Not all games are action or adventure orientated and often it’s nice to play a game that’s a little bit more interesting. These games tend to be incredibly unique, artistic and emotional and it’s a theme that’s been gaining both mainstream and critical acceptance following the success of games like Journey, Braid and Rain. These larger titles are not to be out done by the humble browser game however. This newly developing genre of game has produced dozens of high quality, free and online browser games that are reflective, thoughtful and incredibly original. Below are some of the most highly rated indie games that make you think a little about life, death and humanity.
Every Day the Same Dream (play it here)
I found this game to be surprisingly striking considering how bored I was for the first few minutes of playing it. You play a faceless man with no personality and whose life consists of getting up, getting dressed, going to work then repeating it all over again. You play this cycle again, and again, and again until you ask yourself; standing there in your pants by the alarm clock, what if I don’t want to do it again? Well, nobody’s making you, so why are you doing it? This game lets you figure that out by yourself, there’s no dialogue except the same one line from each person you meet; your wife and your boss. Everything is in shades of black, white and grey except a couple of tiny things like a leaf, the parking sign and the exit sign. I found myself trying to find things to improve this game and, consequentially, this man’s life and the moment you realize you don’t have to keep walking the same way, that you can find other things, that you truly see how life is represented in this simple, but meaningful game. The ending will leave you with questions and your own interpretations about what it all means. Play it here and ask yourself, is this my life?
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Today I Die (play it here)
This short game is more like a piece of interactive poetry than a game though it does have some puzzle elements. The game has a very simple, pixel retro appearance to it and it won’t take you much longer than 10 minutes to complete it, though it does have alternate endings. The game begins with the very depressing sight of a dead young woman held down by a boulder at the bottom of the ocean. Around her swims dark creatures and a handful of rising jellyfish, a very short poem is also on the screen. You can interact with everything and gradually fit together the puzzle pieces to move the game onwards and to change the wording of the poem. It’s an imaginative piece with great atmosphere and a strong emotional element that leaves you quietly reflective. This game manages to say a great deal in its simple poem format and spiritual melodies which make you ponder your own outlook on life and death.
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The Company of Myself (play it here)
This platforming puzzle game puts you in the shoes of an introvert as he progresses through a series of levels all by himself, well, not completely by himself. The goal of the game is to progress through linear levels and reach a green door on the other side of the level. Sometimes there are force fields and jumps too high to reach by yourself, but you’re all alone so who do you turn to? Here, the game takes an unusual twist. By pressing the spacebar prior to finishing the level you’ll die and be reborn again, using one of your lives, but now there is a shadow of your past self that will re-enact all of the actions, perfectly replicated, that you performed prior to pressing the spacebar. These shadows of your former self can pass through barriers you cannot, and are blocked by other barriers that you’re not blocked by. This means that you can find yourself in scenarios when you have to pretend to jump up a set of stairs so that when your shadow attempts it he’ll be actually going up the stairs; prevented from falling by the pink force fields. The game’s storyline is told in silent verses though the ending consists of an incredibly sad epilogue that changes the entire meaning of the game. If you’d like to read about the story I’ve written it out here but to keep this review spoiler free I’ll just tell you that it’s both shocking and saddening to have journeyed with this character through 20 introspective levels only to find out the true meaning of it all.
Coma (play it here)
This game is a highly imaginative, incredibly creepy game that takes place in a realm somewhere between the dreams and wakefulness of a boy called Pete. The artwork of this game is an entrancing mixture of unsettling darkness and luscious colour and it has instant appeal for those who enjoy atmospheric games. Everything is a little off colour, a little dreamlike and a little unsettling. You play a very small character with barely any features who starts off standing in a dark, dreary, oversized house. The game has puzzle elements but is quite linear and not particularly challenging as the focus lies on the journey, meaning and mood that it creates. You can quite simply move, jump and talk to creatures and people you find along the way as you explore this world and go about the tasks you are set. The first character you interact with sets the unnerving tone that the entire game possesses “Dad locked me in this cage so I wouldn’t tell. He locked your sister in his secret basement! He says he wants her to starve…” The overall meaning and story of the game that can be taken from the few simple words spoken in this game is entirely down to your interpretation but quite simply, you set out on a mission to save your sister. By the time the credits roll you’ll be wondering what Pete’s life is truly like for him to have created this striking, but dark, world and it really does make you wonder, was he in an accident or did something else, someone else, put him in that coma?
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ImmorTALL(play it here)
The short story of this game is both shocking and moving. It’s a short piece that takes the French idea of a bête noire, “black beast” and turns it into an interesting examination of humanity. A bête noire in literacy is something that is conventionally avoided or disliked and in this case it’s supposedly the alien creature that you play. After a crash landing to Earth you’ll play this black alien as he starts out tiny and grows larger and larger as the friendship of a farming family is extended towards him. Unfortunately, this alien is about to find itself caught in the throes of mankind’s lust for violence. This game manages to tell a story in very simple, small gestures and without words; opening the eyes of its players simply through expression. When the game ended I was left with a single question that I’m sure many others can relate to; “why?”
