The Indie Informer

I love challenging games, but a great experience doesn’t always need to make me want to lob a controller through a monitor. Sometimes an easy-peasy experience can still elicit excitement if backed by engaging storytelling, creative mechanics, a satisfying loop, or all of the above. If you’re hunting for a more relaxed experience that still boasts artistic or mechanical depth, these seven games are low on stress and high on fun.

The Plucky Squire

This inventive adventure captured my imagination the moment I witnessed its centerpiece mechanic. Jot, the hero of a popular storybook, battles through the illustrated pages of his 2D world only to leap over the fourth wall into the 3D reality of the child’s bedroom you inhabit. The Plucky Squire delights in its playful use of its highly meta premise. As far as Zelda-like adventures go, this is definitely on the breezier side thanks to simple mini-games designed to charm rather than challenge.

A Short Hike

Distilling the often overwhelming open-world formula into a cozy, bite-sized package, A Short Hike is a great reminder that less can be more. Forget a sprawling map covered in icon barf; a short list of fun, digestible objectives drives this trek atop a mountainous island. This wonderful outing feels like romping through a small diorama, and the ’90s-era low-poly graphics blanket the adventure with warm, fuzzy nostalgia.

Little Kitty, Big City

Much of what I said about A Short Hike could be applied to this adorable feline adventure. As a small cat who fell from their sky-high apartment home, returning home entails interacting with the city’s wacky animal residents to complete simple missions. Whether it’s finding a flock of lost ducklings or exposing a badly camouflaged chameleon, the light missions offer thinly veiled excuses to climb and leap around the bustling metropolis. Like A Short Hike, Little Kitty, Big City encourages players to explore at their own pace, which I took as an invitation to grief the hapless citizens whenever I could in ways only a mischievous cat can.

Dordogne

As much of an interactive painting as it is a game, Dordogne’s gorgeous and calming watercolor art direction set me up for a laid-back good time. The narrative centers on Mimi, a woman recalling a pivotal childhood summer at her grandmother’s home in the French countryside, with the bulk of the game set in that formative period. Simple tasks like taking photos and recording sounds awaken Mimi’s childhood memories gradually unravel an intriguing family mystery.

Thank Goodness You’re Here!

Comedy is tough to do in video games, but Thank Goodness You’re Here is one of the few titles to knock it out of the park. This unabashedly British chucklefest uses simple and varied interactions to deliver gag after gag as players solve the bizarre problems of citizens in a strange North English town. The result is a hilarious and wonderfully animated adventure that demands little of players beyond having a strong sense of humor.

Lake

On the surface, Lake has the most boring premise imaginable. As a city-dwelling 40-something-year-old, you’ll spend two weeks in a small, lakeside town delivering mail in place of your mail carrier father. The simple act of driving a mail truck and dropping off packages and letters to the quirky residents is weirdly relaxing, and the reward comes in getting to know the personable residents. From a cinema-loving video store owner to a fisherman cat-dad, the most taxing exercise Lake offers is deciding which character to bond with in this branching slice-of-life story.

Flock

What makes bird-watching more enjoyable? Riding on atop a giant bird and soaring across the sky. Flock draws inspiration from the popular avian hobby by dropping players into a picturesque island, giving them a blank guidebook, and letting them fly freely to locate and catalog an array of strange flying creatures. Simplified flight controls make navigating a stress-free endeavor, and enlisting a buddy to help uncover every critter sweetens the deal.