I’m a 30 year old woman who’s only really played card and puzzle games on my phone. Im considering new hobbies. Is it worth trying to get into video games for the first time. Where would I even start.
If you have a PC download steam and get half life 2 for free.
We all have our type of game. Try out a ton of new genres. Maybe you don’t like shooters and you like simulators. Or maybe you like roguelikes. Or just platformers or building games. Don’t stop trying new things till you find the genre that is right for you, then ask people for recommendations within that genre.
I had a comment earlier that had a bunch of.free games, I will try to post links later.
Yes
Something else to consider is that it’s a wonderful social window if you have friends that you don’t get to hang out with very often due to geography and life.
I have a couple of good friends who are too far away after I moved to another area. We play games online and have a nice social hangout for a few hours each Saturday. Voice chatting works great.
It’s fantastic to be able to regularly spend time with them.
Yes. Start with Stardew Valley or Animal Crossing. From there, post threads asking for suggestions based on what you liked.
Just avoid games that cost a lot or have lots of micro transactions. Its like smoking cigarettes, better to not start.
I got my 75 year old father into video games.
With him, I started by getting him an xbox and an xbox live account (which allows playing multiplayer games online).
We play World of Tanks now together quite a bit.
If you’re unsure, buy a nice used ps4 with some games for dirt cheap to see if you like it. If you do, I suggest eventually moving forward with the PC route. Either a steam deck or a laptop and an Xbox controller. If you know you’re liking gaming you could go all out on a gaming desktop PC.
Consoles are nice, but a PC game library is compatible for decades of games, and you can buy them for a lot less $ most of the time.
There are a lot bad games out there, and not everyone likes every type of game. So try highly rated games from various categories. Just be aware that video gaming consumes a lot of time that you could use for productivity in other areas of your life. I play video games pretty regularly, but I also turn it off when it seems excessive.
Start with Dark Souls.
Start with stardew valley and thank me later.
One more day… just one more day… need to those gold star crops… got to go fish… shit need bait, got to go to the mine… one more day… just one more day…
This is a good entry but may feel daunting to someone whos never played video games.
If you do play stardew valley, you may want to watch introduction videos on YouTube
This. My ex loved this game
A place to start might be a friend or family member who is into video games.
Gaming hardware can be a little costly, so you may want to visit with someone and play a selection of games before deciding which direction you’d like to start in. I’ll also point out that video games are often the very most fun when shared with friends.
If my 30 year old woman friend came up to me one day and said “Hey I’ve never really played video games before and I’d like to give them a try, but don’t know where to start,” I think we’d talk awhile first to see if I can find what games are interesting to you. I see a lot of people in this comment section recommending Stardew Valley, which is a game I deeply like and respect though I have seen people bounce right off it, including someone recently here on Lemmy. So while I would recommend giving it a look, if you do bounce off it, don’t just go “video games aren’t for me,” maybe cozy games aren’t for you.
Some questions I might ask are:
Are you looking for a more relaxing or more exciting experience?
Would you like your play sessions to be challenging, contemplative, creative, or competitive?
Are you more interested in story, or gameplay?
How important are flashy fancy graphics to you?
Where will your gameplay sessions fit into your life? Do you want something to do during your daily train ride? Will this replace your daily television hour? Is it what you’re going to do all Saturday afternoon?
Do you see yourself playing games on your couch, at a desk, or on the go?
Do you want to enjoy games alone, or with friends? Will you gather in one place to play together, or play across the internet?
Do you have a genre of fiction you like? Are you into historical drama, sci-fi, fantasy, slapstick comedy?
How do you feel about horror? Both the psychological Lovecraftian existential crisis type, and the “oh god a 10 foot monster with 50 mouths for a mouth just jumped out behind a tree and roared” type?
Yes, it is worth getting into video games. Mental quickness, friends, and less Alzheimers are some benefits.
People in this post are making excellent recommendations for quality commercial games.
I can recommend starting out in videogames, by getting into Free Software (Libre) games.
Libre Games cost nothing, have no spyware, and usually have positive, helpful, DIY focused communities.
Here is a post I made that lists a few of my favourite free games on desktop and mobile.
https://lemmy.world/post/20786563
If any on this list are too difficult or hard to set up, just skip.
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Historical note
The Fool’s Errand game, from 1987, sold very well with women gamers. Over 50% IIRC.
