9.03m and the not-game

9.03m is a strange game. By which I mean, it's not a game - and good for it. I'll be looking over a few more not-games in the near future and tagging them for easy reference. But first, what is a not-game? Well... It's lacking something inherently game-ish. For me, this definition has mostly to do with mechanics. These not-games all have in common a lack of mechanics. They will never be fun in the same way that, say, Peggle or Mini Metro might be. They'll never have that "just another round" feel of Civ or Stone Soup. In short, the mechanics are sparse and not engaging by themselves. A not-game uses its sparse mechanics to bolster the experience of the game.