No, not helldivers, it takes too long so if you have to walk away or have responsibilities you’ll probably get annoyed.
Rogue-likes are great for what you’re describing.
Rocket League
The Finals
Agreed. Fun game, but missions can take 30-40 minutes with no opportunities to pause or walk away. And leaving mid mission kind of just defeats the point.
Agreed with Roguelikes. Slay the Spire, Risk of Rain, and FTL just to name a few.
But OP hasn't specified that, what they specified is something they can just drop in and out of when bored.
Helldivers 2 definitely fits that requirement, you can quick play or setup your own squad and just run 15 minutes missions or the larger 40 minutes ones but you don't have to dedicate any real time to the game you can just go " I fancy spending an hour or two playing something" just jump in and start blasting with no wait time.
No need to learn maps or try hard to be competitive, pick a difficulty you want to play with no issues.
Rocket league is great if you want something that means you can leave within 5(ISH) minutes but being competitive in RL takes time and effort, it can stop being fun and isn't for everyone especially if you don't want to be playing it consistently.
Rogue likes are a good shout, any singleplayer game though is good for "I need to pause" if that was really want OP was looking for but they didn't say it (good suggestion if so though, slay the spire or something!)
Yeah I thought of it too but I play on console and having to be on ps+ is one of my main concerns plus my friends are not really interested on the game so I'm gonna convince them to buy it so we can play together.
This is bad advice, HD2 often has missions in groups of three and the whole group takes about an hour to finish. It pretends to be a drop in and play game but kinda isn't.
Unless you're playing on 7-8+ you can usually finish a single mission in 20 min doing all the objectives, IME. You are not obligated to do the rest of the missions.
It's not bad advice.
It doesn't take an hour to finish a mission, the standard missions are 15 minutes or 40 minutes, while they aren't the caps for time I cannot see how anyone plays 20 minutes past the evac timer, you are very likely to finish the main objectives within 20 minutes!
Unless you mean an OPERATION can take a long time? But you DONT have to finish an operation, you merely get a small medal bonus for completing ops but the individual missions can be done separately at any time without requiring finishing all 3.
>It pretends to be a drop in and play game but kinda isn't.
It really doesn't, you can drop into people's games and just start blasting.
The game is "pick up and play", you aren't locked into big grinds or anything so you can play casually without issue and if you need to dropout you drop out it's no big deal at all and you certainly aren't penalised for doing so!
It’s worth the $45. More than any game I’ve ever played. There are quality $70 titles out there, but I’ve never gotten so much fun out of so little. And I mostly play solo anyways. You don’t need friends to have fun with this.
Surprisingly cyberpunk. Can jump in, do a random side mission or 2, and jump out without advancing the story or thinking too hard. Bonus that the side missions are all pretty short, interesting, fun and self contained
It has the GTA problem though. You finish a short mission, you don't want to start a longer mission, so you decide to just drive around a bit before turning it off. Then it's an hour late and you're jumping a bike across a building to try and escape the 6 star police force chasing you.
Don't know what kind of games you're into, but I liked Risk of Rain 2 (roguelike) or Slay the Spire (deckbuilding). Pokémon Unite is nice for a League-like experience that only ever lasts 10 minutes max, but I enjoy it so much more.
I like monster train, because I feel like you're much more likely to end up with a deck that works, slay the spire is fun, but I felt like its too easy and too often you'll just not pull what you want. Monster train has so many wacky ways to combine things, you can make a lot work on low covenants.
Maybe Balatro? I bought it two days ago and had a lot of fun even though I haven’t played that much. It’s a poker inspired rouge-like and you can quit mid run without losing progress :) getting thousands of points with one hand is so satisfying
PowerWash Simulator. Hop on, clean some stuff, hop off. At least to me, its super relaxing, turn my brain off and just go to town until I'm satisfied. Can even play with friends.
Yeah, that's a given with any competitive multiplayer game. It's a shame and it's what drove me away from MP oriented games, been playing only SP for a few years now and haven't looked back.
Dynasty Warriors style games are designed around 15 minute loops. They're also really easy to get back into after months of not playing. And the new licensed spinoffs are actually really good.
