Photo by ClƔudio Luiz Castro on Unsplash
Have you tried to buy a graphics card recently? If so, youāll know that prices are through the roof. First, there was the rush for GPUs to mine cryptocurrencies and now we have AI eating up practically all of the worldās computers.Ā
Itās been a bad ten years for gamers, and it only looks like it is going to get worse.Ā
The good news is that there are all sorts of games that donāt require you to pay $1,000 for a graphics card. And in many cases, they are just as good and engaging as games with 3D graphics and photo-realistic visuals.
But which games are we talking about specifically? Letās take a look.Ā
Bastion
Bastion was a hit the moment it was released more than 10 years ago. The beautiful artwork and clever aerial camera gameplay reminded players of the joys they experienced in Diablo II, just in a different setting.
Bastion doesnāt have any 3D graphics at all, meaning you can easily run it off a processor or a chip that combines some graphical elements. And because of the pixel art, it runs smoothly, regardless of the amount of action on the screen. The calculations the processors need to perform are basic compared to trying to track missile trajectories and paint realistic shadows.Ā
Undertale
Lovers of RPGs can also download and try Undertale, a unique RPG game with lovable characters and an interesting story. Again, graphically, the game isnāt much to get excited about. But it is the gameplay and the way the story draws you in that makes it special. You feel like youāre lost in the Undertale world, just like your imagination takes over when you read a well-written novel.Ā
Limbo
If you love platform games, you might also want to try the highly artistic Limbo. The game follows the story and challenges of a young boy alone in the forest. Players must navigate over jumps and past giant spiders to safety, facing numerous challenges along the way.Ā
The most striking aspect of the game is the artwork. The dingy backdrop of the forest is a haunting experience and adds to the atmosphere tremendously. Gamers feel fully absorbed into the world the designers recreate.Ā
The game has the added benefit of being quite challenging, which is a feature of many newer platform games on Steam. As you explore the title, youāll find yourself repeating sections multiple times before you get them right.Ā
Minesweeper
Another classic game that doesnāt require a graphics card is Minesweeper. Windows originally released the title at the start of the 1990s and it became an instant hit, gathering thousands of fans in offices around the world.Ā
The basic idea is to use clues to clear mines from a digital board. Players begin by clicking anywhere on the grid. The game then clears all contiguous areas that donāt have mines, providing numbers at the periphery to indicate how many mines are in adjacent squares. Then, players must use deductive reasoning to determine where mines are. The game is won when players reveal all the non-mined sections and tag all the mines.Ā
The concept is pretty simple, but the game is deeply satisfying. Many players spend hours ratcheting up the difficulty, increasing the number of mines, and finding strategies to win when no clear victory is possible.
Darkest Dungeon
If you havenāt got the computing power to run a title like Dungeon Keeper, then you can get a similar experience from Darkest Dungeon. This turn-based RPG doesnāt require much in the way of graphics horsepower but is a lot of fun if you want to pass the time on a long journey or donāt have anything else to do on a Saturday afternoon.Ā
The purpose of the game is to manage your heroās psychological stress. As a player, youāll need to develop various tactics and strategies to keep them mentally healthy and prevent them from experiencing weaknesses that could cause you to lose the game. Itās an interesting concept and one that feels a world away from existing titles.Ā
Tetris
If youāre a big fan of puzzle games, you might also want to consider making Tetris one of your go-to titles. The game from the Soviet era is extraordinarily addictive and compels you to keep playing, even though you know you are eventually going to lose.Ā
Tetris involves rotating various block-based shapes to create lines in existing blocks already filling the play space. The more lines you complete, the higher your score, with the maximum number of concurrent lines being four.Ā
The game feels easy at first but becomes progressively more challenging as the speed increases. Shapes fall from the sky more rapidly, forcing you to rush decisions about where to place them. Eventually, they are coming so fast that you start making mistakes, and it becomes progressively more challenging to recover.Ā
Command And Conquer
Another option is to go back to the original Command and Conquer, perhaps the most famous real-time strategy from the 1990s. The game follows the story of the Global Defense Initiative in its battle against Nod, an evil terrorist organization.
Things start simple. You build a power plant and a barracks and go after the enemy. However, things become more complicated as the game progresses. Eventually, youāre managing nuclear missiles, satellite cannons, mammoth tanks, and engineers who can convert enemy buildings.Ā
The gameās primary resource is tiberian, a mysterious plant that grows in specific locations across the map. Harvesters mine it and return it to refineries, providing the resources players need to build up their troops and go to battle.Ā
Final Fantasy VII
Finally, you might consider playing the classic 1997 J-RPG Final Fantasy VII, perhaps the most famous title in the series. This game, still revered today, follows the story of Cloud Strife, an alleged member of the mysterious organization, SOLDIER.
Cloud is on a mission to discover his true origins, meeting up with friends along the way. At first, his goals are purely personal, but over the course of the story, his quest becomes one of nothing other than saving the world.Ā
Sharon is an avid writer who has a concentration on nonfiction content. She hasĀ been treading the writers’ field for more than ten years and hopes to broaden her experience by delving further into book publishing. In her spare time, she enjoys a good read or movie that takes her back in time.