10 best games to play right now.
10. X-Plane 11
Available on: PC
For all you prospective pilots out there, you couldn’t do much better than X-Plane 11. Released by developer Laminar Research in 2017 (contrary to the deceptive title), this flight sim lets you take control of a range of real-world aircraft, from helicopters to gliders to massive jumbo jets. What makes it stand out from the crowd though, is the inclusion of the Plane Maker modding tool, making it easy to design new and exciting aircraft to fly. Complex weather modeling is also a feature, simulating real-world weather in-game to give you an authentic flying experience. If you fancy joining the jet set, this game should be your next destination.
9. Euro Truck Simulator 2
Available on: PC
Who knew a game about driving a truck could be so addictive? SCS Software did, clearly, as their trucking sim sequel is currently one of the highest-rated games on Steam, sat above the likes of Dishonored, Civilization V, and Half-Life 2. The reality is that Euro Truck Simulator 2 offers that devastating blend of being both immensely relaxing and fiercely captivating, with the pleasant journeys along your designated trade routes segmented by junctures of deep strategy, as you consider factors such as fuel, finance, and furbishing your ride with new upgrades. Euro Truck Simulator 2’s greatest achievement is that it isn't just a game made for transport enthusiasts, but the appeal extends to anyone with even the slightest appreciation for the simple pleasures of the open road.
8. Two Point Hospital
Available on: PC, Xbox One, PS4, and Nintendo Switch
In this light-hearted hospital management sim, it’s your job to make sure that Two Point County’s new infirmary is up to scratch and able to deal with whatever new malady the locals bring through the door with them- whether that’s Floppy Discs, Cubism, or the dreaded Night Fever!
Like most management sims, the aim is to balance the budget with demand and slowly expand your healthcare empire. A spiritual successor to 1997’s Theme Hospital, Two Point shares much of its beloved forebear’s gameplay, visuals, and humor- albeit updated for a modern audience. Despite the game’s emphasis on humor, Two Point Studios’ opus quickly ramps up the pace, requiring you to make careful decisions on the quest for maximum efficiency. If you’re looking for a challenging, warm-hearted business sim to contract, then Two Point Hospital is extremely infectious.
7. Rising Storm 2: Vietnam
Available on: PC
As unforgiving as its predecessor, Rising Storm 2 transports the action from World War II to the Vietnam War. Operating as an unofficial hybrid between popular first-person shooters like Call of Duty and the more hardcore mil-sims such as ARMA, the game incentivizes tactics over blind firepower. Tripwire Interactive’s focus is on making you feel like an actual soldier, rather than a superhero who can shrug off everything except scripted nuke detonations. As a result, you’ll find yourself hiding in foxholes, calling in napalm strikes or flanking your enemies with your squadmates, far more often than you’ll be charging at the enemy like a berserker. The result is a truly visceral and tense simulation of battle that puts you right in the heart of the conflict.
6. Not for Broadcast
Available on: PC
The world of television is a fast-paced, high-stress place at the best of time, let alone in a dystopian alternate 1980s where broadcasts are actively censored. Although you’re only the cleaner, you’ve accidentally found yourself behind the mixing desk of the biggest news program on TV, National Nightly News. Underqualified and at risk of falling foul of the shady powers behind the scenes, it is your job to select camera feeds, bleep out foul language and choose the headlines that will be broadcast to the world. Like its fellow bureaucrat simulator Papers Please, you can choose to play the dutiful pawn, or deliberately cause trouble. Whatever you decide, you only have a few seconds to act, because the news is going out live. The game’s retro flavor, as well as its unusual use of live-action TV footage, creates a very engaging tone that compliments the tricky gameplay and the ethics of your new career as a propagandist.
5. ARMA 3
Available on: PC
Most people will recognize the ARMA brand for its wildly popular zombie mod based on ARMA 2, DayZ, but it is ARMA 3 which deserves some of the spotlight for what it brought to the military-sim table. Bohemia Interactive executes the essential elements of sandbox strategy with aplomb, and ARMA 3 serves as an open-ended arena for organic, dynamic war stories that can be played out with friends and foes.
The depth of simulation is comprehensive, but only to a point, so as to sustain the immediacy of every interaction. Indeed, ARMA 3 can be extremely stressful and even terrifying at times, but that truth is nothing less than a testament to its immersive power as an undiluted evocation of modern warfare.
4. Cooking Simulator
Available on: PC
Ever wanted to be a professional chef? Well now is your chance. Cooking Simulator by Big Cheese Studio puts you in charge of a large, realistic kitchen and makes it your task to dice, simmer, blend and season your way to becoming the greatest chef of all time.
If your only experience of chef sims is Cooking Mama, the surprising depths of Cooking Simulator may come as something of a surprise. You’ll have to precisely measure and cook your ingredients- but make sure your hungry diners aren’t kept waiting too long! Or, if you’re more in the mood for mindless destruction of course, that’s also possible, with Big Cheese giving you the ability to start fires, break plates and blow up the microwave. If you’re ready to let your inner Gordon Ramsey out, then this may be the game for you!
3. Planet Coaster
Available on: PC, Xbox One, PS4
Fancy running your own theme park? Perhaps you see yourself as some kind of ‘roller coaster tycoon’? In Planet Coaster, you can do just that. Developed by Frontier Developments (the same studio responsible for 2004’s Roller Coaster Tycoon 3), it’s your task to fill your burgeoning new park with the world’s most thrilling rides. Sharing a great deal with its illustrious forebear (including the ability to ride your roller coaster creations), the game is rife with nostalgic fun. But for those new to the theme park genre, navigating Planet Coaster’s highs and lows is nevertheless a fresh and sometimes challenging simulator experience.
2. The Sims 4
Available on: PC, Xbox One, PS4
When The Sims 4 was first released in 2015 some fans of the series were disappointed by the lack of content in the game, but six years on an avalanche of add-ons means the EA titan is bigger and better than ever. Create a sim, or take over the lives of any of the EA-created NPCs, and start living their life the way you want, choosing everything from their career to romantic partners to general behavior. Be evil, be kind, be a weirdo, the game doesn't force you down any particular path but allows you to experience and play through the consequences of your actions. Thanks to DLC your sim can try out life with magic powers, get a pet, move the country, have paranormal experiences and so much more. Or just use the money cheat and spend many happy hours building a mega-mansion.
1. Microsoft Flight Simulator
Available on: PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S
The 2020 release of Microsoft Flight Simulator was the first time the series appeared on console and offered us all tickets to blue skies and new lands when actual travel was strongly discouraged, if not banned. The game is a visual marvel and the level of realism applied to the technicalities of piloting an aircraft is impressive and terrifying, no matter how much attention you think you were paying on all those vacation flights. Luckily the game comes with its own flight school to try and teach you the basics, and options to vary the amount of assistance the game gives you to help avoid a terrible crash. As a pilot, you'll be rewarded with views of a 4K, photorealistic Planet Earth from the cockpit, and the chance to cry "I can see my house from here" whenever you want.
Need something else to play? Whether you're a fan of turn-based tactics or a good RTS, there's something for everyone in the best strategy games
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