Games Like The River

A short, emotional visual novel following a grieving man who relives memories of days long gone. An exploration of loss presented honestly and kinetically.

Why similar: Visual Novel 21.5%, Interactive Fiction 19.3%, Drama 16.9%, Linear 12.6%, Hand-drawn 11.4%

Moon River is a short RPG adventure with an emphasis on music and atmosphere. Perhaps some secrets too... Explore the remains of an quiet, empty world & find the river's end.

Why similar: Pixel Graphics 24.2%, Adventure 23.1%, Atmospheric 15.8%, Emotional 12.8%, 2D 10.5%

halfmoon is a short adventure game set in an information center for the dead before they move on.

Why similar: Interactive Fiction 35%, Visual Novel 31.2%, Pixel Graphics 9%, Adventure 8%, 2D 7.8%

A short atmospheric adventure game about finding meaning in a meaningless world.

Why similar: Adventure 37.5%, Philosophical 34.3%, Atmospheric 14%, Singleplayer 7.4%, 2D 6.9%

A short, twisted tale about a smuggler and a late night encounter in the English Channel. Control the camera and make tough choices, will you escape with your life?

Why similar: Interactive Fiction 32.7%, Visual Novel 24.9%, Philosophical 14%, Dark 9.2%, Stylized 8.4%

Musings on grief, moving on, and a life made and lived in the rural Midwest. Features a collection of lovingly hand-drawn panels and pixel art.

Why similar: Visual Novel 27.5%, Interactive Fiction 27.1%, Emotional 12%, Hand-drawn 11.4%, Linear 8%

Late Bird is a short interactive story about birds, movies, suicidal thoughts and not growing up in time.

Why similar: Interactive Fiction 31%, Visual Novel 21.6%, Hand-drawn 12%, Drama 11.3%, Linear 9%

A short 10 minute visual novel about being a fragment in the universe and trying to find a way out of the ****.

Why similar: Philosophical 27.2%, Dark 19.7%, Emotional 19.3%, Stylized 15.2%, Atmospheric 9.8%

URLate is a short and free point & click adventure that immerses you in a hand-drawn world filled with puzzles and mysteries to solve.

Why similar: Adventure 34.2%, Hand-drawn 21.8%, 2D 18.2%, Dark 11.1%, Singleplayer 7.5%

A Game About is a free, short, lo-fi point & click adventure that tasks the player with living with their daily routine. Through day to day choices, life changes in imperceptibles and unexpected ways.

HOW WE KNOW WE'RE ALIVE is an award winning, hour long melancholy, point-and-click narrative mystery set in the bible belt of Sweden.

Why similar: Interactive Fiction 30.9%, Adventure 17.5%, Pixel Graphics 9%, Emotional 7.9%, Philosophical 7.8%

The Flood is a peaceful 5 minute narrative experience in which you pilot a little boat down a river. It's a gentle reminder that sometimes we should stop worrying about our destination and just enjoy the journey.

Why similar: Visual Novel 52.8%, Adventure 21.5%, Atmospheric 14.9%, Singleplayer 10.8%

Put on your headphones, close your eyes and watch the story in your imagination. What seems like a game may be something more. Is it a story waiting to be told or... felt? Enter the universe of Edgar A. Poe, where reason, like the devil, says "Goodnight".

Why similar: Interactive Fiction 23.3%, Visual Novel 18.3%, Linear 11.8%, Hand-drawn 11.2%, Philosophical 10%

A Night In Riverager is a free horror short set in the monochrome world of My Beautiful Paper Smile. It tells the tale of a strange hunter in an even stranger land, on a quest to find medicine for his ailing mother. Strange and powerful forces are stirring. Can he resist them?

Why similar: Hand-drawn 39.4%, Adventure 22.2%, Dark 18.4%, Atmospheric 12.3%, Singleplayer 7.6%

A short 2D exploration adventure in a retro style! Explore a laundromat in the middle of the night and try to clear it!

Why similar: Visual Novel 33.8%, Hand-drawn 23.1%, Pixel Graphics 14.7%, 2D 9.3%, Atmospheric 8.8%

A game about the short journey of a boy who left home. Experience a dense story in around 2 hours, along with rhythm gameplay and music puzzles. Enjoy live acoustic sounds and a story that feels like a musical film!

