Gaming

Slay the Spire is a classic, it's all turn based, playing is easy but mastering it is a deep skill if that's something you're into.

Divinity: Original Sin 2 is a cool CRPG, the exploration is real-time and it switched to turn based for combat. Very big and large, and you can spend a lotta time running around learning lore rather than fighting if that's what you like.

Persona 5 Royal is a dream, again turn-based fighting, cute characters and story, very anime. Also long (took me like 90 hours) but never feels drawn-out.

If you like board games, I've recently got the Aeons End digital adaptation, and that's a lotta fun. It's co-op, but you can play "two-handed" (aka control 2 people) and it works pretty flawlessly, and the app is very good. If you really wanna be ambitious you can even play up to 4-handed, but I feel like that's too much brainpower for any sane person lol

I find Townscaper really relaxing, there's no objective, just a toy to make cute looking towns. Haven't tested it on steam deck tho.

If you like building/puzzles there's Shapez (this one I tried on steam deck and it might take some time to get used to the controls), it's like factorio but abstract and without resource management, you just make machines that modify and combine shapes to create new ones, it get's progressively complicated, if it's your thing you'll find it quite addicting so be mindfull of that.

For sims there's Two Point Hospital, (Two Point Campus came out recently but I haven't tried it), Planet Coaster and Cities Skylines (if you're into the hard stuff)

Here are some more narrative driven games that I like:

• Life Is Strange: Graphic adventure with a cool twist and a compelling story
• Child of Light: Chill RPG in the style of a children's story
• Blacksad: Cool detective graphic adventure
• Both FAR games Lone Sails and Changing Tides: Puzzle platformer with a story told just with the environment, I recommend playing both one after the other in order
• SteamWorld Heist: Tactical RPG in a side 2D perspective with ricochet. I haven't played much of this one but it's very cool
• Gris: an interesting platformer with really nice looking animation
• A Short Hike: A cute adventure game about exploration
• Oxenfree: An interesting graphic adventure with a cool story
• Night In The Woods: Platformer adventure with an interesting story and great characters

Subnautica does have freedom and fun modes letting you ignore food and stuff like that. But I will say skipping the crafting, it loses something. The gradual increase in depth and pressure you can take is really satisfying.

I like turning off food and water needs though. That's just tedious

If you haven't seen Stardew Valley yet, have a look. It lets you play at your own speed. The best review of it I've seen was simply, "It's like playing a hug."

There's also an MMO in development that you might want to keep an eye on: Palia

APICO maybe? It's got some crafting, but is mostly pretty chill, concentrating on breeding bees.

Dorfromantik is relatively mindless. You place tiles and create landscapes. There's nice music too. There's a sort of strategy to it, but it's pretty light. Unlocking new tiles is the main grind. If you wanted a bit more thought involved, just about any turn-based strategy like Civilization 6 should do.

If you want to keep to JRPGs but at a calmer pace than FF7R, False Skies might be up your alley. ARPGs like Chronicon are also low on the intense/concentration scale (although like most ARPGs, you shouldn't expect much of a story).

But more than any of those, I think Dave the Diver is your best bet. Ocean theme, doesn't require great concentration (besides the odd minigame), and has a bunch to be taken in at your own pace.

These are some games I've played that do not require reacting in real time.

Cosmic Star Heroine -- described as "remember your favorite 1993 JRPG? this plays like your fond memory, as opposed to how that game actually played". Ultra-polished gameplay, blunt, thin plot, no dialogue trees and no sob stories. OK, one sob story.

The Witness -- also known as "fuck yeah science, the puzzle game". Unleash your inner Feynman and make sense of the unspoken 'puzzle rules` by reasoning about examples.

Superliminal -- The inverse puzzle game to the above, where you can only get ahead by aggressively keeping your inner Feynman in check, and thinking laterally. Has similar snarky, meta vibes to Portal and Stanley parable.

Inscryption -- people say this is a "deckbuilder roguelike" so the immediate response is "oh you mean like Slay the Spire?" and the answer is no. While there is some deckbuilding and some roguelike-ing, this game stays away from the pure mechanical polish of those genres, and you could even say the entire game is a commentary of the sterility of pure mechanical polish in game design.

Wasteland 3 -- an irreverent turn-based RPG set in a post-apocalyptic future, and honestly a breath of fresh air in the landscape of generic high fantasy RPGs where you spend 30% of the game running an errand, taking the wrong turn, stumbling on a magic fire-breathing weasel 15 levels higher than you, getting wasted and loading your save.

