Sitting down with a video game is one of the best ways to relax and unwind after a long, stressful day. With busy lives, many people only have time to complete one playthrough of a game. Occasionally, these games will include either Steam or Xbox achievements to encourage the gamers to keep playing and give them goals to work towards, whether that consists of earning kills, discovering hidden secrets, or defeating a tough boss to get the adrenaline pumping.
Achievement hunting and the sense of accomplishment that it brings is integral to game design, as achievement scores have become bragging rights for many gamers. This is a list of the best games where it is possible to get every single achievement from a single playthrough for those completionists out there.
7 To The Moon
- Platforms: PC, Nintendo Switch, iOS, and Android devices.
To The Moon is an emotionally-involving game, surprisingly so, considering its 16-bit-style graphics. Without spoiling too much of the gripping story, it is a heartwarming narrative that tackles serious themes of love, life, death, and the importance of living with memories of the best and worst times.
There is only one obtainable achievement for To The Moon, so players can sit back and experience this emotional rollercoaster of a game without worrying about completionist tasks.
6 Lemon Cake
- Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch
Lemon Cake is an adorably charming farming simulator in which players restore a dilapidated bakery with the help of the resident-friendly ghost! Farming home-grown crops, players take these ingredients straight from the garden to the kitchen as they bake hungry customers some delicious pastries and sweets.
Though deceptively quaint, Lemon Cake is quite a lengthy grinding process as players must make enough money to renovate their kitchen, customer area, and garden to earn all the achievements. Through minimalist gameplay, players should have no trouble earning every achievement in one playthrough as they do their day-to-day baking tasks. Remember to bake that illustrious Lemon Cake upon reaching level 38!
5 The Walking Dead: The Telltale Definitive Series
- Platforms: PC, PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, iOS, and Android devices.
Telltale Games' episodic comic-book art-style titles are the best of their kind. Players get to "choose their adventure," and their decisions can have a tangible impact on their surroundings and influence their relationships with other characters. Telltale's The Walking Dead is no exception, as it provides a gritty account of the lives of those trapped amid a zombie apocalypse.
The Walking Dead allows for plenty of self-insertion in the form of decision-making, as each choice made throughout the narrative, big or small, has the potential to affect future events. All the achievements can be unlocked by simply playing the game and completing each chapter, so players can sit back and enjoy this heartbreaking story from start to finish.
4 Life Is Strange
- Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, iOS, and Android devices.
Follow the story of Max Caulfield in Life Is Strange, a photography student who discovers she has the incredible telekinetic ability to rewind time and affect the past, present, and future. Life Is Strange is a beautifully hand-painted episodic adventure game that teaches players about the butterfly effect and how even small actions can have serious consequences.
Some achievements in Life Is Strange involve Max's favorite hobby and passion: photography. In each chapter, there are several optional photo opportunities. These can easily be completed by following a guide, but many are obvious and can be captured during one playthrough.
3 Firewatch
- Platforms: PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.
Firewatch is a first-person adventure walking simulator game set in the wilderness of Wyoming. Players take control of an everyday man, Henry, who is looking to escape the realities of his troubled life by becoming a wildfire lookout marshal. Being stranded in the middle of nowhere, his only form of socialization is communication via handheld radio with a fellow lookout, Delilah.
The themes of Firewatch appear to be about isolation and relationships, as the two lookouts form a close bond while investigating a local mystery. There are only ten achievements for Firewatch, all of which can be achieved by exploring the games' environments and are relatively easy to get on the player's first run-through of the game.
2 Terraria
-(1).jpg?q=50&fit=crop&w=1500&dpr=1.5)
- Platforms: PC, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, PS4, iOS, and Android devices.
Terraria is the gift that keeps giving and remains a cornerstone of the indie scene even years after its initial release. Players can let their imaginations run wild. The sandbox game offers a robust selection of tools, weapons, and enemy types to keep them entertained in their randomly generated 2D worlds for hours.
Suppose players want all the achievements in Terraria. In that case, they will have to be prepared to grind and put in the hours, as the achievements span from early-game content to difficult Hardmode bosses and events, like defeating The Moon Lord, the game's overarching final boss.
1 The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim
.jpg?q=50&fit=crop&w=1500&dpr=1.5)
- Platforms: PC, PS3, PS4, PS5, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch.
As everyone eagerly awaits the next Elder Scrolls installment from Bethesda, fans can still go back and play the legendary Skyrim. It is one of the longest-lasting RPGs ever made, with a host of DLC and community-created mods contributing to its longevity.
If playing the vanilla base game, every available achievement for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim can be earned through natural progression as the Dragonborn journeys through the landscapes of Tamriel, completing quests, adventuring through major towns, and leveling up their skills to take down Alduin once and for all.