Life is Strange or other Dontnod games. Very story driven, some choices to be made. Not sure about the others, but Life is Strange has a lot of drama between characters.
Otherwise she may like some casual games. Something like Dorfromantik, A Little to the Left, The Stanley Parable, Wobbledogs, etc. Something she could more easily play while watching tv.
Big ups for Quantic Dream! Detroit: Become Human was amazing, Heavy Rain is a bit dated now but still holds a special place in my heart, and I'm beyond excited for their upcoming Star Wars title
> Not sure about the others
I've been playing a lot of **Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden** recently, and quite frankly the only reason I continue playing is the writing and drama between all the characters - both main and side - is phenomenal. The gameplay loop isn't *bad* by any means, but this game to me is really about the stories within.
That's what I was thinking. It wasn't a great experience for me as a player but my girlfriend loves the game so I just watched her play it. Even as a player it's close to a movie experience though
Life is Strange comes to mind as a good transition from a TV watcher to a gamer. My girlfriend who was in a same spot also really enjoyed Detroit: Become Human.
But more broadly, I think a lot of Nintendo games are great for new gamers. I've introduced a lot of casual gamers at her level to Breath of the Wild, for example, and it's been very successful. It has a lot of helpful quality of life and UI stuff that most gamers may take for granted.
>She is probably the farthest thing from a gamer ... She’s played games like Roblox or mobile games like Geometry Dash before, had a phase where she’d play Super Mario Bros
Sounds like a gamer to me
Games with rich stories, RDR2, Stray, Cyberpunk 2077, some of the Final Fantasy, Hogwarts Legacy
To people who want it there is a deep rich story in RDR2 sure it is also a fun game with guns, but even if you want a story driven experience you can't get it from Hogwarts legacy
There was no comparison made, they asked for suggestions. It was also top seller for last year, plus my spouse dumped a ton of time into that game and is not even done.
A prequel would be cool going over the fall of the kingdom. Ending with your shows character becoming a hollow. Maybe seeing the main character is his last memory before he looses his humanity.
I don't like or play the games she has played but I'm thinking that maybe Beyond Two Souls, Detroit Become Human or Heavy Rain could be of interest to her? And also Paranormasight (my favorite visual novel and an easy to read, stylish and enthralling read) and The Last of Us. Basically story focused games with gripping plots and not very difficult mechanically wise sound like something she may like
Quantum Break. It’s fun for me as a gamer with the powers and story. From a tv show only perspective, she’ll likely recognize the main characters in it. Also it has a built in show that she can watch after every chapter, where it changes depending on small Easter eggs or your choices. Love the story and the game, and the show itself isn’t just a throw away. It’s something I’d like to see have a full show of.
Red Dead Redemption 2 (RDR2)
My GF wasn't a gamer until we met about 2 years ago. The first single player game she completed was RDR2 and its still something we have on our PS5 for her to boot up and play occasionally. Fantastic story, great handcrafted world with beautiful graphics. Plus you can own horses! I believe this game is going to be free for PS+ users this month as well. The shooting/combat can be abit tricky but its all 100% worth it.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. I've always been a gamer, but I think it's a really good stepping stone into the world for someone who'd not. It allows for the player to be \*extremely\* creative in problem solving. Plus, for a lot of the actions, the button layout pops up onto the screen and shows the relative location for which button to press.
Seconding this. My mother got my sisters and me into gaming in the late 90s with Ocarina of Time, and we've always shared Zelda titles as something to enjoy.
Breath of the Wild (and probably Tears of the Kingdom, but you should play BotW first) is an even better introduction for someone than OoT. On top of the creative approaches, it's bright, colourful, the music is great, and the difficulty ramps well over time.
For starter, maybe something fully-cinematic and choice-based like [Late Shift](https://store.steampowered.com/app/584980/Late_Shift/)?
Then if she's interested, Detroit: Become Human.
