The most popular video games have always been famous for their outstanding and unique visuals that turn the gameplay into an unforgettable experience. Gaming fans can get lost in these breathtaking worlds even when playing with low-system requirement games or casual games and still have a memorable gaming time. With each image being crafted frame-by-frame, it is easy to see why so many players appreciate the effort that goes into creating video games of this art style.
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Hand-drawn games often provide an even more artistic experience in which fans can find enchanting details while enjoying a world they have never seen before. From adventure puzzles and sims to casual open-world games fans can find all kinds of brilliant options that'll take them on a bewitching visual journey. However, these games are not only beautiful but have equally detailed and complex stories, fun characters with real depth, and meaningful themes.
Updated on May 13, 2024, by Ritwik Mitra: Given how many video games populate the market nowadays, it's important to bring something fresh and unique to the table that will compel players to check out these games without feeling like they're doing the same old over and over again. Thankfully, there are many titles that draw in players with something as unique as a hand-drawn art style that makes the simplest of visuals look infinitely tantalizing. It's a treat to find out about the existence of such games that bring something different to the game and immerse players with this striking visual design.
15 Machinarium
Incredibly Detailed Environments And Clever Character Designs
Machinarium
- Released
- October 16, 2009
- Platform(s)
- Android, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, iOS, Linux
- Developer
- Amanita Design, XGen Studios
- Genre(s)
- Puzzle, Indie Games, Adventure
Machinarium is a suitably psychedelic adventure game from Amanita Design. Featuring incredible surrealist, Geiger-esque environments, along with a colorful cast of intricate and likable steampunk robots, Machinarium is truly a one-of-a-kind and worth playing for its art style alone.
The story revolves around a robot named Josef as he seeks to save his captured girlfriend from the Black Cap Brotherhood gang. The setting of the industrial city of Machinarium is where much of the game's charm lies, and each pencil-stroke contributes to enriching the game world.
14 The Pale Beyond
Narrative Focussed Historical RPG Set Aboard An Arctic Expedition
The Pale Beyond
The Pale Beyond is a story-driven point-and-click RPG in which players must survive and manage their crew on a treacherous polar expedition. With several different pathways to choose from, players will begin with a job interview with the Captain as they seek to gain the trust of their fellow crew-mates along the way.
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The game has a very rich story with a variety of outcomes and is largely inspired by Victorian-era voyages such as the ill-fated Franklin expedition. Each scene is also brilliantly crafted with every brushstroke bringing the varied cast to life in a number of expressions and poses.
13 Spiritfarer
A Thoughtful And Artistic Game Centered Around Ferrying Souls To The Afterlife
Spiritfarer
Spiritfarer is one of the most wholesome games and is a perfect example of how games can be simple and complex at the same time. Players will get to control a young girl named Stella who is a ferrymaster. Then they will have to help her build a boat, cook, craft, and farm while exploring the game's breathtaking world and caring spirits into the afterlife.
Spiritfarer's beguiling hand-drawn art style enhances the game's touching themes about finding beauty and peace in death. It's a relaxing and fun game that's perfect for beginners and advanced gamers alike thanks to its creative challenges and characters.
12 The Longing
Highly Unique Ambient Game With Plenty Of Hidden Secrets
- Released: March 5, 2020
- Developer: Studio Seufz
- Platforms: PC, Nintendo Switch, Android, iOS
The Longing is a weird and wonderful game that requires patience and creativity. Its story follows the cute and lonely Shade the last servant of a once-powerful king. Players will have to control Shade's character and find ways to pass the time while waiting for the king to wake up from his four-hundred-day slumber.
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The Longing has a charming and kind of dark hand-drawn design that perfectly matches the game's story. It's a beginner-friendly simulation game that's based on a German folktale and while it's not filled with action and adventure it'll be just as exciting for those who love thought-provoking games.
11 GRIS
2D Adventure Game With A Unique Watercolor Art Style
GRIS
Gris is a hopeful young girl lost in her own world, dealing with a painful experience in her life. Her journey through sorrow is manifested in her dress, which grants new abilities to better navigate her faded reality. As the story unfolds, Gris will grow emotionally and see her world in a different way, revealing new paths to explore using her new abilities.
GRIS is a serene and evocative experience, free of danger, frustration or death. Players will explore a meticulously designed world brought to life with delicate art, detailed animation, and an elegant original score. Through the game light puzzles, platforming sequences, and optional skill-based challenges will reveal themselves as more of Gris’s world becomes accessible.
GRIS is an experience with almost no text, only simple control reminders illustrated through universal icons. The game can be enjoyed by anyone regardless of their spoken language.
- Released
- December 13, 2018
- Developer(s)
- Nomada Studio
- Platform(s)
- iOS, Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One
- Genre(s)
- Platformer, Adventure, Indie Games, Puzzle
Gris is one of the most artistic award-winning games with a colorful and meticulously designed world and a touching story. The game's story follows a young girl who gets lost in her world while trying to deal with the painful experiences of her life. Players will have to bring back colors in her life and help her get back to reality.