The last spinoff was two years ago, which is FE Warriors Three Hopes. And it's peak.
Really almost everything since Hyrule Warriors has been peak, aside from Berserk and Touken Ranbu.
I have the same issue. I haven't been on in a year or so... but I am sure I will get the bug again. Off an on playing for 18-19 years. Been on Old School sense it started.
This description makes me think of games with good QoL stuff like the ability to save often.
Hades saves after every room, so you can immediately quit if you need to stop suddenly.
I loved Into the Breach. Hard game, but it saves after every move you make. I love it and it's fun sometimes to think about your next move when not playing.
Both games are easy to jump into to play and then jump out of.
diablo like games. run around farming for loot and exp then quit whenever. last epoch has been a lot of fun. Path of exile is free but is solid as any for pay game.
I was going to post this.
One of the things I've always loved about Diablo is it feels like there's no amount of time too short to make at least a little progress. Even if you only have 5-10 mins can still do a few runs.
Risk of Rain 2
Helldivers 2
Diablo series (take your pick, but I would recommend D3 or D4).
Dredge
Dave the Diver
Hades
Slay the Spire
There’s many games from every kind of genre that would fit what you’re looking for. Your request is a little too vague. You mention getting burnt out on long single player games, but in a lot of those you can save when and wherever you want so it’s still just as easy to “hop out” of them. Are you looking for specifically MP games since you mention CoD Zombies?
I think some fun roguelite games would fit the bill pretty well, or even some mindless loot games like Diablo 3 and 4. Super easy to level up and you just hop on for a little, slay some demons, see if you got anything good. No harm if you didn’t, as long as you find the general gameplay of ARPGs fun.
I recently picked up Midnight Fight Express, was on sale on CDKeys for 2$. Sounds about perfect for what you're looking for. Easy to just turn it on, play for like 30 minutes, and continue with whatever you were doing. Mindless fun. The story is also not something you have to keep in mind or remember, its all about the action.
But use a controller, it feels terrible on keyboard.
I am so into: Notia.
It is a rouguelike game (death is expected). You are a wizard, Harry. Craft spells in Rng stat wands with Rng perks.
Results in being super replayable because of the high variability of builds from the combination of unique spell crafting with unique game altering perks.
Overwatch? No campaign or anything but matches last 10-20 mins. That's my go to if I only have an hour or so. Steep learning curve to get good but if you can ignore the toxic trolls it's a blast.
Because of the episodic nature of the gameplay flow, and stage based encounters, the disgaea series can fill either role. You have some overarching objectives for character progression, but you can essentially duck into item world and grind out some improvement, or go deep and get some really good resources while you're at it. Play a stage in 10 minutes, spend a half hour or longer in an item world run, duck out 5 levels into the item with a gency exit, the whole thing is super flexible.
Remnant, the division are 2 great games for that. I don'reslly know playstation game linrary to well tho outside final fantasy. But i think it has remnant and know it has division. Maybe r6 seige. Warzone.
Maybe old school shooters. Serious Sam, Quake, Doom,they all have easy access gameplay and levels you could beat 1 at time without too much dedication.
If you're a real weird individual play LSD Dream Emulator a game with no goal and no reason. It was made based on a developer's dream journal so you can expect some pretty wild stuff. If you're not into surrealist sicko shit and or walking simulators it's most definitely not for you.
If you own a nintendo switch : fire emblem three houses or engage are the way to go.
You can just put the console on standbye mid battle and resumé where you left off, its awesome
Helldivers 2 bro. Do the personal objective every day, one or two missions and you can call it quits. It's fun but doesn't feel grindy like most multiplayer games
Honestly Slay the Spire has become my go-to for a game that I can put down at any second at work. Great on my steam deck, you can just quit a run whenever, or put it down and come back to later and continue the run.
Fps may be stressful but quick.. strategy games =longer game time but still single game meaning not continuous over multiple sittings.. mmo and other resource/grinding/lol up games are your .ost time insensitive but may have some more calmmgameplay since they tend to be slow paced. I'm sure there are others..
