Hi there!

I plan to start a series of weekly streams featuring some hidden gems among videogames, hopefully giving them at least a little more recognition they very much deserve! Thus, the "Underplayed" project!

I aim to stream on Mondays, starting with January 8th. I hope to get the featured game's developer(s) on board, so that they could see their game played live and also provide some additional input. Because of that, exact time may vary to acommodate the devs; I'd make sure to announce the time once it's settled. You can see my previous stream of several game jam games here: https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1994465204

With all that said, the thing about hidden gems is that they're... well, hidden! And since I'd like to play these blind, I can't quite research them on my own. So if you know of a title that's been criminally underplayed, feel free to suggest it here! ^^

A few general selection criteria:

1. Must be playable on Windows PC
2. Commercial/pay-what-you-want releases only
   Gamedev as an occupation is already tough and unpredictable, and it'd be a shame to see talented devs abandon their craft because they couldn't make a living from it. Conversely, if someone doesn't monetise their game, they're probably well-off enough to pursue gamedev even without extra earnings.
   Examples of pay-what-you-want include games that can be downloaded for free but use the basic itch.io extra payment mechanism, games with a "Support the developer" paid DLC on Steam and the like.
3. Not widely known
   I won't put hard criteria like "no existing gameplay videos" or "at most X reviews on Steam", but between two similarly promising games I'd generally choose the less seemingly prominent one.
4. Must be concluded
   No shiny Early Access release, no demo, no chapter in yet to be finished series!
   Keeping track of all the previews and ongoing series is not something I want to add to my mental bandwidth. Plus, I want to reward an ability to deliver a satisfying conclusion, even more so considering how many stories start off strong and enticing only to end up with a weak ending.
   On that note, I don't plan to play endless sandbox or hi-score games, because it's hard to determine when I have "played enough". A hi-score or sandbox game with a tangible goal should be fine, as long as it's not "play the game until zombies inevitably overrun you" or similar. On that note...
5. No mandatory/"true" bad endings
   Perhaps some people enjoy how some games portray crushing powerlessness in the face of the cruel world, but I prefer something at least a little more uplifting than that. Bittersweet endings are generally fine. The important point is for the protagonist/player to succeed at making the world/situation at least a little bit better by overcoming the challenges given.
   "Good" endings that turn out to be a dream/illusion/etc. and are overriden by "true" bad endings don't count. Conversely, if going through one or more bad endings is required as a step to unlock the ultimate golden route, it gets a pass (since it's not the ending that truly concludes the story).
6. Handling sensitive content with care
   Let's get it out of the way first: no explicit sexual content nor particularly gruesome /realistic gore. Lighter references to adult-only aspects of relationships, as well as cartoony/symbolic gore should be fine (some devs just want to show off their efficient blood splatter systems, I guess). If explicit content can be disabled from global options and/or at the start of the playthrough, it's fine too!
   I'd rather avoid direct references to real-life organisations, political parties, religions etc. because these tend to get outdated pretty quick and to be quite incendiary before then! On the other hand, respectful handling of "heavier" themes like mental health issues, bullying, discrimination etc. should be fine.
   Obviously, the narrative encouraging bullying, discrimination, hate etc. is a no-go!

When it comes to the first streams specifically, I'd prefer to feature a games:

• with a runtime of about 2-4 hours (so I can finish a playthrough in a single sitting)
• not exploring heavy subjects too much
• with zero/low base price (which may or may not be increased by pay-what-you-want model)

What do you think about the general concept? Are there any games you'd like to suggest? Maybe there's someone you know who would want to promote a game or watch these kinds of streams?

Looking forward to read your thoughts! ^^