Summary
- Hades offers a rewarding retry loop with story progress and upgrades after every attempt, unmatched in current gaming.
- Celeste's challenge and emotional depth create a meaningful "just one more attempt" experience through self-discovery.
- Monster Hunter: World's dynamic hunt-driven gameplay improves player skill and requires patience for defeating enemies.
Not always are the best games those that players can comfortably play through, but those that challenge them to the utmost and cause them to grow stronger after every defeat. It could be the flawless mechanics, the clever design, the exhilaration of beating the impossible odds, or a combination of all of the above, but some games hold their players in their fiery grasp, repeating the process over and over, until players find themselves murmuring, just one more try, one more try.
8 Best Roguelikes & Roguelites For Couch Co-Op
These are some of the most well-crafted roguelikes and roguelites that allow for couch co-op play.
Such games are not about easy victories. They are about learning, improving, and moving a step ahead each time. All failures are preludes to success. Be it platforming precision, tough boss encounters, or unforgiving roguelike runs, the following games execute that satisfying retry factor with finesse.
1 Super Meat Boy
Fast-Paced Mayhem That Rewards Precision
Super Meat Boy
- Released
- October 20, 2010
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- T For Teen due to Animated Blood, Cartoon Violence, Crude Humor, Language
- Developer(s)
- Team Meat
- Publisher(s)
- Team Meat
- Engine
- Proprietary Engine
- Multiplayer
- Online Multiplayer, Local Multiplayer
- Genre(s)
- Platformer
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
- How Long To Beat
- 10 Hours
Super Meat Boy serves as an excellent example of how minimalistic design and extremely fast gameplay can result in one of the most addicting one more try loops in gaming. It may seem frustrating with its brutal platforming levels that can kill the player in seconds, yet the frustration does not stick around. With instant respawn, there is no loading screen to interrupt the flow of trying something over and over again. The game is an experience that welcomes trial and error, but it is not a penalty.
The best thing about Super Meat Boy is its emphasis on progress. Players can also sense themselves becoming better as time passes, perfecting movements and timing due to sheer practice. It is just the kind of game where every failure is a lesson, and even when the situation becomes absurd, there is a strange feeling of happiness in not giving up. Accuracy and tenacity become instinctive, and this is why it is the gold standard of the “just one more” sensation.
2 Elden Ring
Expansive Freedom Coupled With Grueling Encounters
Elden Ring
- Released
- February 25, 2022
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Language, Suggestive Themes, Violence
- Developer(s)
- From Software
- Publisher(s)
- Bandai Namco Entertainment, From Software
- Engine
- Proprietary
- Multiplayer
- Online Co-Op, Online Multiplayer
- Cross-Platform Play
- PS4 & PS5 and Xbox One & Xbox Series X|S
- Cross Save
- no
- Steam Deck Compatibility
- yes
- Platform(s)
- PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X
- OpenCritic Rating
- Mighty
- How Long To Beat
- 58 Hours
- X|S Optimized
- yes
- PS Plus Availability
- N/A
Elden Ring takes the same challenging-and-rewarding gameplay that FromSoftware has perfected, and introduces it into a huge open world that is both dangerous and urging to explore. Every boss or enemy encounter requires focus, tactics, and in most cases, several attempts. However, the beauty of it is the freedom of it - players are not confined to banging their heads against one wall. They can explore, gain levels, and come back stronger, which makes them highly motivated even in the case of failures.
This open design nature transforms every failure into a challenge whose solutions can be approached in a variety of ways. Perhaps this is not the right time, or maybe a new weapon, a new spell, will decide it. The game makes the players creative and adaptive. Players are likely to end up saying, “Just one more attempt," rather than rage-quitting. And more often than not, that attempt is followed by a well-deserved win that makes them feel nothing less than a legend.