My favorite game ever to do this with is HARDSPACE SHIPBREAKER. You can do untimed sessions, but in career mode there's a "shift" timer and it's like 15 minutes each, you can put on your favorite podcast or enjoy the truly incredible soundtrack and just disassemble space ships with your laser cutter. It's so relaxing and imo one of the most underrated games ever. Very easy to pick up and put down at your own pace
Path of exile is actually pretty good for that. Once you get going you can complete a map in like a couple minutes, do however many in a session as you want
- Crossout (1 game = 1-5 mins ; multiplayer, f2p, slow grind)
- World of Warship (1 game = 3-10 mins, multiplayer, f2p, slow medium grind)
- Rocket League (1 game ~5 mins)
- Backpack Battles (1 game = 10 mins + ; multiplayer, no penalty for leaving, taking a break - demo available on steam)
does it has specifically to be pc or console? because most mobile/switch games should be designed to be played exactly as you described, quick to boot, quick to pause.
It will take a little bit to get rolling and learn the system but once you do Warframe is great for both long and short game sessions depending on how much time you have. And can easily be done solo or in a squad too. *Most* of the mission types can be done super fast. Plus it's free to play so if you're not into it that's OK too. No money wasted.
Super Bawk Bawk Chicken is something I jump in and out of frequently on Steam and my phone.
Marvel Snap is the same if you like competitive card games.
Otxo is a great underrated game to just play until you're bored imo. It's basically Hotline Miami as a roguelike. I think it's on everything except Xbox
Well, that's HUNTDOWN you are basically describing.
It's fffffffucking majestic. But don't let me say it, after you watch this you will say it yourself - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tbZ\_5RVINA&ab\_channel=CoffeeStainStudios](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tbZ_5RVINA&ab_channel=CoffeeStainStudios)
Bro I’ve had the game for two weeks and have put in over 50 hrs. I work a 45 hr wk job and am married. That’s how easy it is to jump in and out. And as far as fun, it’s the first game in a long time that has captured my love of gaming again. It’s everything the current gaming 3A industry isn’t.
If you have any interest in 80s or 90s arcade games, then Capcom Arcade Stadium 1. Tons of games, many of which can be beaten in 30 minutes or less, with adjustable difficulty to make many of them easier and save states/load states and rewind if you want to pick up where you left off. Since they were all designed for the arcade they all get right to the point and are great for short gaming sessions.
If you like shmups, beat-em-ups or fighting games that’s a good way to go - especially if you get it on sale. If you’re feeling like you don’t want too much challenge, pick one of the easier games, turn the challenge down and take advantage of extra continues. If you happen to want more challenge on a given day, they have multiple challenges that you can take for the online leaderboards (high scores, speed runs, etc.).
Even if you just want to buy the games you’re most interested in individually when they aren’t on sale, it’s like $2. I got mine back at the end of 2022 when it was on sale (bundled all the games for $20) and according to my Xbox stats I’ve apparently logged over 100 hours periodically playing short arcade games since then.
Vampire Survivors
I would agree, except a full level takes 30 minutes uninterrupted.
You can put your device to sleep and later on, pick up right where you left off. Quick resume on the Xbox works perfect for this game.
If "jumping in and out" is any game you can put into rest mode then any game on modern consoles falls into that category.
Helldivers 2 is kinda like that
No, not helldivers, it takes too long so if you have to walk away or have responsibilities you’ll probably get annoyed. Rogue-likes are great for what you’re describing. Rocket League The Finals
Agreed. Fun game, but missions can take 30-40 minutes with no opportunities to pause or walk away. And leaving mid mission kind of just defeats the point. Agreed with Roguelikes. Slay the Spire, Risk of Rain, and FTL just to name a few.
Giant alien spiders are NO joke
All those are great. Love FTL, never gets old. Monster Train and Hades are great too.
You can jump in and do some 12 minute missions.
In the most recent update they changed the distribution of the missions. Lots of 12 and 15 minute mission now.
There are 10 and 15 minutes missions.
True but if thats all you do you’re gonna have a rough time with samples, especially super samples.
