Replayability is a feature of modern video games that, frankly, I don’t take full advantage of, mainly because I’ve always preferred experiencing new adventures to reliving old ones.
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An equal footing and just slightly above Joel & Ellie’s rollercoaster tale.
However, I’m making this point precisely because there’s a limited selection of titles whose ability to captivate me and make me want to play them more than once is as outstanding as it is unusual.
Finishing a game and returning to it years later is one thing, but deciding to start a game again right after the credits roll is a rare phenomenon that speaks volumes about the game in question.
Therefore, in order to properly recognize these distinguished journeys, I invite you to read this list of the eight best adventure games with high replay value.
8 Prey
Let Me Cheat a Little
While Prey is a game where action can take center stage, which is why I ask you to forgive me for bending the rules a bit by including it on this list, the truth is that nothing is mandatory in the context of the Talos I.
In this sense, its immersive sim nature allows it to be a traditional adventure game where puzzle-solving and exploration are the main focus, considering enemies as part of the environmental threats and not (with a few exceptions) as objectives to be defeated.
The first time, of course, I played it killing everything in sight, but I acknowledge its replayability precisely because its splendid ending made me rethink my decisions, motivating me to do a second playthrough where I played everything very differently.
When you focus solely on solving puzzles, using stealth to avoid detection, and taking advantage of the GLOO Cannon to create impossible paths through the space station, you realize the immeasurable gameplay potential of the title beyond combat.
The result? One of my all-time favorite games and easily one of the most underrated I’ve ever played. Prey‘s gameplay and narrative depth are on par with many outstanding titles you could think of, so I take this opportunity to recommend this marvel to you.
7 Sword of the Sea
A Stylized Adventure
Getting into the realm of pure adventure, Giant Squid has become one of my favorite studios for its ability to create memorable journeys centered on movement and audiovisuals, but with Sword of the Sea, they completely outdid themselves.
I don’t know if I’d say they surpassed their work on Journey when they were part of thatgamecompany, but the fusion of said game with Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater has given them an amazing formula where enjoying tricks with your sword is as divine as marveling at the atmosphere and soundtrack (which could pass for AAA).
Nevertheless, I feel the studio’s maturity is truly demonstrated when you finish the game, as they opt for a stylized approach to replayability, giving you a sort of NG+ mode where the objective simply becomes one with the dunes and seas while racking up points.
It might not seem like much, but for those of us who enjoyed the base game, I’m sure having an excuse, however small, to experience it again is more than enough. Ultimately, Sword of the Sea‘s mechanics are few but engaging, making it the company’s most replayable game.
6 Mirror’s Edge Catalyst
Rejoicing in Parkour
Although I agree it doesn’t quite live up to its predecessor, Mirror’s Edge Catalyst has ended up in the abyss of unjustly forgotten titles when, by all accounts, it’s one of the best parkour games ever conceived.
Aside from the fact that the story is even more inconsequential, it’s a title whose mechanical capabilities for making you feel like a master of street movement are superb, with spectacular graphics and a very vivid sense of speed.
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Mirror’s Edge Catalyst was one of my saving graces during a period when I spent two months without internet access, mainly because of its challenges, the joy of improving my times, and the satisfaction of free roaming while doing my best to chain together jumps, wall-running, flips, and other moves as smoothly as possible.
What the title lacks in spontaneity and focus, it makes up for in content and fun, which is why I think it makes it a perfect candidate for those who like open worlds but are no longer so keen on the idea of fighting everything that moves.
5 Pentiment
Art and Its Variables
Adventure video games shouldn’t be defined solely by their exploration mechanics, but also by their narrative ones, as demonstrated by the detective marvel that is Pentiment.
With its branching paths that depend on our decisions, affecting both the characters and the plot itself, it’s among the few graphic adventures I’ve felt compelled to replay immediately, and the quality of its writing truly warrants it.
The intriguing events, relatable characters, and impressive world-building are too compelling to be satisfied with just one playthrough, especially considering it’s replayable simply for the glorious opportunity to experience its art style again.
Wandering through the mystical city of Tassing remains vivid in my memory because of its ability to leave a lasting impression. I can close my eyes and still remember where the bakery or the blacksmith is, which is incredible for a game that isn’t open-world and doesn’t last 100 hours.
