Even a broken arm won't stop you from investigating the death of a brilliant recluse at his lonely, isolated home, but you're not alone as you dig into uncovering the identity of the killer and the truth behind his research in this incredibly tense adventure thriller made for VR, but playable on PC.
Originally conceived as a Ludum Dare game, Pony Island has you trapped within a machine that's trying to bend you to its will. You'll need cleverness, fast hooves, and more than a little ingenuity to break free from this cunning, weird indie game that's full of surprises.
Baroque Decay serves up a twisted fable in the form of an indie action adventure about a young boy who decides to leave home in search of glory and fortune. Instead he finds a dark castle with the promise of riches if he can figure out a riddle before sunrise, but with five different endings, not to mention some gorgeous pixel cutscenes, not everything is as it seems.
Ever had a night out with friends in nature, enjoying the sounds of the fire, staring into the night sky and willing to talk about anything since you're so bored and the last bits of good gossip were shared an hour ago? Free indie game Longest Night is exactly that as a group of friends turn towards the constellations to help pass the time with one another. While recounting the history from long ago of the very odd world they live in we may even learn a few things about their own past.
Also available for Android, in this creepy underwater indie puzzle platformer, you play a lone diver exploring the crumbling hulk of a sunken ship, but you may not be prepared for what you find inside. Despite some kinks, an excellent short, scary gem with an itty-bitty admission fee that delivers big on atmosphere for a satisfying adventure.
It's time to pay a visit to a very special hotel, where the guests are strange, and the dinner menu changes every night... just make sure you're not on it. Rusty Lake delivers a gorgeously creepy and extremely morbid point-and-click puzzle game for desktop or Android and iOS, where every hotel guest has a different set of needs, and YOU have some very unique recipes.
There's a town isolated in the middle of nowhere, a place that's grown up with its own strange culture and people, and now a plague is ripping its way through it. Play one of three unique characters, each with their own storylines, in this complex and unique theatrical, surreal indie action adventure that puts a new coat of paint (and, happily, improved English translation) on a cult classic.
Lily loves to dream, and one night she finds herself pulled into a magical world she never knew existed. But when her guardians get impatient waiting for her to await, they decide to take her along on their adventure in this turn-based surreal indie RPG.
7Days, a first-person horror adventure game developed by RevoLab, has a simple fear at its core: Waking up and not knowing where you are. The experience starts off slow and ends up being at least 95% atmosphere, leaving such things as plot, character development and, in some parts, coherence by the wayside. Those looking for that special surreal style of spooky, though, will find it a nice time waster.
When you find yourself stranded in the realm of monsters below ground, all you can think of is getting home. But what are you willing to do to get there? A powerful, funny, creepy, and wonderfully weird indie RPG that's packed with replay value, secrets, a unique battle system that makes every fight fun, and much, much more. Not to be missed.
Ever since the devastating fire the destroyed the circus and killed his mother, simple-minded but scary looking Dropsy has lived a life on the edge of town, distrusted by the townsfolk. But five years later, can he clear his name and find the love and acceptance he wants? An open-world indie point-and-click adventure with a lot of heart.
Currently available in Steam's Early Access, Layers of Fear is a disturbing and inventive indie horror adventure that has you exploring a house and one man's descent into obsessive madness. With gorgeous visuals, top-notch atmosphere, and a surreal and otherworldly world that changes as you explore, it's full of masterfully executed scares, but may be too on-rails and uninteractive for some.
When you come across a little girl on the side of the road and agree to escort her home, you couldn't imagine the bizarre adventure you're about to set out on in this surreal and unsettling indie horror adventure game. Though short and with some frustrating puzzles, Stray Cat Crossing's gorgeous, creative presentation and heartbreaking story are top notch.
After the brutal murder of her parents, Fran Bow finds herself locked away in an asylum for children, but she's determined to escape and find her beloved cat, Mr Midnight. What awaits, however, is an extremely dark and macabre adventure full of danger and nightmares, and in this thoroughly disturbing indie point-and-click adventure, reality isn't as straight-forward as you might think.
Jul 2015
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If you're going to read this you better do it quick because you're running out of time. In roughly 20 minutes a subway train is going to crash, and you're the only one on board this charging death sentence. It's up to you to solve the puzzles to restart the train's system before your time is up in this free indie point-and-click puzzle game.
In this surreal free indie adventure, a bunch of fishermen, believing they're following a "chosen one", have started a new underground society... and that's just the tip of the iceberg of strangeness. When two of these fishermen, who have never fished or even seen water, decide to climb to the surface, that's when things get really weird.
