Generally speaking, when we watch trailers and absorb all the media leading up to a game’s release day, we tend to dream about the big stuff. The huge world to explore, the incredible main questline to work our way through, and the mechanics that will likely make the core gameplay loop so satisfying and addictive. However, when we actually get our hands on the game in question, sometimes we end up getting derailed by a series of fun distractions.
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There are quite a few games out there that are so confident their core gameplay is a smash hit that they will assign resources elsewhere to create games within their games. Game-ception, if you will. These games tend to be fun distractions that range from quick little asides to full-scale complex tactical wars, and most of them have more polish than they have any right to.
But you may be wondering which of these games within games serve as the best, and most addictive distractions from the main quest of all time. Well, stop saving the world for just a moment, and I’ll show you.
Fallout: New Vegas
I’m probably going to get a lot of heat for this, and before you brandish your pitchforks, I get it, I really do. But despite all of this, I have a real soft spot for Caravan, the rather confusing card-game featured withinFallout: New Vegas.
This card game requires the player to use traditional playing cards, which you’re able to find more of around the Mojave, to make a custom deck that suits your strategy. Your goal is to add to three piles on the playing area that each add up to twenty-six.
It sounds laughably simple, but in practice, you’ll have to be tactically sharp to build your tracks faster than your opponent and adapt on the fly if the cards at your disposal aren’t ideal. Caravan gets a lot of hate, but I think it’s a fine in-game minigame that deserves a lot of praise.
9Beachstickball
A Short Hike
A Short Hikeis a wonderfully simple game in which the player’s only goal is to explore, help others, and reach the top of the mountain to get cell phone reception. So, it’s hardly a surprise that the standout minigame in this indie darling is also pretty minimalistic in terms of design. Yet, this simplicity makes it devilishly addictive.
For all intents and purposes, this is essentially a game of Beach Volleyball, with the only real differentiating factor being that you’ll be watching the ball with a stick. The goal here is to keep the rally going for as long as possible, and while that sounds like an easy task, it’s harder than it looks.
You need to position yourself well and react fast. If you do that, then you just might get a snazzy little piece of headgear as a reward. However, I would wager even after you get that reward, you’ll be dying to up your high score regardless.
8Holotactics
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
If you’re someone who really likes watching YouTube videos that place enemies from particular games up against one another to see who would come out on top in that unlikely scenario, then Jedi Survivors' standout minigame Holotactics will really appeal to you.
This game allows you to scan enemies in the main game, and then return to Koboh and use these enemy types in a virtual reality simulator game known as Holotactics, which allows you to spend Battle Points to create a dream team to face off against your rival’s selected army of droids and troopers.
It’s a game where your understanding of enemy skills, and how best to position them on the battlefield are key to success. So, if you consider yourself a top-tier galactic war general, then Holotactics is something you have to try.
Sea of Stars
If you’re looking for a JRPG that captures the magic of the 1990s golden era, look no further than Sabotage Studios’Sea of Stars. This game has some of the most amazing retro-meets-modern visuals, along with a killer soundtrack and incredible nostalgic gameplay reminiscent of Chrono Trigger.
The main gameplay and campaign are a blast, but something that lives in my head rent-free is the tactical tabletop minigame present in this world known as Wheels. This game takes thebasic JRPG combat modeland tweaks it to offer a fantasy-style tactical warfare format that mixes turn-based combat with slot-machine mechanics, complete with unique classes to experiment with.
It’s all about finding a perfect balance between defense and attack, while also taking the time to raise the XP for your figurines to ensure an easy victory. It’s a wonderful game and the highlight of finding a new settlement in this magical RPG experience. So when you reach the Port Town of Brisk, be sure to sit down for a game of Wheels.
6Journey Of The Prairie King
Stardew Valley
Whether it’s a game with crisp 4K visuals like Returnaland Resogun, or a pixel-perfect outing like Enter the Gungeon, the fact is that bullet hell games are a blast, mainly due to the sheer chaos that happens on screen.
This reliance on chaos and high-octane action is a staple of bullet hell games, which makes it all the more surprising that one as addictive and refined as Journey of the Prairie King exists in therelaxing and therapeutic farming simulatorStardew Valley.
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It’s an unlikely setting to find a game such as this, but one thing is for sure. We are glad it’s there, as this top-down cowboy shooter is pure arcade bliss and a wonderful distraction from the humdrum farmer’s life.
Fair warning: this game is a tough one, and only the most skilled and resilient cowboys will be able to get through the game’s campaign in one piece. But if you’ve got the fastest hand in the west, you just might earn the bragging rights of beating this one and getting your hands on aPrairie King Arcade Systemfor your home.
