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December 2, 2019 5:17 AM

Stay comfy: games you can play with a hot mug in one hand [Rock Paper Shotgun] “Winter brings out a part of me that immediately seeks a mountain of blankets in which to burrow. Even in my seasonally confused state of Texas, the weather has tended towards the chilly and left me with little excuse not to have a kettle boiling interminably as I layer on socks and pull the biggest comforter from the top of the closet. But this presents a problem likely familiar to other cozy connoisseurs: how does one game while properly bundled? I will admit it does limit possibilities considerably. That’s why I’ve curated a small selection of games perfectly playable while your other hand keeps coffee or tea always within sipping range.”
posted by Fizz (13 comments total)

I'm all about games you can play entirely with a controller under the blanket with you. I've got my DS4 set up in Steam to use the touchpad thing in it as a mouse when on the desktop, so I don't even need to expose my hands to launch the games in the first place!
posted by Dysk at 5:21 AM on December 2, 2019 [1 favorite]

Also, see this previously.

Microsoft has crafted a wonderful adaptive controller for all kinds of needs. It's sad that it took this long, but I'm very impressed with how innovative and customizable it is. If you've ever hated how controllers are built and are needing something more specific to you, the Xbox Adaptive Controller is probably something you should check out.
posted by Fizz at 5:25 AM on December 2, 2019 [1 favorite]

My older daughter was born in an ice cold February and I played 100+ hours of Skyrim on PS3 with the controller under the blanket and my sleeping baby on my lap. I don't remember how I quaffed liquids.
posted by selfnoise at 5:29 AM on December 2, 2019 [3 favorites]

Like Selfnoise, I managed somehow to play the late night sessions of PS3 (either Oblivion or Infamous?) with a bébé (sleep in that first year was not a strong suit of that kid). I didn't do much laying down but in my case I carried the baby in the crook of my arm while standing and bouncing. I even cooked this way. It was trickier when he wanted to be in monkey mode and cling to my chest. I certainly would have benefited with more one handed games back then however.
posted by Ashwagandha at 6:54 AM on December 2, 2019 [1 favorite]

Huh. Games you could play with just one hand used to mean something different.
posted by Sangermaine at 7:19 AM on December 2, 2019 [9 favorites]

Pretty much any deck-builder game like Hearthstone, Slay the Spire, Magic the Gathering, Dicey Dungeons, Steamworld Quest. Of these, Slay the Spire is a game I highly recommend, caution: very addictive to play (no micro transactions if you were worried about that, just eats a lot of your time).
posted by Fizz at 7:53 AM on December 2, 2019 [4 favorites]

I wonder if you've looked at The Legend of Bum-bo yet? It's in the Binding of Isaac universe. It's turn based though, you just need a mouse hand. It's a match-4 puzzler with deep gameplay mechanics. I love BOI but it's a bulletstorm see-the-matrix twitch game at it's best. This one is way more chill, except you are fighting childhood shit monsters and piss demons as usual.
posted by adept256 at 8:02 AM on December 2, 2019 [2 favorites]

I don't remember how I quaffed liquids.

Skooma will get you like that.
posted by adept256 at 8:16 AM on December 2, 2019 [4 favorites]

I can second the recommendation for Slay The Spire. I was skeptical of it when my boyfriend got it, but it is phenomenal fun. I'm not even into deck builders, but the rogue-lite approach helps dramatically - you can experiment with different approaches without each card selection being a Big Decision because each run is comparatively short.
posted by Dysk at 8:20 AM on December 2, 2019 [3 favorites]

This author elides some champions of the asynchronous-narrow-input-bandwidth genre: Faster Than Light and Into the Breach, both of which are eminently replayable roguelikes. I also recommend Sunless Sea, which is another roguelike with a strong emphasis on role-play and dark gothic stories.

For puzzle fans, everything from the Zachtronics catalog is great; I spent my thanksgiving holiday avoiding relatives while solving chemical engineering puzzles in SpaceChem
posted by serif at 8:27 AM on December 2, 2019 [1 favorite]

Slay the Spire is soooo addictive. Be warned!!
posted by Pendragon at 9:25 AM on December 2, 2019 [1 favorite]

I want to talk a little about couch gaming with a PC. A few bullet points first:

• A big TV is about the same price as a small monitor. You lose refresh rate and latency, but you get something 6 or 7 times as big. Remember, you're not going to sit in front of it, you're going to be on the couch on the other side of the room.
• Even the cheapest mice will work on almost any surface. Glass, skin, bread, a cushion, your jeans.
• A sofa cushion is the best mousepad

I am an evangelist about this last point. It's been a long time since a mouse needed a hard flat surface. Your hand has never needed it. Wouldn't you like to rest your hand on a soft cushion? You know you're going to be here for a while, won't your hand get sore? It's just more comfy!

And... if you have a proper couch then it's the most comfortable place to vegetate in the house. There's no practical reason why only consoles live there. They lock RDR2 at 30fps. No-one needs to live like that.
posted by adept256 at 10:40 AM on December 2, 2019 [1 favorite]

This is pretty much how I play Ace Attorney.
posted by divabat at 8:50 PM on December 4, 2019