Limbo, The Path and Dear Esther...

[pixelsmack]

Okay this is a redux so Esther is really first, but those three games listed are some of the most refreshing I've "experienced." I crave games that aren't really games, but a trip to the museum of someones creativity.

[q3c]

I would not put Limbo in the same category of "not really a game" as it is a puzzle-platformer at its very core (though with an amazing art direction). If you like this kind of game-as-an-experience titles (I love them) I strongly recommend a very short "the Graveyard" (try it free first, as paid version brings just one new feature and should be considered an entry ticket rather than feature purchase). You may also enjoy (currently PSN exclusive) The Flower as well as upcoming The Journey.

[pixelsmack]

I've tried The Graveyard, loved it. I'll check out those others. Thanks.

[Saijin_Naib]

The Void. Definitely a game, but its art direction is superb, music is superb, and the world they establish is so alien that you're really left to figure out all the mechanics blindly, and failure usually follows quite fast.

I can't recommend that game enough.

[Mokkat]

To the Moon? Haven't played it myself yet (will it ever be on steam?), but it definitely looks amazing

[Resonanse]

Pathologic.

The Void. Definitely a game, but its art direction is superb, music is superb, and the world they establish is so alien that you're really left to figure out all the mechanics blindly, and failure usually follows quite fast.

I can't recommend that game enough.

Agreed, The Void and Pathologic were both developed by Ice Pick Lodge. Both are worth your time if you play games for the 'experience'. They also stay on theme within the interactive medium, and are two of the most hostile experiences you'll likely ever play.

[Ph0X_b01]

To the Moon? Haven't played it myself yet (will it ever be on steam?), but it definitely looks amazing

YES, YES, and more YES!
Korsakovia, Dear Esther, and couple other games have teared me up and sent chills through my spine before, but To The Moon (http://freebirdgames.com/to_the_moon/) was probably the game that made me feel the most emotions in the shortest amount of time.

It literally makes you swing back and forth between joy and sadness half a dozen times in a couple minutes, and it's hours long. I didn't even know that was possible. I can't recommend it enough. Well, of course, that is if you enjoy these types of games, with very little gameplay and mainly story.

Other than that, Of course there's Korsakovia (http://www.moddb.com/mods/korsakovia/) that I mentioned, which is made by the same people as Dear Esther.

The Stanley Parable (http://www.moddb.com/mods/the-stanley-parable) is not as emotional but still is fairly experimental and deep. It plays with game tropes.

Radiator 1 and 2 (http://www.moddb.com/mods/radiator/) are both very artistic and genuinely original.

As for games, I don't really know of any other than To The Moon. If anyone knows more of these, definitely do post. I love a game that can move me and make me feel things I've never felt before.

[Belgium]

Wow, I was going to post basically all the mentioned games/mods above, thanks for saving me the trouble. :D

A Portal 2 mod to check out is "Level With Me (http://www.moddb.com/mods/level-with-me)", a collaboratively created mod that includes designers such as Robert Yang (http://www.blog.radiator.debacle.us/) (creator of the previously mentioned 'Radiator' mod series), Dan Pinchbeck (Dear Esther), Davey Wreden (The Stanley Parable) and many others.

Also there is a heavily Dear Esther-inspired Crysis mod called The Call of the Fireflies (http://www.moddb.com/mods/the-call-of-the-fireflies). Though I haven't been able to try this out since I don't have Crysis.

[k3Ck]

To the Moon? Haven't played it myself yet (will it ever be on steam?), but it definitely looks amazing

To The Moon is coming out on Steam, it was added to the files in the last update but does not show up in the store yet. Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet is also coming to Steam.

[Ph0X_b01]

Never heard of that Crysis mod, but sadly I do not own the game either. Absolutely loved Level With Me though. Specially once I realized what the name and description were about. The super hard puzzle was a bit unnecessary but the rest was very useful information for a game designer.

Another one of the guys who contributed to that mod was the created of Kairo (http://kairo.lockeddoorpuzzle.com/), which is an upcoming exploration game which looks wonderful. Already have it preordered, and there are alpha builds you can try.

Oh and speaking of Kairo, I played an experimental coop game the other day with a friend. It's called At A Distance (http://distractionware.com/blog/category/at-a-distance/). It's usually recommended to play with someone next to you, but I was able to do it over voice chat with a friend. Slightly more challenging when you can't see the other persons screen but made it better for me.

I just went through my game list and found a couple more experimental indie games:

The aforementioned The Graveyard (http://store.steampowered.com/app/27020/) was probably as artistic as it gets.
Dinner Date (http://store.steampowered.com/app/94000) was definitely short for the price, but had an interesting premise.
A mod I forgot to mention was tedium (http://www.moddb.com/mods/tedium). Similar to Stanley Parable, and maybe not as intricate, but very well made nonetheless.
THAT (http://www.moddb.com/mods/that) is also a great exploration mod. Very colorful and pretty.
Lastly, Trauma (http://store.steampowered.com/app/98100) does a great job at mixing the real (photographs) with the surreal. It was quite a magical experience.


I'm wandering off though, from a list of games that moves you emotionally, to a list of original and interesting experimental games. These are all great, but none of them were really able to touch me as deep as To The Moon or Dear Esther did.

[Ph0X_b01]

Well I just tried FreebirdGame's new game, The Mirror Lied (http://freebirdgames.com/games/the-mirror-lied/), which is free and fairly short.

I found it to be very metaphoric and set for interpretation like Dear Esther. It wasn't as poetic and wasn't set in beautiful scenery, but it definitely had me thinking. It gives you a rough idea of how To The Moon is, but to be fair this is more abstract.