Decision-making can be difficult, especially in games when there are no right or wrong answers. It can also be frustrating when you have to decide under pressure. But it’s an important skill to have, both in your personal and in your professional life. Fortunately, many excellent games help you hone your judgment-making skills. Some games are well-known and easy to find, while others are less common and more challenging to track down.
Regardless of their level of popularity or difficulty, however, all these games have one thing in common: they give you the chance to practice making important determinations under stress while also teaching you to think critically and logically. Therefore, if you want to test your judgment-making skills and push yourself out of your comfort zone, here are some of the best games with decision-making you can try today.
1. The Walking Dead
This popular zombie apocalypse game puts players in challenging situations where they have to decide how best to protect themselves and those around them. The Walking Dead is a challenging game that forces players to think on their feet, so if you need practice making decisions under pressure, this one is worth checking out. The game features several endings, so you can replay it multiple times to see how your choices affect the outcome. Along the way, you must keep others alive and make judgments that impact the entire group of survivors. The game is a point-and-click adventure game where you have to solve many tricky puzzles to progress.
2. Fallout 4
In this popular post-apocalyptic game, players are faced with many difficult decisions that will determine the fate of the world around them. From choosing which quests to undertake to deciding whether to help others, there’s no shortage of tough calls to make in Fallout 4. Plus, since the game has multiple endings, you can go back and see how your earlier choices affected the later parts of the game. Users can try different mods for Fallout 4 and change the game world around them to make the game more interesting. For example, the “Better Settlers” mod introduces more than 250 new homesteaders to the game, each with unique backstories, personalities, and skills.
3. Spec Ops: The Line
Spec Ops: The Line is a game that can be best described as a third-person Xbox shooter with a heavy emphasis on decision-making. Set in the sand-swept city of Dubai, you play as Captain Martin Walker, leader of a three-person Delta Force team sent in to evacuate American citizens caught in the middle of a civil war. As the story progresses, you are forced to make tough determinations that have far-reaching consequences.
This game is unique in that it forces the player to think about the decisions they are making and how those will affect the characters in the game and themselves. Spec Ops: The Line is a thought-provoking and emotionally charged game that will leave a lasting impression on those who play it.
4. Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords
Few video games offer as many decision and consequence aspects as Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords. This Xbox title, set in the Star Wars universe, puts players in the role of a Jedi or Sith apprentice, allowing them to make choices that affect not only their story but also the fates of others. As a result, no two playthroughs are ever quite alike. The main story is also one of the best in the Star Wars canon, making KotOR II a must-play for any franchise fan.
5. The Banner Saga 3
The Banner Saga 3 is a video game released in April 2018. It is the third and final installment in the Banner Saga series. The decision-making gameplay has been particularly lauded, with many reviewers calling it one of the game’s most pleasing aspects. The Banner Saga 3 puts players in the role of a leader of a clan of Viking-like warriors. The player must make decisions that will affect the course of the story and the lives of their clan members. These decisions can be challenging, and there is often no straightforward “right” or “wrong” choice. This game makes for a very engaging and thought-provoking experience.
6. Dishonored 2
In the action-adventure stealth video game Dishonored 2, the player has to make many choices that affect the outcome of the game. With small decisions, such as knocking out or killing an enemy, others are more consequential, such as deciding who to side with within a civil war. No matter what choices you make in-game, they always have consequences. All such things make Dishonored 2 one of the top games around in terms of carrying out a plan and enduring the aftermath.
7. The Stanley Parable
The Stanley Parable is a first-person exploration game that deals with the nature of choice and free will. The player progresses through the game by making choices for Stanley, the main character. The game is set up as a story that he tells to another person, so the player’s choices are essential to creating a cohesive story.
Each playthrough is unique because it has multiple endings based on the player’s selections. The Stanley Parable stands out among other games in the genre by focusing on choice and free will instead of storytelling or puzzle solving. This makes it a popular title for anyone interested in philosophy. It presents decision-making as an engaging challenge rather than just a mundane task.
8. Pillars of Eternity
This game is a fantasy RPG (role-playing game) set in the world of Eora. The game features an old-school Dungeons & Dragons-style campaign with a deep, intricate story and countless picks for players to make. The decisions may affect your character and those around you, making for some incredibly engaging gameplay. Whether you’re building relationships with characters or deciding how to tackle dangerous situations, there’s always something new in Pillars of Eternity that keeps you coming back for more.
9. Silent Hill 2
Games with decision-making in them have been around for decades. Silent Hill 2 is one of those, and it is probably one of the best scary games of all time. The Silent Hill series is generally considered part of the genre known as survival horror, which appeared alongside the rise of games themselves and became extremely popular in the early 2000s. It boasts a rich storyline that delves into the reality and perception of the main protagonist, James Sunderland. It is perhaps the most refined game in the franchise, given its status and popularity among critics and players.
10. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
In The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, we learn that actions speak louder than words and to pick proper equipment before the battle. The game’s premise is simple; you have killed someone innocent, and the gods won’t allow you to go to the afterlife until you have atoned for your crime. Only by defeating dragons can you retrieve their souls and ask the gods to forgive you.
The game begins with players creating their characters. In the beginning, you only choose gender, race, and class. The main decisions are made when traveling to Skyrim in a cart with other prisoners. Then you pick your name, face, hair color, and so on. Later, you can select your skills by attending to different trainers in distinct places, specifically in eight significant cities. That’s where the real game begins.