List of video games commonly referred to as artistic

This is a list of video games considered to be works of art. Although several countries offer legal protections to all video games that are similar or identical to protections offered to other artistic works, and although by this standard all video games can be considered as art, this article lists games that are specifically identified by art critics and video game reviewers as works of art.

20th century

• Tempest (1981) – an arcade tube shooter with vector graphics by Atari Inc. PBS Idea Channel described it as a strongly aesthetic experience, comparing it to paintings.
• Super Mario Bros 3 (1988 NES) – a side-scrolling platform game released as a launch title for the NES and became the most praised games in the original Mario series for its amazing 8-bit visuals rewarding power-ups and charm. The game has its own spot in the Smithsonian museum in an exhibition called the Art of Video Games.
• The Myst series, beginning in 1993 with Myst – a graphic adventure based on pre-rendered scenarios and a strongly atmospheric, immersive setting. The level of detail allowed by the use of CD-ROM as the storage media was a technical achievement at the time, praised for the way the limitations of the format were overcome and used as part of the game story.
• Doom (1993) – a violent game whose transgressive thrills make it, according to Guardian games editor Keith Stewart, "natural heir to the splatterhouse cinema of the pre-digital era".
• Chrono Trigger (1995) – a JRPG game created by Square Enix about a group of adventurers from different time periods trying to stop the end of the world. the game is praised for its anime-style artwork and character designs, crisp and atmospheric visuals and the amazing music by Nobuo Uematsu that enhances the mood or gives the player a feeling of victory, sadness or hope and this game is also praised for making this game feel like an experience rather than just a game. According to an article by Joe Carros he stated that the game's groundbreaking mechanics and beautiful artwork by Dragon ball creator Akira Toriyama is the soul reason video games can be art. According to many gaming critics and journalists this game is widely considered the most beautiful games of the SNES era.
• Cosmology of Kyoto (1995) – an open world graphic adventure exploring Japanese myths in ancient Kyoto. Together with Myst, it was reviewed by film critic Roger Ebert in a column on whether video games can be art.
• Final Fantasy VII (1997, PlayStation) – considered by many to be one of the best role-playing video games, its story includes the death of a major character, aimed to give the player an emotional stake in the game.
• Grim Fandango (1998, LucasArts, Microsoft Windows) – An adventure game which combines elements of film noir with aspects of Aztec mythology.
• Planescape: Torment (1999, Black Isle Studios, Microsoft Windows) – A cult-classic role-playing game that was praised for its detailed writing, defined characters, unique setting and the use of death to progress the story.
• Vib Ribbon (1999, NanaOn-Sha, PlayStation) – a rhythm game known for its unique vector graphics artstyle. Vib Ribbon was collected as part of a video game exhibit at the Museum of Modern Art.

2000–2005

• Galatea (2000, Microsoft Windows) – Rock, Paper, Shotgun analyzes it as an art game saying that it "transcends that", and calls it "literature" and "not an art game [but] a game about art".
• Max Payne (2001, Microsoft Windows, Mac OS, Linux, Xbox 360, PlayStation 2) – a highly acclaimed third-person shooter developed by Remedy Entertainment. The game was praised for its use of neo-noir storytelling devices and its thematic connection and frequent references to Norse mythology
• Silent Hill 2 (2001, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3 (HD), Xbox, Xbox 360 (HD)) – Team Silent's survivor horror video game has been considered a work of art due to its story; atmosphere; sound design; exploration of psychological ideas such as subconscious; use of psychological horror, of metaphors, of taboo topics such as incest and domestic violence.
• Ico (2001, PlayStation 2) – a title created by Team Ico that has often been cited as an example of art in games due to its immersive gameplay, evoking narrative and unique style.

• Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (2001, PlayStation 2) – a stealth game by Hideo Kojima that has been cited as a primary example of artistic expression in video games and an early example of Post-Modernism in video games.
• MusicVR (2002-2004, Microsoft Windows) – a series of two video games, Tres Lunas (2002) and Maestro (2004), under the creative design of English musician Mike Oldfield. Each one set out to be a real-time virtual reality experience combining imagery and music, as a non-violent and essentially a non-goal driven game.
• Yume Nikki (2005, Microsoft Windows) – An independently-developed freeware game that has the player explore the dreams of a hikikomori little girl known only as "Madotsuki" as she encounters numerous surreal characters and events while collecting "Effects", most of which do little more than alter her appearance. Yume Nikki has an extremely large fan-base and numerous fan-made tribute games and unofficial sequels have been made.
• The Endless Forest (2005, Microsoft Windows) – Originally commissioned for an art exhibition, The Endless Forest is an MMO in the broader sense of the word. As a stag, the player roams around the forest and interact with other players; though not by words, but by sounds and body language. Another unique feature is that all players are recognizable by their unique symbol and customized appearance, but are otherwise anonymous.

2006–2010

• Ōkami (2006, PlayStation 2) – An adventure game based on numerous Japanese myths, the game's graphics were designed to appear similar to sumi-e watercolor paintings, and incorporated art-based brushstrokes by the player to execute special moves.
• Shadow of the Colossus (2006, PlayStation 2) – a title created by Team Ico that is a spiritual successor and prequel to Ico. The game is regarded as an important work of art due to its minimalist landscape designs, strong aesthetic, immersive gameplay, powerful narrative and emotional journey. Shadow of the Colossus has been referenced numerous times in debates regarding art and video games.
• Mother 3 (2006, Game Boy Advance) – the sequel of Earthbound, known as Mother 2 in Japan, it is a Japanese RPG about the story of one of the twins as he, his pet dog and his friends fight out an invading force. The game has been praised for its in depth narrative and made well use of its 16bit graphics. The game is also heavy with themes including the importance of a mother, moral fungibility, and dualisms such as nature and technology, and feudalism and capitalism, and is frequently compared to a form of literature. Despite never officially being released outside of Japan, it was later fan translated by the group of Earthbound fans, it and its predecessor served as inspiration to several other games including Yume Nikki and Undertale.
• Dwarf Fortress (2006, Microsoft Windows, Mac OS, Linux) – A roguelike, city-building game where the player creates an expansive world each play-through, allowing them to envision the history and culture for their civilization each time around.
• BioShock (2007, Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360, Mac OS, Cloud (OnLive), PlayStation 3) – a title created by Irrational Games then known as 2k Boston, that is a spiritual successor to System Shock 2. The game is regarded as an important work of art due to its immersive atmosphere, compelling storytelling and the narrative deconstruction of linear gameplay.
• Portal (2007, PC, Xbox 360, Mac OS, Linux, PlayStation 3) – a puzzle game developed by Valve Corporation, involving the use of portals to transport the player through space. The game was praised for its innovative mechanics, narrative and storytelling, and writing, especially praising the character of GLaDOS. This game recently became featured as part of the Museum of Modern Art exhibit "Applied Design".
• Fallout 3 (2008, PC, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3) – Action role-playing game acclaimed for its steampunk / retrofuturistic design and credible reconstruction and visuals of post-apocalyptic Washington, D.C. In 2012, Fallout 3 was also exhibited in The Art of Video Games, at Smithsonian American Art Museum.
• Braid (2008, PC, Xbox 360, Mac OS, Linux, PlayStation 3) – a puzzle-platform game developed by Number None, which uses time manipulation as its core mechanic. The game is notable for its painterly art style, layered philosophical narrative, and unique approach to game design.
• Flower (2009, PlayStation 3) – Developed by thatgamecompany, the player "controls" a gust of wind through motion controls, guiding it to various flowers around a landscape to gather petals. The gameplay was designed to provoke an emotional response from the player, and was chosen as one of the games shown at The Art of Video Games exhibit at the Smithsonian American Art Museum.
• The Path (2009, Mac OS X, Microsoft Windows) - Visionary reflection about the lost of child innocence between fable and horror.
• Deadly Premonition (2010, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Microsoft Windows) – A survival horror that has been described "the strangest video game of the year" and a primary example of "games as art", praised for its "emotional range, from traditional survival horror scares to farcical comedy".
• Heavy Rain (2010, PlayStation 3) – An interactive movie where the player enters quick time events during various sequences, including intense, rapid-paced scenes. The results of the player's choices or actions can cause one of the four main characters to die while the story continues on, causing the player to become invested in the game's story.
• Amnesia: The Dark Descent (2010, Microsoft Windows, Mac OS, Linux, OnLive) – A survival horror game praised for its horror elements, particularly its atmosphere and sound, with many critics regarding it as one of their scariest experiences.