To be honest, I dare say Pentiment is my favorite Obsidian game, and one whose credits I’ve watched more times than any other, despite it mostly competing with RPGs. If that doesn’t speak to its ability to instantly captivate you, I honestly don’t think anything does.
4 Road 96
Emigrating is Definitely a Journey
Roguelikes are designed with replayability in mind, but few offer a concept like Road 96, whose procedural generation isn’t strictly gameplay-driven but rather narrative-driven.
Set in an autocratic country where the primary goal for young people is to emigrate across the border, this title allows us to step into the shoes of backpackers from diverse backgrounds traveling across the territory to reach their destination.
Here, conversations aren’t about swords, powers, bosses, and the fate of the world, but about how much money you have, how far you’ve gotten, the characters you meet along the way, and what you’re willing to do to find a new life, making its procedural generation feel remarkably realistic.
The replayability is built upon all its narrative options, variety of encounters, different endings, and other technical elements, but also on the desire to fully flesh out its message. Road 96 is a game about our current global political situation, and as a political scientist, I can’t help but hold it in immeasurable esteem.
3 The Talos Principle 2
Rebuilding Civilization One Puzzle at a Time
One of the growths I’ve most appreciated in the puzzle genre is its ability to increasingly contextualize the problem-solving process, but I’d say none have done so on the scale of The Talos Principle 2.
Of course, the core gameplay revolves around riddles in the form of laser beams, boxes, teleporting objects, doppelgängers, and other eccentric and fascinating elements, though Croteam went far beyond simply creating a closed set of cognitive challenges.
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Instead, the studio went to great lengths to create an entire world with numerous sections for walking, marveling at colossal monoliths, exploring to appreciate the flora, and talking with other robots about what it means to build a new civilization.
There’s as much philosophy and thought processes within the puzzles as there are outside of them, because The Talos Principle 2 is also an adventure, featuring journeys on flying ships to giant pyramids, dialogues with automatons experiencing identity crises, and far more cats than I could have imagined, which is awesome.
2 The Stanley Parable
A Spiral within a Spiral
Speaking of travel, I think few journeys have intrigued me as much as The Stanley Parable, whose reflection on free will in the context of video games continues to strike me as one of the most wonderful things the interactive industry has ever produced.
On the surface, it’s a highly comedic game that captivates you with its ability to read you like a book, anticipating every move you think of to try to circumvent its limitations when, in reality, you’re falling right into its trap.
However, The Stanley Parable is more than just a walking simulator with multiple endings; it’s a constant exploration of the invisible walls that condition, limit, and push the interactive experience, always maintaining a dialogue with the player, even though the only response can be walking.
The thing is, discovering the game’s length is incredibly captivating, so you never know when it will end, and therefore, you always have a compelling excuse to continue engaging with the conversation the game wants to maintain.
Have you really seen it all? Has the narrator told you everything he had to say? Are you sure you can complete the achievements? The Stanley Parable raises many questions, and nothing screams the concept of adventure more than an experience that constantly gives you reasons to keep walking toward the horizon.
1 Blue Prince
A Mystery of Hundreds of Hours
In any case, if I had to describe the video game that has taken the feeling of intrigue and eureka to the extreme, it would undoubtedly be Blue Prince, a masterpiece of puzzles, roguelikes, and adventure games.
Even though everything takes place within a mansion, the ease with which this title captivates you is impressive, drawing you into an overwhelming spiral of mechanical and narrative complexities I never would have expected.
Fifteen hours go by, and you think it’s a very good puzzle game. Then, fifty hours pass, and you realize you’ve dug kilometers underground, but you’ve barely seen the first layers. In fact, it’s not until 100 hours in that you’re actually able to sit down to acknowledge you’ve lived one of the adventures of a lifetime.
Political plots, revolutions, sunken kingdoms, family dramas, magic, impossible architecture… Blue Prince is more than just cracking a safe or figuring out how to pump water from the pump room to the basement; it’s a dense museum of centuries of fascinating stories that are challenging to discover and understand.
If you’re someone who enjoys reading books, you understand how an adventure can be epic even if it takes place in a single location, and that’s exactly how Blue Prince feels: like a fantasy that should theoretically be impossible, but exists thanks to the power of video games.
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Author: 360 Technology Group
