Vivid games - an IFDB Poll
by Jeff Sonas
RSS FeedI'm looking for games that evoked strong feelings or strong mental images that stayed with you long after you finished the games.
| Anchorhead, by Michael Gentry 14 votes "Creepy. Kept me jumping for weeks." [+]"Creepy. Kept me jumping for weeks." ( - Full review) --Bernie... "Lovecraftian chills." [+]"Lovecraftian chills.: Creepy atmosphere/images!" () --Puddin Tame... "This was a tough decision" [+]"This was a tough decision: Photopia was just as memorable. But Anchorhead is much bigger and has more replay value, keeping the experience fresh." ( - Full review) --mjhayes... "Menacing..." [+]"Menacing atmosphere and sense of place." () --Emily Short... (No comment) [+](No comment) --aaronius... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Rhian Moss... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --jahilia... (No comment) [+](No comment) ( - Full review) --Xervosh... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --diddlescatter... (No comment) [+](No comment) ( - Full review) --Danielle... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --bluevelvetwings... (No comment) [+](No comment) ( - Full review) --MathBrush... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Denk... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --aluminumoxynitride...  Vote for this game | |
| Photopia, by Adam Cadre 10 votes "The greatest IF game ever made." [+]"The greatest IF game ever made.: About halfway through, you will be able to see where the ending is inevitably going, and you'll hate it and love it and think it's beautiful and think it's horrible. And you'll keep playing." ( ) --Pinstripe... "Emotions,..." [+]"Emotions, descriptions, and moments from this game stick with me. I even got a little teary-eyed on my second time playing it. " () --Lenya... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Michael R. Bacon... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Michael L.... (No comment) [+](No comment) --J'onn Roger... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Grey... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Matt Wigdahl... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Karl Ove Hufthammer... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Sobol... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Edo... Vote for this game | |
| Worlds Apart, by Suzanne Britton 8 votes "I love how this story plays with your perception of time and memory." [+]"I love how this story plays with your perception of time and memory." ( - Full review) --J'onn Roger... "Memorably-rendered..." [+]"Memorably-rendered world-building in several places." () --Emily Short... (No comment) [+](No comment) --jingold... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --DJ... (No comment) [+](No comment) ( - Full review) --r6144... (No comment) [+](No comment) ( - Full review) --MathBrush... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Kinetic Mouse Car... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --aluminumoxynitride... Vote for this game | |
| Blue Lacuna, by Aaron A. Reed 7 votes "Spooky and beautiful" [+]"Spooky and beautiful: You'll be wary of trees for days. " ( - Full review) --Rose... (No comment) [+](No comment) --J'onn Roger... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Divide... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Sobol... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Denk... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Laney Berry... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --aluminumoxynitride... Vote for this game | |
| howling dogs, by Porpentine 7 votes "Contains..." [+]"Contains extraordinary and memorable passages about an empress who learns to pose for her own assassination, cities that grow like trees, the tombs of the gods, and much else." --Emily Short... (No comment) [+](No comment) ( ) --Edward Lacey... (No comment) [+](No comment) ( - Full review) --MathBrush... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --CMG... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Dawn Sueoka... (No comment) [+](No comment) --aluminumoxynitride... (No comment) [+](No comment) --pieartsy... Vote for this game | |
