Time marches on. As gamers age, some can no longer find the time to pursue this hobby. Others, like myself, continue to prioritize the activity well into adulthood. After all, so many great video games release every year, and classic titles are always there for a nice nostalgia trip, too.
Best of all, there are modern games that make us feel like kids again – games that fill us with child-like wonder. They can take us back to a time when the world felt simpler, allowing us to briefly slip free from all the everyday worries that mark most of our lives post-adolescence. They’re fun, they’re charming, and they’re well worth chatting about.
Back In The Day, But Today
While I could point to any number of similar discussions, the centerpiece of today’s article is an excellent Reddit thread by Fit_Tomatillo_4264, whose username is a poignant reminder of just how strange the site’s automated name generation service can be. The thread’s creator is quick to note that they aren’t referring to “games you played when you were a kid”, but rather, “games that came out after you are already an adult that make you feel like a kid again”.
With that clarification in mind, Redditors have been filling the comments section with cool picks, strange picks, and every other sort of pick you can possibly imagine.
“Tunic feels very nostalgic of games I grew up playing in the 90s,” filmeswole says of the terrific top-down Zelda-like adventure starring an adorable fox. Several fans agree, with BlazingShadowAU calling it a love letter to older games. “The music, art, and use of isometric view as a tool to hide secrets is incredible,” says lacklacklack22.
One of the most recent games chosen is Astro Bot, 2024’s official Game Awards champion. “Just good, wholesome, 3D puzzle platforming,” jprakes describes it. “Had this stupid grin on my face while I was playing it,” 50percentnotabot concurs, which is arguably a funny name for someone so enraptured by a game with that title. Given Astro Bot’s own proudly-worn love of almost every PlayStation-affiliated game series ever to exist, it rather feels like the perfect answer.
“HiFi Rush,” Fyuira picks. “The setting and the tone of the game just reminds of the time I was playing games when I was a kid. It helps that the story is quite similar to some cartoon shows.” Meanwhile, heavysteve has another grand indie on the brain. “Dave the Diver, parts of that made me squel with glee, and I’m 43 years old.” I’m not all that far behind you, my friend.
“For me it has to be Fall Guys. The first time I played it I couldn’t stop laughing, it honestly felt like being back in grade school during recess, just running around, tripping, getting knocked over, and not even caring if I lost. It is so silly and colorful that you can’t help but feel like a kid again.” –Christineexu
The responses are nigh-limitless. I’m happy to see some rep for Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, my own choice for GOTY ’24, and certainly the first game from the past few years that springs to mind. It brings a truly massive classic world to life with an openness and thoroughness that graphically stunning AAA games can’t often muster. “Recently it was FF7 Rebirth which not only took me on a wild nostalgia ride, but reminded me why I fell in love with gaming in the first place,” Rapturos sums it up nicely.
TheGamer’s Chris Hayner chose Minecraft, by the way, until another TG scribe, James Lucas, bummed us all out with a reminder that Minecraft is – somehow – 16 years old and counting. Doesn’t quite qualify at this point…