After recently dying Caleb finds himself training o become a new grim reaper. With two friends by his side Caleb must decided if he wants to find out who he was before his death or prove that teen hormone still rage even when you don't have a physical body.
After recently dying Caleb finds himself training o become a new grim reaper. With two friends by his side Caleb must decided if he wants to find out who he was before his death or prove that teen hormone still rage even when you don't have a physical body.
Lost in a strange world, fate brings you to one very odd half-rabbit man. Offering to help you out, he sweeps you off your feet for a tour of this new land. But something is off about this overly friendly man, and what seems like a lovely romance blooming can actually be a pretty terrifying tale.
Waking up in a frightening world, our Hero must find his way out of the prison he found himself in, and to the statue that haunts his dreams. With choices he must make along the way, will he find his redemption that he seeks or be lost in the stain that mars his soul in this surreal and dark indie point-and-click adventure?
Waking up in a frightening world, our Hero must find his way out of the prison he found himself in, and to the statue that haunts his dreams. With choices he must make along the way, will he find his redemption that he seeks or be lost in the stain that mars his soul in this surreal and dark indie point-and-click adventure?
Tony and her brothers Pablo and Octavio are just your average, ordinary kids who can turn into playground equipment, but searching for snails near an abandoned factory puts both them, and their hearts, in grave danger in this clever, unexpectedly warm free indie horror adventure that deals with family and humanity.
Kyon and Katerina are expecting a baby, but in an uncertain world where there's a war going on and their union isn't always smiled upon, they've beseeched you to travel to the Oracle on your behalf on this short but gorgeous and uplifting point-and-click indie adventure from Jonas and Verena Kyratzes.
Gorgeous, challenging, and contemplative, this first-person indie philosophical puzzle adventure stars you as an unnamed robot who awakens, seemingly at the whim of a voice from the sky, who tells you to seek out sigils to prove your worth... but never climb the great tower. With a complex and engaging story and puzzles that will keep you wrapped up for hours and hours, this is one stunner that should not be missed.
Everyone is always bothered by the unexplained bump in the night. But what if the noise is more simple, like someone rustling in the supposedly empty bunk below you. Each night you are haunted by nightmares, but they are nothing compared to what happens when you are awake.
Thomas has a, uh, complicated relationship with his sister in this atmospheric indie horror game based on real-life struggles with OCD and depression. Though many will find the gameplay simple and repetitive, a striking visual style and masterful use of imagery and atmosphere makes it worth checking out.
Tess had a bad day yesterday, and she doesn't really want to talk about it. Her friend Milly has a brazen and dangerous dare for her, but is she ready to face the consequences in this eerie and surreal free indie platform shooter?
Help Thomas gather his memories while traveling through the surreal labyrinth that is his daydreams. Explore and experience the madness of one lonely child's mind in this free indie horror adventure game.
Heartwood is a short audio-visual adventure created by Kerry Turner and Dan Bibby. It was inspired by folk tales, horror movies, theme park rides, and those dreams you have where nothing makes sense but everything "makes sense". There aren't really any puzzles to solve or quests to complete, just a small world of strange events to stroll through and experience.
Late one night while your mother is sleeping, something wakes you up. Now, just two years old, and alone save for your intrepid teddy-bear, you'll need to take a surreal and terrifying journey where you can't always trust what you see, but everything is full of meaning, in this gorgeous indie horror adventure.
There's something dark hiding inside this free indie adventure. On the surface, it's about a little girl who spends her dreams in a safe, magical place. But sometimes her dreams are cut short... and what kind of life is a life spent hiding anyway?
David is a game, an arcade game, and David is a very unusual game. Our little polygon hero finds himself in a world of abstract shapes and giant evil beasts that are out to eviscerate him one angle at a time. His only powers are the ability to run away like a little yellow belly and fire slingshot-like blasts at his foes. Sometimes he feels powerful, sometimes victorious, but there's always nagging feelings of helplessness and hopelessness in this dangerous world that just wants David to go away.
You've just moved to a unique town that's got one thing on its mind... card games! In this engaging blend of strategic collectible card battling and quirky adventuring, the great Card King is finally accepting battles, but you'll need to find eight legendary cards to even get a chance at him... and build a deck of 180 different cards in the process!
They call it the Place of Bones, and that's where you find yourself trapped in this surreal and unsettling indie game. Surrounded on all sides by different factions and people caught up in their own strange wants and desires, you'll have to solve puzzles and use sins to corrupt those around you into changing their views and thoughts.
Orphaned and amnesiac, young Allen finds himself at a strange school watched over by an eccentric Teacher, where the other children are just as odd. In this surreal adventure game by Miwashiba, translated by vgperson, horror meets psychological fairy-tale for a compelling experience that's a little rough around the edges.