| Planetfall, by Steve Meretzky 7 votes "Floyd!" [+]"Floyd!: Twenty-five years later, I can't remember the details but I can still feel the range of emotions that Floyd brought out in me when I was a teenager" --Jeff Sonas... "Floyd++" [+]"Floyd++" ( ) --Matt Kimmel... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Dave Chapeskie... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Xervosh... (No comment) [+](No comment) --Matt Wigdahl... "30+ years later,..." [+]"30+ years later, I still smile, then get sad thinking of Floyd. " --Mark Pittman... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Denk... Vote for this game | |
| Shade, by Andrew Plotkin 6 votes "Claustrophobic..." [+]"Claustrophobic and intense. " ( ) --diddlescatter... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Danielle... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Sobol... (No comment) [+](No comment) ( - Full review) --MathBrush... (No comment) [+](No comment) --pieartsy... Vote for this game | |
| Metamorphoses, by Emily Short 5 votes "Magical devices you can truly play with." [+]"Magical devices you can truly play with." ( ) --IFforL2... "Has a Myst-like..." [+]"Has a Myst-like aesthetic: melancholy landscapes filled with baroque, crystal and metal devices." --Gemma Bristow... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Sobol... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Angharade... Vote for this game | |
| Babel, by Ian Finley 5 votes "Exceptional use of lighting and sense-altering choices." [+]"Exceptional use of lighting and sense-altering choices." ( ) --IFforL2... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --kba... (No comment) [+](No comment) --scramble... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --DJ... (No comment) [+](No comment) ( - Full review) --MathBrush... Vote for this game | |
| A Mind Forever Voyaging, by Steve Meretzky 4 votes (No comment) [+](No comment) ( ) --Dave Chapeskie... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --aaronius... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Matt Wigdahl... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Sobol... Vote for this game | |
| Trinity, by Brian Moriarty 4 votes "Infocom's finest hour." [+]"Infocom's finest hour.: Has many images that stay with you when the game is over." ( ) --Puddin Tame... "The burned..." [+]"The burned woman... the valley of mushrooms... the monster that proves to be injured and terrified of you..." --Gemma Bristow... (No comment) [+](No comment) --aaronius... (No comment) [+](No comment) --Matt Wigdahl... Vote for this game | |
| The Dreamhold, by Andrew Plotkin 3 votes "Many memorable devices" [+]"Many memorable devices: The berries, the apple, the liquid floor, the easel- all have stuck with me long after the plot was forgotten." ( ) --DJ... "...particularly..." [+]"...particularly for some unusual plants." --Emily Short... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Sobol... Vote for this game | |
| Vespers, by Jason Devlin 3 votes (No comment) [+](No comment) ( ) --PrincessKitten... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Ismarus... (No comment) [+](No comment) --aluminumoxynitride... Vote for this game | |
| Shrapnel, by Adam Cadre 3 votes "Some one-liners are really vivid and creepy." [+]"Some one-liners are really vivid and creepy." ( ) --Grey... "A closetful of skeletons" [+]"A closetful of skeletons: The glimpses you get into the player character's often ugly family life are creepy enough to have you reaching for the brain bleach." ( - Full review) --Dominic Delabruere... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Sobol... Vote for this game | |
| CYBERQUEEN, by Porpentine 3 votes "Extremely vivid and visceral imagery" [+]"Extremely vivid and visceral imagery" ( ) --wwenches... "The strong..." [+]"The strong writing and horrifying imagery stays with me many months after playing." () --Christina Nordlander... (No comment) [+](No comment) --Nathaniel... Vote for this game | |
