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.
Funny that you mention Life of Strange because it’s actually set in Autumn, but it does kinda have the vibes you describe. What does have way more summer vibes though is the prequel, Before the Storm, totally worth it if you’ve haven’t played it.
My opinion of life is strange is kinda complicated I liked it as a "Summer Game" because it had the right vibes while I played it but after I was done I was disappointed. The game hypes it's "your action have consequences" system up constantly but it's usually just a different dialogue or short scene which doesn't affect the story in a major way. Which is fine for a game in general but not when it pretends it's different.