A Dark Room

I played this game first, and then moved on to try and find things like it. Very few games have scratched the same itch. The early game resource balancing and the character's slow transformation are engaging on their own, and the combat system blew me out of the park.

There is level of environmental storytelling if you are willing to read every line of text. You have to search it out yourself, no character will info-dump history for you.

(It's sequel, the Ensign, adds a level of difficulty by removing the constantly producing home base. I missed its inclusion. I grow attached to my village.)