{"id":24022,"date":"2025-12-29T12:50:35","date_gmt":"2025-12-29T04:50:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/?p=24022"},"modified":"2025-12-29T12:50:35","modified_gmt":"2025-12-29T04:50:35","slug":"games-you-should-keep-installed-even-when-youre-not-playing-them","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/?p=24022","title":{"rendered":"Games You Should Keep Installed Even When You&#8217;re Not Playing Them"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Before the first HD console generation, which includes the PS3 and Xbox 360, home console players didn\u2019t need to worry about installing games or updating them. PC players had to deal with installs all the time, but even PC games weren\u2019t as bad as they are today because they simply didn&#8217;t have file sizes as large as modern games do.<\/p>\n<p>    <!-- No AdsNinja v10 Client! -->        <\/p>\n<div class=\"display-card  article article-card small  no-badge  active-content                      \" data-include-community-rating=\"false\" id=\"best-open-world-games-play-slowly-long-time\" data-nosnippet=\"\">\n<picture><source media=\"(max-width: 480px)\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/static0.gamerantimages.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/zelda-breath-of-the-wild-upset.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=140&amp;h=98&amp;dpr=2\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static0.gamerantimages.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/zelda-breath-of-the-wild-upset.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=140&amp;h=98&amp;dpr=2\"\/><img width=\"440\" height=\"364\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"zelda movie casting choices face backlash\" data-img-url=\"https:\/\/static0.gamerantimages.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/zelda-breath-of-the-wild-upset.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=220&amp;h=182&amp;dpr=2\" src=\"https:\/\/static0.gamerantimages.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/zelda-breath-of-the-wild-upset.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=220&amp;h=182&amp;dpr=2\"\/>\n        <\/picture>\n<p>                    <span data-field=\"label\" class=\"article-card-label\"><label>Related<\/label><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"w-display-card-content regular article-block\">\n<h5 class=\"display-card-title \">\n<p>\t\t\tBest Open-World Games To Play Over A Long Time<\/p>\n<\/h5>\n<p class=\"display-card-excerpt\">Sit down and take your time in these open-world games for weeks or months on end, as there is so much great content to experience. \u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Some of the biggest AAA experiences can easily reach 100GB or more, and it can be hard to decide what games to keep on a system, what to delete, and what to move over to external hard drives. For whatever reason, be it the size, constant updates, or appeal of the game, players like to <strong>leave these next games installed.<\/strong> They never know when they might find the urge to play them again.<\/p>\n<p>    <!-- No AdsNinja v10 Client! --><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"minecraft\">\n                        Minecraft<br \/>\n               <\/h2>\n<h3 id=\"getting-out-the-lego-bucket\">\n            Getting Out The Lego Bucket<br \/>\n    <\/h3>\n<p><strong><em>Minecraft<\/em> <\/strong>won\u2019t take up much storage space on any platform that players download it on, and popping back in after months or years will be just as easy as the first time they booted it up. It\u2019s the equivalent of finding a bucket of LEGO bricks as a kid, dumping them out, and then going to town.<\/p>\n<p>With no story or objective, <em>Minecraft <\/em>is one of the most freeing games ever made. It lets players figure out how to make their own fun, be it alone or with a group of friends.<\/p>\n<p>    <!-- No AdsNinja v10 Client! --><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"grand-theft-auto-5\">\n                        Grand Theft Auto 5<br \/>\n               <\/h2>\n<h3 id=\"causing-chaos-online\">\n            Causing Chaos Online<br \/>\n    <\/h3>\n<p>By this point, many players have already achieved 100% completion in <strong><em>Grand Theft Auto 5<\/em><\/strong> between the main story and all the side objectives. That said, even though it came out in 2013, there are still reasons to keep it installed.<\/p>\n<p>The most obvious answer is that <em>Grand Theft Auto Online <\/em>keeps adding new heist updates, and when a new one drops, players can be at the ready. Also, the game is a chaos simulator, so it\u2019s just fun to start it up and then blow stuff up to see how many stars can be racked up before the cops come calling.