Why similar: Visual Novel 23.6%, Drama 14.1%, Linear 13.6%, Emotional 10.8%, Dark 9.7%

Unroaded is a short free visual novel about the living dead man who instead of inaction has chosen the road.

Why similar: Visual Novel 47.6%, Adventure 22.8%, Philosophical 17.4%, Dark 12.2%

A short point & click narrative adventure inspired by the real life experience of a struggling solo indie game developer. A story about everything and hence nothing at all. Discover what truly matters to you.

Why similar: Interactive Fiction 28.4%, Visual Novel 18.3%, Adventure 11.6%, Philosophical 10.8%, Dark 9.9%

The Last Oath is a short story based game about a knight that fell in battle fighting for their king. You find yourself with a final task to keep your oath to the king. Complete this task as you find out more about the world by interacting with the environment through text based dialogue.

Why similar: Interactive Fiction 37.3%, Adventure 16.4%, Stylized 9.2%, Pixel Graphics 9%, Dark 8.2%

A Raven Monologue is a short experimental silent story about a raven that does not know how to croak and his relationship with the people in the town.

Why similar: Hand-drawn 39.4%, Visual Novel 30.2%, Atmospheric 17.6%, 2D 6.9%, Singleplayer 5.8%

Ascend to the Heavens and find out if you're pure enough to be reborn on the Earth.

Why similar: Visual Novel 32.7%, Drama 20.8%, Philosophical 11.5%, Hand-drawn 9.3%, Emotional 8.9%

A short, interactive visual novel set in the mid-19th Century, in which a poet fights against time as she's writing the most important work of her life. Poetry is the answer, but what is the question?

Why similar: Visual Novel 24.9%, Interactive Fiction 22.9%, Emotional 11.8%, Hand-drawn 11.3%, Dark 9.6%

Don't Let Me Fade is an interactive adventure about memory, identity, and loss. Piece together fragments of a life - even if a simple teddy bear is the last symbol of connection to oneself in a world without time.

Why similar: Interactive Fiction 32.1%, Visual Novel 22.1%, Adventure 19.4%, Emotional 6.9%, Pixel Graphics 6.7%

"Robot Hospice" is a 2D pixel art adventure game where beloved robots spend their final days in a hospice. As a new staff member, you will gently yet painfully bid farewell to these cherished machines that once lived alongside humans.

Why similar: Interactive Fiction 31.5%, Visual Novel 17.5%, Emotional 13.5%, Adventure 10.9%, Pixel Graphics 10.8%

A short (and free) adventure game, where you are tasked with helping a hurt, hungry, but inventive dung beetle on its journey to find something to eat near the end of the mushroom season.

Why similar: Linear 26.3%, Hand-drawn 21.7%, Adventure 20.5%, 2D 12.2%, Emotional 9.6%

A slice-of-death visual novel about making friends, cracking cat puns, and waiting for eternity to pass.

Why similar: Visual Novel 48.7%, Hand-drawn 24.8%, Pixel Graphics 9.8%, Adventure 8.1%, Singleplayer 4.6%

Wood and Flesh: A Candleforth Short Story is a point & click puzzle adventure with hand-drawn 2D graphics and a cozy horror setting that tells a short story set in the Tales from Candleforth universe.

Why similar: Hand-drawn 53.5%, 2D 17.7%, Dark 12.5%, Linear 9.3%, Adventure 4.4%

A short and (bitter)sweet fairy tale visual novel about first love and longing.

Why similar: Visual Novel 41.6%, Hand-drawn 14.5%, Emotional 11%, Adventure 10.4%, Atmospheric 9.9%

A simple free clicker game

Why similar: Linear 31.2%, Philosophical 18.4%, 2D 14.1%, Stylized 13.5%, Dark 10.9%

Go about your normal every day life and meet new friends in this short visual novel!

Why similar: Visual Novel 55.6%, 2D 14.6%, Dark 12.5%, Adventure 12.1%, Singleplayer 5.2%

What do you do when you lose someone you love? A Taste of the Past is an emotional sidescroller about reconnecting with your Chinese culture while navigating a train to the afterlife. Featuring a wholesome story, cooking minigames, and hope.

