With COVID-19 causing many Canadians to self-isolate and practice social distancing, a lot of people can be left unsure about what to do with all this sudden free time.
This new series, called Keeping Busy, hopes to help alleviate the boredom of quarantine and hopefully help people find some semblance of normalcy.
To start this series off, I’ve put together a list of video games (in no particular order) that are both extremely well made, yet also take a lot of time to complete.
The Witcher 3, (CD Projekt Red)
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nspired by book series written by Andrzej Sapkowski, The Witcher 3 is a sprawling fantasy epic set in a war-torn world where monsters run rampant.
Geralt of Rivia, also known as the Butcher of Blaviken, the White Wolf, and Gwynbleidd (by the Elves), is a professional monster slayer known as a “Witcher.” Throughout the game, you are searching for Geralt’s surrogate daughter Ciri. The journey will bring you across many locales in The Continent, the name of the world where the journey takes place.
Being an “action RPG,” The Witcher relies on some sort of skill, however, those that just want to enjoy the story can do so with the “Story and Sword” difficulty, designed to make the gameplay fun yet not a priority. Those who want a challenge can play the “Death March” difficulty, for a good solid dose of sadomasochism.
The game can clock in at over 100 hours of playtime (I personally have over 300 hours of playtime over two completed playthroughs).
The story itself is player guided. While there are events that occur for everyone, the way you react in conversations can change the mild details and context of situations leading to no two playthroughs being the same.
With multiple endings, different relationship options for Geralt, and fun engaging strategic action combat, The Witcher 3 is definitely a must-play for anyone interested in the genre.
Mass Effect Trilogy, (Bioware)
Mass Effect is a sci-fi space opera.
You play as Commander Shepard, a Systems Alliance N7 Special Forces soldier and first human Spectre, part of an elite special task force for the Citadel Council, the galaxy’s governing body, and through the games you shape everything in the story, from Shepard’s appearance, background, disposition, and even simple conversations with whoever you come across. Save games transfer through from title to title, ensuring that your throughline stays consistent from the first entry all the way to the somber ending of Mass Effect 3.
Your actions shape the galaxy and its inhabitants, and most importantly, how the population views you. Will you be a paragon of mankind or a ruthless renegade whose only priority is the mission? Or something in between? It’s your story to discover.
Gameplay is a third-person shooter, with mild role-playing elements to develop your Commander Shepard.
Each game in the trilogy can span 80 hours of game time depending on your dedication to side stories and missions.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Nintendo)
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or some people, gaming isn’t a mainstay in their lives. Nintendo has a long history of being accessible to those who aren’t “hardcore gamers” and The Legend of Zelda series is no exception.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is a large expansive game that can be very intimidating if you don’t know what to do. Luckily, Nintendo’s master craft of accessibility to those who may have never even touched a controller isn’t lost here. Through a series of natural tutorials that come up as you find new things to do in the game, Breath of the Wild always supplies you with the information you need to do things properly so you’re never too lost.
The game’s primary focus is on exploration, and with a massive map to explore and discover, you can spend anywhere from 80 to 400 hours exploring and marveling at the scenery.
From fighting baddies to finding collectibles, to engaging in the game’s beautifully crafted story that progresses at your own pace, Breath of the Wild is a game that doesn’t force you in any particular direction at any given time. This is a world they created for you to experience at your own leisure.
Final Fantasy Series, (SquareEnix)
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inal Fantasy has been around for a very long time. Starting off as a last-ditch effort by a failing game development studio, the studio formerly known as Squaresoft released Final Fantasy on the Nintendo Entertainment System on December 18, 1987. What they didn’t know at the time was that they had struck gold. Final Fantasy has since become a mainstay in many households worldwide and has set the standard for what is now known as the JRPG (Japanese role-playing game).
Each game has roughly 20 to 100+ hours of gameplay opportunity depending on when it was released, With Final Fantasy II able to be completed in 10-20 hours where Final Fantasy VII can take up to 80.
Each entry is self-contained, meaning you don’t have to play a previous entry to understand the next, and each game presents different angles on the fantasy genre.
Games range from classic high fantasy (Final Fantasy, Final Fantasy 2, Final Fantasy 9), to techno fantasy (Final Fantasy 6, Final Fantasy 7, Final Fantasy 13), to modern fantasy (Final Fantasy 8, Final Fantasy 15), to brand new concepts (Pretty much the rest of the series, but most notably Final Fantasy 10).
Up until Final Fantasy 11, the series took a turn-based approach to combat, allowing the player to focus on strategy and tactics rather than relying on reflex play. However, with the introduction of active-time battles in Final Fantasy 4, SquareEnix started to put a little bit of pressure on the player to make quicker decisions for an added challenge (this option can be turned off in several entries).
If you even pick one entry in the series, it will keep you busy for quite some time, and with most, if not all, available on multiple platforms like Steam, Playstation 4, and Nintendo Switch, there’s always a way to grab one.
Final Fantasy 14: A Realm Reborn (SquareEnix)
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know what you’re thinking, “but Allan, you already spoke way too long on Final Fantasy! Why give this entry its own place?”
Well curious reader, Final Fantasy 14: A Realm Reborn is its own beast.
Being a Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (MMORPG), this game demands a massive time commitment.
Released initially in 2010 as Final Fantasy 14 Online, the game saw a disastrous launch that led to a change in development. After giving an in-universe explanation for the servers to shut down (a giant dragon was summoned from space and basically destroyed the world—not kidding), Final Fantasy 14: A Realm Reborn (ARR) was relaunched in 2013 to astounding success. Having overhauled the gameplay mechanics, animations, graphics, and story, ARR now holds over 14 million concurrent subscribers, three expansion packs, and an endless stream of content to complete.
