Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask 2011
Why it still holds upIt is an easy game to pick up for anyone who likes puzzles with hints on hand, and that holds today.
2010s adventure games that still hold up
Somewhere to get to, and plenty in the way
Games
Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask 2011
Why it still holds upIt is an easy game to pick up for anyone who likes puzzles with hints on hand, and that holds today.
Atelier Ryza: Ever Darkness & the Secret Hideout 2019
Why it still holds upA workshop where you build items from what you gather still rewards patient exploration.
La-Mulana 2011
Why it still holds upThe pits still punish a guess and reward the one who reads the walls first.
Guild Wars 2 2012
Mad Father 2012
Why it still holds upA girl alone in a house of secrets still gives the horror a personal angle.
Wizorb 2011
Why it still holds upThere are more than 60 levels, and anyone who wants an absorbing afternoon of bricks and spells has a reason to play it today.
Rakuen 2017
Why it still holds upA story about music and friends still makes a gentle game to play.
Octopath Traveler 2018
Why it still holds upEight stories and a party you assemble let you decide the order of your journey, and that freedom still shapes how you play.
Sally Face 2016
Why it still holds upGoing back to a place in a later timeline to see what changed gives each location a story of its own today.
Golf Story 2017
Why it still holds upSide quests on every course and a swing you tune with experience still keep each round varied.
Legend of Grimrock 2012
Why it still holds upA dungeon you can choose to map by hand still rewards anyone who tries it today.
Finding Paradise 2017
Why it still holds upA story led game that asks for patience still rewards it with feeling.
2064: Read Only Memories 2015
Why it still holds upA robot friend who learns to feel still gives the mystery its heart today.
Until Dawn 2015
Why it still holds upChoices that decide who lives still make it worth playing again today.
Dragon Quest Builders 2016
Why it still holds upTowns that grow with every room you add still give each chapter something to build toward.
Tesla Effect: A Tex Murphy Adventure 2014
Why it still holds upThe seven years are still a detective solving his own missing time, with the actors back on screen.
Hero-U: Rogue to Redemption 2018
Why it still holds upA school by day and a dungeon by night, where classmates remember what you said, still gives every day a plan today.
Cry of Fear 2013
Why it still holds upA small inventory still turns every pickup into a choice today.
South Park: The Fractured But Whole 2017
Why it still holds upA hero built from whichever attacks you like is still the draw today.
No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle 2010
Why it still holds upBoss fights that you can replay still give the revenge story a reason to keep going.
SteamWorld Heist 2015
Why it still holds upThe ricochet still makes the clever shot the one you aimed, not the one the dice gave you.
The Swapper 2013
Why it still holds upQuestions about identity and consciousness run through the story, and they are still worth meeting.
The Beginner's Guide 2015
Why it still holds upWith no way to fail, the whole story can be read at your own pace today.
Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance 2013
Why it still holds upA combat system built on timed parries is what defines it today.
Tiny Thief 2013
Why it still holds upThe levels are short and cleverly built, which still makes it suited to a few minutes of play at a time.
Sherlock Holmes: Crimes & Punishments 2014
Why it still holds upA case that can end in different ways is still a reason to replay a crime scene.
VVVVVV 2010
Why it still holds upThe flip is still the one verb, with four hundred rooms built on it.
Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth 2015
Why it still holds upRaising and digivolving a team of Digimon still gives the turn based fights a long term goal.
Katana Zero 2019
Why it still holds upBecause one hit decides every room, each room is still a short puzzle to plan and then carry out.
Battle Brothers 2017
Why it still holds upThe crippling still carries a company's last battle into the next one, and the men are not replaced for free.
Pikmin 3 2013
Why it still holds upWith different Pikmin for different obstacles, deciding whom to bring is still part of every task.
Figment 2017
Why it still holds upIt is worth playing today for its painted look and its music.
Deponia Doomsday 2016
Why it still holds upA time machine that undoes your mistakes still suits a puzzle game well.
Kathy Rain 2016
Why it still holds upA mystery told at the pace of a small town is still easy to follow.
The Room 4: Old Sins 2018
Why it still holds upThe one house still feels like a small connected place, because its puzzles connect from room to room.
My Time at Portia 2019
Why it still holds upBecause assignments can reshape the town, the daily work of gathering and crafting still has a visible result.
Rayman Fiesta Run 2013
Why it still holds upA game drawn like the big ones and steered with one thumb still fits a phone today.
Ashen 2018
Why it still holds upA quiet, empty world still makes each meeting with another traveler matter.
Nioh 2017
Why it still holds upChoosing when to push on and when to rest still shapes every mission today.
Oddworld: New 'n' Tasty 2014
Why it still holds upWith the ending decided by how many are saved, every one of them is still worth finding today.
Unravel 2016
Why it still holds upThe thread is still both the hero's tool and his limit, the same piece of string.
Trine Enchanted Edition 2014
Why it still holds upThe online play still brings the first Trine's puzzles to the second's engine, with a friend on another continent.
The Walking Dead: Season Two 2013
Why it still holds upClementine is still the character you spent a season keeping alive, now the one who has to do it.
The Red Strings Club 2018
Why it still holds upBartending, pottery and phone calls still give a story about happiness three different ways of playing.
The Messenger 2018
Why it still holds upEach enemy is still a stepping stone, thanks to a jump that renews when you hit something in the air.
Vanquish 2010
Why it still holds upThe knee slide still scores you for not using the cover.