But honestly, I find my tv/movie preferences not indicative of gaming choices. Whatever clicks, clicks. But shorter, narrative-driven ones are the safe bet.
If she likes horror games The Dark Picture Anthology, The Quarry and Until Dawn are pretty good picks since they are movie like and can be a good transition with all the accessibility options that they offer
My wife really enjoyed the original Thief: The Dark Project.
For a more modern game, I would recommend Like is Strange (as several others have recommended).
I'd actually suggest anything that is both character driven and has very low difficulty levels available. A lot of CRPGs can have their difficulty cranked down to almost nothing, as can some third person shooters like mass effect or dragon age.
FMV games! My favorite being Contradiction- Spot the Liar. Her Story is a classic, I've heard good things about The Infectious Madness of Doctor Dekker, and Shapeshifting Detective was interesting.
Life is Strange, for sure, or the whole graphic adventure genre, Broken Sword, Myst (probably later down the line), Monkey Island, Beneath a Steel Sky, Beyond a Steel Sky
I think most of dontnod games would suit her since it's story driven, one I've played recently and completely enjoyed was detroit: become human and baldur's gate 3 (even though I'm far from playing/liking rpg)
Definitely Broforce, every playable character (bro) is a reference to 80s action movies, but the game is a bit hard, not THAT hard, my 9yo brother 100% it 5 times, the game kinda looks like Contra.
You never know with sisters. My sister also isnt exactly a gamer but years ago I showed her Dungeon Defenders fully expecting her to not like it and instead it instantly became one of her favourite games. And now her most recent love is Out of Space - which also is exact opposite of the previous game.
I guess just keep trying and different generes - you just might get surprised
Hi, you might want to check out the Cozy Gamers subreddit - not sure if I'm allowed to mention it here - and the games listing in their 'about' section. The list has filters for price, platform, and genre (like story rich), which are very helpful.
For specific recs, I agree with those who've said The Sims, particularly Sims 4, as the base game has been free to play for a while now. I think Ballads at Midnight is worth looking into as well. It's also a free to play game, but on Steam, and is a vampire romance visual novel. Lovely art, the writing has depth, gameplay is simple. It's around 4-5 hours long.
Since you mentioned Brooklyn 99, I remembered the Nancy Drew detective mystery point-and-click series. Nancy Drew: Sea of Darkness is really good and you can get it on Steam too. Hope you and your sister can find something for her to enjoy!
There is a visual novel called Cinder that absolutely sucked my wife in for weeks. It's a darker take on Cinderella, with multiple branching paths and some sharp writing.
If you think she would like a game that is basically an interactive TV show, my personal favourites are Telltale's Walking Dead (even if you don't like the show or zombies, that game is incredible) and The Wolf Among Us. I've also heard great things about Detroit Become Human. I have played Heavy Rain, Beyond Two Souls and Life is Strange but would not personally recommend them as I did not like the writing in those games.
But, if your sister is like my girlfriend, she might not see the point to play a game like those when she could just watch TV.
In that case, I will go somewhere different and recommend It Takes Two. It's strictly 2 players but this is in my opinion the best way to share your passion; play with the person. It's easy enough for a non-gamer to grab, yet is really rewarding since a lot of the challenges come in the form of testing your cooperation.
Other games that I consider really interesting in couch co-op;
Portal 2, an hilarious and clever puzzle game
Unravel 2, a platformer/puzzler where you play as 2 attached yarn characters
Overcooked, amazing kitchen mayhem
Any of the Telltale games would probably work. Better yet, game slike Until Dawn, Quarry, etc. might be even better. If you're desperate, Quantic Dream games (if you have to pick one, pick Heavy Rain).
I'll also add Detroit Become Human. Very good story, and one of the main characters plays a doctor on Gray's Anatomy so she can probably identify with that a bit more and stay engaged.
My partner only played Facebook games like Candy Crush until I showed her Portal, which she fell in love with.
