Game Recommendations?

[Aarah]

I am looking for a new game for the Xbox360 but am sorely lacking in knowledge of whats out there. Therefore any input from you game buffs out there would be great.
Obviously it depends on what you're into, so I'll give a bit of info on my likes...

Roleplay style with open worlds
Puzzles (figuring things out) and interactivity
Good graphics and scenery

Dislikes...

Lots of gore/dark themes
Excessive upgrading/building/time management
Shooter (unless mixed with other aspects, so not things like COD)

Games I especially like are things like Portal 1/2, ES, Tomb Raider (old school!).
Im not keen on the halo games (too linear and enemy excessive) or half life games (same reason).

Have been looking at the likes of Assassins Creed, Mirror's Edge and Zelda. Thoughts on these?

I have no games other than those mentioned, so any suggestions would be mucho grando!

[Justice knight]

Have you tried Kingdoms of Amalur?
It's an open world RPG made by some of the lead designers of Morrowind (if I remember correctly), no grinding needed in the game, lots of side quests and bits to find.

Critics didn't really like the game, but I personally loved the game.

[Rook]

Hmm..Have you tried Deus Ex:Human Revolution?
Pros:

Hidden:

*Great Graphics and Superb Voice Acting
*Sneaking past enemies and hacking are puzzles in themselves
*Roleplay friendly, to a degree.
*Normal gameplay isn't extremely gore filled, but some cutscenes can be pretty brutal.
*TRENCH COATS

Cons:

Hidden:

*Cutscenes, as mentioned before, can be pretty blood filled, and I can't remember if you can skip them.
*It's a shooter, but it's balanced out by the roleplay elements and awesome storyline.
*Not open world, but there a ton of side quests, and the cities are fun to explore.
*There is upgrading, but nothing to difficult. It's kinda like Skyrim actually.
*Dark themes, if hookers and alcoholics are dark themes

[Musicman247]

If you haven't ever played it, I would recommend "Beyond Good & Evil". It's downloadable only. It was a game put out for the original Xbox then re-done with HD textures for the 360. Super fun game!

[Aarah]

Thanks!

Kingdoms of Amalur looks quite good, though it looks like it's very combat based?

Im quite liking the look of Deus Ex. I do like stealth games where you have to infiltrate organisations and such, those were the better parts of the COD that I played.
I dont mind dark themes actually, if its this kind. Its the very gory, slashy types that I dislike.

See this is good so far! Already 2 games that ive never heard of!

edit: beyond good and evil definitely appeals to my puzzle solving passion! Am finding it tricky to discover this type of game especially.

[Justice knight]

Thanks!

Kingdoms of Amalur looks quite good, though it looks like it's very combat based?

Yeah, that's the only thing that would go against your OP, combat is very button mashy and is the only way you can level up.

Look past that though and you've got a game with a great story, art style, side quests and environments.

[Lindai]

Red Dead Redemption

[Jeelius-Tei]

I used to love to explore in Assassins Creed 2. Tuscany is quite beautiful. Not to mention, fighting enemies is not too easy, nor to hard. No role-playing though, but you can purchase armor and weapons; And in one part of the game, you get your own castle. You can upgrade it with buildings and such. Excellent if you like history.

I only played the first three, they latest ones I did not get because they don't seem as interesting imo.

If you want an open world game, I recommend Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. This game has some RPG elements, and you can purchase clothes/weapons. You can also upgrade your cars and purchase homes. No decorating unfortunately.

If you would prefer a high action game with a huge, I recommend Just Cause 2, but that game sucked otherwise. No interaction with anything. No point to the money, except temporary vehicles and weapons.

Whichever game you get, please avoid getting Battlefield 3. That game was terrible, not to mention the hideous color.

[Sav]

I'd say Dark Souls. It's a great RPG game that has stunning scenery and requires more thought than simply attempting to charge into everything.

Only thing I don't think you would like are the darker themes in the game. It's very gloomy and depressing at times. As for lore it's told more through items and the world than through characters.

[The Tom]

My standard video game recommendations for this situation are Deus Ex and Mass Effect. Don't like shooting? Deus Ex can be played without killing a soul, and Mass Effect can be played as an incredibly talky, languid space opera TV show-type-thing. Don't like dumb games? They're both arguably the most engagingy written games of their respective generations. Don't like dialogue? Well, actually, they're probably not for you, then. Don't like gore? Yeah there's none here. And as for puzzle solving, Deus Ex is one long stealth puzzle mixed with the odd navigation puzzle. If you play Mass Effect, I hope you like Simon and Towers of Hanoi.

Anyway yeah. People don't seem to like when I recommend them the best game ever made (Unreal Tournament) so I go with their next best thing.