Blink and you'll miss it, but this painfully short action adventure game by a talented indie studio is still worth checking out. Play as a young girl who wakes up in a surreal nightmare realm and must rely only on a strange voice, and a magical camera that can manipulate reality, to see her through to the end.
When Lilly finds an unusual pair of goggles, they open her eyes to a surreal world of mysterious magic and propels her on a journey that will change everything. In this animated point-and-click adventure from Geeta Games, you get to share in Lilly's fascination and curiosity, and innocently earnest explorations, solving playful puzzles in order to carry on this expedition into the fantastical.
You'll either love it or hate it, but Ice-Pick Lodge's unique indie horror game is one of the most surreal and striking games the genre has seen in a long time. As a mysterious Lodger who's been having trouble sleeping, dawn seems to be taking forever... and it might never come if you can't figure out the rules to the chilling game of hide and seek you're playing with some uninvited guests, and unravel the mystery of your own past.
It's not a remake, but this fangame homage to cult indie hit Yume Nikki features all new worlds, effects, and content in a 3D perspective. Madotsuki won't, or can't, leave her tiny apartment, but by dreaming she can explore the recesses of her mind through surreal imagery and symbolism. What she finds there is up for interpretation.
Inspired by cult hit exploratory horror adventure Yume Nikki, this game uses minimal dialogue and no direction to force you to piece together the story and interpret the imagery yourself. Sabitsuki never leaves her room, but through her computer, she can explore her mind... but is she ready for what she finds?
You've toiled like every other automaton in your factory, but your numbers have been slipping. Sentenced first to confinement and then to the lash, escape presents itself from an unlikely opportunity... but the world is a lot bigger (and weirder) than you may be prepared for, and you're not going to be let go without a fight. A startlingly surreal free indie RPG adventure worth checking out.
A quiet train ride turns out to something else entirely in this short, bloodless and jumpless freeware horror adventure. Though potentially both too obvious in its twist and heavy in its symbolism, Sepulchre is a beautifully executed and eerie little tale that's worth checking out.
Pom is a self-absorbed, foul-mouthed, pop-culture obsessed Pomeranian pup who wants nothing more than to spend all day (every day) on the internet, which might hit a bit too close to home for some of us. Things get, uh, complicated, however, and suddenly she finds herself stuck somewhere with no internet connection, and thus begins a quest to get hooked back up online.
Bizarre, unnerving, and always more than a little confusing, this indie adventure sends you on a quest to retrieve artifacts for a goddess to save the world... peeing on everything along the way. Though decidedly low-res and over-the-top surreal in its dedication to parodying almost everything about gaming, it's also surprising, funny, and even... fun?
Imscared creator Ivan Zanotti delivers a short and ambiguous horror adventure about a young boy whose plan to escape into a good book goes awry. Stranded in a macabre and dangerous reality that lays over his own, will he ever find a way home? And does he even want to?
Imscared creator Ivan Zanotti delivers a short and ambiguous horror adventure about a young boy whose plan to escape into a good book goes awry. Stranded in a macabre and dangerous reality that lays over his own, will he ever find a way home? And does he even want to?
Stranded on an island, alone, with only a flickering campfire and a mysterious teddy-bear... what could go wrong? DeanForge delivers the first installment in a flawed but freaky free indie horror adventure that will have you running (or, uh, walking) for your life from a seemingly unstoppable menace and a hidden legacy of violence.
Susan Ashworth has had enough of her lonely life and makes the decision to end it... but that choice leads her on a surreal journey that will have her questioning reality... and her sanity. Tasked with a strange spectre to eliminate the five psychopathic "Parasites" plaguing the city and "blessed" with immortality, she goes on a violent, dark journey that may be too much for some players to take in this visceral indie horror adventure.
After playing John Clowder's Middens, you might ask yourself the following question: what just happened? Calling this adventure/RPG "surreal" is a bit like saying a hike to the moon would be a bit of a trek. You start off with a talking gun who reminds you that each time you pull the trigger, its tongue will be close enough to lick your nails. Then you're dropped in the Rift, a place where... well, who knows what's going on there. The surprising part is Middens actually begins to make sense after a while, though your first experience with the game will be filled with delightful, bewildered confusion.
Tossed into a hostile, dark fantasy world that hates you and wants you to die with only your wits and the clothes on your back, how long can you stay alive? Klei Entertainment brings us a gorgeous indie survival exploration adventure as your scavenge for food and supplies, craft weapons and armor and more, and learn the rules of a strange land filled with stranger creatures.