2011–2015

• Child of Eden (2011, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3) – Similar to Rez, a game made to evoke the feeling of synesthesia.
• The Cat and the Coup (2011, Microsoft Windows) – A documentary video game about the life of Mohammad Mosaddegh, former Prime Minister of Iran.
• Dear Esther (2012, Microsoft Windows, Mac OS, Linux) – a first person video game centered around its graphical environment and story. The narrative is provided through monologues as the player journeys through the environment.
• Journey (2012, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4); Developed by thatgamecompany, this game has been described as an emotional experience, due to its immersive setting, distinctive visual style, and de-emphasized gameplay.
• The Unfinished Swan (2012, PS3, PS4, PS Vita) - The game starts with a completely white space in which the player, a boy named Monroe, is chasing after a swan that has escaped a painting. You have to splat gobs of black paint to draw and materialize the world around. See also this review.
• Spec Ops: The Line (2012, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360) – A third person shooter created by Yager that deconstructs the "shooter genre". Inspired by Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness, Spec Ops: The Line dwells heavily on themes of moral ambiguity, as the player finds themselves struggling to justify their actions in the plot.
• The Walking Dead (2012, Microsoft Windows, Mac OS, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PlayStation Vita, iOS, Android) – An adventure game set in the world of Robert Kirkman's acclaimed comic book series, The Walking Dead has been widely praised for its well-crafted story, meaningful player decisions, and believable characters. It is often considered one of the greatest examples of storytelling in video games.
• The Cat Lady (2012, Microsoft Windows, Mac OS, Linux, PS4, Xbox One) - Horror point&click adventure about depression, death, friendship, [...], etc. with an underground graphic style.
• Beyond Two Souls (2013, PlayStation 3) – Tells the story of Jodie, who possesses supernatural powers through a psychic link to Aiden, a bodiless entity, growing from adolescence to adulthood while learning to control Aiden and the powers they share.
• BioShock Infinite (2013, Microsoft Windows, Mac OS, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3) – A first-person shooter set in 1912 in an alternate universe where American Exceptionalism is flourishing aboard the flying city, Columbia. The game's narrative challenges concepts of nationalism, religion and racism prevalent during that period, as to provide a "funhouse mirror of American ideological history", according to Ben Popper of The Verge.
• Grand Theft Auto V (2013, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One) – Rockstar Games' open world crime-based title satirizes the modern day lifestyle of the West Coast of the United States, taking place in a city that is a smaller-scale but detailed interpretation of the city of Los Angeles and its surrounding areas, often used by players and artists as a backdrop for their own creations.
• The Last of Us (2013, PlayStation 3) – A game set in the aftermath of a zombie apocalypse, the Naughty Dog-developed title has been stated to be "a masterful marriage of storytelling and game design" and considered the "most riveting, emotionally resonant story-driven epic of [the seventh] console generation".
• Papers, Please (2013, Microsoft Windows, Mac OS, Linux) – a border control simulation game where a political uprising plot develops in the background of mechanical, grinding gameplay that mimics the mechanical, repetitive work of an immigration officer in a fictional country, presenting the player with ethical and moral choices between job and family.
• Proteus (2013, Microsoft Windows, Mac OS, Linux, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Vita) – A procedurally generated game that allows players to explore an expanse of musical environment, where every creature and plant has its own unique musical signature to accompany it, resulting in changes according to where players explore.
• Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons (2013, PS3, PC, Xbox 360) – A story driven game praised for its story, gameplay and experience which it provides. This game has no intelligible dialogue yet provides players with a powerful story and experience.
• Gone Home (2013, Microsoft Windows, Mac OS, Linux) – An exploration game where the player takes the role of a teenaged girl returning to her seemingly-unoccupied home after spending time abroad. Gone Home is praised for its narration, gameplay and atmosphere.
• The Stanley Parable (2013, Microsoft Windows, OS X, Linux) - Interactive fiction defined as a "meta-game where is not the gamer to play the game, but the game to play the gamer".
• Papo & Yo (2013, PS3, Microsoft Windows, OS X, Linux) - << It tells an incredibly personal story about love, loss, and growth that serves as an example of how far the video game medium has come as an art form. >>
• Contrast (2013, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows) - Twilight adventure with Art Nouveau aesthetics; noirish atmosphere, varied gameplay and jazz soundtrack. Contrast Concept Art. Cited also here
• The Talos Principle (2014, Microsoft Windows, Mac OS, Linux, Android, PlayStation 4) – A philosophical puzzle game, where players discovered different tradition philosophical schools through solving puzzles and discussing with NPC.
• The Vanishing of Ethan Carter (2014, Microsoft Windows, PS4) - Hymn to imagination and literature as refuges from a miserable world. 3D graphic adventure that someone classifies as walking simulator. Inspired by Lovecraft weird tales. Gameplay is about investigation and exploration in photorealistic scenario.
• Valiant Hearts: The Great War (2014, Android, iOS, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One) - Set in World War One, this game shows the stories of average soldiers on both sides and what they left behind. The game is praised for its art style, music and narration, as well as the emotions it creates within the people who play it. It also provides accurate historical information about the war which is accompanied with colorised photos.

