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1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesA video game feels unusual when it makes a distinctive choice about its rules, goals, presentation, or the way those elements work together—and that choice changes what the player does or notices. “Experimental” describes an approach to design, not a formal genre or a synonym for visual oddity, randomness, or any particular technology.
What makes a game feel unusual?
The useful question is not whether a game is objectively weird. Unusualness depends on what a player expects from a game and which expectation the design changes. A game might ask for an unfamiliar action, replace a familiar goal with discovery or interpretation, or use its visuals and interface in a way that alters how play feels.
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GDC describes experimental gameplay as challenging conventions and traditions in search of new genres and ideas. Its Experimental Gameplay session names Katamari Damacy, flOw, Braid, Portal, and Storyteller as examples—evidence of a range of approaches, not a claim that these games share one defining mechanic. GDC’s session description
Describe the design choice, not just the strangeness
To explain why a particular game stands out, identify the decision and its effect on the player. This is a practical way to discuss games, not a standardized academic taxonomy.
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- Mechanic: What action or rule differs from familiar play, and how far does the game explore it? GDC’s description of Steve Swink’s premise puts it this way: “find a unique, promising game mechanic and explore it as thoroughly as possible.” GDC’s session description
- Goal and knowledge: Is the player meant to infer, interpret, or discover something, rather than simply defeat an opponent or improve a score? The IEEE paper describes “information games” as games in which players build knowledge, make inferences, and use those inferences to seek more information. IEEE Conference on Games paper
- Presentation: Do art, sound, interface, or physical controls change the experience of play? In a developer interview, Nintendo discusses artistic inspiration from films including Fantastic Planet, as well as visual experimentation during Pikmin’s development. Nintendo’s Pikmin developer interview
- Integration: Do the rules, progression, and presentation reinforce the same central idea, or pull in different directions? Game designer Steve Swink discusses studying how small design decisions and progression work together in games including Braid, Portal, and World of Goo. GDC session material
- Trade-off: What familiar convenience or expectation does the design set aside, and what does that enable for the player? Name the actual consequence in the game instead of assuming that unfamiliarity is automatically a virtue.
Why experimental games are not all unusual in the same way
The GDC examples establish breadth, not a single recipe. Katamari Damacy, flOw, Braid, Portal, and Storyteller can belong in a discussion of experimental gameplay without being unusual for the same reason. A useful comparison starts by pointing to the relevant design choice in each game, rather than assigning both a vague “weirdness” score.
Swink’s discussion of Braid, Portal, and World of Goo also suggests a productive way to analyze a game: look beyond its first surprising feature and examine how progression and smaller decisions support the central idea. GDC session material
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Questions for comparing two games
- What departs from convention? Identify a mechanic, goal, presentation choice, or combination.
- How does the design guide the player? Explain what the player is invited to do or understand. The cited sources do not establish a universal measure of learnability.
- How well do the pieces fit? Consider whether progression, content, and presentation reinforce the core idea.
- What changes during play? Describe the effect on discovery, repetition, knowledge, or interaction.
- What does the choice ask of the player? A game-specific observation—such as asking the player to tolerate uncertainty—is more useful than a universal claim about the consequences of unusual design.
Procedural generation is a tool, not a definition
Procedural content generation (PCG) means creating some game content algorithmically. It can support large-scale or repetitive content production and introduce unpredictability, but the technique alone does not make a game experimental or ensure that players will want to replay it. The IEEE paper cautions that PCG’s effects on replayability are not guaranteed: generated games may not invite repeated play, while games with static content may. Its value depends on how it changes the game’s systems and the player’s experience. IEEE Conference on Games paper
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The IEEE paper uses Spelunky to show how generated content can serve a specific aim. Designer Derek Yu’s stated intent was to reduce reliance on rote learning in platform games by making levels unpredictable. The relevant design question is therefore not simply whether a game uses randomness, but what that variation changes for the player. IEEE Conference on Games paper
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There is no reliable “experimental game” score
The sources cited here do not establish a comprehensive taxonomy of unusual games, a reliable count of how many games are experimental, or a measure of how successful experimental design is. Nor is unfamiliarity an objective score: it depends on the player’s expectations and the game’s context. A precise explanation names the design decision and its player-facing effect, then makes clear when a comparison is an interpretation rather than a universal rule.
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