3 This War Of Mine
Dismal Survival Which Builds Up Optimistic Retrying
This War of Mine
- Released
- November 14, 2014
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ due to Blood, Mild Sexual Themes, Strong Language, Use of Alcohol and Tobacco, Violence
- Developer(s)
- 11 Bit Studios
- Publisher(s)
- 11 Bit Studios
- Engine
- Proprietary Engine
- Genre(s)
- Survival
- Platform(s)
- Android, iOS, Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
- OpenCritic Rating
- Mighty
- How Long To Beat
- 11 Hours
- X|S Optimized
- Yes
- File Size Xbox Series
- 3 GB (November 2023)
- PS Plus Availability
- Extra & Premium
Compared to classic games, This War of Mine is focused on survival as civilians trapped in a war zone. Its gameplay is bleak, and decisions are never good or evil. The loss of characters may seem horrible, yet it is never pointless. Every run is a moral, logistical, and emotional marathon. The more players lose, the more they comprehend the complexity of the world and its ways of working around its cruel systems.
The human connection is what turns it into a "one more try" experience. The players will be engaged in defending their group, and they will learn from previous failures to make the future successful. Even after one loses all hope, the thought of going back, doing things right, and perhaps rescuing someone this time around makes the players continue to play. The psychological burden of death makes every attempt worthwhile, and not many games make survival this emotional.
4 Don’t Starve
Pandemic Survival Where Every Death Is A Lesson
Don't Starve
- Released
- April 23, 2013
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- T For Teen due to Fantasy, Violence, Crude Humor
- Developer(s)
- Klei Entertainment
- Publisher(s)
- Klei Entertainment
- Engine
- Lua
- Multiplayer
- Online Co-Op, Online Multiplayer
- Genre(s)
- Survival, Management
- Platform(s)
- Android, iOS, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, PS Vita, Nintendo Wii U, Xbox One, PlayStation 3, PC
- How Long To Beat
- 30 Hours
Don’t Starve is a surprisingly adorable survival game that soon shows its teeth. There is no handholding, and a dangerous world out there and so the players are chucked into the wilderness with little knowledge and only their instincts to guide them. Death can be very quick, often through starvation, weather, or beasts. However, every unsuccessful attempt provides a grain of knowledge that will be instrumental to succeeding.
8 Best Roguelikes & Roguelites For Couch Co-Op
These are some of the most well-crafted roguelikes and roguelites that allow for couch co-op play.
The game does an excellent job of turning survival into a challenging puzzle that pays off. Each time they retry, players begin to create mental maps: what to make, how to get ready for winter, what animals to avoid. It might be quirky in the visual style, yet the stakes are high, and that pressure is what drives the desire to give it another go. It is not a question of conquering the world; it is a question of surviving one day, and then another, until at last the wilderness bends its knees for the player.
5 Furi
Cool Boss Fights That Need To Be Mastered
Furi
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ // Violence, Strong Language
- Developer(s)
- The Game Bakers
- Publisher(s)
- The Game Bakers
- Engine
- Unity
- Genre(s)
- Arcade, Shooter
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
- How Long To Beat
- 6 Hours
Furi abandoned levels and is all about boss fights...one more extreme and complex than the previous. It is a reflexive, memorizing, and timing game with a neon-soaked, slick look and thumping music. A loss is always painful, yet it also helps players get better, not by grinding statistics or gear, but by learning the dance of battle.
Such a philosophy of design implies that players are not able to pass through brute force. Furi is a game won, and each “just one more” is awarded by the belief that this attempt, muscle memory, and concentration will get fans through. It is also one of the few games where each attempt at failure does not get old. Rather, it seems like part of the process of mastering a flawless performance. Fashionable and brutal, it is a declaration of love to those who never surrender.
6 Returnal
Sci-Fi Roguelike With Just The Right Risk & Reward
Returnal
- Released
- April 30, 2021
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- T for Teen: Blood, Mild Language, Violence
- Developer(s)
- Housemarque
- Publisher(s)
- Sony
- Engine
- Unreal Engine 4
- Multiplayer
- Online Multiplayer
- Number of Players
- 1-2
- Steam Deck Compatibility
- Unsupported
- Genre(s)
- Third-Person Shooter
- Platform(s)
- PC, PlayStation 5
- OpenCritic Rating
- Mighty
- How Long To Beat
- 20 Hours
- PS Plus Availability
- Extra & Premium
Returnal is a roguelike with a cinematic narrative and heart-pounding action. Whenever the protagonist, Selene, dies, she is launched back to the start of her alien nightmare. However, each cycle, players become familiar with enemy patterns, open up gear, and develop their strategy. The circle is narrow and violent, yet not disheartening. Rather, it promotes trial and error and a strong spirit.