• Kentucky Route Zero (2013-2017, Microsoft Windows, Mac OS, Linux) – an indie episodic point and click adventure game with the focus of the game being storytelling and a "beautiful" atmosphere. The game features a twisting, self-referential narrative, as well as deep characterization through evocative dialogue. Kentucky Route Zero was named Game of the Year in 2013 by Rock, Paper, Shotgun.
• Elegy for a Dead World (2014, Microsoft Windows, Mac OS, Linux) – a side-scrolling exploration game where the player writes a diary visible to other players. The player explores three worlds inspired by romantic poets Shelley, Byron, and Keats. While exploring, the player is prompted to make notes on their observations; notes are publicly visible via Steam Workshop. The collective note taking mechanic, representing not only an artistic game experience but also the ability of sandbox-style games to support further collaborative artistic creation by their players, earned it an honorable mention for the Nuovo Award in the 2014 Independent Games Festival.
• Beyond Eyes (2015, Microsoft Windows, OS X, Linux, Xbox One) – A game centered on a blind girl exploring her environment, where her other four senses are visualized in unique ways for the player.
• Her Story (2015, Microsoft Windows, OS X, iOS) – A game in which the player controls a police interrogation database and must piece together how a [...] occurred through entering keyword searches. The game features a unique system of storytelling.
• The Beginner's Guide (2015, Microsoft Windows, OS X) – An exploration game by Davey Wreden, creator of The Stanley Parable in which Wreden himself narrates the player through several eccentric, uncompleted games by a recluse developer named Coda, with Wreden ascribing what these games mean about Coda's personality. The nature of the story reflects on the relationship between player and developer in modern game development, with elements of Wreden's own sudden success with The Stanley Parable.
• Life Is Strange (2015, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One) – A story-driven game featuring hand-painted textures and based on a time rewind mechanic, which affects the development of the story. The game addresses the themes of surveillance, [...] and assisted [...], as well as ontological search for defined and specific identity and coming of age.
• Undertale (2015, Microsoft Windows, OS X) – A role-playing game where multiple in-game decisions by the player result in many different consequences, including, but not limited to, the actions of non-player characters, the mood and atmosphere of the game and the ending. The game's premise is built around the idea of the player choosing whether or not to kill or spare enemies, and its overarching story is held together by themes of determination, mercy and consequence. It also features an additional metastory hidden across the game's files and code.
• Ori and the Blind Forest (2015, Microsoft Windows, Xbox One) – A 2D open world platform game where the player controls an orphan named Ori, a white guardian spirit. This game has been critically acclaimed for its gorgeous art, touching narrative, and clever gameplay.
• White Night (2015, Microsoft Windows, OS X, Linux, PS4, Xbox One) - Tribute to noir films and old survival horror; black & white a la Sin City, direction is a mix of Hitchcock and Welles.

