Topic: PS4 recommendation thread

@Th3solution You're best Sol, thank you for your service o7

@Kidfried How are you liking it so far?

@TraCuz- Lol, just keep track of my “What are you playing” posts to find out what the August PS Plus games will be! 😛

@Kidfried Glad to hear you like it, and you express my sentiments exactly. I like that descriptor — cozy.

Perusing my library (backlog) earlier I count literally dozens of games I want to get around to playing. Whittled down to the following:
Hellblade Senuas Sacrifice
Chroma Squad
Ruiner
Hollow Knight
Dead Cells
Death Road to Canada
Darkest Dungeon
Sine Mora Ex
Knights and Bikes
Outer Wilds
Minit
Flame in the Flood

So Push Square forum members. Which one do I go for? As this is a recommendation thread I'm looking for reasons (ideally) from people who've played them as to why they're worth my time.
Personally thinking Dead Cells or Hellblade, but happy to go with any input bearing in mind my gaming time is currently being severely limited due to mass football watching overload (and also real life stuff such as work - yuck!)
Thanks in advance

@Sorteddan unusually considering the fact that you’ve named quite a few games there, I haven’t played any. The only two that are on my radar though are the two you mentioned. I have Hellblade in my backlog and I intend to play it at some point and I have heard very good things about Dead Cells, a friend of mine sunk around 100 hours into it without any regret.

The ones I’ve played on that list,

Hollow Knight
One of my top three games from the last gen; I utterly adored this game. The world it creates is intriguing and the whole story is only alluded to rather than outright explained. The artwork and music are sublime, but the gameplay is also magnificent with great combat and platforming. It is a reasonable length though so one that would benefit from your time.

Dead Cells
A great Metroidvania that has great combat. Like the best games of the genre, you unlock abilities and moves slowly so the early game can be frustrating until you get to grips with the game and unlock such things but it is a classic for the “just one more go” type of game.

Knights and Bikes
A wonderful little game that is designed to be played co-op but I played solo. You control two pre-teens who explore a small Cornish island and it has a great mix of fantasy from their imagination and reality. Puzzles aren’t taxing and the combat is limited but good fun. Most of the charm comes from the art style and story though so if that’s your sort of thing than I’d recommend it. If you can play it co-op with someone, even more so!

Overall, I’d recommend Hollow Knight most highly but if it’s a game to dip in and out of, I’d say Dead Cells and then Knights and Bikes.

@Sorteddan Whoops, it helps if I tag you in that post!

@Sorteddan actually, there was another on your list I have actually played, @Thrillho post reminded me. I started Hollow Knight around a year ago but struggled to get into it. It’s undoubtedly a quality product but just not for me… I might return to it one day to give it another chance though as it’s currently stinking up my trophy list with its 3% completion 😡

@colonelkilgore
Yeah you gonna have to sort that out. Personally I would like to delete the whole trophy profile of things like that, instead I have to play to what I deem a reasonable percentage - usually more than 50% for games I started but don't like much. Also thanks for the input

@Thrillho. Thank you for your opinions, nice succinct write ups for the three.

@Sorteddan Definitely get on Hollow Knight. It’s about as close as any indie has come to being ‘perfect’. Every single system feels thought-out and considered. Plus it has a brilliant soundtrack!

@nessisonett @Kidfried
Thanks guys. Looks like Hollow Knight gaining the early momentum with three for and one against. I`'ll see if any others chime in before I get some game time tomorrow. If not looks like I'm off to stab some bugs with a nail? to see what that's all about.

@Sorteddan Haven’t played Hollow Knight — it’s known to be relatively difficult, so I’ve been a little scared of it. I’m not much in the 2D arena though. Although I did play and quite like Dead Cells. Surprisingly good despite it being a genre I’m not usually fond of. The only other on your list I played is Hellblade. I’d highly recommend it. One of the surprise favorites of last gen. Much has been said if it’s excellent audio and the take on mental health issues. But it was just a fantastic experience for me.

@Sorteddan I realise that I missed Hellblade off my list too.

This is a fantastic game too. The combat is slick and the story is really well done too and focuses on the Nordic invasion of the Celts so if you’ve played the latest God of War and liked the mythology, you’ll enjoy this too.

The audio is really well done with the voices guiding Senua. I never used headphones on the PS4 but did for this game and it really elevates the experience. It’s not an overly long game at around 8 hours or so and I actually finished it in one sitting.

@Th3solution
Glad to hear it, to be honest I am also a little turned off by games with reported high difficulty levels which may explain why I've avoided it till now. However I am also quite big on Indies and HK very highly rated which explains why it's still on the list. I would consider myself an average gamer so with determination I should be able to push through, hopefully.
@Thrillho
Also good to hear high praise for Hellblade. Definitely one I've been looking forward to and relatively short so could tick it off in a day or so. And yes, played GoW last year and loved it from start to finish.

@Sorteddan I can also vouch for Dead Cells. Brilliant game. If you haven't played many of this type of game before, it can take bit to get your head round. But the combat is really fluid, with some excellent feeling weapons. I especially liked the sound of the frying pan when you bash an enemy round the chops!

@JohnnyShoulder
Nobody mentioned a frying pan!! Automatically moves the game up in my estimation.
Oh well, guess my list is now down to Hellblade, Hollow Knight and Dead Cells and I can probably cope with 2-3 games on the go simultaneously especially if they are not all too similar style/genres so that'll work.
Thank you and everyone else who responded.

For anyone who still hasn’t played it, Jedi: Fallen Order is £13 on in the PlayStation store at the moment. I think it’s on until about 7th of July.

Not bad seeing as they’ve just done the (mediocre) PS5 upgrade but the game ran great on the console without the specific update anyway.

@Thrillho I'll just get a couple of months of EA Play when I'm ready to play it, seeing as it is only 4 quid a month. I've got a feeling it will be with PS Plus pretty soon too.

was also tempted by Fallen Order when i saw it £15 second hand in cex but due to my current backlog gave it a miss. and agree it will probably be on plus at some point, is another on my radar though. By the time I get around to finishing all the PS4 games I already have or want there will probably be a PS6!

@colonelkilgore After RotOD I may play The Sinking City, I don't know how much you know about this game? It looks fantastic, and is marked down by 80% in a current sale.