If you could only suggest someone play one video game, what would it be?

[Refluxe]

Not RuneScape, I don’t need to be ruining any lives

Slay the Spire hands down. Obviously if you’re into deck builders you’ll know it and also know it’s the GOAT but I feel like that’s a more niche genre that I guess a more ‘casual gamer’ wouldn’t go out of their way to dabble with. Might be completely wrong considering the success Balatro has just had, which is also a good entry point into that style of game, but SnS offers so much more complexity and variety so if it tickles your pickle then suddenly you have a game you can put thousands of hours into.

Couldn't agree more with this. I'm on well over 1,000 hours on Slay the Spire (across PC and Switch) and I am still finding new ways to beat the game that I've never done before. It's so easy to pick up and get the hang of, but hard to master, especially at the higher ascensions. Monster Train is also badass, but doesn't feel quite as 'polished' as StS.

I see BG3 has also been mentioned for obvious reasons. Probably the most complete game I've ever played, especially from an RPG perspective.

Both are awesome shouts.

Honestly, everytime I feel like I’ve exhausted every build that’s viable (especially anything ascension 15+) I’ll whip out some absolutely insane run that’s focused on some shit card like Thunderstrike or something. Have you tried the downfall mod? The character feels so much like it could’ve been designed by the devs

Agreed with monster train, it’s fun enough and I can play it for a few hours every now and then but it just lacks whatever ‘that’ which StS has which makes it impossible to put down. Can’t wait for the sequel

Yeah, anything at high ascension you need to be a little more focused on your deck building synergies. I find myself nowadays just rotating through characters and playing up to ascension 20 and then starting a new profile once I've completed all four. Generally I'll always smash through with Silent first and then Ironclad/Watcher come in second and then I just don't seem to be as good at Defect as I want to be. I think the reason is my obsession of wanting to make 'Claw' decks work and then getting my ass handed to me as soon as I get to a boss. Silent is my favourite though and also the character I'm best with.

'Thunder Strike' is definitely one of those cards you get could early on and then get obsessed with the idea of building an entire deck around it, even if it's gonna be shite. Probably also my problem with 'Defect' is that there are too many cards that can make you fail e.g. 'Hello World'. Also, speaking of building stupid decks, Ironclad's 'Searing Blow' is ridiculous fun. I think I got it to +15 in one run once.

And yeah, I've tried Downfall. I played it a lot a few years back on PC (not sure if you can mod on Switch?). Definitely gave me a renewed interest in the game and absolutely loved the concept. I think that's the only mod I've ever actually used though.

Oh and Slay the Spire 2 is looking great as well. Cannot wait.

How do you people find the time to work or sleep or eat. If I manage to get 7-10 hours of gaming in during a standard week I'd consider that a huge success.

Yeah, same really -- if that. S'why I love my Switch because I can sneak a bit of gaming time in, even if I'm on the shitter. Otherwise, it'll just be a few hours in the evening after the little one has gone to bed.