Why similar: Interactive Fiction 27.2%, Visual Novel 21.6%, Hand-drawn 13.4%, Adventure 10.8%, Stylized 8.2%

A short interactive story about love, depression and the corporation.

Why similar: Adventure 39.1%, Dark 27.9%, Visual Novel 25.7%, Singleplayer 7.4%

A supernova, a broken telescope, Lum, and a night full of strange encounters and painful memories. Join Eli on a short, emotional point-and-click journey through the city.

Why similar: Adventure 38%, Drama 23.8%, 2D 13.3%, Emotional 12.9%, Atmospheric 8.5%

Alone in the forest glade he shared with his wife, a woodworker struggles to accept her passing. Help him hold on to cherished memories of their life together as he struggles to care for himself and his now empty home. Pine is a single-serving game focused on telling a beautiful, emotional tale.

Why similar: Interactive Fiction 22.4%, Visual Novel 17.5%, Hand-drawn 14.4%, Emotional 11.7%, Linear 10.9%

The Kite is a small dramatic point-and-click adventure. The game highlights the problems of a struggling family.

Why similar: Adventure 100%

A short wordless adaptation of a Civil War story.

Why similar: Emotional 23.9%, Dark 22.2%, Stylized 21.6%, 2D 17.6%, Atmospheric 14.6%

Morok is interactive visual novel with a northern mood

Why similar: Visual Novel 40.6%, Adventure 25.4%, Hand-drawn 18.4%, Dark 9.7%, Atmospheric 5.8%

《The Bright Star Of Seraph-Katis-》is a short text adventure game. This game combines a visual novel and an "adventure mode".

Why similar: Visual Novel 52%, Adventure 31.5%, 2D 11.7%, Singleplayer 4.8%

A short Visual-Novel, made with Artificial-Inteligence art, about a party of adventurers on a medieval setting.

Why similar: Interactive Fiction 36.6%, Visual Novel 32.3%, Adventure 16.1%, Atmospheric 7.7%, Fantasy 7.3%

The Space Between is a surreal short narrative experience in three acts about the walls we build for us.

Why similar: Visual Novel 28%, Drama 16.3%, Adventure 11.8%, Dark 11%, Emotional 10.3%

Summerland is a first-person narrative game about morality and the afterlife. You take control of Matthew, a detective reliving the events of his past, being questioned on his morals along the way. In every door lies another memory, and every memory unlocks another door.

Why similar: Interactive Fiction 33%, Philosophical 17.1%, Adventure 17.1%, Linear 13.7%, Atmospheric 8.8%

The Old Tree is a short free-to-play cinematic puzzle game about a newborn alien baby. Witness this microscopic entity's first moments of life and help it emerge from its underground lair and ascend towards an unknown destination.

Why similar: Adventure 59.8%, Atmospheric 14.2%, Singleplayer 13.2%, 2D 12.8%

Home is where the stars are. An interactive bedtime story, for anyone who needs one. Take the bear and the little one on a deeply meaningful journey, as you experience stories of togetherness, of letting go and of finding a place you belong.

Why similar: Interactive Fiction 29.3%, Visual Novel 19.8%, Adventure 12.7%, Hand-drawn 11.1%, Philosophical 10.1%

A thoughtful and deeply personal title with stripped-down mechanics. The lack of dialogue or text allows you to create your own narrative through your time with four characters. Each short story will allow players to be swept away by the haunting lyrics of over twenty original, nostalgic songs.

Why similar: Interactive Fiction 40.3%, Visual Novel 22.7%, Emotional 12.6%, Pixel Graphics 10.7%, 2D 8.7%

A Short Handcrafted Pixel Art Platformer that follows Sheepy, an abandoned plushy brought to life. Sheepy: A Short Adventure is the first short game from MrSuicideSheep.

Why similar: Pixel Graphics 24.3%, Adventure 24%, Linear 16.6%, 2D 13.3%, Atmospheric 11.3%

Deepwell is a story-driven adventure game, about a small town surrounding a giant mystery hole.

Why similar: Interactive Fiction 46.9%, Adventure 27.7%, Pixel Graphics 12.5%, 2D 9.8%, Singleplayer 3.1%

Take the role of a painter struggling to finish his masterpiece in this short Gothic horror visual novel about art, pain and love.