It is a tricky puzzle game with Tarot Card theming and an excellent sense of humour.
Fool’s Errand is not Free Software though, and way out of print. It could probably be emulated on a device that you have, PC or phone.
It’s definitely worth trying if you’re interested.
I would not recommend buying a console or gaming PC first as that is a money sink that you’re not sure is worth it yet. My gaming PC broke when I arrived at university, and I got by playing less graphically intensive games on my standard laptop for a few years.
Good games I’d recommend to start with:
- Stardew Valley — cosy, charming farming game that you can play at your own pace. Has great characters that you get to know, and fun, simple, rewarding gameplay. My girlfriend got really into this game.
- Minecraft — this is where many of us started as kids. It’s an excellent game that’s fun for all ages. There isn’t a clear goal so it’s more about making your own fun.
- Vampire Survivors — extremely fun, simple, cheap, and addicting game. Play at your own risk.
- LIMBO — a puzzle game classic with a unique, dark aesthetic. Only takes a couple of hours to complete.
- INSIDE — made by the same people as Limbo. Grabbed me and wouldn’t let go for the whole 4 hour experience. I don’t play many puzzle games but I couldn’t get enough of this one. Probably because of the narrative.
Those can all be played on the average laptop or desktop anyone would have.
Best of luck on your journey! Feel free to reply with any questions or suggestions for specific genres and such. My girlfriend didn’t play video games until I introduced them to her, and the most important thing was that I didn’t try to force any games on her, just show her what there was and let her interest lead the way. So take a look at all the suggestions people are leaving and go with what interests you most. And if you’re not enjoying a game, it’s okay to go play a different one.
(Also, Steam provides free, no-questions-asked refunds for any games purchased that both 1) were bought less than 2 weeks ago, and 2) have less than 2 hours of game time. So you can always demo a game to see if you like it and return it easily if not.)
Agree with this. Stardew Valley and many games can be found on mobile and quite popular with the gaming community. I am not sure as a beginner player I would start off with Stardew Valley as there are a lot of mechanics? Would recommend more of the below as there are not as many things to figure out:
High recommendations for Vampire Survivors. There is a demo with that link as well as direct app access.
Additionally, Animal Crossing Pocket Camp for $20 come December is great intro. Super relaxing game.
100% recommend Slay the Spire as well.
For games without a mobile option, I feel like Portal 1 and Portal 2 are must plays for anyone. And are not too graphically intense for any computer. Its a puzzle game. You run and jump into portals to figure out the puzzles. I wish I could play them again for the first time. All the above are amazing games. Wishing you the best on your journey!
P.S. if you have a friend to game with, It Takes Two is a pleasant experience.
I’d also add Balatro and Terraria to that list.
Balatroncould be good. Terraria I think is a bit tricky to learn unless you have a friend guiding you. It requires a lot of looking up the wiki which I think isn’t ideal for someone getting into video games.
Stardew can be a bit slow and boring at the beginning
There are lots of different kinds of games out there. If you’re new to games and like puzzles, here are a few I can recommend.
Portal is humorous and has fun puzzles, pretty easy to get into. Viewfinder is another similar type of game, also The Stanley Parable
Baba Is You is a creative puzzle game.
Planet of Lana, and Limbo, and Somerville are neat puzzle/platformer games.
Torchlight us a good example of an action RPG genre, Children of Morta is another.
FTL is a neat roguelike game.
Faeria is a card deck building game.
Turn based tactics games can be pretty fun, and are easy to get into. Triangle Strategy is a good one to try.
I also find narrative driven games really fun. For example, The Wolf Among Us is really excellent. Afterparty is pretty entertaining.
All of these should be fairly easy to get into if you’re just starting gaming.
Considering you’re already into card games, give Balatro a try. It’s got it’s basis in poker, but puts some extra spice on it that might interest you.
Chants of Sennar is also a strong recommend. It’s a puzzle game based around intuitive language translation, but also has a really strong story that keeps it interesting.
In general, it’s worth getting to video games. I would caution against trying corporate-created games, mainly because they are a money sink (for you) first and worthwhile entertainment second. There are a lot of “indie” games out there typically created by people truly passionate on their craft… you can take a look at them and see if it interests you.
- Stardew Valley
- Songs of Conquest
- No Man’s Sky
- Factorio
- Disco Elysium
