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HOHOKUM (VITA, PS4, PS3)

BY HONEYSLUG

Hohokum is a wild child’s vibrant imagination turned into a game, where rules don’t matter and the only way to win is through sheer creativity. When your character is a magical flying kite-thing (that can hold more than you think it should be able to), you can’t help but throw logic out the window and enjoy the ride. Hohokum rejects any appeal for guidance or objectives and says it’s totally okay to be lost—because at least we have pretty colors to look at while we bumble around a bit.

Perfect for: Adventurers, children, adults who miss their time in the playground

Playtime: Hours of exploring and tinkering.

ROAD NOT TAKEN (PC, MAC, PS4)

BY SPRYFOX

Don’t let the cuddly woodland creatures fool you. Winter is coming in Road Not Taken, and it’s taking the town’s children along with it. As a mysterious, red-hooded Ranger, you must save as many of the missing children from the forest as you can. Only you can’t save everyone, and even selfless sacrifice leads to more loss of innocent lives. Road Not Taken will chew you up and spit you out, leaving the stench of death behind. But it’ll look really adorable while doing it, so there’s that.

Read our review here.

Perfect for: Roguelike types, psychotic children, and heartless pragmatists

Playtime: About ten tortured hours.

BACK TO BED (PC, IOS, ANDROID)

BY BEDTIME DIGITAL GAMES 

Take a pinch of Dali, a smidgen of Escher, a nice big bite out of a Magritte apple, encase it all in one giant escort mission, and you’ll get Back to Bed. In it, a narcoleptic named Bob sleepwalks through his dreams. As his subconscious (dubbed Subbob, obviously), you’ll have to guide him unharmed through a bizzare landscape back to, yes, his bed. Back to Bed manages to simultaneously be predictable and surprising, sleepy and lively, scary and comforting—just like any good piece of Surrealist art.

Perfect for: Those who wish they could control their dreams, fans of Surrealism and Dadaism, anyone feeling particularly sleepy

Playtime: Less than two hours of narcolepsy.