The weekend is a sacred time for a lot of us. For many, it’s a time when the adult responsibilities briefly take a backseat, and you have some free time to pour into something you love. Like, say, an amazing video game, for example.
10 Video Games That Defined The 2000s
These masterpieces allowed video games to establish themselves as more than just entertainment.
The PS Plus Catalog is a great resource for those looking to simply browse for something cool when that time comes, and then dive into the action there and then, but there is a minor issue that may arise.
The weekend is a small window, and we don’t want to get lockedinto a 100+ hour affaironly to have to set it down during the week and potentially bounce off the game come the next weekend.
So, we have put together a list ofseminal PS Plus hitsthat can easily be completed over the weekend, allowing you to have a complete experience and have a clean slate to do it all over again the following week.
For clarity, we will only be including games where you can roll credits in 16 hours or less (8 hours per day). This metric will be in line with the data found on HowLongToBeat.
What Lurks Below?
If you’re in the mood for something that combines cozy fishing mechanics with creepy Lovecraftian horror, then you’re in luck. Dredge offers all of this tied up in a neat little package that can be wrapped up in one weekend.
The game has you work to discover new species, upgrade your boat to explore the Archipelago beyond the starting town, and you’ll also have to decide whether to respect your curfew, or brave the night and allthe horrors that come with that.
This ‘one-more-day’ loop is so addictive, the horror gimmicks are surreal and surprising, and there’s plenty of side content to delve into as well. It’s not quite as chill as fishing in Stardew Valley, but the tension and the panic are what make each moment so special.
9Mortal Shell
A Shell of A Time
Mortal Shell
Fextralife Wiki
I promised myself that I would slap at least one Soulslike here, but the issue is that there isn’t an abundance of titles that have particularly short runtimes. Not to mention, your runtime all depends on your skill level.
However, one great Soulslike that most players should be able to wrap up over a weekend is Mortal Shell, a noveland atmospheric Soulslikethat does away with shields, instead allowing you to turn yourself to stone to weather the attacks of the hulking bosses you’ll encounter.
It’s a game that features unique and challenging combat, and a rewarding world to explore, and while the bosses and story aren’t much to write home about, it’s still easily one of the most unique and strongest non-FromSoft games in the genre.
It’s a shell of a time, and you’d have to have a heart of stone to pass on this plucky indie hit.
8South Park: The Stick Of Truth
Laugh A Minute RPG Action
South Park: The Stick of Truth
Up until the 2010’s, South Park video games were seen as laughably bad across the board, with the popular adult animation never quite finding a way to break into the medium.
However, thanks to the RPG chops of Obsidian, the series finally found a way to offer an interactive experience that did the show justice.
Placing yourself in the shoes of the ‘new kid’, you’ll be thrust into a fantasy RPG taking place in South Park, and alongside a wealth of hilarious callbacks and gags, you’ll need to master the surprisingly deep tactical turn-based combat on offer to become the hero of the realm.
It’s a love letter to South Park fans, with lots of toilet humor and pop-culture jabs of yesteryear, But, first and foremost, it’s a sublimeturn-based RPG in its own right. So, even if you aren’t the biggest South Park fan, I would still say this one is worth your time.
7Ratchet & Clank: A Rift Apart
The Gruesome Twosome
Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
Ratchet and Clank have been mainstays in the industry for decades now, and the reason is that the tight run-and-gun gameplay they offer us with each outing is constantly evolving, while remaining as fun as it was many years ago.
This is proven by the latest title featuring the bucket of bolts and the Lombax,offering a Pixar-esque story,immaculate visuals, epic level design making the most of the PS5’s new tech, and, of course, a wide variety of stupid weapons to use.
It’s classic mascot platforming fun that is accessible for just about all levels of gamer, and it’s a game that doesn’t overstay its welcome either, as you can wrap this one up in just a little over 11 hours.
The dynamic duo remains relevant today, and long may their adventures continue.
6DOOM (2016)
Rip & Tear
Boomer Shooters have been having their moment in the sunin recent years, and they have one game to thank. This one.
The reboot of the DOOM franchise was a gory and roaring success that took the strong foundation laid by the 1990’s classics, and drags the antiquated mechanics and visuals into the modern age to great effect.