It’s most recent entry, Final Fantasy 14: Shadowbringers, is held in high regard as one of the greatest expansions to any MMORPG to date, as well as one of the best Final Fantasy stories, comparable to the single-player entries in the series.
The unfortunate downside is that there is a subscription model, so you need to pay to play, but they do offer a free trial up to level 20 for anyone who wants to try the game for themselves.
As for game time, I have personally clocked in over 1000 hours since ARR launched in 2013. So, there is definitely some longevity there.
Marvel’s Spider-Man (Insomniac Games)
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ave you ever wondered what it would be like to be Spider-Man, swinging your way through New York City, looking out for the little guy? Well look no further!
Marvel’s Spider-Man by Insomniac Games beautifully captures what it’s like to be the wall crawler. The controls are fluid and easy to learn, and with so much to do on the lovingly recreated Manhattan Island, your web-slinging adventures will rarely run out.
The story focuses on an older Peter Parker struggling with many issues that the modern-day millennial faces — paying bills, meeting appointments, showing up for the job that doesn’t really pay you anything — while balancing being the Amazing Spider-Man.
With a strong focus on story, it’s like playing through your own Marvel Studios movie. The emotional beats throughout hit hard, and you genuinely feel the struggle of Peter as he balances his personal life with his Spider-Man life.
If you’re a superhero fan, this game is definitely for you.
Civilization VI (Firaxis)
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ave you ever wanted to build your own civilization from the ground up? Well, then Civilization VI may just be for you. Starting from the stone age, you build and shape your people through culture, religion, war, peace, science, and so on. With many ways to win a game, no two games are the same.
Being a turn-based strategy game in the 4X genre (meaning Explore, Expand, Exploit, Exterminate) the game runs at your pace and immediate decisions don’t necessarily have to be made like they are in other strategy games like Age of Empires or StarCraft.
While other civilizations may force your hand in war (looking at you Gandhi!), there are possibilities at peace treaties and trade to shape your playstyle.
Game length is decided before you start, ranging from a short game (roughly an hour and a half) to marathon (can take days). So you can stretch your civilization campaign as long as you want, depending on how much time you have available to you.
Steam Workshop also has an endless supply of maps and Civilization leaders (Canada is a personal favourite of mine) all created by the community, so you don’t have to rely on paid downloadable content to get more game for your buck.
Super Mario Odyssey (Nintendo)
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uper Mario Odyssey is another of Nintendo’s new player-friendly titles. With a control scheme based on Super Mario 64 for the Nintendo 64 days, Super Mario Odyssey gives you everything you need to know to play the game from the very first level.
Your goal is to collect power moons to fuel your ship so you can travel from place to place chasing Bowser who has kidnapped Princess Peach (duh) with the intent to force her into marriage. With your sentient hat by your side (head?), you travel through many different culturally-inspired places around the world on your odyssey.
After completing the game, more moons get unlocked for you to find and collect with a special ending unlocked after collecting all 999 moons available.
This charming, wonderfully childish, easy-to-play game should be added to anyone’s Nintendo Switch game library.
Red Dead Redemption 2/Grand Theft Auto V, (Rockstar)
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or the more mature audience, there are many games out there for you as well that can help spend a lot of time. The most notable are the Wild West-inspired Red Dead Redemption 2 and the modern satire Grand Theft Auto V. These games have been placed in the same category as they share a lot with each other, but know that they’re also very different.
Grand Theft Auto V is a wish-fulfillment fantasy at it’s best and worst. The single-player game sets you in the lives of three characters: a retired bank robber, a gang member, and a crazy trailer park redneck. The way their stories interconnect is the heart of the game’s plot, and situations they find themselves in range from hilarious to basically an episode of The Wire.
Red Dead Redemption 2 puts you in the shoes of Outlaw Arthur Morgan, your stereotypical rugged cowboy who is looking to buy his way out of the outlaw life. The twists and turns of the story take you on an emotional journey through the Wild West, which really helps build this beautiful world.
Both games offer an open-world online mode, where you’re placed in the world as a player-created character with the goal of making money and doing whatever you want.
Grand Theft Auto V has a focus on criminal activities and making money through less-than-legal means, including but not limited to; bank robberies, selling black market vehicles, buying and selling property, and straight-up gunning down your competition.
Red Dead Redemption 2 takes a slightly more realistic approach with the player taking on a career as a Bounty Hunter, Collector (treasure hunter), Trader, or Moonshiner. You can also go full bandit and just rob people on the road or attack other players.
Both games offer hours upon hours of gameplay with an endless supply of things to do.
Free-to-play Games
For those without the money to spend on new games, there are many free to play options for you to dig your gamer teeth in.
Popular entries include:
Fortnite — a battle royale-style game with a building element that changes what you know about shooters.
Star Trek Online — a free-to-play MMORPG where you’re the captain of your own starship. Quests play out as little mini Star Trek episodes with your Captain in the main role.
Path of Exile — a top-down action RPG where you kill hordes upon hordes of monsters to get better gear used to kill more monsters to get even better gear!
Call of Duty: Warzone — a more traditional battle royale where you and 149 other players are dropped in an expansive map with a “last man standing” mentality.
There are many, many more free-to-play games out there, almost too many to list. But these should be enough to get you started.
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As we’re all practicing social distancing, it’s important to remember that we all have something to do during these uncertain times. Keep an eye on The Ontarion for more lists of our recommended things to do to pass the time.
And remember, we’re all in this together.
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