Despite Gris' dark themes, it's actually a relaxing and hopeful game that can help players work through their own grief and manage their anxieties and depression better. This adventure puzzle game also has fun magical elements mainly Gris' dress that grants special abilities to her that'll help her complete the tasks.
10 Afterimage
Stunning Action Platformer With Interesting Lore And Worldbuilding
- Released: April 24, 2023
- Developer: Aurogon Shanghai
- Platforms: PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch
Another game with a vibrant aesthetic is the 2023 platform adventure Afterimage, developed by Modus Games and Aurogon Shanghai. The game takes place in the fantasy land of Engardin, a once-great civilization now in ruins due to a cataclysmic event known as "The Razing."
The lone survivor from her village, Renee is a spritely, fairy-like protagonist whose fighting style can be adapted to suit a range of playstyles. The art style is simply gorgeous and is rivaled perhaps only by the likes of Ori and the Blind Forest when it comes to aesthetic beauty.
9 Yaga
A Fighting Game With An Art Style Akin To A Classic Children's Book
Yaga
Smash, clobber and bash the murderous legends of Slavic mythology in this darkly funny action role-playing game that changes every time you play. Play as Ivan, a one-handed blacksmith with incredibly bad luck, who must take on the impossible tasks given to him by the tzar. All the while the mysterious witch, Baba Yaga, watches over Ivan’s fate.
The world of Yaga is a world steeped in Slavic folklore and ancient Pagan beliefs. Featuring a head-bobbing Romanian hip-hop soundtrack from Subcarpați and striking, hand-drawn 2D artwork. Yaga is an authentic love letter to childhood fables from Romanian indie developer, Breadcrumbs Interactive.
● Bludgeon the ancient monsters of Slavic folklore using a vast arsenal of hammers and tools forged by Ivan’s own hands.
● Your actions change Ivan’s story, his reputation, and the upgrades he can choose.
● Experiment in the deep forging system to make weapons like teleporting lightning hammers and hookshot pitchforks.
● Explore the combinations of talismans, magic items, blessings, perks, and curses to fundamentally change how Ivan plays.
● Multiple endings, multiple ways of solving encounters, procedural map, lots of characters to encounter, and hidden secrets mean Yaga is meant to be played over and over again.
● Ivan’s grandma just wants him to find a wife. Don’t disappoint her!
- Released
- October 25, 2019
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Linux, Microsoft Windows, iOS
- Developer
- Breadcrumbs Interactive
- Genre(s)
- Action RPG, Indie Games, Adventure, Shooter, Fighting
Yaga is easily one of the most fun and greatest combat games with a stunning hand-drawn art style. It's an adventurous role-playing fighting game that was inspired by Slavic folklore and ancient Pagan beliefs. Players will control a character named Ivan, a blacksmith with one hand and bad luck whose faith is watched over by a mysterious witch named Baba Yaga.
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In Yaga's magical world, players will have to complete dangerous tasks on the tzar's orders while making careful choices because they greatly define player progression. While it's a fighting game, it's also perfect for casual and cozy gamers thanks to the charming style and creative story that never gets too dark or violent.
8 Slice Of Sea
Puzzle Game Filled With Wonderful Nautical-Themed Drawings
- Released: November 11, 2021
- Developer: Mateusz Skutnik
- Platforms: PC
Slice of Sea is a great choice for gamers who love games set at sea and enjoy breathtaking gaming aesthetics. This exploration-based puzzle game is filled with magnificent details and hidden items and is about a Seaweed who's trying to explore a new world that's completely strange to him.
Players will get to control this lost little sea creature and help him collect items and solve puzzles while discovering the game's glorious world to help him find his way back to the sea. Slice of Sea is a peaceful game with an imaginative world and fun puzzles to solve, and it's a perfect choice for beginner and advanced players alike.
7 Gibbon: Beyond The Trees
Thoughtfully Crafted Game With An Environmentalist Message
- Released: February 25, 2022
- Developer: Broken Rules
- Platforms: PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, iOS
Gibbon: Beyond the Trees is a beautiful and inspiring game deep in the wild jungles of Southeast Asia and follows a lovely gibbon family. Unfortunately, because of human destruction, the gibbons have to embark on their adventure to survive and find freedom.
Players will get to control a lost gibbon and help him through various beautiful and adventurous environments. It's a thought-provoking game that'll make players more aware of human destruction in remote areas of our world. However, it also has surprisingly feel-good gameplay with joyful and vibrant colors and a moving story.
6 Nine Sols
Beautiful Fantasy Game With A Japanese-Inspired Setting And A Cat Protagonist
- Released: May 29, 2024
- Developer: Red Candle Games
- Platforms: PC
Nine Sols has one of the best cats in video games named hero Yi who is a powerful warrior and has to defeat ancient guardians and mythical creatures to finally be able to slay the 9 sols. This beautiful game takes its players to an Asian mythology-inspired sci-fi fantasy world.
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Players will control hero Yi who has to explore this dangerous realm, interact with fun NPCs, and gain new abilities during his adventures. The game not only has a rich and unique story but also a cool anime art style with manga-inspired cutscenes that make its gameplay more fun and engaging. Thanks to the Nine Sols' immersive storytelling style and fun Taopank setting it's a good choice for all types of gamers.