The Best Short Games You Can Finish in a Weekend
No time for a 100-hour RPG? These are the best short games you can finish in a weekend, from one-evening masterpieces to tight ten-hour adventures.
Here’s a secret the 100-hour open-world games don’t want you to know: some of the best games ever made are short. Really short. You can start them on a Friday night and see the credits by Sunday, and you’ll remember them for years.
Short games are also a lifesaver for anyone with a job, kids, studies or a backlog that’s starting to feel like a second job. No grinding, no filler, no map covered in question marks. Just a complete experience that respects your time. Here are the best short games you can finish in a weekend, most of them in under ten hours.
The short game that stuck with Nyx most is What Remains of Edith Finch. It took one rainy Sunday afternoon, about two and a half hours, and the cannery chapter still comes up in conversation years later. Plenty of 80-hour epics haven’t managed that.
Under 3 hours: one evening
Journey
Length: about 2 hours · Platforms: PC, PlayStation, mobile
You’re a robed figure in a vast desert, walking towards a distant mountain. No words, no instructions. Along the way you may meet another player online, and you can only communicate with a musical chirp. It’s one of the most beautiful, moving games ever made, and its soundtrack was the first from a video game nominated for a Grammy. Play it in one sitting, with headphones.
Where to get it: Steam
What Remains of Edith Finch
Length: about 2 hours · Platforms: PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch
Edith returns to her family’s strange, towering house to learn why so many of her relatives died young. Each family member’s story plays out as a completely different mini-game: one becomes a cat, another a shark, another escapes a dull job by daydreaming. It’s sad, inventive and unforgettable.
A Short Hike
Length: 2 to 4 hours · Platforms: PC, Switch, PlayStation, Xbox
Climb a mountain on a little island to get phone signal. Glide, fish, help other hikers and explore at your own pace. The coziest short game around, and a perfect palate cleanser. (More like this in The Best Cozy Games to Play This Winter.)
Where to get it: Steam
Untitled Goose Game
Length: about 3 hours · Platforms: PC, Switch, PlayStation, Xbox
You’re a horrible goose ruining a village’s day. Steal a gardener’s keys, trap a boy in a phone box, honk at everyone. It’s pure silly fun, with a two-player mode where you can be two horrible geese.
Where to get it: Steam
3 to 6 hours: one weekend
Inside
Length: about 3 to 4 hours · Platforms: PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch, mobile
A boy runs through a dark, oppressive world, solving physics puzzles and avoiding guards and dogs. No dialogue, no explanation, and an ending people still argue about. From the makers of Limbo, and even better. It’s dark and a bit unsettling, but never truly scary.
Where to get it: Steam
Portal
Length: about 3 hours · Platforms: PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch
The original. You’re a test subject with a gun that creates linked portals, solving puzzles while an AI called GLaDOS taunts you. It’s short, brilliant and very funny. If you love it, Portal 2 is longer and just as good.
Where to get it: Steam
Firewatch
Length: about 4 to 5 hours · Platforms: PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch
Henry takes a summer job as a fire lookout in a Wyoming forest, and his only contact with the world is Delilah, his supervisor on the walkie-talkie. The writing and voice acting are wonderful, the forest is gorgeous, and the mystery keeps you guessing.
Where to get it: Steam
Unpacking
Length: about 4 hours · Platforms: PC, Switch, PlayStation, Xbox, mobile
Unpack boxes in a series of homes and slowly piece together the life of the person who owns all these things. Calm, satisfying and secretly emotional.
Where to get it: Steam
Gris
Length: about 4 hours · Platforms: PC, Switch, PlayStation, Xbox, mobile
A young girl moves through a watercolour world that slowly regains its colours as she deals with grief. It’s a gentle platformer with almost no challenge, and it’s one of the most beautiful games you’ll ever see. A good one to play with someone watching beside you.
Where to get it: Steam
6 to 10 hours: a long weekend
Titanfall 2 (campaign)
Length: about 6 hours · Platforms: PC, PlayStation, Xbox
Often called one of the best shooter campaigns ever, and it’s not hard to see why. A rookie pilot teams up with BT-7274, a giant robot, and every level introduces a completely new idea. The “Effect and Cause” mission alone is worth the price, which is usually very low these days.
Where to get it: Steam
Return of the Obra Dinn
Length: about 8 to 10 hours · Platforms: PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch
A merchant ship returns to port with its entire crew missing or dead. You’re an insurance investigator with a magic pocket watch that lets you see the moment each person died, and you have to work out who everyone was and what happened to them. It’s a pure deduction game, and solving it feels incredible. Bring a notebook.
Where to get it: Steam
Astro Bot
Length: about 10 to 12 hours · Platforms: PS5
A little longer, but impossible to leave off. Astro Bot is a joyful 3D platformer full of PlayStation history, and every single level has a new idea. It won Game of the Year at The Game Awards in 2024, and it’s perfect for playing with kids around. If you have a PS5, this is essential.
Where to get it: PlayStation
How to actually finish more games
- Pick one game at a time. Starting five games at once is how backlogs grow.
- Check the length first. Sites like HowLongToBeat give average completion times for almost every game.
- Don’t 100% everything. See the credits, then decide if you want to go back for collectibles.
- Make it an event. Some short games (Journey, Edith Finch) are best in one sitting. Pick an evening, turn off your phone and treat it like a film.
Frequently asked questions
What game can I finish in one day?
Journey, What Remains of Edith Finch, Portal and Inside can all be finished in a single evening.
What are good short games on PS5?
Astro Bot, Journey, Inside, Firewatch and What Remains of Edith Finch are all available on PlayStation.
What short games are scary but not too scary?
Inside is tense and dark without real horror. For more, see The Best Horror Games for People Who Scare Easily.
