The video gaming scene seems to be intent on delivering titles that are more immersive, more complex, and more time-consuming than ever before.
Whether it’s understanding the open-ended procedural complexity of mobile hits like Minecraft, or even trying to work out the point of No Man’s Sky, it can appear that games developers want to make gaming as confusing and tricky as possible.
However, for those gamers who can’t be bothered to work out the convoluted plotlines of EVE Online, there are plenty of games out there that cater for shorter attention spans.
Browser games like Geometry Dash thrive through their audacious simplicity as they can be played with a single finger whilst giving the game a bare minimum of attention. And although games like this tend to last just a matter of seconds, there’s enough challenges and a clever use of physics to keep us coming back for more.
It’s a big part of why puzzle games have enjoyed such a big revival as ultra-simple titles like Color Switch can be picked up and played for a minute or two which makes it perfect for livening up a particular dull journey.
Many of the browser games that can be found at sites like Miniclip thrive in their simplicity, but they often include multiplayer aspects to keep it interesting. So whether it’s blasting people to oblivion in the awesome Tanki Online, or just being an amorphous blob in agar.io, it shows that even the most quick and simple games can benefit from the multiplayer environment.
The simplicity of mobile games tends to derive from the fact that many people play them on-the-go, and therefore won’t have time to get lost in hours of complex gameplay. This is why so many people will choose to head to Lucky Nugget’s slot machines rather than get involved in a more complicated online poker tournament as these games can be played in minutes and even deliver some big winnings.
But just because mobile games thrive on short and simple gameplay doesn’t mean that console gamers can’t also get a quick fix of gaming fun. Rather than wasting days getting to grips with The Witcher, many PS4 and Xbox One gamers have found that puzzle-platformers like Inside are quick to understand and can be completed in just a few hours,
So from slot machine games to simple puzzle titles, it all shows how sometimes the most basic games can be the best!