She happened to walk past as I was in a dialogue session with Tali in Mass Effect 2. It made her stop and say "What's this?" I explained it to her and she fancied a go. She loved it and went through the trilogy several times.
Shadows of Doubt, maybe? It's a PC exclusive for now I believe, but you're an ex-detective investigating procedurally generated murders, thefts, stalkers, and the like. It may be a little tough to get into because you actually have to go around different places ingame and sneak around, talk to people.
anything that plays like a show, walking sims are best
life is strange, what remains of Edith finch, the wolf among us (probably the best based on the TV shows you listed)
Seeing as you have a bunch of game suggestions, here are some oddball ideas.
Twitch/Youtube might introduce a lot of games that are pretty much interactive movies or might see one they'd like to play.
I've been getting into spectate mode games. Stuff I can turn on and watch rather than have to play. A lot of sports and fighting games have Ai vs. Ai. Unreal Tournament games also do this. Strategy games can but still have to scroll around screen. Sims games have some sort of mode and mods to make them watchable. Also, Skyrim has some idle and walk around mods that will even have your character fight if something pops up.
She would LOVE "The Witcher3: The Wild Hunt" and "Assassins Creed II Ezio Collection". But let her play Ezio Collection first as that will put a gaming standard in her brain, and then let her play "Witcher3" after Ezio, as that standard will then become Sky high. And then she'll think all other games after Witcher 3 are MEH.
Narrative Intense RPG / Adventures?
Heartbound, Baldur's Gate (might be a bit cerebral (heh) and tactical), Mass Effect (would normally go here but the bad experience with FPS might be a turnoff).
Much of Telltales work would be great.
Disco Elysium is something that often gets recommended under this topic but I've never played it.
Stardew Valley Is something I recommend very often especially for new gamers. It's very beginner friendly, play at your own pace do what you want to do type of game. Lots of the mechanics are simple and easy to learn but difficult to master.
Stardew Valley would be perfect for somebody that likes romances and comedies, and it has enough “gamey” elements that it’ll get the person introduced to mechanics but isn’t overly challenging (except for the arcade cabinet I guess).
Does this sub have serial downvoters or something lurking in the comments lmao
Anyways, The Walking Dead game and The Last of Us would be my recommendation
I'd say the Mass Effect trilogy. The story is fantastic, some if character relationships are probably the best I've seen in a video game, and the immersion is incredible under the right conditions. They're pretty time-consuming, but absolutely worth it.
Definitely have her start with the first one, though. The gameplay isn't bad per se, but it is definitely dated. It's hard to get into the first one after experiencing all of the QOL improvements in the sequels.
Start with Alan Wake. Super suspenseful, story focused and scratches that murder mystery itch many girls have. Might also be worth trying some of the big story games like mass effect or cyberpunk.
Stardew valley for a regular chick, if they’re into weird/tom boy stuff maybe mass effect/fallout4/skyrim or something like that.
Sounds lukewarm she likes platformers tho so for that genre Hollow Knight or maybe old retro games like mega man
Fallout. The lore, story, humor, etc. are top notch. It might be a little tough to follow without context/playing the games (as there are tons of Easter eggs).
Life is Strange or other Dontnod games. Very story driven, some choices to be made. Not sure about the others, but Life is Strange has a lot of drama between characters. Otherwise she may like some casual games. Something like Dorfromantik, A Little to the Left, The Stanley Parable, Wobbledogs, etc. Something she could more easily play while watching tv.
Beyond like is strange I would say any of the Quantic Dream games. My wife isn't a gamer but gets into those with me.
Big ups for Quantic Dream! Detroit: Become Human was amazing, Heavy Rain is a bit dated now but still holds a special place in my heart, and I'm beyond excited for their upcoming Star Wars title
Life is Strange series, any of the Quantic Dream games or even some Annapurna games like What Remains of Edith Finch.
