Aesthetically Unique: Games That Look Like Nothing Else
Extremely subjective and non-comprehensive list. Feel free to comment with suggestions!
These aren't in any particular order, though I've tried grouping games by particular "auteurs," as well as some with kindred styles (i.e. "crafts"-style games, which have become their own little subgenre). I guess being able to group them this way makes them not so one-of-a-kind, but I've tried to stick with aesthetics that are at least very uncommon, or at least put their own unique spin on something that a few other games have done.
Many of these have very obvious influences in other mediums, but ones which haven't otherwise been used much in gaming. Some have since had lots of imitators, but at the time looked like little that came before them.
NOT ON BACKLOGGD:
- Cursedom (Glamow Research)
- 7dfps (Loren Schmidt)
- STRANGLE/HOLD (Feverdream Johnny)
These aren't in any particular order, though I've tried grouping games by particular "auteurs," as well as some with kindred styles (i.e. "crafts"-style games, which have become their own little subgenre). I guess being able to group them this way makes them not so one-of-a-kind, but I've tried to stick with aesthetics that are at least very uncommon, or at least put their own unique spin on something that a few other games have done.
Many of these have very obvious influences in other mediums, but ones which haven't otherwise been used much in gaming. Some have since had lots of imitators, but at the time looked like little that came before them.
NOT ON BACKLOGGD:
- Cursedom (Glamow Research)
- 7dfps (Loren Schmidt)
- STRANGLE/HOLD (Feverdream Johnny)
293 Games
Minimalism at its best.
You'd never know it from the box art, but this otherwise fairly generic RPG is one of the strangest looking games ever made. It looks like a Hieronymus Bosch painting decided to wear pastels for Easter. The Japanese-only sequel, Lennus II, refines the simplicity of the art style into something that looks "better," but in the process tones down the weirdness by about 30%.
The two TinTin games for SNES capture the art style of the comics better than probably any comic-inspired game ever, and are really just gorgeous. It's a shame the games themselves aren't very good.
Let this stand in for the whole series.
Watercolor RPG!!
Stunningly beautiful hand-painted backgrounds + ultra-cartoony PS1-era 3D characters
Pushes the inherent baroqueness of the bullet hell genre to its logical conclusion - the traditional space battle theme is swapped for a bizarre insect-centric one, but ultimately this is more about shape, color, and patterns of movement.
The individual stylistic elements here aren't really all that unique, but the sheer density with which they've been crammed on top of one another is positively baroque.
ditto what I said about Sable here, but swap "Moebius" for "Studio Ghibli"
42 Comments
I hadn't heard of it! Yeah, I think it fits. Putting it next to Rakugakids, which came out around the same time
Scanner Sombre and Apotheon would both fit
nice! both added. Apotheon fits with a few other games on the list like Four Last Things and The Cat and the Coup that are replicating specific historical art styles
Would Kingdom of Loathing count, you think? I can't really think of many stick figure based video game styles. (And I feel like those that did came after)
rain world, kentucky route zero
@FrozenRoy: hmmm I remember a lot of stick figure based Flash games back in the early 2000s – not sure how many pre-dated Kingdom of Loathing or not, but I feel like it was definitely a style of the times for a little while
@Hattori – I've gone back and forth about both of those, actually (along with a few other stylish indies like Hyper Light Drifter) – they seem to be kind of exemplars of certain very popular styles, but execute that style in rather distinctive ways so that I could see a case for including them. having been imitated so much makes it kind of difficult to discern whether they pioneered a new style or just kind of refined something that was already common, you know? anyway I'm probably going to start playing Rain World soon, so maybe experiencing it will sway me... will have to think on this 🤔
@Hattori – I've gone back and forth about both of those, actually (along with a few other stylish indies like Hyper Light Drifter) – they seem to be kind of exemplars of certain very popular styles, but execute that style in rather distinctive ways so that I could see a case for including them. having been imitated so much makes it kind of difficult to discern whether they pioneered a new style or just kind of refined something that was already common, you know? anyway I'm probably going to start playing Rain World soon, so maybe experiencing it will sway me... will have to think on this 🤔
Everything is going to be OK, In Other Waters, Rimococoron, Lucah: Born of a Dream, Device 6, Oceanarium, Daydreamer: Awakened Edition
shit like revenge of the sunfish, vangers, cruelty squad, gitaroo man, hotel dusk, and return of the obra dinn come to mind.
also skullmonkeys, but thats just the neverhood as a platformer
also skullmonkeys, but thats just the neverhood as a platformer
i hope you enjoy Rain World!
