this post was submitted on 05 Mar 2025
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Steam Deck

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Long story short I started watching the Handmaid's Tale, just finished episode 3 and it's terribly depressing and too real for me. I'll keep watching but I need to counter all this negativity.

Hence why I'm looking for some "aftercare" games that will help me cope. Something easy, where I don't have to think and just follow along good vibes.

I have played the following games, which kind of fit what I'm looking for:

  • a short hike
  • carto
  • frog detective (all 3)
  • islanders
  • helltaker
  • spec ops the line (just kidding)
  • mini metro / motorways
  • dave the diver

Thank you !

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[–] blomvik@sopuli.xyz 31 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

If you like english humor, check out "Thank goodness your here". Alternatively "Tiny terry's turbo trip" or "Untitled goose game".

[–] inlandempire@jlai.lu 7 points 3 weeks ago

Oh I remember playing the Goose game, will check out the British one, thanks!

[–] Telorand@reddthat.com 13 points 3 weeks ago (3 children)
  • Lost in Play - adorable game about two siblings and their imagined adventure...or is it?
  • Tinykin - platform puzzler collectathon with zero enemies. Just cozy vibes.
  • Freshly Frosted - Want to feel personally encouraged by a soothing narrator while making donut machines?
  • Tiny Glade - make cute castles. That's it!
  • KeyWe - kiwi mail delivery. Literally.
  • The Were Cleaner - werewolf janitor.
  • Little Inferno - silly game where you burn things to get more things to burn. Also, Sugar Plumps!
  • A Hat in Time - puzzle platformer collectathon that's cute and creative
  • Dangeresque: The Roomisode Triungulate - silly point and click adventure. Looks like I'm gonna have to jump...!
  • Hidden Through Time - Where's Waldo but more animated.
  • Thomas Was Alone - platformer where Thomas might not be as alone as he thinks (in a good way).
[–] inlandempire@jlai.lu 3 points 3 weeks ago

Fantastic list, thank you!

[–] lime@feddit.nu 2 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

thomas was alone is the most i've cried at rectangles

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[–] kyub@discuss.tchncs.de 10 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (1 children)
  • Cult of the Lamb
  • Vampire Survivors
  • Halls of Torment
[–] inlandempire@jlai.lu 4 points 3 weeks ago

I didn't think of survivors games but they fit perfectly, thank you!

[–] sporks_a_plenty@lemmy.world 9 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Because you mentioned Islanders, maybe Dorfromantik?

[–] inlandempire@jlai.lu 3 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Good idea, I'll reinstall it, thanks!

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[–] IamSparticles@lemmy.zip 8 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

My list of endorphin-boosting games:

Dorfromantik
Unpacking
A Little To The Left
Tiny Glade - though this one barely qualifies as a game

If you want something a little more gamified: Balatro is amazing and addictive.

[–] The_Che_Banana@beehaw.org 7 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Journey to the Savage Planet is grossly underated: fun, simple game, just challenging enough and extremely well polished.

[–] Rai@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Oh my gawd the person who did the commercials for that, Davyforce, is one of my favorite creators ever. He made the movie “Not4Sale: TV Sheroff and the Trailbuddies” and it’s one of my favorite movies ever. Every time I trip with someone new for the first time, I put it on without explaining anything. 100% success rate of laughing until we cry.

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[–] SwordInStone@lemmy.world 6 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

Spiritfarer, it's the most chill game I've ever played.

Oh, yeah and Dredge, one of my favourite games.

[–] apotheotic@beehaw.org 5 points 3 weeks ago

The Last Campfire is like being read a bedtime story - its delightful

[–] coronach@lemmy.sdf.org 5 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

spec ops the line (just kidding)

I'm imagining someone cozying up with a blanket, a lap kitty, some tea, and the horrors of mankind.

[–] inlandempire@jlai.lu 3 points 3 weeks ago

Casually dropping white phosphorus to relax

[–] ech@lemm.ee 4 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)

Sayonara Wild Hearts. I love that game and often load it up when I'm feeling out of sorts.

[–] Dagnet@lemmy.world 3 points 3 weeks ago

Great music

[–] prole@lemmy.blahaj.zone 2 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

Fantastic game that does not get the love it deserves. I think it was on sale for a few bucks recently.

I have an urge once or twice a year to play through the game again and it makes me cry every time. Just played it last week actually. Still have some of the music stuck in my head.

[–] the_crotch@sh.itjust.works 4 points 3 weeks ago

I expected to open this thread and see 30 recommendations for stardew valley but I don't see any. So stardew valley.