Why similar: Visual Novel 25.8%, Interactive Fiction 22.6%, Hand-drawn 13.1%, Dark 9%, Emotional 8.3%

"Hold Me Still" is a point-and-click puzzle mystery game where you investigate your friend's disappearance by exploring their house, collecting clues, solving puzzles, and uncovering the truth.

Why similar: Clicker 52.9% ★, Adventure 15.2%, Drama 11.8%, Emotional 6.6%, Pixel Graphics 6.3%

"Hello my World! Lily." is a visual novel about a programmer who finds an unusual way to cope with loneliness and routine. But after a while, his imagination and actions go too far, and the line between reality and fantasy begins to melt rapidly.

Why similar: Visual Novel 32.5%, Adventure 21.6%, Hand-drawn 11.9%, 2D 8.4%, Stylized 7.4%

If On A Winter's Night, Four Travelers is a narrative-driven point-and-click adventure with horror elements that explores the stories of four characters in a masked ball taking place aboard a train in the late 1920s.

Why similar: Dark 18.4%, Linear 18%, Pixel Graphics 17.4%, Emotional 16.2%, Adventure 13.4%

The NADI Project it is a free-to-play, first person graphic adventure, in which you will face various obstacles to escape from your destiny.

Why similar: Adventure 54.2%, Interactive Fiction 29.9%, Dark 7.1%, Atmospheric 4.6%, Singleplayer 4.1%

Gods of Savvarah is a visual novel with the philosophy of a classic fantasy RPG. Defeat enemies, explore countries, make friends, and find your place in Savvarah.

Why similar: Interactive Fiction 30.1%, Visual Novel 26.2%, Hand-drawn 15.1%, Adventure 10.6%, Stylized 9.3%

This is a dramatic deep social point&click adventure about tough childhood and self-sacrifice.

Why similar: Hand-drawn 30.3%, Adventure 25.1%, Drama 10.5%, 2D 8.6%, Dark 7.8%

Windy Meadow – A Roadwarden Tale is an interactive slice-of-life visual novel about choosing your own path. Help three protagonists make the most important choices of their lives. Featuring a multitude of hand-crafted characters and a richly detailed village set in the Roadwarden story world.

Why similar: Interactive Fiction 29.3%, Visual Novel 23.4%, Adventure 12.5%, Pixel Graphics 9.2%, Emotional 9%

Follow Sybil in her pursuit for survival, having to sacrifice everything - her culture, her identity, her values - to achieve a single objective: escape from a place that is constantly trying to kill her. A short game about persecution and identity.

Why similar: Visual Novel 23.2%, Adventure 14.4%, Emotional 12.8%, Interactive Fiction 11.4%, Dark 11.3%

In the vast desert, you discover a tiny fish sealed inside a small bottle. It seems to want something. Solve the puzzles to collect the items the fish desires.

Why similar: Hand-drawn 31.8%, Philosophical 24.3%, Adventure 19.5%, 2D 9.4%, Atmospheric 7.5%

Fears are not always just rustles in the dark. And death is not always a bad ending.

Why similar: Interactive Fiction 26.6%, Visual Novel 21.3%, Adventure 15.5%, Hand-drawn 10.8%, Stylized 5.6%

Jump into a 10 minute black & white side scrolling adventure as Death. Guide your skeletal steed through hand drawn landscapes and a haunting soundtrack, in this vivid tale of endings and hopeful new beginnings..

Why similar: Hand-drawn 26.5%, Adventure 24.8%, Stylized 14.4%, 2D 13.7%, Dark 12.4%

A short and mysterious free point and click adventure game, inspired by the feeling of oddness in an everyday situation.

Why similar: Interactive Fiction 48.1%, Emotional 15.3%, Adventure 12.2%, 2D 10.9%, Atmospheric 8.8%

The End of the World and Her Room is a short, free point-and-click puzzle game. This is a quiet and fleeting story: in the final moments, inside her room, you observe the surroundings, search for clues, unlock her phone’s password, and slowly understand the traces the world has left behind.

Why similar: Hand-drawn 51.6%, Atmospheric 16.7%, Emotional 14.2%, 2D 12.4%, Singleplayer 5.2%