Odin Sphere
@PansyDragoonSaga: not familiar with most of these! will look into them
@GutterTrash: vangers and obra dinn are already on the list - I'll look into the others (and agree about skullmonkeys - I decided to take it off but leave neverhood - made a claymation games list so they're both on that one, along with armikrog)
@Hattori: thanks!
@Pikadoueri: I haven't actually played it, but this doesn't look that distinct from other anime-styled hand drawn games to me – reminds me a lot of bloodstained: ritual of the night, actually
@GutterTrash: vangers and obra dinn are already on the list - I'll look into the others (and agree about skullmonkeys - I decided to take it off but leave neverhood - made a claymation games list so they're both on that one, along with armikrog)
@Hattori: thanks!
@Pikadoueri: I haven't actually played it, but this doesn't look that distinct from other anime-styled hand drawn games to me – reminds me a lot of bloodstained: ritual of the night, actually
i am incapable of reading
haha it's all good – I added a few of your other suggestions
Back with more! Getting Over It would probably fit, maybe Crypt Worlds although its aesthetic is partially just intentional shittiness, Mini Metro isn't exactly an original style but it's one not used in games, Shelter and other Might and Delight games although their consistent use of a style does make each one less unique, DEFCON
Oh and Myst was very unique at the time, although it's been imitated plenty since
Oooh wow! I'd never heard of Might and Delight, but I love these! A few of their games fit, I think. (I have a few other sets of games from "auteurist" designers or studios, like Mason Lindroth, Jack King-Spooner, Michael Rfdshir, Arcane Kids, John Clowder, etc — I don't think the fact that their games are stylistically consistent reduce their uniqueness, since they still stand out sharply from games made by anyone else.)
Adding their game The Blue Flamingo to my Stop Motion Games list as well: https://www.backloggd.com/u/TeN/list/claymation--stop-motion-games-1/
Crypt Worlds I thought I'd already put on here, but I guess not. Added.
Getting Over It — yeah, I can see that (especially some of the later areas get pretty weird, which you don't see as much in play footage because the game is so hard lol) — added.
Mini Metro & DEFCON are tricky — I've gone back and forth about a number of different minimalist games — in a way I feel like I set the bar for originality higher for those kinds of games? Which is maybe unfair. But I think most of the time my brain just classifies them in the general category of "minimalist," even if the games within that category don't necessarily look alike. Maybe because I've just seen every possible variation of that aesthetic within the general design world that transposing one instance of it to gaming doesn't feel particularly novel.
the Myst aesthetic is forever seared in my brain from childhood, and I have such a visceral attachment to the general vibe of that game – but it also seems to fall within the general "utopian scholastic" style to me: https://twitter.com/kaiserbeamz/status/1249043373190713351
Adding their game The Blue Flamingo to my Stop Motion Games list as well: https://www.backloggd.com/u/TeN/list/claymation--stop-motion-games-1/
Crypt Worlds I thought I'd already put on here, but I guess not. Added.
Getting Over It — yeah, I can see that (especially some of the later areas get pretty weird, which you don't see as much in play footage because the game is so hard lol) — added.
Mini Metro & DEFCON are tricky — I've gone back and forth about a number of different minimalist games — in a way I feel like I set the bar for originality higher for those kinds of games? Which is maybe unfair. But I think most of the time my brain just classifies them in the general category of "minimalist," even if the games within that category don't necessarily look alike. Maybe because I've just seen every possible variation of that aesthetic within the general design world that transposing one instance of it to gaming doesn't feel particularly novel.
the Myst aesthetic is forever seared in my brain from childhood, and I have such a visceral attachment to the general vibe of that game – but it also seems to fall within the general "utopian scholastic" style to me: https://twitter.com/kaiserbeamz/status/1249043373190713351
how about Hanamushi?
hadn't heard of that one either! yeah I think it fits the bill. kinda looks like an early 2000s Hot Topic-core Flash game run through Google Deep Dream lol
vib ribbon, Darius Gaiden, Guilty Gear Xrd?
Vib Ribbon is on there! Will look into the other 2
i noticed high hell is on here; sludge life is by the same developer and looks similar
oh yeah! been meaning to check that out. added.
promesa might fit - the game's architecture looks like photographs but then you approach them and find they're actually pixellated and voxel-y.
also thank you for making this list!! i have so many new neat looking games in my backlog now :)
also thank you for making this list!! i have so many new neat looking games in my backlog now :)
I think Kirby's Dream Land 3's pixel art crayon-inspired art style is still quite unique, especially for the time it was released in
I think rayman legends/origins are games that look like nothing else as well
Have you considered Vanillaware's games? Games developed by them all share a distinct style that I don't see replicated anywhere else.
Critters for Sale?
Also, Dynamite Headdy
Also, Dynamite Headdy
Psychonauts, at the very least 1
Mushroom 11
AAA
3 years ago