-"Janitor Dan the Spaceman has a job to do, and he'll battle hostile aliens in dangerous environments to get the job done. His job: cleaning space stations. It's a dirty job, but the money is good. The tools of his trade are vacuum cleaners, toilet plungers, squeegees, and alien mouse traps; and he's not afraid to use them!"
Games designed by Jenova Chen, in Flower the character is the wind and you take control of it to bring life to a valley and fight contamination. Cloud was a previous effort in which your character controls the clouds.
Chen's games focus on the idea of simple gameplay and contemplative qualities, Journey(PS3) is a game of exploration that can be played by a single person or with company it's sole purpose is exploration of an evocative environment.
These are weird video games but also nice mundane experiencies on their own.
A five-minute long game where one grows old and dies. Points are earned by moving forward. Falling in love doubles the points one receives, but also makes obstacles more difficult to pass. As the game goes on, perspective begins to shift. The game ends five minutes later with death.
"Sleep is Death":
An asymmetrical storytelling game for exactly two players. Players alternate adding to the story in 30 second intervals; however, one player is given total control of the scenario while the other blindly plays through as the story's main character.
"Inside a Star-Filled Sky":
A nearly infinite game where one becomes their next self by exiting mazes while dodging enemies with the help of power-ups. The power-ups, though, determine your characteristics in the next level rather than the current. Additionally, players can enter enemies, power-ups, and even themselves to modify their behavior in the subsequent levels. There is no game over; instead, a player who dies returns to their previous self with the opportunity to try a new combination of power-ups.
Hallways can be a fun visual element to play with, perhaps between levels, or just within the cleaning spaces. These are definitely exaggerated and would not work in the game, but the idea of a long, sterile zone to segway between levels, moving forward in silence while anticipating the next dirty space could break up gameplay quite nicely and provide moments to regroup and reflect. Any "options" and stuff can also take place in this neutral zone.