Patient Gamers

I loved the fast and rather unique gameplay but it definitely isnt for everyone. For me personally I didnt mind the trial and error and really liked how the Game presentation.

This is probably my pick too, and it frustrates me. Because like, look. I love Remedy games. I love Alan Wake 1 and 2 to death. I just bought a 200 dollar book about Alan Wake. I really vibe with Control's aesthetic and setting. Ahti is great. I have beat Control before, but ever since then, whenever I think "oh, I should go back and replay Control" I get about five hours back into the game before I just sit there and think man, I am not having any fun. Just about all of these characters feel like cardboard cutouts with neutral faces drawn on them, the plot is kinda dull, when it bothers to show up, and if the game can't really get excited about itself I'm not sure how I'm supposed to. I'll always love launching a forklift at some Hiss at 200mph but it doesn't take me far enough.

That being said, yes, I will still be playing Control 2 day one. Even if it's garbage, Remedy will always deserve the chance for me.

I love MCC, but I don't like competitive FPS games at all. I'm in it exclusively for the campaign, and occasionally custom games. That said: playing any FPS with a controller is an incredibly frustrating experience. I know what I want to happen, but my hands can't make it happen.

I don't know about mcc but I will always maintain that black ops 3 still has value in zombies

Alan Wake is a game that should be right up my alley.

Unfortunately, the gameplay left me wanting. I enjoyed the story for the most part, but the pacing of the game overall was strange, and other than getting light grenades, the gameplay doesn't really change much or shake anything up from the beginning to the end.

I enjoyed the world a lot more than the actual game, but I've been told it's sequel fixes some of my issues with the first game.

Both of these games are very well made, but they both cater to a special type of gamer.
Elden Ring being incredibly well designed as an introduction to souls-likes, it still has the mechanics and difficulty like most of From Software's games, with slight variation. If you're not a gamer who likes overcoming a challenge, the game is likely not for you.

Death Stranding I think is quite the unique game, but much thanks to its weirdness. It has a lot of curious elements to it, but its incredibly story heavy. With different difficulty options you can make it a very casual experience, but it can be quite slow at times still. If you don't like several dozen hours of cutscenes, the game might not be for you.

I personally see Elden Ring as the second-most "Dark Souls" game after Dark Souls 1. It's the first of the FromSoft soulslikes with an open world afaik, and while Dark Souls 1 doesn't have an "open" world, exactly, everything is so well-connected that it feels like an open world to me.