What Remains of Edith Finch (2017) (PC) (Giant Sparrow)
0What Remains of Edith Finch is a bittersweet fable of family, fate and falling from trees while being transformed into a shark. Developer Giant Sparrow's latest game feels like an expressionist rollercoaster version the walking simulator genre popularized by Dear Esther and Gone Home; while the player interactivity remains limited there's a lot more artistic inventiveness and conceptual risk-taking in Edith Finch than in previous titles with the same basic design. The game is structured around short but dramatically divergent story vignettes illustrating the eccentric personality and inevitable demise of various members of the Finch family. While some of these tall tales rise further than others, they all focus on unique themes and storytelling devices which offer an almost dizzying amount of variety during the roughly two hours it takes to complete a playthrough of the game.