9 People, 9 Hours, 9 Doors -- a classic of the visual novel genre. A bunch of strangers trying to survive a sadistic game -- so, inspired by Jigsaw, and in turn a part of the genre that ended up inspiring Squid Game, if that helps set your expectations. Has some of the infamous excesses of Japanese media but concludes in what is IMO a contender for the best twist ending of all time. For most platforms this game can be found bundled with its sequel, under the name "The Nonary Games".

The outer wilds is mostly pretty chill and relaxing and one of the best games I've ever played. Don't look up spoilers if you pick it. It's a game about exploring and curiosity

There's a lot of great turn-based stuff. Someone already mentioned Slay the Spire, which may be my favorite, but other highlights would be:

RPGs: Divinity Original Sin II, Octopath Traveler

Tactics: XCOM, Wargroove, Battle Brothers, Into the Breach

Strategy: Civilization, Amplitude games

You could also try some real time with pause games, like FTL, city builders like Cities Skylines and Banished, and Grand Strategy games like Crusader Kings and Stellaris.

Stray is a chill game for the most part. You play as a cat. Great story, nowhere near as intense as FF.

I would wholeheartedly recommend Journey, it's a very chill game where you solve some simple puzzles in a desert with a stranger. It tells quite a beautiful story and the atmosphere is very lovely. Not to hard but very rewarding :D

Detective/mystery games tend to be a good fit for not having great dexterity while still being really engaging. I don't have a Steam Deck so you'll probably want to check on compatability for these:

Paradise Killer: Open-ended and extremely a e s t h e t i c murder mystery game. Most online commenters end there, and it's true that it is that, but it's a massive oversimplification of what is, in my experience, one of the best and most special games of the last couple years. Everyone is hot, everyone is terrible. The sky is sunny and the ground is drenched with blood-- blood of thousands of innocent people whose deaths you are explicitly NOT investigating. It's a locked room murder mystery and also a dating simulator. You are the sole investigator for an evil, murderous cult whose leadership has just been killed off, and you have impeccable taste in music. If this game has one person plugging it, it is me. If it has no one plugging it, I am dead.

IMMORTALITY: FMV mystery game with very light horror/thriller elements. You are given access to an archive of work from a 70s-90s starlet who filmed three feature films, none of which released, and then disappeared. Jump from clip to clip, fast forward and rewind through them to uncover not just the plots of the movies themselves, but the behind-the-scenes details leading to her disappearance. Most of us remember FMV games as being cheesy or poorly directed, but everyone here is turning in the performance of their lives. If you're familiar with Sam Barlow (of Her Story and Telling Lies), you'll like this for sure-- this is him fully realizing what he does well. Even if you tried those and bounced off them like I did, this one is worth a look.

Nancy Drew games: Yes, these games are mostly for young girls. Almost every single one of the over two dozen is a banger. These are point-and-click mystery puzzle games with very little eye-hand coordination or reaction time needed. These games are what made me fall in love with mystery games and they largely hold up today. Pick a setting that looks interesting to you. Standout favorites are Danger on Deception Island, Shadow At The Eater's Edge, and Sea of Darkness.

Lego games are entertaining if for no other reason than walking around and SMASHING EVERYTHING. Very satisfying.

Other than that, this thread has given me ideas. I am also high, so right now the controller is far away and I'm pondering my life choices. tries to high five followthewhiterabbit but misses and falls off the couch

Vampire Survivors is the most simple game I can think of. Only one joystick needed.

This might be a bit tricky on a Steam Deck, but have you considered Old School RuneScape?

do u you like point and clicks? monkey island collection is on steam

I loved the time I spent with Cassette beasts. If you're a pokemon fan, I can't recommend it enough. It's turn based and incredibly charming and absolutely worth the time

I'm trying out submerged, it's on sale for two bucks. The gameplay is a bit repetitive but it is relaxing and not at all twitch.

The Outer Wilds. If you have a keyboard and mouse Cities: skylines.

What about Diablo 4? It's certainly fast paced but it's definitely something that can be very casual and button mashy. From what I hear it runs well.

If you like final fantasy, you could try FFXIV online, it has an extensive and excellent story, requires very little dexterity until the extreme (and optional) lategame, and has a very generous free trial. It works on a controller, and is the only online game whose community isn't terrible.

I just picked up Sable and it seems to be a really chill exploration game. Long tutorial level before you even get the main title screen.

p.s. I feel you on the valium. I had an impacted kidney stone and the doc put me on Valium, Oxy, and one other I don't remember the other one (gee, I wonder why?)

Pharmacy was like "Hey, you didn't ask for it, but here's a couple doses of Narcan, ON US!"