2024 was a year of high quality indie game releases back-to-back, and of these gamesMouthwashingarguably had the greatest impact. The cruelty of knowing your fate while wandering in space is truly terrifying, and how the game executes this by adding a twist of psychological trauma infliction is truly something else.
Finishing Mouthwashing is a very specific kind of experience, and once you’re done with the game you may want to play something similar to fill the hole it left. If you’re unsure what to tackle next, then here are the best games you’re able to play similar to Mouthwashing.
Iron Lung is a pretty short masterpiece of a psychological horror game set in space, which is set toreceive a movie adaptation by the famous YouTuber Markiplier. Known for its deep and intricate lore, Iron Lung is set in an alternate universe where the player is tasked to explore a blood ocean on a moon named AT-5.
Using a submarine nicknamed ‘Iron Lung’ with cramped spaces, you have to explore the ocean with a very minimalist navigational system without knowing its dangers and consequences. However, deep diving into the ocean causes the submarine’s main hatch to lock out, leaving the player with a feeling of existential dread about whether they’ll survive or succumb to the pressure.
Publisher
Time Galleon
Mourning as a graveyard keeper, but only for others and not your family, and having a mental hindrance that stops you from coming to terms with your past? I Did Not Buy This Ticket is a mind-twisting game leaning toward the difficulties of acceptance, coping mechanisms, and how these elements can turn into a dreadful horror if not battled hastily.
Taking control of a professional mourner who’s afraid to face their traumas, the game’s environments are breathtaking and, to some extent, the pinnacle of what a psychological horror game can achieve if executed correctly. Packed with surreal dialogues that will shape your ending, I Did Not Buy This Ticket is a must-play if you’re an avid follower of indie horror games.
The Song of Saya or Saya No Uta is a traumatic and cult-classic Visual Novel that shares more than just the usual similarities with Mouthwashing. Produced by the mastermind behindFate/Zero’sGen Urobuchi, Saya No Uta takes the theme of love but twists it to some unholy extent, turning the basis of the game into a disturbing psychological horror.
A horrific and disturbing ride that will stay with you for a long time, Saya No Uta blends the classical Lovecraftian horror elements into the novel and can be extremely unsettling to witness. With gore splashing around and a unique take on horror, this novel is recommended for everyone who loves brain-damaging games.
Critical Reflex
Coming from the masterminds behind Mouthwashing themselves, How Fish Is Made is a free-to-play surreal and short horror experience with slapstick comedy. Introducing you to the world where you control a sardine, the world is for you to take over, but not every choice will lead to a definitive conclusion.
Unlike Mouthwashing, the game isn’t too straightforward with its story but rather allows the player to flop around places and learn the lore in its surroundings. Fluid movement mechanics, a story that may or may not lead to an existential crisis and especially messing around idiotic fishes whose choices can change the world, is a one-in-a-lifetime adventure for all.
Frictional Games
Soma is an experience pretty similar to Mouthwashing, but instead of space, you’ll be deep diving into the depths of the oceans. Here you’ll face the most lonesome ordeal revolving around a mysterious turn of events where humanity is in the far future and robots inherit free-thinking as they believe they are humans.
Inspiring Mouthwashing itself, Soma cranks up everything that Mouthwashing offers to an unexplainable level, and the post-game existential dread leaves a huge impact on your mind. A true spectacle of a game that continues to inspire the generation of horror games, it should be a top priority for anyone who loves Mouthwashing.
Think about a party-based RPG, Final Fantasy for example, but what if it was infused with dark comedy and, specifically, the consequences of almost the entirety of women disappearing from the world? Lisa: The Painful is a severe emotional experience following the story of an old man who’s on a journey to find his daughter in the middle of the world where women are scarce while suffering from PTSD himself.
The theme of attempting to fix the unfixable, eventually leading to critical consequences, is what makes Lisa similar to Mouthwashing. Exploring the dark and gritty atmosphere of a post-apocalyptic setting as you fight through the horde of mobs with your party to save your daughter, Lisa is a unique and unforgettably painful feat.
Firewatch is a beautiful story-focused game with enthralling visuals on the front, but the deeper you dive into the game, the more disoriented and disturbing it becomes. Following Henry, our protagonist, who decides to move on from his certain traumatic experience in life with the help of his job, he’s pulled into a mystery that could change the course of his life and relationships forever.
To the core, Firewatch is fairly similar to Mouthwashing, but instead of creepily disgusting environments, you’ll explore the wild areas of Wyoming.
Signalis is a pack-a-punch and disturbing indie horror game set in the far future where humanity is civilized on other planets and inaugurated Replikas, humanoid androids that serve in numerous stations. You control Elster, a Replika, who wakes up to a nightmarish apocalypse and decides to fight her way through monstrous hordes as she finds the meaning of her dreams along with her partner.
With a severely tense environment, an edge-of-your-seat story, and a unique gameplay style that integrates challenging puzzles, Signalis takes the concept of Mouthwashing’s space loneliness but twists it into an enigmatically helpless survival shooter.
