When I was a kid, I had extremely limited access to video games and, as a result. I started playing games later in life. Unfortunately, by that time I had developed eye strain and couldn't handle the graphics of many popular games. A friend of mine, hearing me lament, suggested I give pixel art games a try. Since then, I have logged 450+ hours on these games, which also have helped me deal with anxiety and depression I developed while at university.

Now, I use these games to calm down and cheer up when I'm having a bad day.

1. "Stardew Valley" (2016).

Genre: Simulation/RPG

Creator: Eric Barone

Producer: Chucklefish

"Stardew Valley" begins with the player moving from their big city life to a farm in a new town. One of your new neighbors greets you at the bus station and takes you to your new home, a farm left to you by your grandfather. From there, you can start raising animals, planting your farm, foraging, fishing, and mining to unlock achievements and different crafting recipes. With each passing season, there are special events or festivals that you can participate in.

At these, you can get special items, interact with NPCs, and even play minigames to win prizes. While exploring the town, you will eventually come across a dilapidated community center. A major goal you can pursue in-game is to complete all of the listed quests to rebuild the center and become a "Local Legend." If you choose to instead buy a membership with the big Joja Corporation, the community center will be destroyed to make way for a new Joja warehouse.

(Buy local!) While you are completing quests and exploring the various locations of the town, you can also befriend and develop relationships with the NPCs. By giving the villagers items that they like, you can earn friendship points that will determine how much they like you. Be careful, though! Giving a villager a gift they don't like will cost you points. Earn enough points with a "single" villager to get closer to them, and, should you like, pursue a relationship with. What is listed here may cover the basics, but it really only barely scratches the surface of what Stardew Valley has to offer.

There are so many different ways you can make the game your own, that you may very well never run out of things to do!

2. "Undertale" (2015).

Genre: RPG/Adventure

Creator: Toby Fox

Producer: Toby Fox

The opening sequence of "Undertale" depicts the protagonist, Frisk, falling down into the Underground; an isolated world inhabited by an array of monsters. You will meet Toriel, who takes care of you when you first fall into the Underground. Later, you'll meet skeleton brothers Sans and Papyrus, aquatic hero Undyne, local superstar Mettaton, and many others as you try and find a way back to the Surface.

The game utilizes a turn-based combat format that weighs heavily on the progression of the story. One of the many aspects of Undertale that makes the game unique is the ability to complete the game without killing any of your opponents. It is up to you whether or not you want to fight or befriend them when you enter an encounter with each character. It's important to think before you ACT, as the story will change based on the choices you make. There are many hidden extras within the game; not essential to complete the story, but can be rewarding to indulge.

Even if you finish Undertale once, you'll be surprised with what secrets of the Underground you have yet to discover! In the wake of its monumental success, three years on Undertale's creator Toby Fox has released the sequel, Deltarune, as of 31 October 2018! It is free to download on Mac and PC here.

3. "Terraria" (2011).

Genre: Adventure/Sandbox

Creator: Andrew Spinks

Publisher: Re-Logic

"Terraria" is a sandbox-style game where the player enjoys a huge range of freedoms in manipulating their environment. Your character is dropped into a randomly generated world, with some basic tools you will need to begin collecting materials to craft. If you begin building houses right away, more people will come to move in.

With each new resident, you gain access to different items and upgrades, as well as a stronger line of defense when night comes and monsters attack. In order to earn access to more areas of your map, you will have to fight and defeat a range of boss monsters. Some boss monsters need to be summoned, while others may spawn at random if certain conditions are met. Defeating a boss will cause it to drop loot that can contain rare items and more.

Depending on who you defeat, you can unlock new parts of your world to explore, leading to more powerful items and monsters to beat! What makes Terraria such a satisfying game is the satisfaction of having complete control in manipulating the environment. You can find different blocks/ore in the multitude of biomes on your map, which you can use to craft all kinds of buildings, furniture, weapons, potions, clothes, the list goes on. The cap for creativity lies with you, and if you feel like you've maxed out the resources in the first world you made, you can start fresh in a newly-generated world that your character can hop right back into!