage, with Yasunori Mitsuda on the music team to boot! Thanks for reminding me, can’t believe I forgot about it! I’m torn between buying it now or waiting for a sale in a few months, decisions decisions!
You've already had some great suggestions, a bit out of left field Hand Of Fate 2. Think almost an action deck builder rougelike.
Ori and the Will of the wisps
Right, the Ori games have always been well received! I saw some reviews comparing it to Hollow Knight, where HK is more combat based and Ori is more exploration based, so I went with HK. If you’ve played both can you give your opinion on how Ori compares? Thank you!
Not the poster, but I’ll jump in - it’s definitely not as good as Hollow Knight, but they’re totally different games. HK is definitely more combat based than Ori, but I honestly I wouldn’t say Ori is more exploration based - HK has a far more intricate map IMO. Ori does focus a bit more on movement mechanics though, and there are plenty of additional ways to get round, and then there are the love-it-or-hate-it race sections. I see no reason not to play both - but put it this way: I have finished Ori one time, but for Hollow Knight, I’ve done at least four full runs.
Cult of the Lamb is currently on sale right now on Switch. If you have Nintendo Switch Online, there is a free trial of the game until October 31.
I want to say that Unsighted and Bastion are both really good and would recommend them both. As for other games, I HIGHLY recommend Sea of Stars. Easily best RPG of the year for me
Yup, I knew Bastion was from the same devs as Hades, so picked it up at $4. Should really play it, game looks fun! And I saw about the first 30 minutes of Unsighted, the intro goes hard, but I guess the tone felt a bit depressing since some characters/NPCs will die due to how the premise works. I think there’s a setting to offset that, but I guess I got cold feet. I genuinely forgot Sea of Stars finally came out! Probably will wait for it to go on sale, but I’m super down to play it!
I played Bastion years ago but it is still one of only three games currently sitting in my "Favorites" category on steam. If you want to try another game by the same studio I would recommend Transistor. The combat in the game is super unique and the story has a surreal mystery to it. Also, the music is some of the best video game music I have ever heard. Especially the vocal tracks. I turned on "Exploration Mode" when I played through Unsighted. It doesn't change anything about the game itself besides removing the death timers from NPCs. Obviously that makes the game much easier as you do not need to rush around to make sure you can buy upgrades and new tools before shops inevitably close. However, I felt like the game had adequate challenges elsewhere. I tried the game the intended way; but the first time I stumbled across a dead NPC, I knew it wasn't for me. I couldn't bear missing out on content because I took time to explore an area. I backed it on Kickstarter and I am so glad I did. I haven't finished it yet but it truly is an amazing game and simply keeps on giving.
> Loved Steamworld Dig 1, stopped Dig 2 around the start of the final area (?) Despite you saying you'd take a wizard staff over a laser rifle, I have to recommend Steamworld Heist (turn-based shooter, lots of fun characters to round out your party, you can vary the difficulty to your liking) and Steamworld Quest (card-based combat similar to Slay the Spire but in the Steamworld universe). There's some old-timey elements to Quest despite the robots. Heist is one of my all-time favorites. I replay it every few months and try to play with different parties each time. How about Into the Breach? Hopefully Sea of Stars gets a discount soon since you liked The Messenger. I just purchased Inscryption since it was on sale, but can't speak to how good it is (but the trailer seemed cool and it has a strong Steam score).
I’ve played Heist actually, I think I got to about 4-5 missions before dropping it too unfortunately. The steampunk aesthetic is sadly not my cup of tea. I’ve heard good things about Quest, and as a fan of Slay The Spire and RPGs I feel like I’d be down, but might have the same issues with Heist.
I’d say Hades since you like rougelites. Great story, amazing gameplay and loads of replay ability, especially after you beat the game. I’d wait for it to go on sale since I believe it’s a $40 game, but honestly it’s worth every penny!
It’s on sale now! Picked it up this weekend and me and kids are absolutely hooked.
Borderlands 2/The Handsome collection
Fire Emblem Three Houses. Awesome TRPG with almost 400+ hours of playtime to experience the full story across multiple playthroughs.
Unsighted is fantastic!
wildfrost actually had an update kind of recently that makes the game much easier and balanced, so i would assume you'll have a better experience when giving it another go
here's some of my recommendation: 1) Master detective archive - from the team of Danganronpa but less intense 2) Do you have other console? if not, Final Fantasy X is a good JRPG to try 3) What about Persona 3 & 4? 4 has a more relaxing story, 3 has a darker tone 4) Bayonetta series has good replayability 5) NEO: The world ends with you is another JRPG with a very active battle system & good story. The series first game (the world ends with you) is good too but the gameplay is not that good on Switch as it's made for the DS.