<\/p>\n<p>    <!-- No AdsNinja v10 Client! --><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"monster-hunter-wilds\">\n                        Monster Hunter Wilds<br \/>\n               <\/h2>\n<h3 id=\"hoping-for-tie-ins\">\n            Hoping For Tie-Ins<br \/>\n    <\/h3>\n<p><strong><em>Monster Hunter Wilds<\/em><\/strong>, and the previous <em>Monster Hunter<\/em> action RPGs, are good at consistently adding new content. The space between new additions is longer than what many fans hoped for with this latest addition, but when those updates drop, fans are in.<\/p>\n<p>It could be something as simple as a new monster or a seasonal event that changes the hub area of the game. So far, the coolest collaboration <em>MHW<\/em> has done is with <em>Final Fantasy<\/em>, and its crossovers like those that keep fans playing on the regular.<\/p>\n<p>    <!-- No AdsNinja v10 Client! --><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"fortnite\">\n                        Fortnite<br \/>\n               <\/h2>\n<h3 id=\"getting-ready-for-the-next-big-event\">\n            Getting Ready For The Next Big Event<br \/>\n    <\/h3>\n<p><strong><em>Fortnite<\/em><\/strong> is essentially the game that the book <em>Ready Player One<\/em> by Ernest Cline was describing. It\u2019s a giant game that is multiplayer-focused, and it allows players to unlock and equip skins from nearly every property on the planet.<\/p>\n<div class=\"display-card  article article-card small  no-badge  active-content                      \" data-include-community-rating=\"false\" id=\"massive-rpgs-that-dont-know-when-to-stop\" data-nosnippet=\"\">\n<picture><source media=\"(max-width: 480px)\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/static0.gamerantimages.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/ichiryusai-in-persona-5.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=140&amp;h=98&amp;dpr=2\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static0.gamerantimages.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/ichiryusai-in-persona-5.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=140&amp;h=98&amp;dpr=2\"\/><img width=\"440\" height=\"364\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Ichiryusai in Persona 5\" data-img-url=\"https:\/\/static0.gamerantimages.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/ichiryusai-in-persona-5.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=220&amp;h=182&amp;dpr=2\" src=\"https:\/\/static0.gamerantimages.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/ichiryusai-in-persona-5.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=220&amp;h=182&amp;dpr=2\"\/>\n        <\/picture>\n<p>                    <span data-field=\"label\" class=\"article-card-label\"><label>Related<\/label><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"w-display-card-content regular article-block\">\n<h5 class=\"display-card-title \">\n<p>\t\t\t8 RPGs So Massive They Don\u2019t Know When to Stop<\/p>\n<\/h5>\n<p class=\"display-card-excerpt\">These RPGs are among the best, but they can be complicated time investments, too.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>One of <em>Fortnite&#8217;s <\/em>biggest crossovers in 2025 threw the Internet into a frenzy when the map was changed to look like Springfield from <em>The Simpsons<\/em>. There hasn\u2019t been a 3D game based on <em>The Simpsons<\/em> since <em>The Simpsons Game<\/em> in 2007, so it was great to see Springfield on a console again. Big events like these in <em>Fortnite <\/em>will bring everyone on board, even for just a single session of shooting and building mayhem.<\/p>\n<p>    <!-- No AdsNinja v10 Client! --><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"mario-kart-world\">\n                        Mario Kart World<br \/>\n               <\/h2>\n<h3 id=\"a-good-racer-for-all\">\n            A Good Racer For All<br \/>\n    <\/h3>\n<p><strong><em>Mario Kart World<\/em><\/strong> didn\u2019t set the world on fire as a launch game for the Switch 2, but it was still another solid entry in the <em>Mario Kart<\/em> series. <em>Mario Kart 8<\/em> launched in 2014, and Nintendo kept updating the game until 2023, between the Wii U and then the Switch versions.<\/p>\n<p>If the same trend is true for this latest entry, Switch 2 players can count on at least yearly updates to <em>Mario Kart World<\/em>. It\u2019s good to keep it installed for those updates, but players never know when a friend will come over and want to race.<\/p>\n<p>    <!