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Every Day the Same Dream (play it here)
I found this game to be surprisingly striking considering how bored I was for the first few minutes of playing it. You play a faceless man with no personality and whose life consists of getting up, getting dressed, going to work then repeating it all over again. You play this cycle again, and again, and again until you ask yourself; standing there in your pants by the alarm clock, what if I don’t want to do it again? Well, nobody’s making you, so why are you doing it? This game lets you figure that out by yourself, there’s no dialogue except the same one line from each person you meet; your wife and your boss. Everything is in shades of black, white and grey except a couple of tiny things like a leaf, the parking sign and the exit sign. I found myself trying to find things to improve this game and, consequentially, this man’s life and the moment you realize you don’t have to keep walking the same way, that you can find other things, that you truly see how life is represented in this simple, but meaningful game. The ending will leave you with questions and your own interpretations about what it all means. Play it here and ask yourself, is this my life?
Today I Die (play it here)
This short game is more like a piece of interactive poetry than a game though it does have some puzzle elements. The game has a very simple, pixel retro appearance to it and it won’t take you much longer than 10 minutes to complete it, though it does have alternate endings. The game begins with the very depressing sight of a dead young woman held down by a boulder at the bottom of the ocean. Around her swims dark creatures and a handful of rising jellyfish, a very short poem is also on the screen. You can interact with everything and gradually fit together the puzzle pieces to move the game onwards and to change the wording of the poem. It’s an imaginative piece with great atmosphere and a strong emotional element that leaves you quietly reflective. This game manages to say a great deal in its simple poem format and spiritual melodies which make you ponder your own outlook on life and death.
The Company of Myself (play it here)
This platforming puzzle game puts you in the shoes of an introvert as he progresses through a series of levels all by himself, well, not completely by himself. The goal of the game is to progress through linear levels and reach a green door on the other side of the level. Sometimes there are force fields and jumps too high to reach by yourself, but you’re all alone so who do you turn to? Here, the game takes an unusual twist. By pressing the spacebar prior to finishing the level you’ll die and be reborn again, using one of your lives, but now there is a shadow of your past self that will re-enact all of the actions, perfectly replicated, that you performed prior to pressing the spacebar. These shadows of your former self can pass through barriers you cannot, and are blocked by other barriers that you’re not blocked by. This means that you can find yourself in scenarios when you have to pretend to jump up a set of stairs so that when your shadow attempts it he’ll be actually going up the stairs; prevented from falling by the pink force fields. The game’s storyline is told in silent verses though the ending consists of an incredibly sad epilogue that changes the entire meaning of the game. If you’d like to read about the story I’ve written it out here but to keep this review spoiler free I’ll just tell you that it’s both shocking and saddening to have journeyed with this character through 20 introspective levels only to find out the true meaning of it all.
Coma (play it here)
This game is a highly imaginative, incredibly creepy game that takes place in a realm somewhere between the dreams and wakefulness of a boy called Pete. The artwork of this game is an entrancing mixture of unsettling darkness and luscious colour and it has instant appeal for those who enjoy atmospheric games. Everything is a little off colour, a little dreamlike and a little unsettling. You play a very small character with barely any features who starts off standing in a dark, dreary, oversized house. The game has puzzle elements but is quite linear and not particularly challenging as the focus lies on the journey, meaning and mood that it creates. You can quite simply move, jump and talk to creatures and people you find along the way as you explore this world and go about the tasks you are set. The first character you interact with sets the unnerving tone that the entire game possesses “Dad locked me in this cage so I wouldn’t tell. He locked your sister in his secret basement! He says he wants her to starve…” The overall meaning and story of the game that can be taken from the few simple words spoken in this game is entirely down to your interpretation but quite simply, you set out on a mission to save your sister. By the time the credits roll you’ll be wondering what Pete’s life is truly like for him to have created this striking, but dark, world and it really does make you wonder, was he in an accident or did something else, someone else, put him in that coma?
ImmorTALL(play it here)
The short story of this game is both shocking and moving. It’s a short piece that takes the French idea of a bête noire, “black beast” and turns it into an interesting examination of humanity. A bête noire in literacy is something that is conventionally avoided or disliked and in this case it’s supposedly the alien creature that you play. After a crash landing to Earth you’ll play this black alien as he starts out tiny and grows larger and larger as the friendship of a farming family is extended towards him. Unfortunately, this alien is about to find itself caught in the throes of mankind’s lust for violence. This game manages to tell a story in very simple, small gestures and without words; opening the eyes of its players simply through expression. When the game ended I was left with a single question that I’m sure many others can relate to; “why?”
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