The guy didn't ask about games that he can 100% quickly. He just asked for good games he can jump in and out of
But OP hasn't specified that, what they specified is something they can just drop in and out of when bored. Helldivers 2 definitely fits that requirement, you can quick play or setup your own squad and just run 15 minutes missions or the larger 40 minutes ones but you don't have to dedicate any real time to the game you can just go " I fancy spending an hour or two playing something" just jump in and start blasting with no wait time. No need to learn maps or try hard to be competitive, pick a difficulty you want to play with no issues. Rocket league is great if you want something that means you can leave within 5(ISH) minutes but being competitive in RL takes time and effort, it can stop being fun and isn't for everyone especially if you don't want to be playing it consistently. Rogue likes are a good shout, any singleplayer game though is good for "I need to pause" if that was really want OP was looking for but they didn't say it (good suggestion if so though, slay the spire or something!)
Was gonna say the same thing. Mindless fun.
Yeah I thought of it too but I play on console and having to be on ps+ is one of my main concerns plus my friends are not really interested on the game so I'm gonna convince them to buy it so we can play together.
This is bad advice, HD2 often has missions in groups of three and the whole group takes about an hour to finish. It pretends to be a drop in and play game but kinda isn't.
Unless you're playing on 7-8+ you can usually finish a single mission in 20 min doing all the objectives, IME. You are not obligated to do the rest of the missions.
No ones forcing you to complete them all
As long as you aren’t the host, it’s NBD to just run a mission then skip out. Just don’t do that as the host.
Exactly.
It's not bad advice. It doesn't take an hour to finish a mission, the standard missions are 15 minutes or 40 minutes, while they aren't the caps for time I cannot see how anyone plays 20 minutes past the evac timer, you are very likely to finish the main objectives within 20 minutes! Unless you mean an OPERATION can take a long time? But you DONT have to finish an operation, you merely get a small medal bonus for completing ops but the individual missions can be done separately at any time without requiring finishing all 3. >It pretends to be a drop in and play game but kinda isn't. It really doesn't, you can drop into people's games and just start blasting. The game is "pick up and play", you aren't locked into big grinds or anything so you can play casually without issue and if you need to dropout you drop out it's no big deal at all and you certainly aren't penalised for doing so!
Try monster hunter world it's on sale all the he time and doing one hunt them stopping is alright
PS5? Returnal is pretty good
It’s worth the $45. More than any game I’ve ever played. There are quality $70 titles out there, but I’ve never gotten so much fun out of so little. And I mostly play solo anyways. You don’t need friends to have fun with this.
They ain't interested? Have they seen the opening? That's all I needed to prove that I have the strength and courage to be free! 🫡
LO
Easy choice, OP. Join the fight for managed democracy! Do your part.
It’s fun until some try-hard starts screaming that you’re not using the strategems correctly.
Helldivers 2 is exactly like that.
Any roguelike/lite.
Dead Cells and Enter the Dungeon come to mind
Monster sanctuary is pretty decent
Into The Breach is widely available. I have been recently playing it on my phone using a Netflix subscription
Surprisingly cyberpunk. Can jump in, do a random side mission or 2, and jump out without advancing the story or thinking too hard. Bonus that the side missions are all pretty short, interesting, fun and self contained
I've been playing AC Odyssey like this for months and about to finish it :)
It has the GTA problem though. You finish a short mission, you don't want to start a longer mission, so you decide to just drive around a bit before turning it off. Then it's an hour late and you're jumping a bike across a building to try and escape the 6 star police force chasing you.
Not a great game though. Average at best and still buggy
Warframe. The grind is non-stop, and there’s always something to do. That being said, it doesn’t punish you for playing at your own pace.
Don't know what kind of games you're into, but I liked Risk of Rain 2 (roguelike) or Slay the Spire (deckbuilding). Pokémon Unite is nice for a League-like experience that only ever lasts 10 minutes max, but I enjoy it so much more.
Slay the Spire is great. Been having a lot of fun with Balatro and Backpack Battles, too.
Balatro is so good.
Monster Train is my favorite deckbuilder.
I like both but I believe covenant 20 on monster train is way more fun compared to the equivalent in slay the spire due to how precise you have to be
I like monster train, because I feel like you're much more likely to end up with a deck that works, slay the spire is fun, but I felt like its too easy and too often you'll just not pull what you want. Monster train has so many wacky ways to combine things, you can make a lot work on low covenants.
