Welcome back to our weekly roundup of the games we’re playing! This week, Mat J dives into the philosophical implications of “self-playing” games; Connor rediscovers the simple joys of Minesweeper; and Bertie continues his epic adventures in Big Walk with a community of Eurogamer readers.
The Games That Play Themselves
A recent conversation on Bluesky sparked an interesting debate: how much are we really playing video games when they largely play themselves? You can find the original observation here. Critics like Chris Franklin might argue that this type of deconstruction was previously reserved for narrative-driven games, highlighting the absence of meaningful player interaction and the predetermined nature of the experience. It’s a valid point, especially when considering games like Vampire Survivors, where the goal is essentially to survive for 30 minutes by strategically selecting items.
You could arguably apply this concept to almost any game. Are you really “playing” when you’re just stacking blocks and clearing lines? Or chucking orbs at other orbs on the screen? Perhaps even life itself can be viewed as a self-playing game, with us simply breathing in and out!
On a lighter note, Mat J has been captivated by Sobosuba, a game where you merge little blobs together. It’s like a fruit-merging puzzle game, but with soft-body physics that make the blobs wobble adorably. Despite finding it strangely addictive, he admits to hating it!
The Timeless Appeal of Minesweeper
When data connectivity failed, Connor turned to a classic: Minesweeper. It’s the gaming equivalent of playing with rocks during a power outage β simple, reliable, and surprisingly engaging.
Minesweeper is a brilliant puzzle game where you uncover hidden mines in a grid using numbers as clues. There’s a unique satisfaction in those moments when the numbers just “click,” allowing you to quickly identify safe spaces. And who can resist the thrill of unlocking a massive patch after clicking a safe spot?
Big Walk: A Community Adventure
Bertie and a group of Eurogamer readers embarked on their second week of extraordinary adventures in Big Walk. You can read about their previous escapades if you’re curious.
This week, they split into two teams to cover more ground and solve puzzles. They found a megaphone (which turned out to be a mistake!), hacked their way up a rocky cliff by alternately picking each other up and throwing people, got lost, and built a tower of people sitting on fold-out chairs for an epic screenshot.
The beauty of Big Walk lies in its ability to foster connection and shared experiences. Bertie’s partner described a puzzle that involved simply sitting together and talking about their lives β a testament to the game’s subtle encouragement of human interaction.
Beyond Big Walk, Bertie has also been enjoying The Lord of the Rings: The War in the North and getting some decent runs in Hades 2.
Source: Eurogamer
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