Persona 5 Royal
Next, we have a wonderfully addictive card game in the equally wonderful and addictive JRPG meets life simulator Persona 5 Royal. The game in question, Tycoon, is a like-for-like minigame based on the real-world card game Daifugō. It has the player try to shed cards as fast as possible by playing stronger cards than their opponents.
There are some fun rules that make this game an intuitive and easy-to-understand but hard game to master, such as two being the strongest card, Jokers serving as shapeshifters that can be played as any card type, and eights being able to end the round immediately.
It’ll take a few games before you get into a rhythm, but before long, you’ll be hooked, as this card game is one of the best you’ll find in any game out there and one that is equally fun to play with real-life pals if you have a deck of cards handy.
4Demontower
Night in the Woods
Night In The Woods
When it comes to minigames, they tend to be little distractions or fun asides that in no way can compete with the scope and scale of the main game they find themselves serving as a part of.
However, occasionally, you find that a developer loses the run of themselves, and they go wild producing a game that has the legs to be a full release in its own right, which is exactly what seems to have happened with Demontower, Night in the Wood’s dungeon crawler minigame.
This can be accessed as soon as Mae’s laptop is fixed and allows you to jump into a top-down 2D Zelda-like epic, complete with nine unique floors, each with its own unique boss encounter. Not to mention, depending on your actions, you will achieve alternative endings too.
It’s a minigame that doesn’t feel all that mini in truth, but we appreciate the efforts of Infinite Fall, and wouldn’t be adverse to them having a proper go at a dungeon crawler. Hint, hint.
3Machine Strike
Horizon Forbidden West
Horizon Forbidden Westmay have been done dirty on launch due to the unparalleled success ofElden Ringstealing the show back in February 2022, but with the power of hindsight, I think we can all agree that this was a sequel that deserved a lot more accolades than it got.
It has sublime visuals, a compelling story, improved climbing and combat mechanics, and, of course, also includes one of the most fun little tactical tabletop games ever, Machine Strike.
Much like Harry Potter’s wizard chess, Forbidden West tweaks the world’s oldest game to suit its needs and provides a compelling tactical setup that’s simple to pick up, but hard to master.
You have different pieces that resemble in-game machines to choose from, different terrain types to worry about, the positioning of your pieces at the beginning of the game is key, and each piece has special skills and armor points. So, in short, there’s a lot to get your head around, but the good news is that it’s a blast to do so.
You will want to explore the world and find/buy more strike pieces if you want to stand a chance of beating stronger opponents, so take the time to explore and find strike pieces that suit your strategy of choice.
2Triple Triad
Final Fantasy VIII
Final Fantasy 8
Our runner-up is a game that, even after all this time, still serves as one of the finest minigames in video game history and easily the best Final Fantasyoptional minigame, in my humble opinion. It’s quite hard to explain how Triple Triad works, so think of it like hyper-competitive noughts and crosses.
Players have cards, each with four values representing the different sides of the card, and your goal is to use these values to battle other cards, change them to your team color, and have the most cards on the 3x3 grid when the round ends.
It sounds simple, and it really is, but that doesn’t mean this is any less tactically demanding, addictive, or fun compared to the others on this list. Plus, despite being an optional minigame, it’s one that FFVIII players dare not ignore, as the rewards tied to Triple Triad are game-changers.
As you find more opponents, gain new cards, and learn the subtle quirks of Triple Triads rules, you’ll find that this game is hard to walk away from. Sure, Ultimecia is destroying the world, but we reckon you’ll happily ignore that to squeeze in just one more game.
The Witcher III: Wild Hunt
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Then, lastly, we have the card game present inThe Witcher 3: Wild Huntthat was so well-crafted, fun, and addicting that it went on to become a full-fledged deck-builder game in its own right. Plus, if you’ve been wondering why every AAA open-world game has a tabletop or card-based game crammed in there as standard these days, Gwent is why.
Gwent is an outstanding card game that has you controlling different rows of fighters as their commander and the goal is simple. Gather an army that has a higher attack power than your opponent. However, as you would expect, it never quite turns out to be that simple in practice, as there are lots of clever tricks players can pull to get one over on their opposition.
They can alter the terrain, make use of each unit’s special abilities and synergies, use their unique commander abilities to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat, and so much more. It is one of the most nuanced, deep, and enthralling minigames to ever feature in any video game to date, and if someone wants to usurp Gwentas the king of in-game minigames, let me just say it would take something very special indeed.
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