Your Gen X Mom Still Loves Video Games (I Think)
So maybe she should play them for Mother's Day?
For the last few weeks, I’ve been getting emailed daily by PR companies, promoting stuff for Mother’s Day gift guides. I considered making one again (here’s last year’s) but ultimately decided I’d rather put together a list of something that I believe every Gen X Mom might want — video games.
You may be thinking, “My Gen X mother/wife doesn’t play video games!” To which I would respond: “But once upon a time… she did.”
When Atari and Nintendo and all those other game systems were first released during our childhood, she played them. At least once. And then, a couple times. And I bet she enjoyed them. I bet she lost herself in Pong, or Mario, or Tetris, or Link (or if she was like me, all the above — then graduating to Playstation and Dreamcast games in the 90’s). Maybe she still loves video games! Or maybe she stopped because they got too hard (and so did real life).
Yes, this is really a video game appreciation blog post disguised as a Mother’s Day one. But I tell you, the Gen X woman in your life wants to spend hours getting lost again. Either all by herself, or with you!
These games I’m about to share are all 1. Super easy 2. Super nostalgic 3. Super calming 4. Super fun to play by yourself (with the exception of the last one). I know because I’ve played every single one of them. Let’s begin! 🕹️
Lake
When Abe showed me the trailer, I laughed. Because how could this possibly be a real concept for an entire video game? How could this actually be fun?
IT’S 1986 - MEREDITH WEISS TAKES A BREAK FROM HER CAREER IN THE BIG CITY TO DELIVER MAIL-IN HER HOMETOWN.
Tell ya what — THIS GAME IS SOOOOO FUCKING FUN. It’s like a woke Hallmark movie that you can control AND it’s set in the 80’s?!? This is the stereotype of a Gen X Mom video game and I loved it. You can beat it in 6 hours, though there are some “choose your own adventure” type options that might prolong it for a replay (which I’ve yet to do).
Open Roads
I’m still in the middle of this mother-daughter road trip game but I had to include it because Keri Russell (!!!!!!!) voices one of the main characters in it (Kaitlyn Dever is the other). I can’t even go into my deep love of Felicity right now1 but I must sidebar and mention that there’s an excellent Felicity podcast that just came out. Truly excellent.
In Open Roads, Tess and Opal embark on a road trip adventure to explore a series of long-abandoned family properties, unearthing the past. They’ll search the ruins of these places that hold buried memories, things Opal has tried for years to forget. And in this search, they'll discover not just the truth they've been seeking, but each other.
I love the artwork in this game too. It’s slow-paced but very, very cozy. I find the control angles a little frustrating but not enough to stop playing yet!
Unpacking
Parts of Open Roads reminds me of this next video game, because there is the moving theme to it. Basically, all you do is in this is unpack boxes after moving. Technically, it’s a puzzle game but it also tells a story/reveals clues and mysteries about the character whose life you’re literally unpacking. It takes place between 1997-2018 and it can get mighty nostalgic… I spent quite some time thinking about my own different living spaces back in the day and what I owned/treasured. I played it on Switch, but can see it being a perfect phone or iPad game.
Stray
I played this game in 2022 (and blogged about it too) and it is probably one of the most stunning, well-executed games I’ve ever played — definitely more so than any other one on this list (it’s more difficult and much longer too).
Lost, alone and separated from family, a stray cat must untangle an ancient mystery to escape a long-forgotten cybercity and find their way home.
This game has my full heart and soul! And I’m allergic to cats! It’s visually and emotionally stunning. It’s kinda purr-fect, actually.
Untitled Goose Game
We played this in 2019, so it’s been a while. However, I remember being absolutely enamored with its humor and simplicity. This would be fun to play with the whole family. It’s just excellent, right down to the description:
It's a lovely day in the village, and you are a horrible goose.
It Takes Two
Abe got this game for me for my birthday during the pandemic — as the title suggests, it requires two people because the storyline revolves around a couple that needs to cooperate in order to play the game (and save their marriage). Yeah — very grown up themes!
It’s also quite silly and fun and bizarre, tho.
Honorable Mentions
A Highland Song — You play as a young girl who has run away from home in Scotland. This game is SO HARD! And also buggy — I keep getting stuck and having to reset. I’ll probably never finish it, but wow it is stunning.
PowerWash — Similar to Unpacking in that all you do is one task (wash a car) but I found it to be much less compelling in storytelling and design.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom — We have spent an embarrassing number of hours playing this game so obviously we loved it. But I wouldn’t call this game casual, especially as you reach the more difficult worlds. And if your Gen X Mom is already a gamer, they’ve likely already played this!
Animal Crossing: New Horizons — Only mentioning because it basically saved me during the pandemic, which I wrote more about here.
P.S. If you’d like a more traditional gift list, you can check out my ShopMy Shelf or Amazon suggestions (though neither are geared for just Mother’s Day). Or, if you’d like a guide written by an actual mother,
has a great one here.P.P.S. — More video game posts!
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You can hear me talk quite a bit about “Felicity” in this LET IT OUT podcast interview with
around the 1:06:49 mark (prompted by a question from our mutual friend who knows my obsession very well).
Thank you for the mention. Also, you have convinced me I need to be more open minded about video games!!! I could get lost in all of these!!
I never even dreamed of a Mother’s Day video game article but now that I’ve read it, I can’t believe I’ve never seen one before. So good!
Also, somehow Lake completely slipped by me. Will be picking that one up when it’s on sale!