Artful / Thoughtful / Experimental / Unique Games
Artsy stuff I've played. I'll start adding a short description note to each game explaining why I included them.
Disclaimer: Not all of these are successful at what they're aiming, but they at least tried to stand out or be somewhat meaningful or compelling.
Disclaimer: Not all of these are successful at what they're aiming, but they at least tried to stand out or be somewhat meaningful or compelling.
148 Games
Cryptic narrative that seemingly works as a commentary on capitalistic work ethics and media's intrusiveness.
Brutalist digital gallery.
Meditation on the negative effects of isolation and the importance of social links.
Bridges the gap between the videogame medium and the documentary genre.
Weird symbolic(?) ambient game.
On escapism and loneliness. About trying to find meaning in life.
Weird Lynchian game with a non-definitive narrative.
(Really) Weird visual novel on insolvency, sex, and finding meaning in life.
A simulation of a handyman in a gloomy setting. It's not made to be fun.
Visually experimental game about being in an electronic party.
A digital museum made of the dev's saved images from 2017.
On strangeness and parasocial links.
(Very) Short nihilistic meditation on emptiness and god. Made for a game jam while the dev was suffering from depression.
Weird game on devotion.
Surreal game with no real plot.
Silent cinema framing
Short surreal flash game
A meditation on compassion.
A brutalist digital gallery of sorts.
A complete re-creation of the Titanic.
An esoteric game that works as a metaphor for industrialization.
Cinematic presentation. Weird premise.
Well written text-based horror game. Like an A24 movie turned into text.
On intimacy and voyeurism.
Weird surreal game with a non-definitive narrative.
A bitsy digital museum made of mid-2000s forum signatures.
Unique art style with hand-drawn textures. Cinematic story portrayal.
Experimental analogue horror working on a metanarrative where you explore abandonware.
Weird cathartic game about the world coming to an end. Themes on... actually, I don't even fucking know. Something about dreams, I think.
Metanarrative analogue horror.
Arthouse game that reflects on intimacy and vulnerability.
Unique gameplay loop. A range of detailed environments.
Experimental game with really cryptic messages.
A game simulating the experience of being on a commercial flight.
Musical/sound experimentation
Visually experimental game about exploring memories inside a surreal hotel. On tragedy and nostalgia.
Meta-game on friendships and loneliness.
I don't really give my opinions on this list, but seriously stay away from this one. Nihilistic "life is worthless" views. Adding it because it does use the medium in a vaguely experimental way, nothing more.
On dreams, trauma, and industrialization.
An interactive movie, a game that tries to be a movie or vice versa.
Experimental game mechanic.
On the pressures of society (very vague though). No gameplay.
Liminal game where you can use its environments as a sort of photo-playground.
About memories, resembling slow-cinema.
Cinematic game with interesting traversal and cryptic story.
Reflection on toxic online interactions.
Cinematic presentation.
Procedurally generated walking-sim with soundtrack that is created based on your surroundings.
A nihilistic narrative on existentialism.
Gameplay works as a metaphor for chemotherapy. Anti-smoking sentiments.
Arthouse cinematic game with a cryptic Lynchian story.
One of the games to popularize the walking-sim genre. A game without gameplay. Disjointed storytelling on grief.
An "artistic experience" with distinct art style/ambiance. Seemingly works as a metaphor for...something, maybe?
Idk if this should really be in here, but hey, it's on IGDB lol. It's a creepypasta told through a series of videos from a "videogame". You can't play said game. Weird cryptic story with themes on child abuse and trauma.
Obscure cathartic game on depression, loneliness, and trauma.
Experimental levels and boss visual designs.
Cinematic retro game with great imagery and framing.
An experimental FMV game with a non-linear story. Even more unconventional than Her Story.
Experimental game where you talk to a couple in a dysfunctional relationship.
A unique representation of trauma.
Visual mindfuckery.
Cinematic presentation.
Weird game with interesting art style and traversal mechanics.
A digital museum.
Interesting art style and sound interactions. FREEDOM.
Experimental use of the medium. One of the most well known walking-sims.
Autobiographical story on sex work, trauma and being transgender.
Experimental gameplay mechanic where you contour your character expression. Lynchian cryptic story featuring various philosophical themes.
Arthouse surreal game on various themes: Poverty, solitude, addiction, relationships, etc. Dream logic with no real plot.
An experimental FMV game with a non-linear story.
On the relationship between art and the artist.
An impactful story about memories, family, tragedy, life. Experimental game mechanic that uses your eyes to play.
One that popularized the walking-sim genre. On love, queerness, and growing up.