| Counterfeit Monkey, by Emily Short 3 votes (No comment) [+](No comment) ( ) --Sobol... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Laney Berry... (No comment) [+](No comment) ( - Full review) --aluminumoxynitride... Vote for this game | |
| For a Change, by Dan Schmidt 3 votes "The moment when..." [+]"The moment when you bring the sun." ( ) --Christina Nordlander... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Sobol... (No comment) [+](No comment) ( - Full review) --Angharade... Vote for this game | |
| Weird City Interloper, by C.E.J. Pacian 3 votes (No comment) [+](No comment) ( - Full review) --Sobol... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Edo... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --aluminumoxynitride... Vote for this game | |
| The Moonlit Tower, by Yoon Ha Lee 2 votes (No comment) [+](No comment) --J'onn Roger... "Mystery and sheer..." [+]"Mystery and sheer beauty." ( ) --Christina Nordlander... Vote for this game | |
| Jigsaw, by Graham Nelson 2 votes "Black remains one..." [+]"Black remains one of my favorite NPCs from any game. I may have even developed a little crush on that mysterious stranger..." ( ) --Lenya... Vote for this game | |
| Changes, by David Given 2 votes (No comment) [+](No comment) ( ) --Floating Info... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Kinetic Mouse Car... Vote for this game | |
| Superluminal Vagrant Twin, by C.E.J. Pacian 2 votes (No comment) [+](No comment) ( - Full review) --Sobol... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Edo... Vote for this game | |
| Illuminismo Iniziato, by Michael J. Coyne 2 votes (No comment) [+](No comment) ( - Full review) --Denk... (No comment) [+](No comment) --Luihum... Vote for this game | |
| Pogoman GO!, by Jack Welch and Ben Collins-Sussman 2 votes "Amusing!" [+]"Amusing!" ( ) --Denk... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Sobol... Vote for this game | |
| Make It Good, by Jon Ingold 2 votes "Hard-boiled, claustrophobic" [+]"Hard-boiled, claustrophobic" ( ) --Erik Temple... (No comment) [+](No comment) ( - Full review) --MathBrush... Vote for this game | |
| Exhibition, by Ian Finley 2 votes "Surprisingly very moving..." [+]"Surprisingly very moving..." ( ) --John D... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --Karl Ove Hufthammer... Vote for this game | |
| City of Secrets, by Emily Short 2 votes (No comment) [+](No comment) ( ) --Laney Berry... (No comment) [+](No comment) () --aluminumoxynitride... Vote for this game | |
| Zork III, by Dave Lebling, Marc Blank 2 votes "A (broken) snapshot of the GUE." [+]"A (broken) snapshot of the GUE.: This last installment of the original trilogy finds the Great Underground Empire perfected to a signature blend of melancholy, satire, tragedy and raw loopiness. Feels real, feels ruined, lives in my mind when the game is shut down." ( ) --Ghalev... "The Dungeon..." [+]"The Dungeon Master, and his sad denials of my accomplishments, somehow left a much more permanent impact than the previous two games did" --Jeff Sonas... Vote for this game | |
| Starcross, by Dave Lebling 2 votes "Haunting..." [+]"Haunting...: The colored rods, the alien babies that frustrated my mapping attempts, the gradual power to control an alien ship... the feel of this game really stayed with me" --Jeff Sonas... (No comment) [+](No comment) --jingold... Vote for this game | |
| Hoist Sail for the Heliopause and Home, by Andrew Plotkin 2 votes (No comment) [+](No comment) ( ) --Sobol... "Describes..." [+]"Describes celestial objects, such as pulsars and supergiant stars, with thoughtful detail. You can almost picture them in your head." () --Kinetic Mouse Car... Vote for this game | |
| August, by Matt Fendahleen 2 votes "This PC will stay with me for a long time." [+]"This PC will stay with me for a long time." ( - Full review) --Katrisa... "Not very..." [+]"Not very polished, but something about the main NPC really stuck with me." --Emily Short... Vote for this game | |
