Video Games Hey Gamers!

[Murdergurl]

So, I'm tired of going through games on Steam that look promising, but ultimately wind up being a waste of money. I've searched using the categories, but after adding like 3 or 4 tags, the list becomes incredibly short and has nothing I'm interested in. So, I'm turning to the community here for some possible recommendations. I'm looking for something new, and not a game from yesteryear that I've (probably) already played out.

Essentially, I'm trying to find a game that has the following features:

• Character customization: This is like super important. I hate being stuck as a cookie cutter protagonist and want to make my own character. Choosing between gender, facial options and body type. etc. You get what I'm talking about, right?
• Single player (or mostly single player). Something that is meant to be played on your own and doesn't NEED to be played with others online to get at the bosses and such. I also hate grinding levels over and over to get gear, which leads me to the next one...
• NOT an MMO. I don't like MMOs. There is too much going on, everyone is always dozens of levels ahead of you and just otherwise getting in your way or taking the fun out of any given fight. I've found that I just generally don't like how they are organized and played.
• Sci Fi. Spacey sci-fi is my ideal, but I'll settle for something planet bound if it hits everything else wll enough. But ideally, I'm looking for something space-faring and "open-world".
• Not anchored to a central Storyline. Goes back to the open-world thing, where you can just go off on your own tangent and not really worry about the "main" game if you dont want to.
• Light on the graphics. This is on account of my computer lagging with anything too heavy on graphics. I can run games like Skyrim just fine. But newer games like Outer Worlds make my computer lag even on the lowest settings. MMOs also tend to make my computer lag, despite how long they've been around. Please note that by lighter on the graphics does not mean I am looking for something styled in pixels.
• NOT ANIME or JRPGs! I don't like anime, so I'm obviously not interested in games with anime styled artwork, and I hate the gaudy weapons and gear that are so prevalent in these kinds of games.

Price isn't an issue, as I got a new job recently. So, I'm willing to shell out up to sixty bucks if the game hits on all these points and looks promising. I've probably wasted more than that already on bad games. I'd be happy to check out any suggestions y'all have. Oh, and I'm on PC.

 

[Murdergurl]

guess not?

 

[Onmyoji]

The only game I play that would fit in some of your points would be Monster Hunter but I think you know it already...
I don't really play Sci-Fi games so it's a hard one. I could maybe suggest HALO. But it doesn't have character customization and I don't think graphics are light enough unless you play older ones. Master Chief Collection on Steam is really good, has all games, including the old ones. Maybe some of those. There is also a strategy in the same universe HALO Wars. I only played the demo though and it also has no characters because it's, well, a strategy game. If you're into strategy games I can ask some friends, I know they're playing some sci-fi one but I have no idea what.

Aside from that I have no other suggestions, our gaming tastes are too different

 

[Murdergurl]

The only game I play that would fit in some of your points would be Monster Hunter but I think you know it already...
I don't really play Sci-Fi games so it's a hard one. I could maybe suggest HALO. But it doesn't have character customization and I don't think graphics are light enough unless you play older ones. Master Chief Collection on Steam is really good, has all games, including the old ones. Maybe some of those. There is also a strategy in the same universe HALO Wars. I only played the demo though and it also has no characters because it's, well, a strategy game. If you're into strategy games I can ask some friends, I know they're playing some sci-fi one but I have no idea what.

Aside from that I have no other suggestions, our gaming tastes are too different

yeah, I'm quite familiar with Halo. I had the first one on the xbox back in the day. But I'm not really looking for a militant FPS. And yeah, totally not character customizable. You're just stuck as faceless Master Chief the whole time.

And while I am very familiar with monster hunter (I still have the original game disk for the PS2), the more recent ones are way too heavy for my poor little laptop.

Thank you for the suggestions though

 

[Onmyoji]

oh if you're not against Star Wars franchise, I heard Knights of the Old Republic are pretty good rpgs. And they're not very new so shouldn't be too demanding for PC. I have no idea how they are in terms of character customization because I never played them but my friends liked the games quite a lot.

Most sci-fi games I heard of are either FPS or strategy, like space exploration and building colonies. :/
If you're not entirely against that, can check out Stellaris, Rimworld, Oxygen Not Included.

There are old Phantasy Star games that were remade for PC and phones. But they're more on the anime side, with pixel graphics, so no character customization as well.

