Are you a game enthusiast who doesn't know where to start? Learn how to play from your PC with this step-by-step guide.

My trajectory in games, a brief intro, and a special request

Hi! Maybe you already know me, but for those of you who don't, I'm Bruna Gabriel, originally from Brazil, living in Montreal, Canada, for the past four years. I work as a translator since 2016, and as an LQA tester and videogame localizer since 2021.

When I first joined the Video Game industry, I felt like an alien. Everybody I met was passionate about gaming, could go on for hours if a game title was mentioned, and seemed incredibly smart.

I've always been a nerd – one who enjoys reading, studying, and learning new things. However, my experience with videogames was limited to my childhood and teenage years. Having moved to Montreal (a huge gaming hub in the world) was life-changing in many ways, including the way I interact, play, and work with videogames today.

If you’re a seasoned gamer, I ask you to please keep reading, because you could also help and encourage “outsiders” to give gaming a try. Personal disclaimer: like I said, I only dedicated some time to videogames after I became an adult. If you ever felt “ashamed” for not knowing hot to play games, please don’t.?

Weekly contributions to the gaming community

Three months ago, I had the idea of sharing weekly game recommendations on my page because getting them from friends is how I started playing.

After 6 game recommendations (they’ll be in the comments section) I’ve realized that there’s a high chance some people have no clue on how to start playing without having to buy a console.?All you need is a PC.

Whenever I heard friends discussing the latest game release or a title they'd been playing for the past 10 years, for example, I paid more attention to details and soon wanted to join the fun. Then I started to tell them games I had previously played, mechanics I enjoyed, what type of challenges I can put up with and which level of difficulty makes me give up on something.

In short, the efforts required to master a game are translated as "the game's learning curve".

The smartest learning curves in games

The level of difficulty of each game is an on-going debate – some people think games should be easily learned by beginners, while others say that games are for gamers.

My opinion is that our own diversity creates the videogame landscape. By no means I'm talking about setting unfair rates (because that's how one person decides to allocate funds) or not giving credits to translators who work in the release of a title for each local market.

What I mean is that there's an endless universe of video games and it does encompass our different tastes and personalities. There's a game for everyone. There are easy, challenging, and impossible-to-win games. Point is: it's important to know where to start, your preferences, and what you need to have or acquire as a new gamer.

A smart learning curve is one that shows you how to level up through the game mechanics, the narrative evolution, and trial and error. It's a smooth – even if challenging – process, with a high chance of making you feel immersed and, well, smart. Because you are learning while playing.

5 reasons to give games a try

• First of all, playing games (including card and board games) is a hobby that can be learned with time and some effort. Don’t all hobbies work like that?
• Second, I believe that we are never too old to learn new things. In fact, learning a new language or acquiring a new hobby is proved to increase cognitive functions and, as a good consequence, slow dementia processes.?
• Third, we are all exposed to gamification these days. From apps to local events, our technological experiences already contain a reasoning present in games.?Which means we probably have a common familiarity with the whole thing.
• Fourth, you need to find the right type of game for you. I love puzzles, adventures, and platformers, for example. And I really don’t like horror games, farm games (sorry not sorry), and MOBA games.
• Finally, it’s okay to fail. This is precisely how we learn. You probably will never finish a game you don’t like, and you will never finish a game you haven’t started (hehe).

Playing on Steam – 3 simple steps

Steam is a video game digital distribution service, supported in 29 languages. It has more than 50,000 titles in-store, so no need to worry about exploring other digital services for now.?

Ready to start learning?

Step 1: download Steam on your computer (not all games run on macOS). Simply click on this link: https://store.steampowered.com

Step 2: watch some game trailers, define your preferences, start exploring!

Step 3: add items to your wish list, buy your favorite ones, and check the store regularly for seasonal sales.

Ps.: after you complete your purchase (even if the game was free), you'll need to install it before being able to play it. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to reach out :)

• Steam's homepage show users different categories:

1. Featured & Recommended
2. Special offers
3. Personalized recommendations
4. Free games
5. Titles in pre-sale

And more!

With time, you'll gain confidence and autonomy to start choosing your preferred titles. Make sure to read reviews, watch trailers or gameplays, and browse further information before buying a new game!

Getting educated about games is also closely related to reading about them, not just playing them.

An additional tip

Now that you know how to start, take your time to figure out how things work in the gaming world. After a while, you could also look for communities on Discord (where gamers meet), join servers from around the world, and maybe even find a new profession.

After you're familiar with Steam, you might want to explore more consoles and other digital distributors like Epic Games and Battle.net.