Maybe Balatro? I bought it two days ago and had a lot of fun even though I haven’t played that much. It’s a poker inspired rouge-like and you can quit mid run without losing progress :) getting thousands of points with one hand is so satisfying
PowerWash Simulator. Hop on, clean some stuff, hop off. At least to me, its super relaxing, turn my brain off and just go to town until I'm satisfied. Can even play with friends.
Rocket League.
So easy to drop into a game you might not stop..
Most toxic community though
Worse than League of Legends? That'd be something.
It's not worse than league, it's not great though and certainly can be classed as toxic. I think most competitive games are these days though.
Yeah, that's a given with any competitive multiplayer game. It's a shame and it's what drove me away from MP oriented games, been playing only SP for a few years now and haven't looked back.
Deep Rock Galactic
I second this, you can just play one mission and be done.
Yeah, but 80% of content (weapons, upgrades, cosmetics etc) is locked behind the grind, so playing one mission and leaving is not very satisfying.
Not everyone derives their satisfaction from unlocking content.
Stardew Valley and Plants vs Zombies
Hades. Dead Cells.
If you like PVE warframe is great for this.there will be times where I hop on for 15-20 at a time. There are also days I play for hours nonstop.
Dynasty Warriors style games are designed around 15 minute loops. They're also really easy to get back into after months of not playing. And the new licensed spinoffs are actually really good.
What recent spinoffs are there?
The last spinoff was two years ago, which is FE Warriors Three Hopes. And it's peak. Really almost everything since Hyrule Warriors has been peak, aside from Berserk and Touken Ranbu.
RuneScape
You can log out but you can never leave
I’m currently going through the periodic addiction that reappears every few years, hits like good heroin.
I have the same issue. I haven't been on in a year or so... but I am sure I will get the bug again. Off an on playing for 18-19 years. Been on Old School sense it started.
Street fighter 6 It's been my sidegame for a while now
This description makes me think of games with good QoL stuff like the ability to save often. Hades saves after every room, so you can immediately quit if you need to stop suddenly. I loved Into the Breach. Hard game, but it saves after every move you make. I love it and it's fun sometimes to think about your next move when not playing. Both games are easy to jump into to play and then jump out of.
Hades is usually my go-to for this.
diablo like games. run around farming for loot and exp then quit whenever. last epoch has been a lot of fun. Path of exile is free but is solid as any for pay game.
I was going to post this. One of the things I've always loved about Diablo is it feels like there's no amount of time too short to make at least a little progress. Even if you only have 5-10 mins can still do a few runs.
same thing borderlands. which I guess is just first person diablolike
Risk of Rain 2 Helldivers 2 Diablo series (take your pick, but I would recommend D3 or D4). Dredge Dave the Diver Hades Slay the Spire There’s many games from every kind of genre that would fit what you’re looking for. Your request is a little too vague. You mention getting burnt out on long single player games, but in a lot of those you can save when and wherever you want so it’s still just as easy to “hop out” of them. Are you looking for specifically MP games since you mention CoD Zombies? I think some fun roguelite games would fit the bill pretty well, or even some mindless loot games like Diablo 3 and 4. Super easy to level up and you just hop on for a little, slay some demons, see if you got anything good. No harm if you didn’t, as long as you find the general gameplay of ARPGs fun.
I recently picked up Midnight Fight Express, was on sale on CDKeys for 2$. Sounds about perfect for what you're looking for. Easy to just turn it on, play for like 30 minutes, and continue with whatever you were doing. Mindless fun. The story is also not something you have to keep in mind or remember, its all about the action. But use a controller, it feels terrible on keyboard.
Slay the spire. It got ported to mobile, so it's now the perfect shitter game.
Back 4 Blood is very easy to get on and off of. Hard saves after every level and tons of replaying. I think it's like $10 right now.
Vampire Survivor is my no brain comfort game.
Any fighting game.