The joy of the retry loop in Returnal is the extent to which progress depends on knowledge and not necessarily strength alone. Players become more knowledgeable, more reflexive, more anticipative. Randomized rooms and bosses can be curveballs that the game throws, yet the feeling of improvement never changes. Every time the player comes back to the surface, it is not a new running attempt - it is a chance to rewrite the story and to end the cycle at last.
7 Monster Hunter: World
Boss Battles That Get Better With Every Attempt
Monster Hunter: World Game
- Released
- January 26, 2018
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- Teen
- Developer(s)
- Capcom
- Publisher(s)
- Capcom
- Engine
- MT Framework
- Franchise
- Monster Hunter
- Genre(s)
- Fighting, Action RPG, Action-Adventure
- Platform(s)
- PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
Monster Hunter: World is a game that is focused on the hunt. All the monsters have different behaviors, which require players to learn the patterns, come prepared with adequate equipment, and improvise tactics in combat. Early defeats are natural, though it hardly ever seems like a dead end. The players are motivated to get better, to time things, and to cooperate.
It is the dynamic nature of the gameplay that gives it addictive “one more hunt” energy. At every attempt, players get to know better the tools and weaknesses of their target. There is no better feeling than that of accomplishment after defeating a monster that appeared to be undefeatable. The more the player goes into the loop, the more rewarding it is. It is a tutorial on advanced repetition as progression.
8 Celeste
Platforming That Builds Grit & Growth
Celeste
- Released
- January 25, 2018
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- E10+ For Everyone 10+ Due To Alcohol Reference, Fantasy Violence, Mild Language
- Developer(s)
- Extremely OK Games
- Publisher(s)
- Extremely OK Games
- Engine
- microsoft xna
- Steam Deck Compatibility
- Verified
- PC Release Date
- January 25, 2018
- Xbox Series X|S Release Date
- January 25, 2018
- PS5 Release Date
- January 24, 2018
- Nintendo Switch Release Date
- January 25, 2018
- Genre(s)
- Platformer
- OpenCritic Rating
- Mighty
- How Long To Beat
- 9 Hours
- X|S Optimized
- No
- File Size Xbox Series
- 1 GB (November 2023)
- PS Plus Availability
- Extra & Premium
Celeste is a viciously tough platformer that sweetens the deal with its challenge. Players take the role of Madeline, who has to climb a dangerous mountain literally and metaphorically. Death will always be there. However, with the immediate respawn system in place in the game, the flow has never been interrupted. What is more important, it puts failure as a platform for development, both mechanically and emotionally.
The touching story supports the theme of “one more attempt” perfectly. The process of Madeline forcing her way past her doubts and fears is reciprocated by the players persevering in their own troubles. The challenge might be high, yet it does not seem like a punishment; it seems like a challenge worth taking. Every attempt is a kind of self-discovery, and not many games make that loop feel meaningful.
9 Hades
The Ultimate Retry Loop, Reborn In Myth
Hades
- Released
- December 6, 2018
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- m
- Developer(s)
- Supergiant Games
- Publisher(s)
- Supergiant Games
- Engine
- Unreal Engine 4
- Franchise
- Hades
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 4, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 5, macOS, Nintendo Switch
- OpenCritic Rating
- Mighty
Hades is an epitome of the one more try philosophy. Players play as Zagreus, trying to flee the Underworld, and each run has randomized enemies and rooms. The beauty of the game is that it rewards every attempt, whether players win or lose. Every attempt is rewarded with new dialogue, story development, upgrades, and weapons, so no run will be wasted.
Outside of gameplay, world-building is what powers the loop. Players are engaged not only in escaping, but also in characters and their stories. After tens of runs, one can still find something new. The action is so quick and the controls so tight that trying again is a pleasure rather than a punishment.
14 Best Roguelike Games On The PS5, Ranked
PlayStation 5 players looking to dive into the world of roguelikes have several fantastic options to pick from on the console. Here are the best.