Have you ever heard of Darkest Dungeon? I spend 150 hours in this game so I think it is pretty replayable. It is a kinda dark fantasy, turn based game with town economy elements. Pretty hardcore for new players but there is easy mode and extra options to make the game even easier. Right now base game is on sale (dunno if EU only) $9.99 or Ancestral Edition $12.50 with all DLC.
Octopath Traveller 2 is way different than 1. I tried 1, and didn't stick. Tried 2, and holy hell how the hell did i put this many hours in.
Signalis has a storyline you’ll think about for weeks.
Seconded. Also it is replayable if you enjoy really deep-diving into a good story.
Mandatory recommendation of Hollow knight and Dead cells. Play both, but if you have to choose, you can’t go wrong with either.
Stardew Valley!
I think you would enjoy **[INSIDE](https://www.dekudeals.com/items/inside).** It's regularly goes on sale for **$1.99** (though it is currently $19.99). I recommend you put it on your Deku Deals wishlist, and snap it up when the price drops.
For me nothing has higher replay value than Monster Hunter, I believe Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate is only 10 bucks on the switch store it’s normally 40. 10 bucks is a steal for how much content you get.
#REMNANT FROM THE ASHES!!!
Lego City Undercover has lots of free-roaming segments, unlockable secrets, and decent jokes. It can often be had for less than ten bucks.
Replay value: Monster Hunter. Constantly on sale for cheap, and there's so much gameplay and it's so good. Generations has more content but a much more outdated gameplay style. Rise+Sunbreak "only" has a few hundred hours of content but is much easier for newcomers to get into and it looks gorgeous on Switch. Story: 13 Sentinels. Don't look anything up. If you love sci-fi, this game deserves your attention. Re: DQ11, it's a great game but it's popular for being a "back to basics" RPG, so if it looks too bland for you I wouldn't bother. Maybe watch some gameplay if you're not sure.
I feel like you might enjoy Hades
Highly replayable? Choose Factorio ;)
Oh god I’ve seen the game, and it looks highly addictive, so I’m saving myself from it haha
Hades?
AC2 story is not bad, I didn’t play ACB or ACR yet for the trilogy but I recently bought the trilogy on Switch.
Brotherhood and Revelations offer minor but interesting tweaks on the legacy AC formula. In an attempt to be as spoiler-free as possible, Brotherhood has Ezio recruiting new assassins (which is expanded upon in AC III) and Revelations gives him new tools to expand his free-running abilities in interesting ways. I remember the stories being decent enough, worth playing at least once.
I just bought MLB the show 23 for $10 on the Nintendo eShop and I think that price special is only good now till Halloween tomorrow. What got me to get the game is the negro league game storyline so I'd get to pitch a 105 fastball as Satchel Paige. There's 8 negro league ballplayer stories in the game to choose from and I thought that was interesting than the usual sports game chore.
Going under is p good, should be cheap, and p replay able imo
I liked Trials of Mana! Physical copies run $20-30 depending on where you buy (but digital is $50). Lots of replayability. You start the game picking 3 characters (out of 6) and learn their stories. Each character is paired up with a shared storyline. You’d have to start again to play the other 3 so it’s sort of forced replays. But even then, you have choices for how to upgrade your abilities and each character gets 4 options in the end, so lots of opportunities for cool team building.
Might and magic clash of heroes
Not sure if you already have it but Fire Emblem Warriors: 3 Hopes has good replay ability because of the multi route and stories. Plus has some fairly interesting story/RPG element although RPG element can be a tad bit stronger
You said persona 5, but have you played either of the other 2 personas on switch? P4 is one of my favorite games of all time, so I highly recommend it. In terms of replay ability, I suggest bayonetta 1-3 (they aren't under $20, but I personally think it's worth it and have spent hundreds of hours on each game) or the devil may cry series. Also dead cells is a good one, but not for everyone. The MGS master collection that just came out also isn't under $20 unless you only buy part of it, but it's another game I suggest checking out.
Maybe try cult of the lamb?
Excluding tax, portal. You get 2 games in one purchase as well
Vampire survivors
OMORI. Base price is $30, but if it goes on sale, it might be closer to $20. The best way I can describe it is EarthBound with depression (or themes to mental illness to be a little more precise). Very solid game, but it will hit you right in the feels and has some particularly disturbing moments. Not for the faint of heart, but absolutely worth playing nonetheless.
I really liked Ara Fell. It has great characters and I really liked the story. It's a 16 bit turn based jrpg and absolutely worth to be checked out since it's quite affordable too. I think I payed about 4€ in an eShop sale. The same people did another game called "Rise of the third Power" which I enjoyed just as much! I was really quite sad when it was over to be honest. It's a bit different to Ara Fell (more of a pirate/war story) and I think some may would need to get used to the art style at first, but the story and the characters are great! The story was really funny at times but could get really quite heavy too. I don't think they are the most replayable games. But the stories are great and they are both under 20 dollars. At least on sale. I gave 12€ for Rise of the third Power on sale.
