The top five comfort games

by Blake Snow { Oct 9th 2006 at 1:15PM }

New Gamer has compiled a list of five comfort games like comfort foods before them. The list, in terms of familiarity, simplicity, and/or pleasant association during times of distress, is as follows:

Burnout 3 (PS2, Xbox)
Guitar Hero (PS2)
Mega Man 2 (NES)
Samba de Amigo (DC)
Zoo Keeper (DS)

What games do you return to when the life glass is half empty? Electoplankton always seems to do a good job at calming my fluttered self, but then again, that's not really a game.

[via GameSetWatch]

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

LaughingTarget @ Oct 9th 2006 1:20PM

Sam and Max - Hit the Road

They say laughing is the best medecine, creates endorphines, so this game really works wonders.

Levi @ Oct 9th 2006 1:23PM

Katmari Damacy
Bubble Bobble

Ummmmmm...I can't think of any more. Maybe Pikmin.

Lorben @ Oct 9th 2006 1:23PM

Katamari Damacy works great for me. A nice rollup really takes the edge off.

Ethan @ Oct 9th 2006 1:25PM

Tetris DS. The puzzling can get my mind off the worst things.

aazzametalhead @ Oct 9th 2006 1:27PM

i find that playing call of duty 2 on veteran is quite good, also whooping ass playing live on PGR3

petrie @ Oct 9th 2006 1:33PM

I find that whenever I'm truly down I'll give Chrono Trigger another playthrough. If I'm just having a momentary blah moment or a bit of writers block, I'll play a few games of Uno on Live or see if I can't improve my score in Geometry Wars (god am I horrible at that game).

JD @ Oct 9th 2006 1:37PM

Burnout definitely works for me as a stress killer, but I gotta say Halo Multiplayer All Rockets/All Vehicles takes the cake.

I don't care how many times I see it, watching a hog full of people doing 360s across the screen gets a chuckle out of me everytime. Is that bad?

Joe @ Oct 9th 2006 1:38PM

best comfort game ever: Battletoads. I know when i'm pissed or sad, i wish my bare feet could morph into massive steel toed boots.

NoBullet @ Oct 9th 2006 1:38PM

Puzzle Fighter
PSO
San Francisco Rush 2049
Sly 2
Zelda Links Awkening

raphael @ Oct 9th 2006 1:55PM

Double Dragon II is my standby now and forever.

kodec @ Oct 9th 2006 1:56PM

- Any LucasArts graphic adventure released before the horrible Escape from Monkey Island
- Any non-CDi Legend of Zelda game
- Any game with "Super Mario" in the title
- The Super Star Wars trilogy for the SNES
- River City Ransom

Mabui @ Oct 9th 2006 1:59PM

Megaman 2? Comfort food? I think I recall attempting to break many things back in the day when that game was around.

For me, comfort games are the ones that allow a great deal of lazy freedom. I've always enjoyed Midnight Club 2 in roaming mode just to speed along in traffic when it means nothing, I also liked wave race when you could just do your own thing.

I never really feel like being violent, in order to blow off steam, I find that usually only gets me more revved up. So like, shooting people in grand theft auto, or doing things that are potentially frustrating just don't mix well with my "Chill time"

So Guitar Hero.. is definately not in that list.

RickDom @ Oct 9th 2006 1:59PM

GTA: Vice City
It's nice to go on a random killing spree and take out a bunch of people or just randomly beat pedestrians to death. Nice way to keep myself from really doing it.

Vlad @ Oct 9th 2006 2:03PM

Tetris (preferably original GB version), Katamari (either one), Guitar Hero, Tekken 5, Mario Kart DS

MosquitoControl @ Oct 9th 2006 2:03PM

Burnout 360 is smooth as silk and easy, I see the fit.

Mega Man 2, though a favorite of mine, can be frustrating, unlike any of the above games. Don't see it.
Battletoads is another poor choice.

Katamari is great. Another game that can't frustrate.

Counterstrike with dumb bots works as well. Headshot after headshot.

Kevin @ Oct 9th 2006 2:07PM

Yeah, I have to agree with kodec, all of those LucasArts games rock. And I always head back to all of my Infocom games if I really want to get away.

diskoboy @ Oct 9th 2006 2:19PM

Pac-Man has always worked for me.