The game offers gruesome and grotesque visuals and animations as you rip and tear through the demons that occupy hell, and offers FPS gameplay that does away with cover-fire and tactics, instead asking you to stay on the offensive and cause as much carnage as possible.
It’s classic FPS fun with a modern edge, and while Eternal may be the slightly better of the two newer outings, the 2016 return is still well worth diving into if you have some free time this weekend.
5Dishonored 2
Shadow Hide You
Dishonored 2
When it comes to stealth games and immersive sims, there aren’t many modern games that even come close to matching the player freedom, andthe tight stealth on offerin the Dishonored series.
The original was a stellar game that featured Corvo’s redemption arc, but Dishonored 2 ups the ante once again, offering an even wilder story, and offering you the choice of playing as Corvo or Emily.
The spine of the experience remains the same as you’ll need to explore large open levels, find the path of least resistance, and remain a ghost throughout your run as you roleplay as the best damn Assassin this side of Dunwall.
Some of the levels in this game, such as the Clockwork Mansion, are some of the finest stealth missions in gaming history. So, for that reason alone, adorn the mark of the Outsider, and blink into this one.
4The Evil Within 2
The Only Way Out Is In
The Evil Within 2
This recommendation comes with the immediate caveat that I would only recommend it if you have already played the first Evil Within game, as it leads to a much richer overall experience.
However, if you’re just looking for a Resident Evil-adjacent horror romp or have, in fact, played the first game, this is a super offering on this PS catalog that will only take approximately 13.5 hours to finish.
This title is a surreal horror experience that directly follows the first game, retaining the wonderfully weird story beats and set pieces, but fixing a lot of the core issues that many fans loathed about the first outing.
The controls are far less cumbersome, the exploration is far more rewarding, and critically, it feels like an actual survival horror game rather than an action game with survival horror elements.
It’s far more than just a knock off Resident Evil, and it’s a superb sequel that vastly improves on the original, making it a weekend treat begging to be played.
3Wolfenstein: The New Colossus
How Could You Nazi This One Coming?
Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus
If DOOM 2016 wasn’t enough to hook any PS Plus subscribing FPS fans, then perhaps this Nazi-slaying epic will be more up your alley.
Much like DOOM, Wolfenstein benefited greatly from a reboot with Machine Games at the helm, and the result was a series of titles offering some of the most compelling single-player FPS campaigns ever concocted.
In the boots of BJ Blazkowicz, you’ll enjoy a campaign that depicts a re-imagined outcome of the second world war, where the nazis have a technological edge, and you need to fight the good fight to take them down as a one-man-army.
It’s action-packed, offers tight gunplay, provides some of the most difficult preset difficulty modes for those that love a challenge, and it offers plenty of visceral set-pieces that will be burned into your brain forevermore. It’s not one of the squeamish, but it’s a must-play for any self-respecting FPS fanatic.
Become The Director
While Alan Wake 2 is now widely considered to be the magnum opus of Remedy Entertainment, Control is a game that definitely deserves its flowers, as its a brilliant new weird narrative that with action, weird janitors, and telekinetic powers you’re able to use and abuse.
From a narrative perspective, the game is as involved as you choose, as a lot of the details are tied up in the various notes you’ll find around the FBC. However, the moment-to-moment gameplay is a straight knockout, which is only further elevated by the trippy encounters and set pieces along the way.
It can be easy to bounce off this one due to the abstract and surreal nature of everything around you, but I would urge you to stick with it, as it’s one of the most cinematic, strange, and satisfying games you’ll ever play.
1Prince of Persia: The Last Crown
Prince of Per-fection
Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown
This one squeezes onto the list by the skin of its teeth, as it will take you the full sixteen-hour time frame to roll credits on. But we would be doing you a disservice if we didn’t mention the Prince of Persia Metroidvania, which has restored a beloved franchise to prominence.
This is one of the few modern Ubisoft products that I would say is a knockout, offering refined and satisfying platforming, lots of quality of life inclusions that put many Metroidvania titles to shame, and peak visuals that capture the essence of Prince of Persia games of old, while still offering something new and fresh.
You still have all the time-based abilities we have come to love from this IP, but in a new format that feels like a breath of fresh air, and considering this one comes courtesy of Rayman Legends alum, you know the platforming is top-notch.
We simply don’t get enough recognizable IPs turning their hand to Metroidvanias, and hopefully this is the start of a new trend.