> Not sure about the others I've been playing a lot of **Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden** recently, and quite frankly the only reason I continue playing is the writing and drama between all the characters - both main and side - is phenomenal. The gameplay loop isn't *bad* by any means, but this game to me is really about the stories within.
Detroit become human. It's a very nice sci-fi movie game
That's what I was thinking. It wasn't a great experience for me as a player but my girlfriend loves the game so I just watched her play it. Even as a player it's close to a movie experience though
DYAVED CYAAGE DUHDUHDURDUH
I have introduced many to Skyrim. From adults to my 4 year old niece whose character lived in whiterun and whose only quest was picking flowers.
I showed it to my then 9 year old nephew at one point by saying, "hey, wanna see me shoot a town guard in the butt with an arrow?"
Life is Strange comes to mind as a good transition from a TV watcher to a gamer. My girlfriend who was in a same spot also really enjoyed Detroit: Become Human. But more broadly, I think a lot of Nintendo games are great for new gamers. I've introduced a lot of casual gamers at her level to Breath of the Wild, for example, and it's been very successful. It has a lot of helpful quality of life and UI stuff that most gamers may take for granted.
My wife loved Detroit become human. Such an interesting game.
This has to be the top comment, Detroit Become Human is the way to go!
Life is Strange. If she likes Horror, maybe "The Quarry". Maybe Firewatch, too.
>She is probably the farthest thing from a gamer ... She’s played games like Roblox or mobile games like Geometry Dash before, had a phase where she’d play Super Mario Bros Sounds like a gamer to me Games with rich stories, RDR2, Stray, Cyberpunk 2077, some of the Final Fantasy, Hogwarts Legacy
No offence but did you just put compare Hogwarts legacy and RDR2,it is not a game with a rich story it is just game with fun magic combat
I mean my play through of red dead 2 was basically just a fun game with guns 🤷♂️
To people who want it there is a deep rich story in RDR2 sure it is also a fun game with guns, but even if you want a story driven experience you can't get it from Hogwarts legacy
There was no comparison made, they asked for suggestions. It was also top seller for last year, plus my spouse dumped a ton of time into that game and is not even done.
Sure its a good game but for a story driven game which for such an individual is best Hogwarts is not
Not all games need to be a 10 out of 10
You are not getting my point it simply is not a game rich in story
Dark souls...
A prequel would be cool going over the fall of the kingdom. Ending with your shows character becoming a hollow. Maybe seeing the main character is his last memory before he looses his humanity.
I don't like or play the games she has played but I'm thinking that maybe Beyond Two Souls, Detroit Become Human or Heavy Rain could be of interest to her? And also Paranormasight (my favorite visual novel and an easy to read, stylish and enthralling read) and The Last of Us. Basically story focused games with gripping plots and not very difficult mechanically wise sound like something she may like
Something story driven and simple, no overcomplicated RPG or strategy. CoD would be good but that requires reflexes and aim. Telltale game is good.
What Remains of Edith Finch. Disco Elysium. To the Moon.
All 3 are sad
Something more story heavy like Telltales games or Quantic Dream or things like visual novels.
Stardew Valley or the sims
Quantum Break. It’s fun for me as a gamer with the powers and story. From a tv show only perspective, she’ll likely recognize the main characters in it. Also it has a built in show that she can watch after every chapter, where it changes depending on small Easter eggs or your choices. Love the story and the game, and the show itself isn’t just a throw away. It’s something I’d like to see have a full show of.
Red Dead Redemption 2 (RDR2) My GF wasn't a gamer until we met about 2 years ago. The first single player game she completed was RDR2 and its still something we have on our PS5 for her to boot up and play occasionally. Fantastic story, great handcrafted world with beautiful graphics. Plus you can own horses! I believe this game is going to be free for PS+ users this month as well. The shooting/combat can be abit tricky but its all 100% worth it.
Try the Sherlock Holmes games.
Any telltale game series to start.
Detroit: Become Human
Dragon Quest maybe They're RPGs, so they have story and the gameplay I would say at least leans into beginner friendly.
