Reality Check: 3 Games That Make You Reflect on Life and Your Actions

This might be the age talking, but I love a game that makes me stop and think. It makes you think not about the next move or what Easter egg is nearby, but about your values and your choices. 

We normally start a game to escape from reality, but these games lean in and say, “Hey, have you thought about this yet?” And honestly? We do get better after it. 

From Steam Official Website

The Stanley Parable is one of those games that messes with your head in the best way possible. You play as Stanley, an office worker who discovers that his coworkers have vanished. What follows is a narrative-driven experience that explores your free will as a player, societal conformity (big words), and the absurdity of modern life. 

The game raises questions about whether we’re truly making our own choices or if we’re just following the paths laid out for us. Some may say yes, while others may say no. But what about you? 

Next is Spiritfarer. This game takes a more emotional route as you play the ferry master named Stella. She has a unique role of guiding spirits to the afterlife. 

From Steam Official Website

It’s gorgeously animated, almost cozy—until it hits you with heavy themes like loss, regret, and saying goodbye. Each spirit has its own life story, and you slowly realize that helping them move on is just as much about helping yourself understand life’s impermanence. You go through puzzles, some crafting gameplay, but the game doesn’t necessarily make you feel victorious. It makes you feel aware. 

Now, you might laugh, but hear me out: Monopoly deserves to be here. Yep, the board game. Because once you get past the family-friendly exterior and the fake money flying around, you realize Monopoly is a ruthless game about capitalism. The rich get richer, the poor get trapped in rent cycles, and once you fall behind, it’s almost impossible to catch up. The wealth imbalance is ugly, but it is also truthful. 

From Hasbro Official Website

What ties these games together isn’t genre or gameplay—it’s the gut punch. They sneak past your guard with “fun” and “joy”, and yes, that is indeed true, but if you stop for a moment, you will be served a reality check.

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