 

[Kaya]

Rather old, but I guess it'd fit pretty much into what you listed- (though I can't imagine that you haven't tried it yet, as it's, well, very very well known, but-) the Elder Scrolls games?
Alternatively, Dragon's Dogma or Kingdoms of Amalur? Both of those games have more dynamic battle mechanics than Skyrim, for example (I mean, battling in Skyrim isn't exactly... All that nuanced, at least if you don't specifically aim for it) and both (though especially dragon's dogma) have some great character customization. Or have you tried Warframe (there's not as much character customization here, save for skins, but yeah).

 

[Sarevok]

There's a lot of isometric style cRPG's that seem to fit the type of game that you're looking for, a few off the top of my head that I can think of as follows:-

1. Baldur's Gate series
2. Neverwinter Nights series
3. Icewind Dale series
4. Colony Ship (although in Early Access at the moment)
5. Age of Decadence (cRPG with an Ancient Rome flavour)
6. Underrail (isometric style game a little reminiscent of Fallout)
7. Fallout series, although 4 might be pushing it
8. Knights of the Old Republic 1 & 2
9. Jade Empire

 

[Murdergurl]

oh if you're not against Star Wars franchise, I heard Knights of the Old Republic are pretty good rpgs. And they're not very new so shouldn't be too demanding for PC. I have no idea how they are in terms of character customization because I never played them but my friends liked the games quite a lot.

Most sci-fi games I heard of are either FPS or strategy, like space exploration and building colonies. :/
If you're not entirely against that, can check out Stellaris, Rimworld, Oxygen Not Included.

There are old Phantasy Star games that were remade for PC and phones. But they're more on the anime side, with pixel graphics, so no character customization as well.

I had both of the KotOR on .... I think it was xbox, back in the day. They are alright. But I'm looking for something I haven't already played. I've actually been playing Oxygen not included (which does sometimes get a little laggy when too much is going on at once, btw). It's not character customizable. and I don't really consider it an RPG by any means. More of a colony manager. Stil fun in it's own right, but not what I was looking for. I'll look into those other two though. ty
I've played the original Phantasy Star games, actually. They were... okay. But my favorite iteration is still the Episode 1 &2 that came out on Gamecube. They are a bit anime though

Rather old, but I guess it'd fit pretty much into what you listed- (though I can't imagine that you haven't tried it yet, as it's, well, very very well known, but-) the Elder Scrolls games?
Alternatively, Dragon's Dogma or Kingdoms of Amalur? Both of those games have more dynamic battle mechanics than Skyrim, for example (I mean, battling in Skyrim isn't exactly... All that nuanced, at least if you don't specifically aim for it) and both (though especially dragon's dogma) have some great character customization. Or have you tried Warframe (there's not as much character customization here, save for skins, but yeah).

I've played the Elder Scrolls on old systems. The last one being Skyrim on my friend's PS4. So I'm looking for something I haven't already played and beat. I've looked into warframe, and it really isn't something I'm interested in. I'll search for those other two though. But since they are on the fantasy side, I'm a LOT pickier about it. If I'm going to get into a Fantasy game, I'd really only go for it if I could make a customizable Goblin character. Bu not World of Warcraft. Tried it, not into it.

There's a lot of isometric style cRPG's that seem to fit the type of game that you're looking for, a few off the top of my head that I can think of as follows:-

1. Baldur's Gate series
2. Neverwinter Nights series
3. Icewind Dale series
4. Colony Ship (although in Early Access at the moment)
5. Age of Decadence (cRPG with an Ancient Rome flavour)
6. Underrail (isometric style game a little reminiscent of Fallout)
7. Fallout series, although 4 might be pushing it
8. Knights of the Old Republic 1 & 2
9. Jade Empire

Jade Empire. that takes me back. I actually had tried to download that through Steam some time ago. But the game is busted and doesn't load up for me. As mentioned before, I've already played the Fallout games from as far back as Brotherhood of Steel on the PS2 all the way to part 4 on my friend's PS4. KotOR games I had on xbox in years past, and Elder Scrolls stuff I've also played out, lol. So I'm looking for something new. And with Fantasy, I'm a lot more demanding of what I'm gonna get out of it. I've already looked into the Baulder's gate and Neverwinter series, and I wasn't too into them. With Fantasy games, I really want a goblin character option. With the whole gender/height/weight/features customization (but not WoW). I'll defo look into the others you mentioned.

