Huge maps with vast areas to explore are great, so too are super-detailed graphics and unexpected twists in the storyline, but sometimes we find ourselves hankering for something a little simpler. With the technology available to make games almost scarily realistic nowadays, it can be a refreshing change when a game has a more back to basics approach. We’ve pulled together some games that fit that criteria, whether it’s through their retro graphics, their minimalist aesthetic, or their straightforward story.
The Unfinished Swan
Most of the brand-new releases for PlayStation stretch the graphics capabilities to the limit, but The Unfinished Swan takes a more paired-back approach. Giant Sparrow are the games developers behind this title, as well as the popular What Remains of Edith Finch (note the bird theme?) This adventure story sees you play as a boy who is trying to find a swan that has escaped and run off into a big blank world. You begin the game in an entirely white landscape and need to throw paint to reveal your surroundings. The story turns out to be a metaphor for the boy coming to terms with the death of his mother, a painter. It’s a simple metaphor, but a powerful one. Some games are designed to help us untangle things in our own lives and The Unfinished Swan does this beautifully.
Wheel of Fortune
Casino games are a staple in the back to basics world. After all, they’ve been around for more than a century. In fact, one of the best free games in 2021 was a beautifully back to basics approach to casino gaming. Wheel of Fortune takes the television show classic and cleverly turns it into a slot game. On the reels you’ll find the classic lucky fruits, as well as colourful numbers in retro fonts. As well as taking a retro turn with the graphics, this game is also back to basics in terms of how easy it is to pick up. So many of the blockbuster games nowadays require an hour or more of studying the controls to get anywhere. That’s not the case with this slot game, you should be up and running in under a minute.
A Dark Room
Similar to The Unfinished Swan, A Dark Room takes a very minimalist approach to graphics, so minimalist in fact that it doesn’t have any. This game takes place entirely in a white web browser, or black if you decide to turn the lights off. You’re fed a story through text alone and asked to make decisions in order to best equip your character to survive. It’s a little bleak at times, but despite its super pared-back approach, it’s endlessly playable. Better still, your game autosaves when you close the browser window, so you can start right back in the cabin whenever you want to.
Islanders
In the battle between PlayStation and PC, Islanders is certainly a string in the bow of PC. This game is a city builder that uses a graphics scheme that hipsters will love. A sleek colour palette is combined with smoothed out images. Instead of cramming ultra-detailed skyscrapers into the mix, Islanders makes beautiful blobs of colour merge into aesthetically pleasing cityscapes.