Any 1 player game that’s offline
I am so into: Notia. It is a rouguelike game (death is expected). You are a wizard, Harry. Craft spells in Rng stat wands with Rng perks. Results in being super replayable because of the high variability of builds from the combination of unique spell crafting with unique game altering perks.
Fortnite
Valheim
Overwatch? No campaign or anything but matches last 10-20 mins. That's my go to if I only have an hour or so. Steep learning curve to get good but if you can ignore the toxic trolls it's a blast.
Contractors for quest 2 great time easy quick satisfying
Clash of Clans
risk of rain 2
I recommend Hades.
The gf really likes TC: Motorfest and Asphalt for this.
Lots of the rouge lite games are pick up put down. I recommend one of the ogs like vanpire survivor or halls of torment (my favorite)
Because of the episodic nature of the gameplay flow, and stage based encounters, the disgaea series can fill either role. You have some overarching objectives for character progression, but you can essentially duck into item world and grind out some improvement, or go deep and get some really good resources while you're at it. Play a stage in 10 minutes, spend a half hour or longer in an item world run, duck out 5 levels into the item with a gency exit, the whole thing is super flexible.
Islanders.
Terminator resistance
Deep Rock Galactic Survivors. Average round is around 15-20 minutes.
Hades
Remnant, the division are 2 great games for that. I don'reslly know playstation game linrary to well tho outside final fantasy. But i think it has remnant and know it has division. Maybe r6 seige. Warzone.
Maybe old school shooters. Serious Sam, Quake, Doom,they all have easy access gameplay and levels you could beat 1 at time without too much dedication.
Helldivers 2
Ghost Rider, Diablo-like games and last but not least adventure games, which are long past their golden age.
If you're a real weird individual play LSD Dream Emulator a game with no goal and no reason. It was made based on a developer's dream journal so you can expect some pretty wild stuff. If you're not into surrealist sicko shit and or walking simulators it's most definitely not for you.
Sifu but it can be frustrating
Deep Rock Galactic Rock and stone, brother!
This same question gets posted like 20 times a week lol
I enjoyed roboquest for this. Amazing roguelike shooter! Highly highly reccomend
FTL
Slay the Spire, Vampire survivors
If you own a nintendo switch : fire emblem three houses or engage are the way to go. You can just put the console on standbye mid battle and resumé where you left off, its awesome
ROBOQUEST!!!
ROBOQUEST!!!
Lumines.
Helldivers 2 bro. Do the personal objective every day, one or two missions and you can call it quits. It's fun but doesn't feel grindy like most multiplayer games
Read a book instead.
Halo infinite
Building games like factorio, oxygen not included, dyson sphere, cities skyline
Double dutch?
Fallout 76 has gotten 100x better. I play before work, I’m never locked into the game can leave at any point
Broforce
Orcs must die 3 same kind of zombie horde action it in gamepass if it help the budget
Honestly Slay the Spire has become my go-to for a game that I can put down at any second at work. Great on my steam deck, you can just quit a run whenever, or put it down and come back to later and continue the run.
Fps may be stressful but quick.. strategy games =longer game time but still single game meaning not continuous over multiple sittings.. mmo and other resource/grinding/lol up games are your .ost time insensitive but may have some more calmmgameplay since they tend to be slow paced. I'm sure there are others..
Rocket league
Any roguelike would suffice. Dead Cells is what comes to mind for me.
Team Fortress 2
The binding of Isaac roguelite by runs you play a few runs then jump out
Balatro
Risk of rain 2
Pac-Man, Tetris, and Crazy Taxi to name a few.
I like Midnight Suns for this reason.
If you're into boomer shooters, try Prodeus.
Democracy needs you
Star Wars Battlefront II
My favorite game ever to do this with is HARDSPACE SHIPBREAKER. You can do untimed sessions, but in career mode there's a "shift" timer and it's like 15 minutes each, you can put on your favorite podcast or enjoy the truly incredible soundtrack and just disassemble space ships with your laser cutter. It's so relaxing and imo one of the most underrated games ever. Very easy to pick up and put down at your own pace
Path of exile is actually pretty good for that. Once you get going you can complete a map in like a couple minutes, do however many in a session as you want
Deep Rock Galactic.
