Poker Night at the Inventory is a good example of what you can do within smart limitations. This is a game of Texas Hold 'Em where you're always playing against the same opponents and everyone starts with $10,000... and that's it. The game takes place in a club designed to keep drinking and gaming alive during the Prohibition, and it's very hard to dislike a game that begins by slamming the 18th Amendment.

The game is no-frills Poker, but the secret is in the setting. You're playing against Strong Bad, The Heavy from Team Fortress 2, Tycho from Penny Arcade, and Max from Sam and Max, and everyone sits around the table chewing the fat. The dialog snaps and crackles with wit and surprises, and if you've spent as much time with these characters as I have, it feels like hanging out with old friends. The game is a wonderful time sink: you just sit back, play cards, and enjoy the interaction.

That's it. The characters talk, react, joke, and have fun with each other. The game itself is merely a good representation of Texas Hold 'Em, but it's worth playing just to hear everyone around the table discuss the game. It's a slower-paced experience and the dialog begins to repeat itself after a while, but the game is only $5 on Steam for both PC and OS X. By the time you get bored, you will have gotten your money's worth.

It's a fun gimmick that's used well, and the price and the features all fit. You'll even unlock some things for Team Fortress 2, although they're purely aesthetic. The only thing that weirded me out was Tycho's voice. Fans of the comic likely have a strong idea of what he already sounds like, and I've had a bunch of conversations with him in real life, so hearing a voice actor coming out of the cartoon character was odd. You get used to it though, and the voice works. It's just not what I imagined.

The characters all like and dislike different people at the table, and the relationships are wonderful to watch as you play. This is a simple idea, but brilliantly executed. Go buy it.