Ava

(Ages 9+)

A game designed by and for autistic people to help young people learn and practice socio-emotional skills. The game follows a young autistic girl named Ava who lives on a pirate ship in space. The beginning of the game requires players to use a grappling hook to maneuver the world while deciding whether or not to invite new characters to her crew.

During these quests, some characters seem trustworthy, others don’t. As Ava decides whether to trust them, she learns and practices different social skills. For example, one potential crew mate has upset a coworker and Ava must help him figure out the best way to apologize. If the player suggests that he insist that he did nothing wrong and demand forgiveness, the coworker does not appreciate it and the game gently explains why empathizing with the other person and taking ownership is more likely to have a positive result.

I received a free copy of the first few levels to try and I can confirm that it is a fun game and seems like a great learning tool for young autistic people.

Bioshock

(Ages 17+)

This is one of my go-to examples when people ask for examples of video games as art. It takes place in the ruins of an underwater city, a monument of unregulated capitalism. As you explore the glass tubes and huge art deco rooms, terrifying enemies assault you, people who have lost their humanity through unregulated medical treatments. Throughout the game, the player must decide how to respond to a variety of moral decisions, such as whether to mercifully cure young demonic girls or kill them to make yourself more powerful. It’s a blistering critique of Objectivist philosophy, Ayn Rand in particular.

Celeste

(Ages 12+)

This punishingly difficult game is a beautiful story about a young woman trying to climb a mountain to fight her inner demons.  Although the gameplay is extremely difficult (I “died” more than 3,000 times before beating it), the game reminds you of breathing techniques and other ways to reduce stress and anxiety throughout.  The character has panic attacks during the game and uses real coping tools to help her get through difficult moments.  

Game Builder Garage

(Ages 10+)

This “game” is really a long tutorial for how to program video games using a visual coding language. For example, by connecting a “Nodon” meaning “If player pushes ‘B’” to one that means “then Jump,” players tell the game that they want characters to jump whenever “B” is pressed on the controller. With 85 different “Nodons,” players can make surprisingly intricate games in an intuitive way. It’s a great introduction to coding for anyone interested in getting started.

Habitica

(Ages 7+)

Habitica is a “gamified” to-do list; completing daily activities rewards users with points and virtual currency they can use to make their characters look more interesting and do more damage against virtual opponents. It’s a good, basic game to help provide external motivation for chores like laundry or homework.

A Mortician’s Tale

(Ages 15+)

A slow-paced, pensive game which deals with death and dying in a beautiful, respectful way. You play as a mortician, preparing bodies for burial according to the deceased’s wishes and culture. You must navigate a variety of moral decisions, balancing being an ethical practitioner while trying to stay employed - your boss demands often instructs you to convince the bereaved to pay for unnecessary and expensive services. The subject matter is always handled tastefully and does a remarkable job of educating about the nuances of life in a funeral home by putting the player in their shoes.

Pokémon Smile

(Ages 2-6)

This is a cute way to get very young children to brush their teeth. You put the phone in front of the child when it’s time to brush their teeth and it acts like a mirror, adding a funny hat and animation of an animated character attacking plaque on a set of teeth. When it’s time to start, it instructs you to brush different areas of your mouth to “help” the character. The game also detects motion and ceases the animations when they do not appear to be actively brushing. Once the child has brushed their teeth for two minutes, it rewards them with a random character to add to their collection.

Plant Nanny

(Ages 8+)

At its core, this series is a way to keep track of how much water you drink per day. However, the game developers cleverly added cute animations so that every time you drink a glass of water, you get to also water a cute plant and help it thrive. When you don’t drink enough water, your happy little plant can get sick and die. By doing this, it adds tangible stakes to the tiresome process of drinking enough water every day. Plant Nanny 2 has more features, but many of them cost additional money.

Ring Fit Adventure

(Ages 10+)

This “exergame” rewards players for physical exercise. The character moves when players run in place while holding a steering wheel-sized resistance ring. Players attack enemies and defend themselves by squeezing or pulling on the resistance ring in different ways, each of which targets different muscle groups.

Super Mario Party

(Ages 7+)

Super Mario Party is essentially a digital board game which requires a combination of cooperation and competition to succeed. Players roll dice to move around the board and compete in a variety of mini-games to collect coins and other objects. The games are funny and family-friendly, often requiring players to flail their arms around in silly ways to help their characters do activities like inflating a hot air balloon or racing up a pole. It’s a fun way to spend time together as a group of friends or as a family.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

(Ages 9+)

The Super Smash Bros. games are a series of cartoonishly violent fighting games. Each features a variety of characters from other popular video games, like Sonic the Hedgehog, Pikachu, and Mario. Players use the characters’ unique abilities to combat one another and try to knock each other off a platform. Although it can be played individually, it is more fun to play with others. This makes it a natural game to play at parties and social gatherings.

Undertale

(Ages 12+)

This is a very strange game, in which the main character falls down a hole into a land of bizarre creatures and must decide how to interact with them.  Each time a player encounters a monster, they are given a choice to try to de-escalate the situation or to attack it.  

This game subverts the idea of violence being the solution to problems. Players who choose to act violently end up punished for it; the game becomes more challenging, and kind characters start to reject you for being cruel.  Pacifist players are rewarded with a positive ending.