Help me find some modest PC games to download.

The Game Room
#1

So my new laptop’s pretty high-end, aside from anything having to do with gaming. That’s ok, because I rather like the cheaper and less involved alternative that I’ve experienced with games like World Of Goo. I tried the demo to Braid… it’s fun but not worth a purchase imho.

Thing is, I wouldn’t have heard of **World of Goo **or **Braid **if it weren’t for their console counterparts. I try searching specifically for previews and reviews for games like these, but unfortunately it’s difficult to find a site that distinguishes these games from the games my computer can’t handle.

As someone looking to dabble in some PC games, any suggestions on **sites *for these games? Or games themselves?

******I like “Cause and Effect” games if that makes any sense. **World of Goo **sort of has it, but there are also other types of games where you have to perhaps build a unique way to get from “Point A” to “Point B”; Someone here once suggested a game where you build your own courses… had a Rube Goldberg element, games like that.

Also I have no cash for a controller, and **Braid **was difficult for me to get use to. Anything like **World of Goo **where the mouse and keyboard would be ideal would be… well, ideal. All suggestions are appreciated, but I wouldn’t have the cash right now to get more than one or two… I want to keep my eye on some as well. Any games not out people have their eye on? (I like WiiWare too… want to see what reveiws are like for Max’s Magic Marker). Feel free to send your personal favorites despite my tastes as well… I’m just starting out so. *

#2

Good Old games (gog.com) has a long list of classic games which your laptop should have no problem running. They’ve been updated to run on modern hardware and OS’s as well. Since their classic games, the reviews for them are just a google away.

Steam, direct 2 drive and Impulse should also have a large list of games that aren’t demanding on systems and many have a metacritic rating + links to reviews. I was able to run Sins of a Solar Empire form impulse on my low end laptop with no problems and if you like RT’s I’d recommend it.

#3

Valve’s Steam service has a slew of games, old and new (e.g. Braid), that should run on your machine. It’s free to sign up and you pay per title - for older games and indie releases that will work on limited specs, it’s usually no more than $10 per game.

Gamefly is a subscription service that allows you to play “classic” games (console and computer), but I don’t personally use it so I can’t testify to the value.

#4

It’s a simple game but we had Pocket Tanks on our computers at work and everyone enjoyed it. You can download a free demo version at BlitWise.

#5

Thanks! I did. I played a demo of Goo just to see if my PC should have a problem with it. The thing is, it only takes up part of the screen, it a little blurry and you can’t adjust the resolution, (same with Braid). If I were to get the full thing, would I be able to adjust it? I have a great HD monitor… so sharper images would be nice.

I wouldn’t think I would have any problem with games like these. Should I mess with my Intel “Graphics Media Accelerator Drive For Mobil”?

On the “Rate and improve your computer’s performance”:

Possessor: 5.7
Memory, (RAM): 5.7
Graphics: 4.1
Gaming Graphics: 3.4
Primary Hard Disk: 5.6

#6

Sorry, thought this was an edit. I guess what I’m asking is, are the Demo’s worried about looking pretty, or are they just looking to give me a quick DL, and an Idea of the game? It looks like SD, and isn’t widescreen.

Oh, any FREE/Good games out there, or are they all just demos?

#7

When I was looking for abandonware stuff, I found some good stuff at BestOldGames.net. They’ve got some classics on there like Warcraft 2, Worms, Doom 2, MK, Civ 2, Colonization,etc.

You might have to download DOSbox to run some of them, but certainly any game they have on there will run fine if you’re computers any faster than a desktop from circa 2000.

#8

It sounds like you’d love Fantastic Contraption It’s a physics based building game to get from Point A to Point B, and it’s free.

Also, I’m going to recommend Cave Story because it is an absolutely amazing game (and also free).

#9

Thanks for the tips. Pedescribe, you have some good suggestions. I know cave story is coming to WiiWare, but it’s not free… so, woohoo.