-- No AdsNinja v10 Client! --><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"animal-crossing-new-horizons\">\n                        Animal Crossing: New Horizons<br \/>\n               <\/h2>\n<h3 id=\"getting-back-to-weeding\">\n            Getting Back To Weeding<br \/>\n    <\/h3>\n<p><strong><em>Animal Crossing: New Horizons<\/em><\/strong> is another big Nintendo game, but from the original Switch era. It is set to get a big Switch 2 update in January 2026, which is a good enough reason right now to keep it installed or to reinstall it.<\/p>\n<p>Updates aside, as a life-sim, it\u2019s one of those experiences that is easy to jump back into. <em>Animal Crossing: New Horizons<\/em> is a casual game too, so without much thought, players can relax with some menial gardening or crafting.<\/p>\n<p>    <!-- No AdsNinja v10 Client! --><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"super-smash-bros-ultimate\">\n                        Super Smash Bros. Ultimate<br \/>\n               <\/h2>\n<h3 id=\"fight-on\">\n            Fight On!<br \/>\n    <\/h3>\n<p>There are dozens of great fighting games out there, and most of them are great to keep installed for occasional friendly bouts online. Most fans probably have at least one favorite installed on their console right now. For Switch players, that has to be <strong><em>Super Smash Bros. Ultimate<\/em><\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>As a platform fighter, it\u2019s a bit more accessible than a player vs player scenario, as all competitors have a chance to get the upper hand in a match. Also, since the game crossed over with so many properties, every gamer on the planet can easily find one or several fighters they want to play as, be it Sora from <em>Kingdom Hearts<\/em> or Snake from <em>Metal Gear Solid<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>    <!-- No AdsNinja v10 Client! --><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"balatro\">\n                        Balatro<br \/>\n               <\/h2>\n<h3 id=\"another-game-of-cards\">\n            Another Game Of Cards<br \/>\n    <\/h3>\n<p>Roguelikes are great to keep installed on consoles because they are typically endless, and as smaller experiences, players can jump in for a quick fifteen-minute session and get their fix. They also don&#8217;t typically come with giant file sizes that will eat up storage space. Among the many, <strong><em>Balatro<\/em> <\/strong>may be the easiest to jump back into, since it is essentially just Poker with extra steps.<\/p>\n<div class=\"display-card  article article-card small  no-badge  active-content                      \" data-include-community-rating=\"false\" id=\"games-with-longest-waits-between-sequels\" data-nosnippet=\"\">\n<picture><source media=\"(max-width: 480px)\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/static0.gamerantimages.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/13-games-with-the-longest-wait-between-sequels.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=140&amp;h=98&amp;dpr=2\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static0.gamerantimages.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/13-games-with-the-longest-wait-between-sequels.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=140&amp;h=98&amp;dpr=2\"\/><img width=\"440\" height=\"364\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"13-Games-With-The-Longest-Wait-Between-Sequels\" data-img-url=\"https:\/\/static0.gamerantimages.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/13-games-with-the-longest-wait-between-sequels.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=220&amp;h=182&amp;dpr=2\" src=\"https:\/\/static0.gamerantimages.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/13-games-with-the-longest-wait-between-sequels.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=220&amp;h=182&amp;dpr=2\"\/>\n        <\/picture>\n<p>                    <span data-field=\"label\" class=\"article-card-label\"><label>Related<\/label><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"w-display-card-content regular article-block\">\n<h5 class=\"display-card-title \">\n<p>\t\t\t13 Games With The Longest Wait Between Sequels<\/p>\n<\/h5>\n<p class=\"display-card-excerpt\">Releasing nothing but sequels can create stagnation, but waiting too long to release a sequel can also hurt a game franchise. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>There are obviously more rules to matches than there are in Poker, but even so, it won\u2019t take long to relearn the rules, even after putting it down for months. If players have <em>Balatro<\/em> installed on their Switch or Steam Deck, then it can get dangerous, as the portability aspect is especially addicting.