A deserted island... a lost man... memories of a fatal crash... a book written by a dying explorer. Dear Esther is a ghost story told using first-person gaming technologies. Rather than traditional gameplay, the focus here is on exploration, uncovering the mystery of the island, of who you are and why you are here. Fragments of story are randomly triggered by moving around the environments, making every telling unique. Features a stunning, specially commissioned soundtrack. Forget the normal rules of play; if nothing seems real here, it's because it may just be all a delusion. What is the significance of the aerial - What happened on the motorway - is the island real or imagined - who is Esther and why has she chosen to summon you here? The answers are out there, on the lost beach and the tunnels under the island. Or then again, they may just not be, after all...
Dear Esther is by no means a terrible mod, but that doesn't exactly mean it's great. It is plagued by many faults and only really holds a niche value with a certain audience.
Dear Esther is a good example of why video games are indeed an art form. Though many areas (accept the caves) aren't particularly visually stunning, it could easily appeal to any art critic in terms of story.
You play as a man (possibly Esther but from the way the story is told it sounds like he is writing to a friend named Esther) who has had a troubled past. Someone (your wife, I believe) died in a car-crash (possibly of your doing) and you somehow find yourself on a small island with an infected leg. Yeah, there's not really any action.
However, the story is told in some kind of monologue that, and lets be honest here, is presented as pretentiously as possible.
That's really my big gripe with the mod. It's not that it has no combat or you walk slowly then a glacier. No, it's because it's by far one of the most pretentious games I've ever played. No, wait, it is the most pretentious game I've ever played, hands down.
Still, if you're one of the "artsy" crowd (snobby douchebags) then you'll enjoy Dear Esther in all its glory.
Oh, and don't forget to pay 10 dollars for the remake. Whats that? You don't want to pay 10 dollars to play a mod that wasn't that good to begin with? Well to ******* bad, because they're going to make you pay for it even if all it is is a turd in a plastic bag!