When this article goes live, me and my girlfriend should be just about making it to our camping holiday destination for a few days away from the hustle and bustle of modern life. I cannot wait to have a no worries for a bit and just focus on our walks and where we are going to get our lunch and a pint! With all this exciting adventure in mind it got me thinking about some games over the years that have seemed like the perfect place for a camping excursion, and because I have a deadline to hit and Respawning doesn’t have holidays, here I am to discuss a few games that would make an excellent camping holiday…
Firewatch
Right off the bat lets talk about the one game I think we all picture when we imagine a chill place to go for a walk. Firewatch plonks you in the sizeable boots of Henry, a man who has had enough of real life and takes a job as a Shoshone National Forest fire lookout, mooching about the woods around his lookout station and basically just doing his job of making sure people aren’t messing up nature. Henry is a sarcastic individual with his only real contact being with his unseen supervisor Delilah who talks to you through a walkie talkie. The environment in this game is stunningly beautiful, using a cel shaded style that makes everything look like a autumn painting you cant help but get lost in the world and find yourself losing hours as you just explore. Of course, there is a story with a fairly interesting conspiracy subplot, but I mean, who cares about story right? You’re here for the walks.
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla
Get ready kids for the first of 2 Viking games on this list (I do keep playing the hits, don’t I?) Valhalla is potentially the longest single player game I have ever committed to, with a total play time of 150 hours and little signs of stopping yet, I am fully invested in the travels of Eivor across England, and why should I stop? This rendition of the isles is gorgeously rendered and a wonderful place to just hop on a horse and ride about in. From the grass plains and river lands to the south all the way up north where everything is covered in a blanket of snow, its hard to find a game with both this level of variety to its map AND for all of it to look this good. Plus, every now and then you can throw some axes as baddies, what’s not to love?
Red Dead Redemption 2
The old west was pretty hellish really, no getting around it. Outlaws, beasties and about 16,000 illnesses, times were tough for cowboys. However, even with an unflinching retelling of these times. RDR2 still makes the world look like an amazing place for a brief vacation. As Arthur Morgan it is actually something you can do in game, setting up a small campfire, tent and stove to chill out for a while and advance the in-game clock and make for some interesting interactions with random characters who might want to share in your fires warmth, or rob you blind. So is the way of the west I suppose! I know I should be out playing the part of the outlaw, robbing, killing and generally being a bit of a bastard, but I really can’t stop myself from finding a nice patch of river and just fishing for a few hours, and speaking of fishing…
Sea of Thieves
Yep, fishing, in a pirate game. Yet another title where the goal is to be a bit of a sh*t and I can’t bring myself to do it! I could be sailing the high seas plundering for days but all I want to do is sail to beautiful islands across some of the most amazingly animated water in gaming and do a little bit of fishing or dig up some treasure that I had to harm no one for. Sea of Thieves was a game I never thought I would be into as there is no goal, nothing to earn besides skins and fancy hats and its almost entirely PvP which is basically the recipe for me to not enjoy myself. However, here I am making my own fun and my own head canon as a peaceful sailor just looking to have a nice time and not ruffle too many feathers. Plus, I mean, who doesn’t fancy a nice chill grog on the beach sometimes?
God of War (2018)
Ah there it is, the second Viking game! I’ve made it no real secret that snow levels are my favourite in games, they always look amazing and just make me feel good inside for some reason. God of Wars world may be chock full of monsters and bastard gods running about being mean to each other, but there is no arguing that each of the games 6 realms look amazing in their own ways. Though for the sake of where I would like to visit and set up camp we’ll stick with Midgard, the snowy and mountains realm with some beautiful forests and of course the gigantic lake, home to the even large Jormangandr who, as long as you’re not Thor, seems like a pretty chill creature! There are plenty of places along the banks of this body of water that would seem to be the perfect place to pitch a tent and just watch the sun go down. Maybe even take some time to tell a story to your BOY!
And there we have it, 5 great game worlds to take a camping trip in! As I set of on my own journey today I hope this inspires you to pick up some gear and get out there yourselves! Be sure to leave a comment on any other worlds you think should be on this list and check out more of our work right here at Respawning.co.uk