Mr, Ms., or Jr.....

Adam @ Oct 9th 2006 2:19PM

Yeah I think all the Burnouts AFTER Burnout 2 are just utter TRASH. So in my mind I will just replace Burnout 3 with 2. :D

moofree @ Oct 9th 2006 2:23PM

Mega Man 2 is fine, except for the horizontal beams of death in Quick Man's stage, and the disappearing+reappearing blocks in Heat man.
Those used to be almost impossible for me to beat (but not after playing that game for more than a decade)

mcheddadi @ Oct 9th 2006 2:26PM

Harvest Moon: Magical melody

I want that gold watering thingy!

craig @ Oct 9th 2006 2:27PM

All of the Burnout games are great to relieve stress. I find playing Soul Calibur on the easiest setting tremendously satisfying. Some of the early levels of Super Monkey Ball can have the same effect on my psyche.

Papa Slick @ Oct 9th 2006 2:37PM

For me, nothing beats taking a skate in any of the tony hawk series. The meat of the game, at least for me, is in the skating once the story has been beaten. I enjoy taking either a free skate or two minute timed, and it just melts away the stress of the day.

Wulfo @ Oct 9th 2006 2:40PM

1. N: Way of the Ninja (do a google search)
2. Any SmackDown! game.
3. Beyond Good and Evil
4. Any Burnout
5. We Love Katamari

Brian @ Oct 9th 2006 2:40PM

FFX is my salvo for the "life sucks" blues. Playing it, I realize it could be worse. I could live in a world with no video games, where they play underwater waterpolo/football-type sports, and a giant monster keeps coming back and killing people.

Beans @ Oct 9th 2006 2:41PM

A nice game of CTF on a good fps is enough to get my mind off of anything ^.^

Rallion @ Oct 9th 2006 2:47PM

I've had a surprising number of unhappy moments in the last couple weeks, and every time I've found that a few playthroughs of Even Rats, one of the bonus songs in Guitar Hero, helps calm me down.

POOLSCLOSED @ Oct 9th 2006 2:51PM

Superman 64

Saneless @ Oct 9th 2006 2:51PM

Rez needs to be on that list. Katamari definitely fits though

Drakfyre @ Oct 9th 2006 2:52PM

Rez. Simple, fun, easy, great music.

I also like Shadow of the Colossus, just riding around on the horse, playing some of the fun bosses.

page @ Oct 9th 2006 3:01PM

1 LocoRoco
2 Grand Theft Auto
3 Wipeout Pure
4 Burnout Legends
5 Syphon Filter Dark Mirror

Also SSX On Tour, Me and My Katamari, Daxter, Mercury, and Virtua Tennis World Tour. They are all very good.

I would have listed some Nintendo games, but since I got a PSP my GBA and DS have been collecting a lot of dust.

kftgr @ Oct 9th 2006 3:04PM

River City Ransom. Luckily, GBA version works as well as the NES version :)

Erik Novak @ Oct 9th 2006 3:05PM

Lumines has been my ultimate comfort game.

Wreckhart @ Oct 9th 2006 3:06PM

Guitar Hero!!!!!

BTW = EBgames website has a product listed for release on 11/7/06 for a Wireless Guitar Hero Controller for PS2 from Red Octane (Guitar Hero developer) instead of the knock off. I hope this is real and not just a typo by someone.

Pat @ Oct 9th 2006 3:07PM

What an awesome topic of discussion. Really clever.

As of now, I have to agree that my favorite comfort game is Burnout. You get such a high when you're blazing like that, dodging traffic, smashing your rivals into an oncoming big rig or a pole, etc. Like the developers said, it's like going hands on with the freeway scene in Bad Boys II (don't deny the Will Smith power) and is a huge rush.

Back in the day, though, Unreal Tournament 2003 was incredibly satisfying. With the floaty physics, you could jump off a skyscraper and soar for hundreds of feet while looking down and blasting a guy in the head with a 5 or 6 rockets. It was as close to sex as a videogame could get. I can't believe I just said that.

Finished Law School @ Oct 9th 2006 3:13PM

Grand Theft Auto

otaking241 @ Oct 9th 2006 3:19PM

Good topic. I used to trance out for hours playing Soul Calibur on the DC in practice mode, hardest difficulty with invulnerability given to both combatants. Any game that has a "New Game+" kind of feature is fun to fly through again without having to spend all the time building your stats.

