Video games are a beautiful medium. More than ever, games can create impactful, emotionally resonant stories, and connect to players with memorable characters. What’s more, the interactive element of gaming provides an edge that helps players feel even more immersed in the characters than any other medium.
But sometimes, the fun part of gaming is when you get to run wild. Sometimes, a game is interested in nothing other than entertaining you and having a good time, even if it weirds you out or goes way over the top in the process. Here are nine video games that show no mercy in being crazy, wild experiences.
10. Goat Simulator
How can we not make a list of crazy games without mentioning Goat Simulator? Exactly as it says on the tin, the whole appeal of this game is the ability to control a goat and perform different acts of chaos in a big suburban city. You can even make the goat utilize ragdoll physics that move and contort its body in strange ways.
There’s a surreal, goofy charm to it, and the pick-up-and-play nature means all different types of gamers can get in on the fun. As an added bonus of weirdness, it’s set to receive a sequel in the form of Goat Simulator 3…despite the fact that Goat Simulator 2 doesn’t exist. Beautiful.
9. PowerWash Simulator
Okay, so this might not be as conventionally “crazy” as some of the other games here, but think about what PowerWash Simulator’s purpose is: power washing. The entire point of the game is to clean everything you can, eventually getting to the point of cleaning ancient statues and alien ships. As if it couldn’t get any more unbelievable, there’s even a story under the surface involving volcanic eruptions, missing cats, and ancient civilization.
It shouldn’t work, but it does; there’s an incredibly relaxing, zen-like air to PowerWash Simulator that makes it extremely hard to put down. As mundane as it seems, it’s cathartic, and it makes for an charming experience that’s weird enough to stick in your mind long after you’re done playing.
8. Katamari Damacy
Right from the jump, Katamari Damacy tells you that the King of All Cosmos, a god-like ruler of the in-game world, got too drunk and destroyed almost the entire universe… must’ve been some pretty strong apple juice. Now, the Prince has to save the universe by rolling earthly materials into an adhesive ball. Because it appears the duct tape just wasn’t strong enough.
At first, the Prince rolls up simple things like paperclips and household knick-knacks. As time goes on, however, that adhesive ball can even pick up houses and cows. And that last part is important; the world can’t go on without the cows.
Katamari Damacy may as well be the dictionary definition of “weird,” but it’s the kind of game that we wouldn’t have any other way. Between its poppy, catchy soundtrack and clever puzzle-based gameplay, the game waves goodbye to tradition and delivers on all fronts. There’s plenty of playful experimentation here, and it makes for a truly unique (and charmingly weird) game that’ll be difficult to put down.
7. Mortal Kombat Series
Mortal Kombat is one of the greatest fighting game franchises out there…and it’s also one of the wildest. Between its brutal amounts of violence, limbs flying, and over-the-top action, it’s definitely a fighting game that’s not for the faint of heart.
Even with the cool concept of a fight-to-the-death tournament, Mortal Kombat’s story makes no effort to ever make sense. Characters will die in a specific entry, only to come back in the next one, and the overall canon has been messed with more often than not. It’s an excellent fighter, but one that’s definitely worth turning your brain off to.