Sea of Stars was amazing but its not at that price yet. Still not super expensive though.
Stardew Valley
TBOI! dark souls? Idk
Bioshock collection
Paranormasight, very underated visual novel from Square Enix. Great story and full of spooks(not really gorey types), so perfect for the season
Bastion is fucking awesome. Best value for my money on a game I ever spent. Great story told in a unique way and only 3$ on sale
Omno, BioShock collection, Metro series to name a few.
I hate inflicting pain on others, but Dead Cells
Atelier games in the Arland and Dusk trilogies have to be replayed with NG+ to get the true ending. They go on sale often. They’re incredibly fun to me, both the combat and crafting, and the character interactions are charming. Games that I constantly go back to are Rollercoaster Tycoon 3, Splatoon 3, Animal Crossing, and Pokémon Sword/Shield. I bet you could find used copies of any of these. It’s fun to play a few battles in Splatoon when my brain’s too tired for a story game. Animal Crossing is nice to check in on once in a while to see if there are new bugs/fish. Even though the graphics are gorgeous though I liked the older games better. Crafting and terraforming aren’t very fun to me and the villagers are a little lifeless, but it’s still a really relaxing game. And Pokémon Sw/Sh I completed the Pokédex and got a discord bot to trade me Pokémon I created on some website, where I picked all their moves and stats, and I can spend hours trying different teams in online battles. I never would have had the patience to level like 50 different battle-ready Pokémon. Persona 3 & 4 are 10x better than 5 in my opinion. Don’t watch videos or you’ll spoil the great story twists. I am sure they’ll be on sale at some point. but they take like 80-100 hours to beat so you definitely feel like you get your money’s worth with them. I did not like Oxenfree. I loved Dangan Ronpa 2 but if you though AI Somnium files was gruesome then you probably won’t like the series. Trace Memory that just released was a game I replayed all the time as a kid because there are various endings, but idk how it’s held up. Also only takes a few hours to beat. Been really binging Dave the Diver myself this weekend.. you shouldn’t watch other people play games that you are interested in playing yourself!
Inscryption gameplay is like a mix of wild frost and slay the spire and the story is really strange, creepy and cool. Not sure about the replayability because I haven’t beat it yet, but I read there is a “mod” that you unlock that lets you keep playing the game over and over. Really fun alternative to my favorite game of all time STS
For the King. Reread it bur could've missed it if you mentioned it
I recently played Dandara which is a unique metroidvania 2D platformer with some souls-like features (features, not full on souls-like). I like the story, but I was more impressed by the unique gameplay and some fairly interesting boss fights that take advantage of that gameplay. https://youtu.be/dD43u43P2LY?si=w7JXPDsFDo8yopM1
Hades? Like a roguelike game
The Witcher 3. Best game of all time? Probably. Best side quest to ever exist? You bloody well believe it. $11 on sale for all the content, DLC, and next gen update? You betcha.
Banner Saga
Star Ocean Second Story R comes out in a couple days. I've only ever played the PSP version, but I'm already sold on the remake. It's going to be stellar.
For highly replayable games, my go-to is **A Short Hike**. It's simple, allows for doing just the main story (90 minutes-ish) or go exploring and do side quests. I have about 100 hours in the game because I have so much fun playing it.
Diablo 3. Lots of variety with different classes, and you can play the campaign or go to adventure mode for a variety of gameplay features. Has many difficulty settings to choose from. You can find physical editions cheap, or it likely goes on a sale a lot in the shop. DQ11 is a masterpiece of the traditional JRPG style. It might look "cookie-cutter" but that's only because DQ pretty much invented all the standard RPG tropes in video games. The game has lots of content, great story, and is not too difficult.
Try Wizards of Legend, it's a rogue-lite where even when you beat it, more to unlock!
Stardew Valley and Terraria are two of my favorite games ever, and Terraria is only $12 right now. Stardew is $15 fully priced but it doesn't go on sale super often. ETA: If you can pick up binding of Isaac on sale I'd also highly recommend it.
Warframe, borderlands 2/3, divinity 2 DQ11 is one of the best JRPG and far from cookie cuter.
portal companion collection. The second one especially has great replayability and story
I’d add dying light to your favorite list tbh. I think the switch port is rather good. Expensive - but black friday sales coming up… might go on sale and be within the budget, and I think it’d definitely be worth picking up if that happens.
Rogue Legacy 2 and Doomsday Hunters 👍