<\/p>\n<p>    <!-- No AdsNinja v10 Client! --><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"among-us\">\n                        Among Us<br \/>\n               <\/h2>\n<h3 id=\"deduce-online\">\n            Deduce Online<br \/>\n    <\/h3>\n<p><strong><em>Among Us<\/em><\/strong> is a great social deduction game that got a lot of players through the pandemic in the early 2020s. It&#8217;s a simple enough game for anyone out there to learn, even non-gamers, and it allows people to stay in touch.<\/p>\n<p>The concept is a deduction game where one or several players are aliens in disguise, and it\u2019s up to the humans to identify the imposters. It\u2019s a concept that has been reworked for hundreds of years, but <em>Among Us<\/em> may be the best version yet. It&#8217;s a game that is always fun to play with friends from time to time.<\/p>\n<p>    <!-- No AdsNinja v10 Client! --><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"the-jackbox-party-starter\">\n                        The Jackbox Party Starter<br \/>\n               <\/h2>\n<h3 id=\"always-good-for-a-party\">\n            Always Good For A Party<br \/>\n    <\/h3>\n<p>The <em>Jackbox<\/em> games are the easiest games to set up in a party situation because all it requires is a TV and everyone to have a smart device, like a phone. <strong><em>The Jackbox Party Starter<\/em> <\/strong>is one of the better versions to buy, since it is cheaper and it includes three great games that are all fun in crowds.<\/p>\n<p>From designing funny shirts to playing a trivia game with a <em>Saw<\/em>-like aesthetic, there&#8217;s plenty of variety to enjoy. Every video game fan should have one <em>Jackbox<\/em> game installed on their console because it will be a guaranteed riot.<\/p>\n<div class=\"display-card  article article-card small  no-badge  active-content                      \" data-include-community-rating=\"false\" id=\"best-looking-pixel-art-games\" data-nosnippet=\"\">\n<picture><source media=\"(max-width: 480px)\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/static0.gamerantimages.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/mullet-madjack-in-mullet-madjack.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=140&amp;h=98&amp;dpr=2\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static0.gamerantimages.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/mullet-madjack-in-mullet-madjack.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=140&amp;h=98&amp;dpr=2\"\/><img width=\"440\" height=\"364\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Mullet Madjack in Mullet Madjack\" data-img-url=\"https:\/\/static0.gamerantimages.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/mullet-madjack-in-mullet-madjack.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=220&amp;h=182&amp;dpr=2\" src=\"https:\/\/static0.gamerantimages.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/mullet-madjack-in-mullet-madjack.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=220&amp;h=182&amp;dpr=2\"\/>\n        <\/picture>\n<p>                    <span data-field=\"label\" class=\"article-card-label\"><label>More<\/label><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"w-display-card-content regular article-block\">\n<h5 class=\"display-card-title \">\n<p>\t\t\t10 Pixel-Art Games That Look Better Than Most AAA Titles In 4K<\/p>\n<\/h5>\n<p class=\"display-card-excerpt\">Thanks to dedicated craftsmen, you can see the passion behind the art in these pixel art gaming projects.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/gamerant.com\/best-games-keep-leave-installed-even-when-not-playing\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Read Full Article At Source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Before the first HD console generation, which includes the PS3 and Xbox 360, home console players didn\u2019t need to worry about installing games or updating&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":24023,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[321,10283,4965,655],"class_list":["post-24022","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-tech-gadgets-reviews","tag-games","tag-installed","tag-playing","tag-youre","wpcat-32-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24022","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=24022"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24022\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/24023"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=24022"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=24022"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=24022"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}