The Hunting Lodge

If you're willing to take moody atmospherics and tense exploration (Spoiler - click to show)-- followed by an intense timed escape sequence -- over a well-developed or unique plot, then this Lovecraftian mansion crawl is fair game. Boasting some genuinely unsettling scene descriptions, The Hunting Lodge lets its creepy backstory unfold in the first 'act', before abruptly shifting gears into an nerve-wracking cat-and-mouse (or rather eldritch-abomination-and-plucky-human) game.

Worth noting for Twine fans and developers alike: this game takes full advantage of the tool's variable-setting functions, with a small virtual inventory needed to advance the story, simulated turn-based events (e.g. (Spoiler - click to show)countdown that decreases by 10 seconds each click), and a monstrous pursuer that moves about in (randomized?) wumpus-style fashion. With all the conditions in play, it truly shows off the mechanical possibilities of the authoring system, beyond the obvious CYOA type functions.

I admit that I still haven't beaten the game yet. But I don't need to -- I already recognize how satisfying it is, even when it ends in death-by-creature or (Spoiler - click to show)a fiery, explosive demise.