My own list:

We Love Katamari (PS2)
RE4 (GC)
Soul Calibur (DC)
Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan (DS)
Zelda: Ocarina of Time (N64 or GC)

Vercin @ Oct 9th 2006 3:23PM

Katamari, Animal Crossing, Meteos, and just about any turn-based Japanese RPG. Aside from Meteos, which I just like a lot, to wind down from a high-stress day, I prefer games that give me time to plan my next move.

Austin @ Oct 9th 2006 3:29PM

I always pop in Warcraft III or Starcraft to take the edge off; just try one of the custom maps. I like playing through Resident Evil 4 from the beginning with all my upgraded weapons and massacring the zombies; Nintendogs is nice just to watch the dogs bark and stuff.

flymolo @ Oct 9th 2006 3:33PM

1. super mario bros. (NES)
2. Bad News Baseball (NES)
3. Civilization Call-To-Power (PC)
4. NCAA 2003 (Gamecube)
5. Animal Crossing (Gamecube)

Zoot Suit Jedi @ Oct 9th 2006 3:35PM

GTA Vice City. Killing while listening to Mister Mister play "Take These Broken Wings"...Calgon take me away.

jarod @ Oct 9th 2006 3:37PM

a good round of expert-level (what else?) thief or thief 2 does me well, im also cracked out on starcraft, geometry wars, or WoW.

Breachless @ Oct 9th 2006 3:41PM

I too like a relaxing game when I need to "escape" for a bit. Super Mario RPG always kind of had that effect on me, and so does Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga. Any of the Mega Man games do the trick too (just last weekend I blasted through Mega Man X after a long day at work and it did wonders to put my nerves at ease.)

I also like an ass-kicking good time too though, and nothing takes care of that like GTA San Andreas, Contra III (or the original Contra), Ikaruga, any of the old Capcom fighting games, Halo on Legendary, or something that caters to the silent killer in me: Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory.

I also like Guitar Hero. Good mood or bad... but I like playing a real guitar more (which truly is the ULTIMATE in stress reduction).

Patrick @ Oct 9th 2006 3:44PM

Hmm. My list would probably look like this:

-Okami (Running around in the fields is fun)

-GTA Vice City (Killing people + 80's music is just... strange)

-FIFA 06/Road to WC (Scoring goals makes me feel good)

-Tetris DS

-Doom 3 - i love to chainsaw dead people.

Ninegauger @ Oct 9th 2006 3:45PM

Let's see... Sonic the Hedgehog 1 and 2. Sonic 2 was the first videogame I owned and the first is just as good.

Iterations of Street Fighter... though I can't stand Street Fighter II anymore in light of the Alphas and III.

The entire Zelda series... a while back I acquired (or finished aquiring) every real Zelda and beating them all. Done and done.

gzsfrk @ Oct 9th 2006 3:47PM

Super Mario Bros. 3. After attempting to play Halo 2 and having my fragile gamer ego torn to shreds by some 8 year olds, I'll take the short way through (get first two whistles in World 1, warp straight to World 8). Nothing like smacking Bowser around for a quick needed boost to my confidence. :)

Robotic House Plant @ Oct 9th 2006 4:01PM

I'm surprised Tetris is not on the list.

truplaya @ Oct 9th 2006 4:03PM

Mine has to be Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door. That has to be my favortie game...even though I beat it a while back it never gets old. The battles are not only relaxing when I'm mad but they test my strategic skills.

Luke @ Oct 9th 2006 4:05PM

1. Tetris
2. Halo 2 on live (only because I rock)
3. Unreal Tournament with max bots on that map with the two huge towers. Great stress release.

Koji @ Oct 9th 2006 4:11PM

Stepmania, I've played it so much It's like meditation to me. I dont' even realize I'm playing. I'm off in my own little thinking about whatever.

kelekod @ Oct 9th 2006 4:29PM

Megaman games (2-5) (NES/cube)
Double dragon (1-3) (NES)
Zelda (1-2) (NES)
Tetris (DS)
Mario (1-3 NES), World, 64
Smash brothers (64, melee)
Mariokart (SNES, 64, Double dash, DS)
Contra (suprised only 1 person said this one)

most of these you can win in a hour or less