Video games are a perfect way to transport yourself into another world. And many times, that world can be even more confusing than the one we live in now. Have you ever wondered what life is like as a toddler? How scary would it be to see actual monsters in closets? Or how about solving a murder in some strange town where your roommate isn’t even human?
All of this weirdness makes us, as gamers, have so much fun and continue to unravel the mystery we’re thrown in. If you’re looking to expand your video game list, here are 10 video games that will leave you confused in the best way possible.
The Stanley Parable
The Stanley Parable is the ultimate exploration of free will, in which you play as Stanley, an employee wandering around his office, trying to find someone, anyone.
Along the way, an off-screen narrator gives him a list of things he needs to do. Stanley can choose to do the opposite, but can he really? Every time Stanley goes against the demands of the narrator, there are consequences. At one point, the narrator even tells Stanley, “I’m afraid you don’t have nearly the power you think you have.”
Dr. Langeskov, The Tiger, and The Terribly Cursed Emerald: A Whirlwind Heist
Made by the same studio as The Stanley Parable, Dr. Langeskov gives a new meaning to the word “game,” as it takes you backstage to explore everything that goes into its making…sort of.
The staff has gone on strike (within the game), and you’re left with an omniscient voice that tells you to perform various tasks that complete the experience, like releasing a tiger and making it rain. While the game itself is rather short, it’s hilarious, and it’s free on Steam.
BioShock Infinite
BioShock Infinite plays like its predecessors, but with one exception: the plot is much more detailed. The player uses powers to solve the mystery of the Lutece twins. The primary goal is to bring them the girl, and they’ll wipe away the debt.
Wait.
What girl? What debt? It’s a task easier said than done. Who is the Booker DeWitt and what is his connection with Elizabeth? Who is Comstock? These questions will only be answered by playing the game.
The Wolf Among Us
Everyone loves classic fairy tales, so The Wolf Among Us decided to play around with these classic stories in its episodic click-and-point gameplay.
Made by Telltale Games, this detective game follows the Big Bad Wolf, who is sheriff of Fabletown, as he attempts to solve the murder of a woman. The choices you make alter the way the game plays, but the most fun comes from resolving this confusing whirlwind of a mystery.
Only If
In Only If, your character begins to realize that a hard night of partying can lead to ultimate confusion. This game is puzzle-based, where you have to find a solution given to you by a strange voice coming from the radio—oh yeah, and it screams obscenities and threatens you. Did we mention that if you don’t listen to it, you die?
How did you get there? How does the radio know your name? This isn’t your house.
The game is unpredictable and experimental, but what you see is what you get. Don’t expect to get through this game without dying…in a myriad of ways.
Jazzpunk
Jazzpunk may not look like much, but don’t be fooled by the pixelated, Minecraft-style graphics. It’s all part of the game’s charm.
Inspired by classic parody movies, you play a protagonist that is part of a top-secret espionage agency in the late 1950s. Each mission is stranger than the last—including stealing a cowboy’s artificial kidney.
What does all this have to do with espionage? It’s up to you to play and find out. While you can follow the main plot line, you also have the option to go off on your own quest, explore weird parts of the city, and learn about the eccentric personalities that populate it.
Psychonauts
Whispering Rock Psychic Summer Camp is where kids to go to have fun…and also become government-trained fighters known as Psychonauts. Players quickly learn that something isn’t right about the camp counselors when brains begin to go missing. Yes, I said brains.
As you play, you’ll feel like the X-Men, with powers like invisibility, levitation, and confusion. Traverse through LSD-inspired levels filled with colors, shapes, and plots that seem genuinely insane. Your job: engage the enemy in his own mind.
The Vanishing of Ethan Carter
The Vanishing of Ethan Carter is an extremely interactive detective game that asks the player to solve cases using their own powers of observation.
Sure, this doesn’t sound too unique at first, but after playing the game for 10 minutes you’ll realize something is seriously different about The Vanishing of Ethan Carter. Namely, the main character has psychic powers that allow them to talk to ghosts. That’s right—ghosts.
The primary goal of this game is to figure out what happened to Ethan Carter, a little boy that sent you, the detective, fan letters that described his town. Something isn’t right about the place and you have to figure out why people are dying, why everyone seems possessed, and how it relates back to Ethan Carter.
Among the Sleep
Among the Sleep is terrifying enough, as you play a helpless toddler. But it gets even worse when you realize your only source of solace is a talking bear, which is straight-up terrifying.
In this game, you wake up in the middle of the night to find your new teddy missing. You find him drowning in the washing machine, and he states you must find your mother because something is wrong. Walking through some of the levels make you feel as though a demon is possessing your home. Creatures follow you, you’re forced to hide, and the ending of the game will definitely hit you hard. Bring your tissues.
Nevermind
Nevermind is one of the scariest games in existence because of the biofeedback component. Throughout the game, the developers encourage you to wear a heart monitor, but don’t worry! There’s an option to use a webcam to get the full biofeedback component.
Using your heart monitor or webcam, the game registers how afraid you are, and then it reacts. The more frightened become, the harder the game gets. Based on how your heart rate and pulse, the environment changes, which makes the game itself feel alive.
At first, playing the game involves collecting memories and putting them in order, but what you do after that is up to you. With Nevermind, you’ll find out that the greatest enemy is the one inside.