How to choose your next game: a practical method in six questions

Question one: how much time do you really have?

Start with the honest answer, not the hopeful one. If you get 20 minutes on a weekday and a longer stretch at the weekend, a game built around 90-minute story chapters will sit unfinished. A game built around five-minute matches or short runs will fit.

Think about two numbers: the length of a typical session and how many sessions you get in a week. A long game with short, self-contained loops, such as Stardew Valley's in-game days or Balatro's rounds, can work with little time. A long game with long chapters works better for players with regular evenings free.

If time is tight, our short-session picks are built around that problem. If you have a long holiday coming up, that is the moment for a big adventure.

Question two: what exactly did you love about your last favourite?

"I liked Stardew Valley" is a starting point, but it hides the real reason. Was it the farming routine, the town's characters, building something over time, or playing with a partner? Each answer points to different games.

Try listing three things you enjoyed and one thing you did not. That short list is a far better guide than genre labels. Someone who loved Hades for its story will want different next games from someone who loved its fast combat.

Our games-like pages are built around this idea. Each one starts with the anchor game's "DNA", a few defining traits, and shows which of them every suggestion shares. Try games like Stardew Valley or games like Hades to see how it works.

Question three: which platform, and what will it cost to play the way you want?

Platform narrows the list quickly. Some games are only on one system: Mario Kart World is a Switch 2 game, Astro Bot is a PS5 game. Others are on almost everything. Check the official store or publisher page for the version you would actually play.

Then check the running costs. Online multiplayer on consoles usually needs a subscription. On 3 November 2026, PlayStation Plus Essential was listed at £7.99 a month or £59.99 a year, and Nintendo Switch Online at £17.99 a year for an individual. Free-to-play games are often an exception, but check the platform's own rules.

Also check whether a game you already own on one platform has cross-save or cross-play, if you might switch between a console and a PC or handheld. Not every game supports it, and saves do not always move between stores.

Question four: does the age rating and content suit the player?

In the UK, games carry PEGI age ratings of 3, 7, 12, 16 or 18, along with content descriptors such as Violence, Bad language, Fear, Gambling and In-game purchases. PEGI's website lists the rating and plain-English consumer advice for each rated version.

PEGI changed its criteria in 2026. From June 2026, newly submitted games are assessed for features such as purchases of in-game content, paid random items, communication features and elements that encourage continued play. From October 2026, PEGI began updating existing digital games rated 3, 7 or 12 that contain paid random items, such as loot boxes, to PEGI 16 with a "Paid random items" descriptor. That is why some long-running online games now show a higher rating than you might remember.

Ratings describe content, not difficulty or quality. Read the descriptors as well as the number, and if you are choosing for a child, see our play-with-kids picks.

Question five: are you playing alone, on the sofa or online?

Who you play with changes everything. A game that is wonderful solo can be awkward with a partner watching, and a co-op game can feel empty alone. It Takes Two and Split Fiction cannot be played solo at all.

Be specific about the kind of multiplayer you mean:

• Local co-op: two or more players on one console and screen.
• Online co-op: playing together over the internet, usually with a copy each.
• Competitive: playing against others, locally or online.

Store pages and publisher sites list supported modes, but "multiplayer" alone often means online only. Our couch co-op picks are all playable on one screen.

Question six: can you try it before you commit?

Once you have a shortlist of two or three games, try before you spend where you can. Many games have free demos, some subscriptions include time-limited trials, and stores have different refund rules that act as a safety net.

Watching official gameplay footage also helps you judge pace and tone, which trailers often hide. Look for long, uncut footage rather than a cinematic trailer.

Our try-before-you-buy guide lists the official options on each platform, including refund windows.

Putting the six answers together

With your answers in hand, the choice usually comes down to two or three games. If it is still a tie, two tie-breakers help: pick the one you are most excited to start tonight, and prefer the one that is easier to put down if it does not click.

The Pathfinder on our home page asks four of these questions (platform, time per session, who you are playing with and mood) and returns matching games from our list of 70, each with a one-line reason. The full finder lets you filter the same list by PEGI rating and price as well.

Our suggestions are editorial judgements based on publisher information and official ratings, not hands-on testing claims. A game that suits most people may still not suit you, and that is fine. If you end up with more games than time, our backlog guide can help.