2016 onward

• That Dragon, Cancer (2016, Microsoft Windows, OS X) – An exploration game designed by Ryan and Amy Green designed to help share their experiences in learning and coping with the terminal cancer and death of their five-year-old son Joel.
• Firewatch (2016, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, OS X, Linux) – "Firewatch is about solitude and space, a first-person journey through the massive wilderness of America’s Shoshone National Forest. It’s a space of such magnitude that it almost unavoidably conjures mysteries and conspiracies of corresponding size. But in this game, we are drawn back down to the essential and human."
• The Witness (2016, PlayStation 4, Microsoft Windows, OS X) – "The Witness does something that you can’t do with any other art form. This game has a clear message: ‘Change your perspective’, and unless you do so, you can not succeed. Every aspect (i.e. game-play, design, puzzles) of The Witness is based upon this idea."
• Inside (2016, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows) - Playdead's followup to Limbo, Inside is a puzzle-platformer that follows an unnamed boy's trek across a surreal landscape while being chased by pursuers. It uses a wider array of cinematographic elements that, as described by Christopher Byrd of The Washington Post, "It’s a mood piece, a series of expertly framed environments that escalate in their strangeness."
• The Last Guardian (2016, PlayStation 4) – The third Team Ico game, following Ico and Shadow of the Colossus, designed around a realistic-acting giant bird-cat-like creature that the player must learn to tend and care for as to be able to entice the creature to help solve puzzles.
• Virginia (2016, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC, OS X) – A first-person mystery thriller adventure game using a strong cinematographic language in the style of David Lynch movies. "Virginia is a taut thriller that strikes a fine balance between storytelling and interactivity in a way that narrative-driven first-person adventure games have not accomplished since their inception"
• The Town of Light (2016, PS4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows) - 3D adventure in first person view about madness and ancient psychiatric asylums horrors.
• Hyper Light Drifter (2016, Xbox One, PS4, Microsoft Windows) – an action RPG developed by Heart Machine. The game was praised for its visual storytelling, hack and slash combat, emotional storyline and anime-inspired 8-bit visuals.
• Oxenfree (PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, OS X, Linux) - A supernatural thriller about a group of friends who unwittingly open a ghostly rift. You are Alex, and you’ve just brought your new stepbrother Jonas to an overnight island party gone horribly wrong.
• Night in the Woods (2017, PS4, Xbox One, PC, OS X) – A single-player exploration game developed by Infinite Fall about an anthropomorphic cat named Mae, who recently dropped out of college and has returned to her slowly dying hometown to find that a lot has changed since she left. It is a game that has "a fantastic narrative with a beautiful art-style, theme and plenty of small touches occupying a wonderful world full of loving characters covering a sinister story underneath".
• What Remains of Edith Finch (2017, PS4, Xbox One, PC) - Indie studio Giant Sparrow conjures an adventure that blends exploration, reading, reality and fantasy into one innovative and beautiful experience.
• Hollow Knight (2017, Nintendo Switch, Microsoft Windows, PS4) - A Metroidvania-style hack and slash platform game developed by Team Cherry about an insect warrior trying save a town from a terrible curse. the game was praised for its amazing hand drawn graphics slow score and touching storyline. Critics said despite some similarities to Ori and the Blind Forest it is a very solid platform game.
• Last Day of June (2017, PS4, Microsoft Windows) - A 3D graphic adventure with a colorful cartoon aesthetics reminding of Tim Burton's films in stop motion. The game's story is about love and loss, life and death, and is like a puzzle. Soundtrack is composed by Steven Wilson.

See also

• List of arthouse games