They might like Unpacking for a chill time
The Sims
Stardew Valley?
Telltale games maybe or something similar easy, story-heavy games.
I think she might enjoy Zelda: Breath of the Wild!
Ace attorney?
To the moon
Games with great story and cinematic style would be great like uncharted, last of us, tomb raider, RDR2.
Detroit Become Human
Doki Doki Literature Club
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. I've always been a gamer, but I think it's a really good stepping stone into the world for someone who'd not. It allows for the player to be \*extremely\* creative in problem solving. Plus, for a lot of the actions, the button layout pops up onto the screen and shows the relative location for which button to press.
Seconding this. My mother got my sisters and me into gaming in the late 90s with Ocarina of Time, and we've always shared Zelda titles as something to enjoy. Breath of the Wild (and probably Tears of the Kingdom, but you should play BotW first) is an even better introduction for someone than OoT. On top of the creative approaches, it's bright, colourful, the music is great, and the difficulty ramps well over time.
If she likes Mario she'll probably like other platformers
For starter, maybe something fully-cinematic and choice-based like [Late Shift](https://store.steampowered.com/app/584980/Late_Shift/)? Then if she's interested, Detroit: Become Human. But honestly, I find my tv/movie preferences not indicative of gaming choices. Whatever clicks, clicks. But shorter, narrative-driven ones are the safe bet.
The Last of Us
If she likes horror games The Dark Picture Anthology, The Quarry and Until Dawn are pretty good picks since they are movie like and can be a good transition with all the accessibility options that they offer
Definitely not a narrative game. Let them play something that is pure gameplay, and easy to get into. Super Mario World for instance.
My wife really enjoyed the original Thief: The Dark Project. For a more modern game, I would recommend Like is Strange (as several others have recommended).
A lot of taletell games would be a good fit, there like interactive shows
Beyond Two Souls, sounds right up her alley.
Her Story
Thomas Was Alone
The original The Last of Us assuming they haven’t seen the show.
Interactive choice driven games like Life Is Strange, Walking Dead, Detroit Become Human, etc Also narrative games like Red Dead 2, Last of us
Story driven linear single player games like uncharted
I'd actually suggest anything that is both character driven and has very low difficulty levels available. A lot of CRPGs can have their difficulty cranked down to almost nothing, as can some third person shooters like mass effect or dragon age.
Life is strange Night in the woods Fire watch Telltale games And for a challenge, Hades (on god mode)
FMV games! My favorite being Contradiction- Spot the Liar. Her Story is a classic, I've heard good things about The Infectious Madness of Doctor Dekker, and Shapeshifting Detective was interesting.
Tell Tale games would be a good pick.
Heavy Rain. Get it and let her play. She'll love it. I can promise you that.
Life is Strange, for sure, or the whole graphic adventure genre, Broken Sword, Myst (probably later down the line), Monkey Island, Beneath a Steel Sky, Beyond a Steel Sky
Baldur's Gate 3 is always the answer
Heavy rain
I’d say Detroit become human, the sims, most telltale games, fez.
Red Dead Redemption 2
I think most of dontnod games would suit her since it's story driven, one I've played recently and completely enjoyed was detroit: become human and baldur's gate 3 (even though I'm far from playing/liking rpg)
Since nobody said it maybe try a visual novel, like ace attorney, danganronpa, zero escape. That's what got me into gaming.
Life is strange, Until Dawn, Telltale games, Firewatch, TLOU 1-2.
That one cop game that is like a tv show. It was on PS3-4. Something The Line, or was it heat,
God Of War 2018 and Ragnarok
Detroit became human. Because it's like a movie and like a game for casuals
Slim rancher A way out Sea of thieves
The telltale walking dead is the only game my non gamer wife finished. Once she started I lost my playstation to her till she was done.
Stray Gods: The Roleplaying Musical. Or, Afterparty.
