We met on a Minecraft server over ~6 ish years ago when we were like 12. We’ve definitely split over time but we still chat sometimes. Their birthday is in like a week and id like to give them a gift this year since it’s their 18th and also I would like to give back to them since they’ve been a great friend for so long.
I’ll list some attributes:
- they are trans but closeted for the foreseeable future (I am trans too that’s kinda why we get along so well)
- they cosplay for conventions every year. I considered going once but it’s like 13 hours away.
- they have a laptop and a Nintendo switch, but mainly use the laptop
- they like Minecraft
- they like the band Crane Wives
I ideally would like to spend $15-20 and my options are really limited since we only know each other online. My thoughts are either like 3 months of the basic discord subscription (they expressed they wanted it in the past) or a game on Steam.
I’m leaning more towards the game on steam as it’s a long lasting thing.
I’m thinking either A Hat in Time or OneShot
I’ve never bought a gift for someone online other than among us to someone for $5 when it was popular.
Is there anything im missing or anything else you’d recommend?
Have you considered sending them a physical letter? You can put a lot of digital goods as codes there (even steam games, albeit bought in 3rd party stores), also gift cards like ‘$10 in X store chain’ if that’s a thing at their place, but the novelty (hehe) of getting a birthday card that they can keep is waaay more cool than a gift notification. See if that’s possible and is up your alley.
If you have a venmo or other money-transfer method, consider cash.
While a thoughtful gift is nice, cash is flexible. Enough small gifts, and one can flee home…
Dave the Diver
Do they have a wish list? That’s what I’d recommend doing. Most people don’t play games they’re bought by other people I’ve learned that very well over the years, but if it’s on their wish list already there’s a good chance they will.
Since they like Stardew, I would recommend Coral Island! It’s like Stardew but Mermaid themed. And I believe they’re working on a co-op mode for it too!
Try Celeste. It’s not obviously about being trans but it’s a really good puzzle game that has a story they might find relatable.
“How Celeste became an icon of trans gaming” article about it
great suggestion, it’s just hard to imagine a trans person who owns a Switch not already owning it.
They’re trans. Is it safe to assume New Vegas is in their library?
Look for a humblebundle that donates to a cause they would care about.
As stated by others, their Steam wishlist is always a good starting place.
If they like story games, To The Moon is like a book you wish you could forget so you could read it again for the first time. It’s best played with 0 spoilers.
If they are the type of person who tries to optimise everything and automates a lot on Minecraft, Factorio (a bit expensive) might take over their entire life for a few years.
If they enjoy puzzles and/or you want to play with them, Portal 2 has a co-op section.
I will happily agree with everyone who mentioned Stardew Valley. It can be single or multiplayer, and has a large number of mods. The Expanded and Ridgeside mods add a huge amount of content including trans characters.
Depending on how well you know them, you could try asking if there’s any game they’d like to play together that they don’t have. Having a friend to play with is often better than the game itself.
PULSAR: Lost Colony and Void Crew are mediocre games made fun by forcing interaction with other players (friends or random people in open games). They also have a surprising proportion of LGBTQ+ players.No Mans Sky might be a good idea.
Definitely Stardew. Everyone should have Stardew.
I think the screenshot is from their friend’s account, to show us what kinds of games they’ve already played? Wasn’t super clear to me either though
Terraria.
Core keeper.
It’s a co-op base building game similar to minecraft only top-down pixel art graphics. Easy to sink hundreds of hours into, and if you get yourself a copy as well, then you can both play together
RimWorld or Terraria maybe?
