A lot of people have been having a rough time lately with COVID, politics, and a whole slew of other reasons. Personally, I have started having some medical issues concerning my eyesight, and it seems like my old friend seasonal depression has decided to stick around a little extra this year. There's not much I can do about the eyesight immediately, though optometry visits are already scheduled, but for depressive woes I have always been able to turn to some of my nerdy loves. Be it going through and organizing my Magic: The Gathering cards, curling up with a good book, or playing one of my favorite video games to get me out of reality and lost in another world where my problems dissolve away.
More and more, in recent years, it has been video games that get me out of my funk. When Assassins Creed Odyssey came out, I was able to zone out and focus on earning just my second platinum trophy on PS4, while getting lost in the majestic beauty of one of the best looking games I have ever played. Another game, or series of games, that has helped me in times of stress is the Legend of Zelda franchise.
While I have played and beaten almost every LoZ title (I'm probably missing a couple Gameboy titles), I always find myself drawn back to three games in particular: A Link to the Past for Super Nintendo, which is hands down my favorite of the franchise and possibly my favorite game ever, Ocarina of Time, and Majora's Mask, easily 2 and 2a respectively. Admittedly I have much better access to the Super Nintendo game, with the snes service on Switch Online, and the Razzberry Pie and Mame cabinet that X8 has so masterfully put together. A Link to the Past is a perfect game in my opinion. It is full of time consuming puzzles, enemies just itching to be destroyed, and grass just waiting to be sliced through with the Master Sword. Graphically it still holds up as well. I think, though, that the reason it helps me so much is that it takes me back to a simpler time of being an introverted kid and not having to worry about anything.
I know I can't be the only one that uses video games as an escape from a stressful reality. What are some of the games that help you escape, or simply put you in a better mood? Let me know in the comments, and maybe we can all help each other just a little!!
My goto games for stress relief might surprise you. They are a bit out of the norm for the kind of games people know me to gravitate towards. I tend to lean heavy into Tetris, Side Pocket, Faster Than Light, and.... SIM Tower. Particularly games with patterns tend to get me out of my head. Oddworld and things of that nature give me sensory relief for a while. Other kinds of games that require me to think at an active level just tent to agitate me when I can handle it the least.