Thechineroom's Dear Esther remains one of the most divisive games from the last few years. Some would argue that its linear corridors and lack of proper game mechanics (you simply walk and look at stuff) made it not a game at all.
Indie developer Ursa was actually a big fan of Dear Esther, but that didn't stop the two-man team of Travis Chen and Nolan Fabricius from taking the piss out of it for F*** This Jam, where indie developers were tasked with making games for genres they don't ordinarily like.
"The engrossing world of Dear Esteban was created for a very simple purpose; to blow an existential hole in the player's perception of their own realities," said Ursa. "We wanted present a story so enriching to the human condition, that years from the initial play through the player will look back and think: 'How was I ever that naive child before Dear Esteban pulled the wool off my eyes?'
"We've created an interactive tour de force, so powerful, that society at large will have no choice but to acknowledge video games as mankind ultimate art form and the final stage before the event horizon of the human singularity."
Given Dear Esteban's game jam origins, it's much shorter and cruder than Dear Esther, and a single playthrough will only take about five minutes. As you explore a deserted rural area you'll witness surreal images like flying whales and hear snippets of the narrator discussing mundane incidents, like a bartender giving him the stink-eye for the way he was dressed, despite him explaining that he was going to an 80s party.
Check out this marvel of modern game design either as a PC or Mac download or in a browser here.