games

The most enjoyable thing on the rig. Everything else is filler between these sessions.

1. 
   Split Fiction ACTIVE Hazelight, 2025

   2-controller Currently active campaign with the family. Wife enjoys it in light sessions too. Finish this first; It Takes Two queued for next.

2. 
   HoMM 3 + HotA modlist

   Hot-seat Turn-based, dragons, fairytale palette. Hot-seat with the 8yo, no question. Pause-friendly between turns means kid-friendly thinking time.

3. 
   Portal 2

   Split-screen The best brain-game on Steam for couch co-op. Physics + portals = visual spectacle that transcends English. Start with the 8yo when she's ready.

4. 
   Wingspan

   Pass-and-play Birds, calm, educational engine-builder. Lap-friendly with the 8yo. Real strategy dressed up as a relaxing game.

5. 
   TMNT: Shredder's Revenge
6. 
   Overcooked! 2

Boomerang Fu

Castle Crashers Remastered

Castle Crashers

BattleBlock Theater

Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime

Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes

Overcooked

Hidden in Plain Sight

Single headset, take turns. 8yo and 6yo handle Alyx, Shapelab, SUPERHOT well — spectator watches the mirror on the 100". No horror, no psychological-disturbing content.

1. 
   Shapelab Leopoly

   VR sculpting, polygon mesh. Kids LOVE this — pure creative play, zero violence. Their creations could even feed your TPU print pipeline. Pure 3D-print dad fuel.

2. 
   The Lab (Valve)
3. 
   Job Simulator
4. 
   SculptrVR
5. 
   Vacation Simulator
6. 
   I Expect You To Die

Space Pirate Trainer

Cosmic Trip

Solo gameplay with deep visual / systemic appeal — kids drift in, watch, ask questions

1. 
   Planet Zoo Frontier

   Kids LOVE animals. Visual showcase on the 100". Deep welfare brain workout. Almost no dialogue.

2. 
   Before We Leave

   Hex-grid city-builder, peaceful. Dual-placed: kids can watch (T3), solo sessions (T5).

3. 
   Universe Sandbox
4. 
   Space Engine
5. 
   Subnautica
6. 
   Cities: Skylines

No Man's Sky

Two Point Hospital

FINAL FANTASY XV WINDOWS EDITION

Fallout 4

Jurassic World Evolution 2

Sid Meier's Civilization VI

Factorio

Kerbal Space Program

Low-intensity, all-ages — Sunday morning with cocoa. Wife-favorite genre.

1. 
   ABZÛ

   Underwater meditation game. Zero dialogue. 4yo, 6yo, 8yo all sit transfixed watching whales. ~2 hours total — perfect Sunday morning vibe.

2. 
   A Short Hike
3. 
   Stardew Valley
4. 
   Townscaper
5. 
   Unpacking
6. 
   Mini Motorways

Spiritfarer

Carto

Bluey: The Videogame

Cloud Gardens

Dorfromantik

Flower

GRIS

ISLANDERS

Kids excluded — your brain workout, your rules

1. 
   SimCity 4 Deluxe

   Active T5 spine. DgVoodoo at 1920x1080 (TV rejects 1440p over HDMI; 4K bloats fixed-size UI). NAM required. Retry girafe european-trees when Simtropolis is up.

2. 
   Witcher 3 heavily modded

   Solo only — kids permanently rejected from this one.

3. 
   Factorio

   The classic. Your meditation. Engineering brain, infinite depth.

4. 
   Before We Leave

   Hex-grid city-builder, peaceful. Dual-placed: kids can watch (T3), solo sessions (T5).

5. 
   Crusader Kings III
6. 
   Baldur's Gate 3

Mass Effect: Legendary

Planet Zoo

Disco Elysium

Divinity: Original Sin 2

DARK SOULS™ III

FINAL FANTASY XV WINDOWS EDITION

Fallout 3 - Game of the Year Edition

BioShock Infinite

Commute / couch / waiting-room games — different rig, different rules.

1. Mindustry
   Mindustry

   FOSS Factorio-meets-tower-defense, infinite replay.

2. Slay the Spire
   Slay the Spire

   Best mobile roguelike deckbuilder.

3. The Battle of Polytopia
   The Battle of Polytopia
4. Bad North
   Bad North
5. WorldBox
   WorldBox

Peggle Deluxe

Peggle Nights

Loot Hunter

Dorfromantik

ISLANDERS

Mini Motorways

Plants vs Zombies (OG)

Puzzle Quest 2