---

I'm making a small list out of what everyone has mentioned. Thanks for the feedback, everyone. And just as a reiteration, I'm very open to any genre of RPG games (fantasy/sci-fi/whatever) where you can play as a customizable goblin (outside of World of Warcraft, because I've already tried that one out)

*gonna edit my initial post to reflect my Goblin character wants in Fantasy

 

[Rusty of Shackleford]

I'd highly reccomend the Mass Effect trilogy, specifically the recent Legendary Edition. It's a super interesting RPG series with a great setting. Yeah maybe the advertised freedom of choice doesn't live up to expectations, but it's one of my favorite series of all time. Not to mention you get ti customize a character!

 

[Emeraude]

RimWorld is a really good game. However, it's more of a colony sim, so character customization is limited to traits of your initial landing crew rather than appearances.

It's a challenging game, but can basically be set to sandbox while you learn it.

Project zomboid is another game I am considering getting into. Very heavy customization and large world, graphics are very fair. Downside is that this game has been in beta for many years.

 

[Cosmo]

Mkay, let me take a look at my games and make some suggestions

Rimworld - An amazing Sci-fi game. Basic summary is that you are in charge of a colony that was established in whatever manner you pick [Most usually it's by getting three random shipwrecked people and building from there]. The game is not set but is single player. You pick your 'storyteller' and that kinda decides what events can happen anything from random mutated beavers eating every tree on your biome to raiders coming to kill your people, steal your stuff. You can do a lot of things in it from fun to.. very questionable. Slavery, making furniture and clothes out of 'human leather', starting a colony of cannibals, start an organ harvesting business... I've yet to see anyone start out a game of Rimworld and not end up doing some serious warcrimes.

Single best thing about Rimworld is the modding scene. Also, thanks to steam workshop, very easy to do, pretty much just hit 'subscribe' on a mod you like and then activate in the menu [Rimworld was built to be very easy to do this with]. These mods range from letting you design your own colonist to adding new tech, new material, letting you convert the universe to Star Wars/40k [The 40k mod is very solid]/Mass Effect, etc. Even mods that 'dumb down' the tech and force everything to be medieval as well as various D&D, Warcraft, Warhammer Fantasy, Lord of the Rings mods and go full fantasy [there is even magic mods that add, well, magical powers to the game]. Want to mix and match? Play a 40k Space Marine leading Star Wars Stormtroopers vs hordes of Xenomorphs? You can do that [Also, to give an idea of how amazingly in-depth the game is, xenomorphs will act like xenomorphs. They abduct people and animals, face hug them, build nest, etc]. Also, yes, you can totally play a goblin in these mods.

Rimworld is.... a black hole of your time. It is very graphic-lite, so not a problem on that front. If you get into it, don't get mad at me when you are looking at a modlist of 300 and trying to get it to work smoothly. This game is fairly popular on youtube, so I'd suggest kinda maybe checking out one of those to get a feel of it to see if you'd like it.

Kenshi - Kenshi is odd to describe. It's set in a sci-fi universe, on an alien planet, that has undergone some sort of apocalyptic event [a few times, really]. Despite being on an alien world, the people on it are very much 'samurais', katanas, longswords and crossbows being the 'peak' of technology, these factions are interwoven with lost buildings and tech, skeletons [Robots], giant creatures, etc. The map is open world and fully explorable, you can build your own base, recruit followers, etc.

Kenshi is not for the faint of heart though as unlike other roleplay games, your character isn't special. You start as a scrub and your character can die. They can lose limbs, bleed out, be enslaved, etc. Kenshi is..... Kenshi. Highly advise checking it out on youtube to get a feel for it. Game is an indie game, low graphics [but I'm not sure how well or not it runs on lower end systems as it is an open world that generates a lot].

This game uses Japanese themes and styles in a sci-fi setting but it is not anime. Just putting that there cause I know you didn't want that.

Stellaris - Sci-fi game, largely depends on how much you enjoy grand strategy games. Create a race, a culture, a government, start on a single planet having just discovered FTL and then go from there. You explore, expand, deal with events, build ships, research new tech, kill your enemies, create Space Marines, get 'psykers' and mess with the 'Totally Not Warp', etc. Very fun if that is your type of game.

Starsector - If you want a low-graphics game [but not ugly] that is sci-fi and something you can spend hundreds of hours in? Starsector is the best 15 bucks you will ever spend. Yeah, 15 bucks. Game is still supported and updated regularly. Indie game, massive quality. You play as a starship captain in a sector, taking odd jobs, earning money, buying more ships, fighting other ships, etc.


