Action-adventure games often involve players being armed to the teeth and having the ability to strike at anything they encounter, whether they’re friendly or hostile. But there are some titles that buck this trend, focusing on immersing players with atmosphere, and storytelling by letting players experience moments, puzzle-solving instances, and simple yet intuitive controls.
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Such titles do not need violence to become compelling, thought-provoking, and pleasant games players can enjoy. From titles set in unique worlds or circumstances to locations that stand as metaphors the game wants to tackle, these titles provide amazing moment-to-moment experiences without resorting to any kind of violence.
Games with both action and adventure (or action-adventure) as genre tags on Steam with no or minimal combat were considered for this ranking.
8 Unravel Two
Metacritic Score: 77
Unravel Two picks up from the first Unravel game, where players control Yarny, a sentient piece of red yarn, across different areas to get back to his home and owner. In this title, Yarny becomes separated from his owner at sea and is washed ashore. Yarny encounters a blue Yarny, and they work together to return the red Yarny to his owner once again.
Building on the puzzle-solving aspect of the first game, Unravel Two grants two-player co-op gameplay. Adding a second player makes taking on challenging puzzles and platforming sections more enjoyable since players will need teamwork to proceed to the next levels.
7 Tinykin
Metacritic Score: 78
Tinykin
- Platform(s)
- PC , PS4 , PS5 , Switch , Xbox One , Xbox Series X , Xbox Series S
- Released
- August 30, 2022
- Developer(s)
- Splashteam
- Genre(s)
- Puzzle , Platformer
Tinykin is a quirky puzzle-platforming game with a fun stylistic choice of blending 2D characters in a 3D environment. Players take control of Milodane, an intergalactic explorer tasked to locate Tinykin, little critters that hatch out of eggs. These critters possess an assortment of abilities that help Milodane solve puzzles and accomplish objectives.
Whether it’s creating a bridge made of Tinykin to cross unreachable areas, or gathering resources to fix complex machines, it is up to Milodane to explore the seemingly familiar world and discover how many more Tinykin there are and what other zany and amazing things they can do.
6 RiME
Metacritic Score: 80
RiME is a 3D Adventure Puzzle game by Tequila Works. Its story is about a boy who washes up on a seemingly deserted island. The boy is determined to get off of the island by reaching its highest point. To do this, he needs to navigate through the ruins by moving certain structures and solving landscape puzzles.
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As far as narrative is concerned, RiME is a show-don’t-tell kind of game. As players progress through the different areas of the island, they will discover what situation the boy is currently experiencing.
5 The Artful Escape
Metacritic Score: 80
The Artful Escape
- Platform(s)
- PC , PS4 , Switch , Xbox One , PS5 , Xbox Series X , Xbox Series S
- Released
- September 9, 2021
- Developer
- Beethoven & Dinosaur
- Genre(s)
- Adventure , Music
For players who want to experience a more music-oriented action-adventure game, The Artful Escape is an excellent game to sink their teeth into. As Francis, players are whisked into an interstellar musical journey as he endeavors to carve out his own path and play the music he wants to.
Players will traverse different musical landscapes, and wage musical battles with bosses with the help of his trusty guitar, while also meeting an assortment of quirky characters and experiencing the musician’s life of trials and tribulations along the way. With stunning visuals, an amazing soundtrack, and a talented cast that includes Jason Schwartzman, Carl Weathers, and Mark Strong, The Artful Escape is a fun musical ride for players to enjoy.
4 Stray
Metacritic Score: 83
Stray lets players control an adorable stray cat as it explores a city that is inhabited by robots and machines while trying to get back to its other feline friends. Along with a drone companion named B-12, players navigate through the streets, alleyways, and avenues with the dexterity and agility of a cat.
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Speaking of cat-like behaviors, players can also perform peculiar feline idiosyncrasies such as nuzzling at robots, clawing at items that are precariously near the edges, and even kneading carpets and couches. Doing these actions often results in the robots either negatively or positively reacting.
3 Outer Wilds
Metacritic Score: 85
The Outer Wilds is a first-person game that sees players control an unnamed space-farer who is seemingly stuck in a time loop. Before reverting to the beginning of the loop, players need to solve puzzles and uncover the secrets of the Nomai, an ancient alien clan that might have the answer to stop the time loop from happening.
Outer Wilds revolves around exploring the surroundings and taking note of when certain areas are available to get to since the time loop only gives players certain moments to access some locations. It is up to the players to figure out what caused the time loop and to correct it.
2 Flower
Metacritic Score: 87
For players who are more keen to relax atop a peaceful hillside area, with the wind going through their hair and such, Flower is just the game for them. Players control a lone flower petal, and the objective of the game is to interact with the landscape, which will proceed to have other flowers bloom in rich and vibrant colors.
The landscapes are breathtakingly dynamic, especially once players begin to swoosh through the meadows and bring to life other dormant flowers. Its musical score also sets the mood: there are no high scores, and no urgent objectives to complete. Players can take their sweet time and enjoy the rolling hillside as they slowly become more colorful with each blooming flower.
1 Celeste
Metacritic Score: 92
Most 2D Platformers often see players take down tons of enemies while navigating through precarious cliffs and ledges. Celeste bucks this trend by providing players with an intense 2D platforming game while also tackling a different kind of enemy: the main character’s self-doubts and fears. Maddison, the main character, does not deal damage against the manifestations of her insecurities, but she confronts them by pushing forward to her goal of reaching the top of Celeste Mountain.
Celeste is widely considered to be one of the best 2D platforming games, thanks in large part to its precise controls. Players need to get accustomed to gaining momentum and timing their jumps and air dashes to safely reach the highest point of Celeste Mountain.