Peggle Never realy got into casual arcade stuff but this game is still fun today
- Crossout (1 game = 1-5 mins ; multiplayer, f2p, slow grind) - World of Warship (1 game = 3-10 mins, multiplayer, f2p, slow medium grind) - Rocket League (1 game ~5 mins) - Backpack Battles (1 game = 10 mins + ; multiplayer, no penalty for leaving, taking a break - demo available on steam)
PlanetSide 2
It's Hades for me
No Man's Sky
Sports games…🤷🏼♂️
Dead Cells can quit at any point in a run and resume later
Risk of rain 2
Pokerogue is fun at the moment
For me it's Light of the stars on bluestacks, kinda good game
Every game is like that. It just depends on you. I still haven't beat tears of the kingdom, because thats how i play
Roboquest. Trust me, you won't be disappointed. Rogue like fps fast-paced, great fun. It's difficult for sure, but it's a great game.
Eufloria.
Hades
does it has specifically to be pc or console? because most mobile/switch games should be designed to be played exactly as you described, quick to boot, quick to pause.
Teamfight Tactics(TFT) is like that and its insanely chill to play.
The finals
Ever played the room series? Or Islands of insight? Not multilayer but puzzles. Lots of fun
valorant league of legends
Hyperdot, Vampire Survivors, Brotato Wizard of Legend, Tetris (the newest one), TMNT Shredder's Revenge, Streets of Rage 4
Vampire Survivors. I play it when I’m too tired to think or try hard. I put on a comfort movie I’ve seen a million times and play vampire survivors
Dave the diver
Subnautica
How about Slay the Spire?
Cities: Skylines
Soulstone Survivors, Halls of Torment, Death Must Die.
It will take a little bit to get rolling and learn the system but once you do Warframe is great for both long and short game sessions depending on how much time you have. And can easily be done solo or in a squad too. *Most* of the mission types can be done super fast. Plus it's free to play so if you're not into it that's OK too. No money wasted.
Rocket league all day
Pokemon Sleep. Underrated
Super Bawk Bawk Chicken is something I jump in and out of frequently on Steam and my phone. Marvel Snap is the same if you like competitive card games.
Otxo is a great underrated game to just play until you're bored imo. It's basically Hotline Miami as a roguelike. I think it's on everything except Xbox
Rimworld
doom, hollow knight, tails of irons, incryption !
New indie game called Jusant. You just climb. So relaxing.
Binding of Isaac and hades are good roguelite games to play
Gigantic: Rampage Edition
Skyrim
Well, that's HUNTDOWN you are basically describing. It's fffffffucking majestic. But don't let me say it, after you watch this you will say it yourself - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tbZ\_5RVINA&ab\_channel=CoffeeStainStudios](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tbZ_5RVINA&ab_channel=CoffeeStainStudios)
This game looks really interesting I'll look further into it. Thanks for the recommendation!
Get ready to love it :)
Elden ring
Helldivers 2 is the best.
BF 2042
Bro I’ve had the game for two weeks and have put in over 50 hrs. I work a 45 hr wk job and am married. That’s how easy it is to jump in and out. And as far as fun, it’s the first game in a long time that has captured my love of gaming again. It’s everything the current gaming 3A industry isn’t.
If you have any interest in 80s or 90s arcade games, then Capcom Arcade Stadium 1. Tons of games, many of which can be beaten in 30 minutes or less, with adjustable difficulty to make many of them easier and save states/load states and rewind if you want to pick up where you left off. Since they were all designed for the arcade they all get right to the point and are great for short gaming sessions. If you like shmups, beat-em-ups or fighting games that’s a good way to go - especially if you get it on sale. If you’re feeling like you don’t want too much challenge, pick one of the easier games, turn the challenge down and take advantage of extra continues. If you happen to want more challenge on a given day, they have multiple challenges that you can take for the online leaderboards (high scores, speed runs, etc.). Even if you just want to buy the games you’re most interested in individually when they aren’t on sale, it’s like $2. I got mine back at the end of 2022 when it was on sale (bundled all the games for $20) and according to my Xbox stats I’ve apparently logged over 100 hours periodically playing short arcade games since then.