I had thought about starting a thread like this a bit earlier this spring, but now that games have been discussed in the coffee room (most recently about the Elden Ring expansion), I decided to dedicate an entire thread to gaming, as I myself have been doing it for decades in various forms.
The intention is not to list all the games in the world that one has played in their lifetime, but I guess no one will hit your fingers if you want to highlight current or past classics and gems that have resonated with the writer. The aim here is to foster discussion around the topic 
Currently, the starter has a few games ongoing.
First, letās mention Hellblade: Senuaās Sacrifice, started a couple of weeks ago, though only played a little so far, but very addictive.
So far, it has felt a bit like a linear experience, but with a greater emphasis on story and storytelling, and at least for my own mindset, the game has resonated perfectly. The game world is strongly intertwined with Scandinavian Viking mythology and gods, and thatās what interests me the most here. Likewise, the strong atmosphere and storytelling on the subject have been very successful. The main character has all sorts of traumas and a messed-up mind, experiencing hallucinations, and at the beginning of the game, it was already warned that the game was made in collaboration with mental health professionals. So far, in my experience, the game has been a slightly narrow, linear experience, but that suits me quite well; this way, perhaps more focus can be put on the plot progression and less on wandering around and all sorts of other side activities.
As a major component of her battles with her own mind, Senua (the main character) constantly hears voices, often self-deprecating but also sometimes helpful in combat and puzzle-solving. So, one doesnāt have to wander alone in nature when one is messed up enough in the head.
As a second mention, letās talk about Doom Eternal
A sequel to 2016ās Doom. The demons from hell are on the loose again, and there are plenty of shells in the shotgun and gas in the chainsaw. Well, this is what the game primarily consists of, and neither the plot nor the gameplay will likely surprise anyone much. Demons are slaughtered left and right, the pace is fast, and as a positive surprise, the game runs relatively smoothly on my own, several-year-old hardware.
To be honest, I didnāt particularly find 2016ās Doom worthy of āall that praiseāā¦ The game was good, of course, but perhaps Iām some kind of contrarian, because I considered DoomĀ³ (the one that came out in 2004) an excellent creation due to its slow-paced and dark mechanics. Perhaps what bothered me most about the 2016 model was the āgo into room X, where the doors are closed behind you and 50,000 enemies are spawned into the room. Deal with it.ā kind of vibe.
So, not much room to retreat, but more like ADHD tag. However, Iām still in the early stages of Eternal as well, so I canāt quite say yet if the same thing repeats here and how badly. Nevertheless, the game mechanics otherwise are good, agile, and logical, so once this initial stickiness subsides and I can get into a āthink less and shoot moreā mode, perhaps Iāll get a meaningful experience out of it.
Other games worth mentioning that I sometimes launch are Battlefield 4 and GTA5 (Online)
Iāve been spending my time on these lately, how about others? P.S. all the games mentioned above are played on PC.
Primarily, youāre knocking down weaker opponents equipped with either guns or various bludgeons, and occasionally you encounter significantly larger and more challenging boss enemies. Iāve played for a few hours now and it seems quite good. The challenge gradually increases as the number of enemies coming at you at once grows and your weapons improve. Of course, your own character also develops with updates. With larger enemies, you really have to struggle, and attacks, dodges, and parries need to be timed properly. God Of War is the most recent game of this style Iāve played, and this Lies Of P feels a little clunkier to control. In this game, the character doesnāt run or jump, at least not yet, so that might also contribute to the clunkier feel. Well, Iāll continue playing and maybe throw in more thoughts on the game later. Oh, and I think I read somewhere that a sequel is currently being worked on for this game.
Now, while waiting for the new one, I thought Iād play through this first one and AW2 again. I intend to spend more time on these now. Because I have a bad habit of sometimes ārushingā and just playing through the story quickly. Quite a lot of the story and some details go unnoticed, and of course, side quests are left undone 
I donāt need to play this through a third time anymore. Now Iām ready to take on the upcoming Resonant 
I intended to play Alan Wake 2 before Resonant as well, but Iāll skip it for now. I remembered Control so well, and itās only been two years since I played AW.