| Gris et Jaune, by Jason Devlin 1 vote (No comment) [+](No comment) ( - Full review) --MathBrush... Vote for this game | |
| Cragne Manor, by Ryan Veeder, Jenni Polodna, Adam Whybray, Adri, Andrew Plotkin, Andy Holloway, Austin Auclair, Baldur Brückner, Ben Collins-Sussman, Bill Maya, Brian Rushton, Buster Hudson, Caleb Wilson, Carl Muckenhoupt, Chandler Groover, Chris Jones, Christopher Conley, Damon L. Wakes, Daniel Ravipinto, Daniel Stelzer, David Jose, David Petrocco, David Sturgis, Drew Mochak, Edward B, Emily Short, Erica Newman, Feneric, Finn Rosenløv, Gary Butterfield, Gavin Inglis, Greg Frost, Hanon Ondricek, Harkness Munt, Harrison Gerard, Ian Holmes, Ivan Roth, Jack Welch, Jacqueline Ashwell, James Eagle, Jason Dyer, Jason Lautzenheiser, Jason Love, Jeremy Freese, Joey Jones, Joshua Porch, Justin de Vesine, Justin Melvin, Katherine Morayati, Kenneth Pedersen, Lane Puetz, Llew Mason, Lucian Smith, Marco Innocenti, Marius Müller, Mark Britton, Mark Sample, Marshal Tenner Winter, Matt Schneider, Matt Weiner, Matthew Korson, Michael Fessler, Michael Gentry, Michael Hilborn, Michael Lin, Mike Spivey, Molly Ying, Monique Padelis, Naomi Hinchen, Nate Edwards, Petter Sjölund, Q Pheevr, Rachel Spitler, Reed Lockwood, Reina Adair, Riff Conner, Roberto Colnaghi, Rowan Lipkovits, Sam Kabo Ashwell, Scott Hammack, Sean M. Shore, Shin, Wade Clarke, Zach Hodgens, Zack Johnson 1 vote "84 authors put together an amazing game" [+]"84 authors put together an amazing game" ( - Full review) --MathBrush... Vote for this game | |
| A Fire Darkly: Chapter 1, by Louis Rakovich 1 vote "beautiful writing" [+]"beautiful writing" ( - Full review) --SLane... Vote for this game | |
| Beautiful Dreamer, by S. Woodson 1 vote (No comment) [+](No comment) ( ) --Sobol... Vote for this game | |
| Lydia's Heart, by Jim Aikin 1 vote (No comment) [+](No comment) ( ) --Denk... Vote for this game | |
| Stationfall, by Steve Meretzky 1 vote (No comment) [+](No comment) ( ) --Denk... Vote for this game | |
| Domicile, by John Evans 1 vote "I know I'm alone..." [+]"I know I'm alone on this vote, but Domicile still resonates with me years later. Perhaps I read more into the game than was actually there, but it's still the game that I most want to rewrite and offer my own interpretation of. Again and again, the game plays similar chords: the endless journeys, the people who are displaced, good vs. evil, learning ever more magic, and that which is cannot truly be fought but can only be accepted. There's a buried richness I wish to uncover there." --David Welbourn... Vote for this game | |
| ♥Magical Makeover♥, by S. Woodson 1 vote (No comment) [+](No comment) ( ) --Sobol... Vote for this game | |
| Kaged, by Ian Finley 1 vote (No comment) [+](No comment) ( ) --Denk... Vote for this game | |
| Calm, by Joey Jones and Melvin Rangasamy 1 vote "Brilliant and overgrowing" [+]"Brilliant and overgrowing: Though weak on plot, this game is huge on vivid imagery and locations that stay in your mind for years and years." --bluevelvetwings... Vote for this game | |
| Hunter, in Darkness, by Andrew Plotkin 1 vote "The PC gave me sympathy pains." [+]"The PC gave me sympathy pains." ( ) --IFforL2... Vote for this game | |
| 9:05, by Adam Cadre 1 vote "You'll never look..." [+]"You'll never look at 9:05 in the morning the same way every again. My friend and I still shriek the number at each other from time to time." ( ) --Danielle... Vote for this game | |
| So Far, by Andrew Plotkin 1 vote "The autumnal..." [+]"The autumnal road, the silent city, the post-apocalyptic (?) area, the winter area, the dark world... heck, let's just say the entire game and get it over with." --Christina Nordlander... Vote for this game | |
| Spellbreaker, by Dave Lebling 1 vote "A jigsaw of..." [+]"A jigsaw of tight, surreal environments." --Gemma Bristow... Vote for this game | |
| Gun Mute, by C.E.J. Pacian 1 vote (No comment) [+](No comment) ( ) --Sobol... Vote for this game | |
| Witch's Girl, by Geoff Moore 1 vote (No comment) [+](No comment) ( ) --Sobol... Vote for this game | |