Open-world games that encourage you to slow down

We live in an age of dopamine hits, brain rotting stuff, and crumbling attention spans. Some of the most popular games out there offer quick, short bursts of fun that anyone can jump into, but for those who call gaming a hobby, longer and more deliberate experiences are often preferred.

Sit down with a cup of hot chocolate or dedicate hours to perfecting your strategy; All of these games encourage you to be patient and deliberate rather than rushing through their campaigns. We've included a decent variety of games, from survival sandboxes to walking simulators and some RPGs for those looking for a more epic experience.

Walheim

Slow and steady viking existence

As is customary in many survival games, slow and steady approaches are rewarded while rushing to a solution. So is Valheim. If you are looking for a highly accessible survival game then la MinecraftYou may be caught off guard.

There are many threats Walheim than in Mojang's sandbox, so you're forced to slow down your gameplay to think critically and plan your next move. The game also has progression. Each biome you visit has a unique boss waiting for you, so you always have a specific goal you're working towards. The catch is, you can't rush good results, especially if you're just starting your journey as a Viking.

Death Stranding

Do not endanger the cargo

Many describe it Death Stranding As a walking simulator, and it's not hard to see why. Your job is to deliver packages across a post-apocalyptic continent, but it's not that simple. The terrain you cross is sometimes difficult, and you have to pace yourself and choose your feet carefully if you don't want the package you're delivering in pain.

As you go through the quests, you'll find your movement a bit smoother with some upgrades, but until then, this is definitely a game that forces you to be intentional about your gameplay. Relax, take it easy, appreciate the scenery, and enjoy the music that adjusts to the pace of your movement.

What is Rush, Dragonborn?

If there's one Bethesda game that encourages you to slow it down, this should be it Skyrim. It's a game that makes it into many people's comfort game lists, despite being an open-world RPG with plenty of combat, action, and even some scary moments. However, the atmosphere, the idle chatter of NPCs, and the incredible music by Jeremy Soule make it impossible not to just stop and admire your surroundings.

With all the more passive and passive activities in the game now, from cooking to fishing to alchemy and marrying someone and living in your little house, it feels like a game that could become a simulation and a sandbox instead of some urgent quest at the end of the story.

Eastshed

You really want to taste the beauty of this adventure

Relaxed games are usually slow-paced by design Eastshed. The premise is quite unique, putting you in the shoes of a painter who helps many owl-like local characters on their journeys and paints the game's incredible scenes on canvas.

You get a really vibrant world to explore on a bike, and taking your time to look through every nook and cranny offers interesting puzzles and nifty mysteries. This is one of those games where traveling through different biomes and landmarks is all the fun, so there's no point in trying to unlock each location with upgrades.

Kingdom Come: Redemption 2

There are no shortcuts to mastery combat

A classic open world RPG, Kingdom Come: Redemption 2 Full of side activities that keep players busy and distracted from the main quest. There's a lot of love and dedication that's been put into the game world as well, with simulation-like interactions with the world and NPCs, but that's not the only reason you'll want to slow down in this game.

The combat system keeps anyone from trying to rush to the end. It's a bit of a learning curve, forcing you to approach your fights in a slower, more strategic way, rather than the hack-and-slash method you might find in some other games. It's definitely punishing, but mastering all the quirks will be highly satisfying.

Minecraft

Time and world are all eternal

Unless you play on hardcore, Minecraft You are never rushed to do anything. You can freeze for days doing nothing, dying over and over again, only to recover and start over. That's the beauty of it: the game has no end. Even after the Ender Dragon is defeated, time goes on forever, and forever, as does the world.

When you can enjoy it within an intense two-week period Minecraft At the stage, there are many obstacles in the vanilla version that encourage you to stay longer and appreciate what you have built so far. Crops grow at their own pace, children take some time to grow, villagers refresh their trades and engage in daily routines, and more. The world moves around you at a leisurely pace, and mellow music, drifting clouds, the coming and going of rain and snow put you in a relaxed mood where there is no rush to do anything.

Man has no sky

The world is your oyster

To continue with another sandbox game, we have Man has no sky. It's more of a detailed, sci-fi experience MinecraftWith the entire galaxy at your fingertips to explore. Starting with nothing but yourself and a ship, you can decide which path to take. Do you live among the stars, always on the move, perhaps involved in a little business? Or do you build a home on the first good plant you find?

It may be a sci-fi game, but there's no great urgency, no great call to action, or great danger to drive you forward. You can spend hours tinkering away and watching the sky change above you. in that sense, Man has no sky Not only does it invite you to appreciate the fruits of your labor after days spent working on the base, but also the strange, alien environment that surrounds you.

Wild outdoors

The loop is endless, so savor the mystery

Wild outdoors A game that, if you know what to do, you can probably finish within ten to fifteen minutes of gameplay. But where is the fun in that? The whole point of this game is in the journey of exploration that you take as an astronaut, exploring the unknown and trying to decode what you cannot understand.

The solar system you live in is stuck in a one-day timeloop, and during this loop, certain events and happenings occur on certain planets. These locations and events can help you figure out what's going on, but with only 22 minutes available in each loop, you can't systematically tackle everything at once. The best part? The game doesn't punish you for taking your time. Endure as many loops as you need. After all, beauty is in the joy of discovery.

Ethan Carter is missing

A mysterious walking simulator in a beautiful world

Walking simulators, by design, like sandboxes, encourage players to either play slowly or define their own pace. Ethan Carter is missing Lean more towards slowness, because a large part of the experience is what you will find in Red Creek Valley. Go into every nook and cranny, examine everything, and you'll get the most out of this terrifying mystery.

There are puzzles and clues scattered everywhere, and even though it's a relatively short game at a slow pace, it's something you'll want to savor for its ghostly atmosphere and that slightly eerie sense of solitude in the midst of complete wilderness. You will both be at peace and come out happy at the end of this murder mystery story.