[–] monotremata@lemmy.ca 4 points 3 weeks ago

I should preface this by saying I don't actually have a steam deck yet, so I haven't tested these on there. So I'm only commenting on the games themselves. These are listed as deck "verified" in the steam store, though.

One I haven't seen mentioned yet is Yoku's Island Express. Breezy summer vibes, not much difficulty. It's kind of a pinball metroidvania.

Tinykin is another game with a very cozy/low stakes feel. It's an exploration/collectathon platformer with cute environments made up of household objects.

Littlewood is a life sim sort of game, kind of like Stardew Valley, but it's extremely chill. There's no time limit or anything like that.

And others have mentioned these, but Toem, Alba, and Donut County are all very good and gentle games too.

Oh, and Tchia. That one has some dark moments at times, mostly in cutscenes, but when you're actually playing it's mostly gentle and island-y.

Maybe also Wuppo? It's a strange one. The story and humor and animation are pretty great in that one, but there are some boss fights that can get a little frustrating. It's mostly a fairly chill platformer, but then it's got kind of bullet-hell-adjacent bosses. I still really like the game, but it's not quite as purely relaxing as some of the others here.

Pikuniku is kind of in the same position as Wuppo, but I liked it a bit less. The humor feels a little more forced or stilted, and the frustrating bits are because the controls are kinda floaty. My niece really liked it when she was 8, though, so it had that going for it.

Hope this helps! I've been looking for this kind of game a lot the past few years

[–] BroBot9000@lemmy.world 4 points 3 weeks ago

Some great games being listed already! Here are some nobody mentioned yet: Hoa, Abzu, Toem and Donut County.

Take it easy and pace yourself with the depressing stuff. We’re all in this together.

[–] zqwzzle@lemmy.ca 4 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (2 children)

Various levels of puzzle/chill:

  • A little to the left

  • Viewfinder

  • Unpacking

  • Bonfire peaks

  • Moncage

  • Chronescher

  • Humanity

  • Superliminal

  • Manifold garden

  • Gridroad

  • Dredge?

  • Far (lone sails and the second one)?

  • Vampire therapist (maybe)

[–] cymor@midwest.social 5 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Dredge is great on the deck!

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[–] inlandempire@jlai.lu 3 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)
[–] Donjuanme@lemmy.world 8 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Probably would recommend avoiding dredge XD

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[–] Fubarberry@sopuli.xyz 4 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (1 children)

~~I would recommend grabbing this bundle: https://www.fanatical.com/en/bundle/safe-in-our-world-charity-bundle-2025 It's got a kinda weird mix of games, but a lot of the games are great and several are fantastic for what you're asking. Of particular note:~~

Edit: unfortunately that bundle is out of stock, and I just realized it. Sorry. My recommendation for the following games is still valid though:

  • Little Kitty Big City - play as a cat doing cat things and exploring a japanese city. Very chill, fun animal characters, real fun experience.
  • Thank Goodness You're Here - very well animated adventures in a british town. Less of a game and more of an experience, but very enjoyable.
[–] inlandempire@jlai.lu 3 points 3 weeks ago

Too bad, but I'll check the games individually, thank you!

[–] archonet@lemy.lol 3 points 3 weeks ago

Someone else mentioned Superliminal, and I second that recommendation. Very cool puzzles, very nice message.

[–] Stampela@startrek.website 3 points 3 weeks ago (3 children)

Have you considered Snowrunner, Farming Simulator and American/Euro truck simulator? All games capable of unplugging your brain for a while. Just remember to manually set Proton if you play either truck sim, they have a terribly unoptimized Linux native version that runs poorly on the Deck.

[–] soulsource@discuss.tchncs.de 4 points 3 weeks ago

Also, if I am allowed to do some absolutely shameless self promotion: Bus Simulator 21 is verified, and 18 is playable.

[–] xavier666@lemm.ee 3 points 3 weeks ago

No wonder it was so laggy on Bazzite. So I should download the Windows version, I guess.

[–] LeFrog@discuss.tchncs.de 3 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Just remember to manually set Proton if you play either truck sim

How do I do this? Is it the compatibility setting?

[–] Stampela@startrek.website 3 points 3 weeks ago

Yep! Just pick any Proton, and it’ll work… my favorite is experimental as it’s always updated, but the latest one is fine, same if you want to use proton GE.

[–] kartoffelsaft@programming.dev 3 points 3 weeks ago

TOEM is usually the game that I suggest for this sort of genre. I got it from someone who had an extra key from a humble bundle, and in hindsight I wish I bought it because they deserve the money.