Kenshi, Rimworld and Starsector are all highly recommended, all have great and fun youtube review shows [such as by SsethTzeentach] if you wanted to take a look before you buy. Not only are all three some of the best games out there, but they are also fairly 'cheap'. Starsector being 15 bucks, Kenshi is 29.99 and Rimworld is 34.99 [With two optional expansions for 19.99]

 

[Murdergurl]

So this search is still going on. Looked into a lot of the suggestions. Did not like rimworld. I'm looking for better graphics than that. Already tried the Mass effect and Dragon Age games. Not really into them. I just couldnt get into the storyline of either one and I wasnt very satisfied with the limited character creation options.

Really, really looking for some spacefaring RPG where you make a custom character. Recently tried Outer Worlds and it just keeps lagging and crashing. Got into some X4 space tactical stuff like Stellaris and that was a bust.

Anyone got any other suggestions? Think of something like Skyrim... but in with starships and interplanetary travel. That would be more spot on. Or if anyone has ever played StarTraders: Frontiers, that was a pretty good game. It just needed better character creation and playable alien species.

 

[Jannah]

I wish I could suggest something, but I'm not really a PC gamer (could never afford a gaming PC) and it seems our tastes in video games are quite different.

 

[Murdergurl]

I wish I could suggest something, but I'm not really a PC gamer (could never afford a gaming PC) and it seems our tastes in video games are quite different.

yeah, i get that a lot, tbh. Again with the "interests that aren't very common" problem. lol

Also, my laptop isnt the greatest, but i manage to play a lot of things. Worst case scenario, i just tune down the graphics and it (usually) will do okay.

 

[King Krokodil]

Ooh Ooh, might be harder on your computer, but try the outer worlds. Pretty underrated and it’s from obsidian.

 

[Murdergurl]

Ooh Ooh, might be harder on your computer, but try the outer worlds. Pretty underrated and it’s from obsidian.

i had tried this one out already, actually. My computer didnt run it very well. VERY rough performance. The entire intro had to get skipped because it would jam my computer.

 

[King Krokodil]

i had tried this one out already, actually. My computer didnt run it very well. VERY rough performance. The entire intro had to get skipped because it would jam my computer.

Ah, too bad.
If you don’t mind side scrollers, starbound is a favorite. Mods are cool too.

 

[Murdergurl]

Ah, too bad.
If you don’t mind side scrollers, starbound is a favorite. Mods are cool too.

have that, too actualy. I bought it on sale for like $5. It reminds me of Terreria, but it space. So I wasnt that into it. I'm not too big on the "minecraft" genre

 

[Murdergurl]

Alright.... since my RP searches and RT attempts are getting nowhere, I'm gonna start looking into video games again. Digging up this old thread becasue my search still continues to actually finda new game that doesn't suck/isn't boring/isn't something I've already tried.

Here's my steam list. A lot of these I've tried and just haven't been able to get into (like Dragon Age and Mass Effect). Usually because the character customization is half-assed and the story is not something I am into. See the opening post for the kind of games I'm looking for. I'm Really, REALLY looking for suggestions for something new to play. The suggestions Steam gives me are trash, and my queue is always full of stuff I don't like.

I've also gotten a Switch for my kiddo since I first made this topic. But that's mostly his console. I have some family-friendly multiplayer games we will play together. But I'm looking for stuff for just me on my laptop.

 

[Murdergurl]

*bored sighs*

 

[Jannah]

*bored sighs*

I'm guessing no suggestions since what you're looking for is oddly specific. I feel like your absolute dream game just doesn't exist.

 

[Murdergurl]

I'm guessing no suggestions since what you're looking for is oddly specific. I feel like your absolute dream game just doesn't exist.

I'd even take it as not sci-fi. A fantasy-based genre would suit me fine, as well.

 

[Rusty of Shackleford]

I'd even take it as not sci-fi. A fantasy-based genre would suit me fine, as well.

If you're into more classic CRPGs, I would recommend Pathfinder Kingmaker and it's spiritual sequel Wrath of the Righteous! Neither is perfect, but both offer a pretty enjoyable, meaty RPG experience using Pathfinder as a base, while also mixing in management aspects in both.

 

[Murdergurl]

If you're into more classic CRPGs, I would recommend Pathfinder Kingmaker and it's spiritual sequel Wrath of the Righteous! Neither is perfect, but both offer a pretty enjoyable, meaty RPG experience using Pathfinder as a base, while also mixing in management aspects in both.

thanks, I'll look into those

 

[purplecowdutch]

Putt putt save the zoo, 10/10 graphics and storyline