The first commercial release from indie developer cactus and his partner Dennis Wedin is a brutal and bloody orchestra from violence. Messages left on your answering machine seem to drive you to acts of mass carnage and unspeakable violence, but what's the reason behind it all? Unlock new masks to hide your identity with special abilities, deal damage with tons of unlockable weapons, and master the game's reflex-driven combat to waltz your way through sprawling, challenging missions as you get closer to the truth.
Of Light & Shadow is a puzzle platform hybrid from 12 Angry Devs that focuses on two characters, each with different abilities as well as environmental weaknesses. It takes place in a crumbling world of chaos, with giant frogs, chomping machine monsters, flying platforms and bubbling pools of lava all waiting to take a piece of you with them to oblivion. But, since you're such a talented player, you can survive the surreal stages and work your way to safety at the end!
Of Light & Shadow is a puzzle platform hybrid from 12 Angry Devs that focuses on two characters, each with different abilities as well as environmental weaknesses. It takes place in a crumbling world of chaos, with giant frogs, chomping machine monsters, flying platforms and bubbling pools of lava all waiting to take a piece of you with them to oblivion. But, since you're such a talented player, you can survive the surreal stages and work your way to safety at the end!
Three different people, three different worlds, and one very strange common thread. Tyler Glaiel, now part of Eyebrow Interactive, brings us one drop-dead gorgeous dark puzzle platformer in the form of this upgrade to his 2009 classic browser game full of ingenious levels and stunning design. Manipulate light to change your surroundings, using shadows to wipe away obstacles, and, ultimately, find your way back home.
Life is full of winners and losers and, if you are like most people, you are usually losing. Not so with Sangwoo Hong, Keyboardminer, and Pixelminer's surreal little mahjong-like game, Cubistry. Simply click on one kind of tile and then another of the same to make them both dissapear from the cube in a little flurry of 3D casino-style gratification that will be sure to stimulate your brain stem and keep you playing until each little cube is gone forever. And, if you manage to beat your best score, than all the better. But it's not necessary to enjoy this simple idea game done right.
In order to play all of the latest surreal puzzle game from prolific purveyor of awesome, Eyezmaze, you'll need to donate at least a dollar, but you can still play the first portion for free. Discover the strange and strangely adorable secrets of a mysterious black box by clicking on it and trying to figure out what you need to do and when in order to proceed. It's weird, it's cute, and like all of Eyzemaze's games, definitely one of a kind.
Michael Molinari uses basketball and surreal, dreamlike imagery to explore love and family in this stunning indie title. Go one on one against nightmare creatures in your quest to find your sister, or solve platform puzzles in strange dimensions. It's a swanky, gorgeous, strange journey that overcomes somewhat clunky controls to deliver a beautiful and unique experience you don't have to love sports to enjoy.
One of the most surreal RPGs you'll ever encounter has finally been translated into English. Play as the mysterious companion to the even more enigmatic Batter, who has arrived to rid the world of spectres through violent purification. Packed with memorable characters, strange locations, and a seriously engrossing storyline that at times manages to be a bit unsettling too, it's one of the strangest, swankiest free titles around that won't be for everyone, but is definitely worth a look.
A trip to an art gallery takes an unsettling turn for nine year old Ib. When the lights go out, she suddenly finds herself alone, and something is begging her to journey deeper into the belly of the building. A free horror adventure game that delivers some fantastically freaky scenes and a ton of scares, both subtle and otherwise, for a memorable experience that's far more effective at times than its big budget peers.
When a deadly parasite infestation begins sweeping through a massive tree, crippling it and gradually killing off its inhabitants, heroes are found in the most unlikely of places. Five tiny friends band together to save one last seed and find the source of the monstrous parasites in this surreal point-and-click adventure from Amanita Design that is by turns stunning, otherworldly, engrossing, and even a little frightening.
Jasper Byrne ventures into the realm of psychological horror in his surreal and disturbing commercial adventure debut. You are the last man alive, it seems, after a horrific virus sweeps through the world and transforms every other human being into a shambling monstrosity. You don't want to die alone, so you venture out of your apartment each night for supplies and to look for other survivors, but are you prepared for what else you might find when you're forced to confront yourself? When the world around you collapses, how long will you last before you begin to unravel and you can't trust yourself either?
From Amanita Design, creator of the famously brilliant Samorost series, comes Machinarium, a game so well-conceived and implemented it can confidently launch as one of the best point-and-click adventures of all time. Machinarium is nothing short of a playable piece of art. Similar to Samorost in style and gameplay, you play a lone robot thrown out of the city working his way through desolate mechanical slums. Solve puzzles, find and combine items, and encounter loads of creative characters in your quest. Machinarium is one of those rare games you can't praise enough.
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