Observing Life Begin: 40 Seeds, 2013

40 Seeds will not take you long to experience. It will not take much effort. It will not even take game playing experience. What it will take is a few minutes of patience, and an open mind, as the significance of this game is subtle. According to the game's creator:

"40 Seeds is an ambient game, about planting seeds on an island. The wind and an aspect of time allow the interaction with life as well as death. Similar to watching rain, 40 seeds is an experience that clears the mind in hopes of immersing and bring forth thought."

I enjoyed this so much. I hope you do too.

Brought to you by KinzyBW.

platform utilized: browser
genre: atmospheric, experimental
where to find: You can plant your 40 Seeds right here.

Chasing Rabbits: Ruins, 2011

In this deceptively simple game about a dog chasing rabbits, there is a deep well of story to be unearthed. In this way, Ruins considers gameplay secondary to narrative.

Ruins is a hazy walkabout through a dreamlike landscape of subconsciousness. The effort is perfectly enunciated by one of Chopin's preludes. In this way, the dream is sustained and carried forward in a far more believable way than could have been imagined. There is also visual dissonance and decay to challenge the acquisition of reality in this significant little game.

platform utilized: mac
genre: experimental
where to find: You can download Ruins from Cardboard Computer. Grab it either on mac or pc.

Norwegian Flight: The Plan, 2013

The Plan is a short experimental indie game, created by the newly arrived Krillbite Studio, based in Hamar, Norway. The game takes you through a gorgeous, and ultimately fatal, ascension far above the trees. While the experience will only take a few minutes to complete, the execution is potent, especially when considering the choice music of Scandinavian descent (I'll give you a hint: it's a devastating movement comparable only to Samuel Barber's Adagio for Strings or perhaps the second movement of Beethoven's 7th Symphony). The game is so simple, but its elegance and its use of music cuts deep into my heart, and I can't help but feel that there is more to the message of this game than meets the eye.

platform utilized: mac
genre: experimental
where to find: available for download on pc, mac, or linux.