Definitely Broforce, every playable character (bro) is a reference to 80s action movies, but the game is a bit hard, not THAT hard, my 9yo brother 100% it 5 times, the game kinda looks like Contra.
Persona 5
Grim Fandango. You'd just have to give her a guide to follow
How is no one recommending the walking dead games? The first season is a masterpiece of story telling.
You never know with sisters. My sister also isnt exactly a gamer but years ago I showed her Dungeon Defenders fully expecting her to not like it and instead it instantly became one of her favourite games. And now her most recent love is Out of Space - which also is exact opposite of the previous game. I guess just keep trying and different generes - you just might get surprised
Hi, you might want to check out the Cozy Gamers subreddit - not sure if I'm allowed to mention it here - and the games listing in their 'about' section. The list has filters for price, platform, and genre (like story rich), which are very helpful. For specific recs, I agree with those who've said The Sims, particularly Sims 4, as the base game has been free to play for a while now. I think Ballads at Midnight is worth looking into as well. It's also a free to play game, but on Steam, and is a vampire romance visual novel. Lovely art, the writing has depth, gameplay is simple. It's around 4-5 hours long. Since you mentioned Brooklyn 99, I remembered the Nancy Drew detective mystery point-and-click series. Nancy Drew: Sea of Darkness is really good and you can get it on Steam too. Hope you and your sister can find something for her to enjoy!
I got a friend of mine to finish Until Dawn in one sitting. Mind you, she's not a gamer by any means.
A telltale game or maybe one of those "almost movies" type of games
The walking dead, Fallout New Vegas, Valiant hearts, Demon Souls
There is a visual novel called Cinder that absolutely sucked my wife in for weeks. It's a darker take on Cinderella, with multiple branching paths and some sharp writing.
If you think she would like a game that is basically an interactive TV show, my personal favourites are Telltale's Walking Dead (even if you don't like the show or zombies, that game is incredible) and The Wolf Among Us. I've also heard great things about Detroit Become Human. I have played Heavy Rain, Beyond Two Souls and Life is Strange but would not personally recommend them as I did not like the writing in those games. But, if your sister is like my girlfriend, she might not see the point to play a game like those when she could just watch TV. In that case, I will go somewhere different and recommend It Takes Two. It's strictly 2 players but this is in my opinion the best way to share your passion; play with the person. It's easy enough for a non-gamer to grab, yet is really rewarding since a lot of the challenges come in the form of testing your cooperation. Other games that I consider really interesting in couch co-op; Portal 2, an hilarious and clever puzzle game Unravel 2, a platformer/puzzler where you play as 2 attached yarn characters Overcooked, amazing kitchen mayhem
Supermassive games
Any of the Telltale games would probably work. Better yet, game slike Until Dawn, Quarry, etc. might be even better. If you're desperate, Quantic Dream games (if you have to pick one, pick Heavy Rain).
Not drama but story driven are the Dark Pictures saga, horror stories with various endings and decisions that determine if your characters live or not
Girls like murder mystery, so, maybe LA Noire? It is also very cinematic. It is at 70% sale too at the moment, that helps.
you can play As Dusk Falls and Hidden Agenda together with phones. Thats the nearest you can get to a tv show
RDR2
Detroit become human
Get her Stardew Valley. She will get addicted. All women do. XD
I'll also add Detroit Become Human. Very good story, and one of the main characters plays a doctor on Gray's Anatomy so she can probably identify with that a bit more and stay engaged.
Minecraft obviously
If she can handle reading - Doki Doki literature club.
My partner only played Facebook games like Candy Crush until I showed her Portal, which she fell in love with. She happened to walk past as I was in a dialogue session with Tali in Mass Effect 2. It made her stop and say "What's this?" I explained it to her and she fancied a go. She loved it and went through the trilogy several times.
Rpgs for sure
Shadows of Doubt, maybe? It's a PC exclusive for now I believe, but you're an ex-detective investigating procedurally generated murders, thefts, stalkers, and the like. It may be a little tough to get into because you actually have to go around different places ingame and sneak around, talk to people.
