I have this loosely defined made-up genre I call "Summer Games".
It started a long time ago subconsciously. At some point I realized that during the hottest time of the year I gravitate to certain games that I mostly play on a small device (laptop/switch/steamdeck), laying in bed, late at night, when I have trouble sleeping because it's too hot. A friend of mine once said that the reason she loves super high temperatures so much, is that what you experience leaves more vivid, burned in, memories. I think she has a point.
The criteria aren't super rigid but I hope you get the "vibe" and might know some games that fit:
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Low-stakes/chill gameplay. I'm already sweating, I don't need sweaty gameplay right now
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a warm aesthetic/color palette and/or setting. My outside experience shouldn't feel too different to the games inside experience aesthetic-wise.
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It feels like a road trip, adventure or vacation. I want to get a summery memory out of this.
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the game leaves some kind of impact.
Games I played in the past that evoked that vibe perfectly:
- Kentucky road zero
- oxenfree
- road 96
- firewatch
- sable
- rime
- steins: gate
- life is strange
Games that have fit okay-ish
- tunic
- journey
- citizen sleeper
- nightcall
- no umbrellas allowed
- the talos principle
- the solus project
- the witness
- the vanishing of Ethan Carter
If anyone has a recommendation, I'd be thankful.
This year I have started to play chants of Sennaar and it seems to fit the criteria so far.
I'm not sure if this is the best recommendation looking at your criteria, but Slime Rancher (1 and 2) are chilled games that have beautiful and colourful visuals. To me it feels like a summer vacation - one where you're staying at a farm and catching adorable slimes.
Another recommendation I'd have is Tearaway unfolded. It's a super charming adventure in a papercraft work. It really stuck with me and felt like an adventure. It's only on PS4/5 as far as I'm aware though, but if you happen to have one of those I guess you could cast it to your Steam Deck using Chiaki. Or on the off-chance that you have a PS Vita, the original version of the game was on there.