Mr Buttons, awesome site. Any news sites or blogs for games like these?

#10

In case you didn’t know, Amazon.com sells game downloads—mostly smaller, casual games, and some of them mainly for kids, though they do have a pretty good selection. I’ve gotten some enjoyable stuff that way, but I’m by no means a hardcore gamer. Anyway, the most common price seems to be $6.99, and you can download and try most games free for 30 minutes before you buy it.

#11

Do you listen to music on your laptop? If so, try Audiosurf.

#12

Are you at all interested in casual games? Big Fish Games has hundreds of (actually good) games at very inexpensive prices. BFG isn’t a Shockwave arcade where everything is the same game with a different (and usually pretty poor) mask.

#13

Walmart has a variety of older games for about $20 or less. Today I say what appeared to be a collection of 4 versions of Age of Empires, and several mystery/hidden item type games packaged as 2 for $10.

ETA: Oops. Those wouldn’t be downloads. If you like wargames, I think you can still download some titles in the Close Combat series. WWII battle simulations, with an editor to create your own scenarios if you like…

#14

http://www.gametap.com/ I’ve not used it myself, but they have some good games listed.

Iji is an awesome free platform shooter game

If you like Cave story, try Spelunky, which is pretty similar.

Check out Flow. Its a relaxing little free game.

Tower battle games are perfect for low end computers. Check these out:
Gemcraft has a neat system where you use different colored gems as turrets. You get xp and level up after battles, and theres lots of different playfields.

Then there’s the original Desktop Tower Defense. Very basic graphics, but the ability to make your own mazes out of turrets will keep you busy for quite a while.

Also would like to add a Steam recommendation. You can set the store to only display game demos, then download a bunch and try them. I’ve found a lot of good games this way.

#15

If we’re talking tower defense games, the best series, by far, is the Bloons Tower Defense series. (link to 1, with links to 2, 3, and 4 on that page)

The games themselves have a very simple feel to them. There are no hitpoints, no varying money values, and though there are many towers, there’s no combination system. Below the simplicity, though, is a complicated core, in the form of incredible difficulty at higher levels. If you want to beat hard, you have to learn how pop bloons more efficiently, and the strategies for that are frequently complicated or counter-intuitive.

And you can choose the level of complexity you want, with each game getting progressively more complex. I wouldn’t say that any of them are better or worse than the others, just more or less complex.

#16

Just saying, I have three games installed on the computer right now. Spelunky is one of them because it is the best platform game ever coded.

Don’t play it if you tend to throw things though.

Also, half the games listed in this thread and lots of older/indie games play way better with a gamepad. I like the Logitech Precision gamepad because it’s solid but still cheap (read: $5 - $10).

#17

Popcap.com

My Name is Meeko, and I have a Problem with Peggle.

[[Zuma and Bejewled are comorbities, I hear.]]

#18

Try Battle for Wesnoth, it’s a turn based strategy game that comes with many good campaigns. it’s free, as it is open source.

And speaking of open source, why not have a look at the Free Gamer blog, to keep up to date with the latest open source games. There often are interesting ones, and they tend to be resource light.

You could also look for remakes of classic games, archived at Retro Remakes.

#19

There are only a few games I have on my laptop:
XCOM: UFO-Defense It LOOKS like it was straight out of 1994 (because it is) but I like the depth of game play. Pick it up at Steam for $5, guaranteed to work on anything that was made in the last 10 years.

World of Goo: Discussed above, lovely little game to kill time with.

Plants vs Zombies: Another Steam released game that is, at least on my laptop, running very well. Fun distraction type of game.

Civilization IV: It’s a bit of a pain to not have the keypad for unit movements (you have to right click where you want them to go), but it’s a turn based game so you don’t have to worry about scrolling too slow or anything like that.

#20

I’m glad to have asked you guys… playing Cave Storry.

I have to bookmark this thread because I want a lot of these games!