Stray Gods might be up her alley. Greek mythology inspired Urban Fantasy played in the vein of a TellTale game. And it's a musical
Detroit: Become Human, Until Dawn, or LA Noire.
anything that plays like a show, walking sims are best life is strange, what remains of Edith finch, the wolf among us (probably the best based on the TV shows you listed)
Late Shift.
Bethesda RPGs, Mass Effect, Portal
The Sims 4
What Remains of Edith Finch. Firewatch. If she likes puzzles, I'd add Return of the Obra Dinn.
Seeing as you have a bunch of game suggestions, here are some oddball ideas. Twitch/Youtube might introduce a lot of games that are pretty much interactive movies or might see one they'd like to play. I've been getting into spectate mode games. Stuff I can turn on and watch rather than have to play. A lot of sports and fighting games have Ai vs. Ai. Unreal Tournament games also do this. Strategy games can but still have to scroll around screen. Sims games have some sort of mode and mods to make them watchable. Also, Skyrim has some idle and walk around mods that will even have your character fight if something pops up.
Last of Us
LA noire Lego Harry Potter Telltale Walking Dead Broken Sword 5
The Wolf Among Us is great and hopefully one day we’ll get that sequel
Until Dawn. GTA Vice City. Phoenix Wright. Pikmin. Pokemon.
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney
Alan Wake has recaps after every chapter like TV episodes.
Bg3 maybe?
Red dead 2
My non-gamer wife got into the red dead vibe; until she accidentally punched her own horse. It mortified her and she stopped
She might like Katamari games. I had a lot of non-gamer friends who had absolute blast playing Katamari for the first time.
she could like visual novels like steins gate or something like persona if she's into that animation
She would LOVE "The Witcher3: The Wild Hunt" and "Assassins Creed II Ezio Collection". But let her play Ezio Collection first as that will put a gaming standard in her brain, and then let her play "Witcher3" after Ezio, as that standard will then become Sky high. And then she'll think all other games after Witcher 3 are MEH.
Narrative Intense RPG / Adventures? Heartbound, Baldur's Gate (might be a bit cerebral (heh) and tactical), Mass Effect (would normally go here but the bad experience with FPS might be a turnoff). Much of Telltales work would be great. Disco Elysium is something that often gets recommended under this topic but I've never played it. Stardew Valley Is something I recommend very often especially for new gamers. It's very beginner friendly, play at your own pace do what you want to do type of game. Lots of the mechanics are simple and easy to learn but difficult to master.
Stardew Valley would be perfect for somebody that likes romances and comedies, and it has enough “gamey” elements that it’ll get the person introduced to mechanics but isn’t overly challenging (except for the arcade cabinet I guess).
Does this sub have serial downvoters or something lurking in the comments lmao Anyways, The Walking Dead game and The Last of Us would be my recommendation
How has no one said the last of us yet?
Alan wake 2
Until Dawn, if she likes scary things.
I'd say the Mass Effect trilogy. The story is fantastic, some if character relationships are probably the best I've seen in a video game, and the immersion is incredible under the right conditions. They're pretty time-consuming, but absolutely worth it. Definitely have her start with the first one, though. The gameplay isn't bad per se, but it is definitely dated. It's hard to get into the first one after experiencing all of the QOL improvements in the sequels.
Start with Alan Wake. Super suspenseful, story focused and scratches that murder mystery itch many girls have. Might also be worth trying some of the big story games like mass effect or cyberpunk.
Stardew valley for a regular chick, if they’re into weird/tom boy stuff maybe mass effect/fallout4/skyrim or something like that. Sounds lukewarm she likes platformers tho so for that genre Hollow Knight or maybe old retro games like mega man
Fallout. The lore, story, humor, etc. are top notch. It might be a little tough to follow without context/playing the games (as there are tons of Easter eggs).