[–] Actionschnils@feddit.org 3 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Night in the Woods felt very comforting to me. Its not really the "cozy game. For me it felt more like the movie Juno. Cool and funny characters getting along with some everyday and some harsh toppics. Combined with a cool artstyle and soundtrack.

[–] apotheotic@beehaw.org 4 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Night in the Woods is so god damn good. Heartbreaking what happened with the dev, though.

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[–] growsomethinggood@reddthat.com 3 points 3 weeks ago

Fields of Mystria is a Stardew-like that plays excellently on the steam deck!

[–] nycki@lemmy.world 3 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (3 children)

I'm a huge fan of Mice Tea (nsfw), it's more comic than game (it's actually a choose-your-own-adventure) but I read it on my Deck <3

It's an erotic romance about a nerdy girl, a bookstore, and some magic tea that turns you into a furry. Tons of literal and metaphorical aftercare.

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[–] supersquirrel@sopuli.xyz 3 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (2 children)

big list


Alba

Mutazione

Farm Together 2 (looks like a mobile game, it is fun! It is a great co-op optional game (splitscreen too))

Original Peggle and Peggle Nights

Crops!

Monster Train

Death Road To Canada

Everdell

Bunny Hill

MotorTown

Hydroneer

Hexcells Infinite

Instanbul Digital Edition

Lethal League Blaze

Legends Of Runeterra (the singleplayer roguelike mode is my fav)

Mystic Vale

Niche: a genetics survival game

Nobody Saves The World

Flipon

Garden Galaxy

Holocure

Intergalactic Fishing

Jelly Car Worlds

Lego DC Villains

Liftoff

Luck Be A Landlord

Galaxy Pass Station

Earthtongue

Donut Dodo

Critter Crunch

Crafty Survivors

Cosmos Quickstop

Cook Serve Delicious 3

Concordia

CastleStorm

Veloren

Master Of Pottery

MixoLumia

Monster Hunter: Worlds or Rise

Monster Sanctuary

Moonring

MotorTown

Mountain

Mutant Football League

Nickolodeon Kart Racer 2

Old Market Simulator

Omega Strikers

Ozymandias

Panorama

Urbo

Paperball

Petal Crash

Patron

Pikuniku

Placid Plastic Duck Simulator

Original Plants vs Zombies

Plateup

Raid: World War II lol i know but its 2025 so shooting nazis is relaxing for me

Rock Of Ages 1-3

Roadwarden

Rubber Bandist

Roundguard

Peglin

Sailwind

Samorost 3

Saleblazers

Shipped

Shovel Knight

Slipways

Snakebird

Snowrunner

Steep

Strange Horticulture

Suika Shapes

Super Indie Karts Ultra Karting

Super Volley Blast

Switchball

Tangledeep

Terraria (of course like... of course)

Tidalis

Trailmakers

Kingdom Two Crowns

Tricky Towers

Valheim

Wayward

Witch It!

Wobbledogs

Wobbly Life

Wizard Of Legend

Yokus Island Express

World Turtles

Chuzzle Deluxe

Chronicon

Caveblazers

Bone's Cafe

Boneraiser Minions

Besiege

Luanti

The Sea Will Claim Everything

Vintage Story

Battleblock Theater

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[–] Static_Rocket@lemmy.world 3 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)
  • Sable - but you'll want to use protontricks to install dxvk
  • Stonefly
  • Far - 1 & 2 are both good, but I still prefer the first one
  • Vane
  • Lightmatter
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[–] InternetCitizen2@lemmy.world 2 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Transport fever 2 is very chill.

[–] inlandempire@jlai.lu 2 points 3 weeks ago

Thanks for the suggestion!

[–] Nighed@feddit.uk 2 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Reus2 has been most of my deck commuting playtime if I'm honest. Great little game with endless replayability.

[–] inlandempire@jlai.lu 3 points 3 weeks ago

Never heard of it, sounds fun!

[–] Donjuanme@lemmy.world 2 points 3 weeks ago

Cat fishing (maybe it's called fishing with cat?) glad you already did for detective, cat quest 1-3, trine is pretty laid back, Thomas was alone, undertale,

[–] Protoknuckles@lemmy.world 2 points 3 weeks ago

Coffee talk might be a good one

[–] Thcdenton@lemmy.world 2 points 3 weeks ago

UFO 50 and Star of Providence!

[–] muphli@lemmy.world 2 points 3 weeks ago

Unpacking (if mouse control via touch pads is ok for you)

[–] Bagel5941@aussie.zone 2 points 3 weeks ago
  • terra nil
  • what the golf
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