Online Games That Demand Skill, Patience, and Tactical Thinking

Most online games these days are based around high intensity action and reactions, with players barely given a second to collect their thoughts between one battle and the next.

This has largely been due to a raft of games trying to piggyback on the success of titles like Call of Duty and Fortnite.

While there is obviously a place for such games in the online sphere, there is a fear that gamers who want something altogether different from their gaming experience may be getting overlooked.

To redress the balance, we thought we would highlight just some of the online games and gaming genres that can give some respite from the crashes, bangs, and wallops of battle royale lobbies. So, strap on your gaming headset and get ready for some games that demand skill, patience, and tactical thinking.

Classic games such as chess are booming online at the moment because many players want to be mentally stimulated rather than just wowed by graphics and explosions

Classic Games Re-Imagined for the Contemporary Gamer

Games developers are like any other creative person, always looking to the past first for inspiration, then building on the foundations laid by those that went before them to create something new and exciting.

That is very much the case in the online gaming industry, with many online games operators specializing in taking classic games of the past and bringing them right up to date for the modern gamer.

What is so good about this approach is that the beloved game dynamics of classics such as chess, poker, and dominoes are not lost during this process, but instead enhanced, so that the games require even more brainpower or quick tactical thinking from players competing using pieces, cards, or tiles.

Some great places to start for players who like the sound of this melding of past and present are Chess.com that has some incredibly intuitive versions of the classic board game, PokerStars India which is bringing bluffing and raising to the online masses, and Flyclops who have even found a way to drag dominoes into the 21st century.

Anyone who tries such games should just be ready for the steep learning curves they require of you as a player, which is all part of the fun. You can read up on the best guide on chess openings to start.

Retro Puzzlers Make a Comeback

It is not just board games and card games that are back in vogue these days. Retro video games of yesteryear are also stirring nostalgia in more and more gamers.

This is evidenced by the uptick in retro arcade favorites like Tetris being revamped for online gaming platforms and devices.

Tetris 99 is the most obvious example of this, but there are others too, such as Fall Guys, which is a 3D re-hashing of the legendary Lemmings.

Gaming royalty such as Tetris is making a strong comeback online, thanks to imaginative remakes from developers with a soft spot for all things retro

Escape Room Craze Goes Online

Escape rooms have been popping up everywhere from local highstreets to abandoned warehouses, and it really was only a matter of time before they transitioned over into online gaming.

Some exceptional games have come out of this budding genre in recent years, combining all the best elements of puzzlers, platformers, and open world games.

Our favorites are The Witness, The Room, and Firewatch. The latter is particularly ingenious, putting players in the fireproof boots of a park ranger in a US national park. It is both nerve wracking and full of brilliant head scratching moments that will have you coming back again and again.

Platformers Morph into Modern Masterpieces

In many ways, video games all started with the pixelated platformer, as players were challenged to see if they could overcome testing levels.

A new breed of platformer has been taking the genre to new heights, combining haunting graphics and soundtracks as well as 3D elements to create mind blowing gaming experiences. Some titles that are a must to at least sample include Limbo, Ori and the Blind Forrest, and the wonderfully named Super Meat Boy.