Passage. 2007. Jason Rohrer.

Jason Rohrer's gem of a game submitted for Kokoromi's Gamma 256 event explores momento mori in ways that makes me cry. Life and death told in 100 by 16 pixels, walk around find love and treasure chests too!

Here's a helpful hint, you can also move up and down. Also, the game only lasts 5 minutes, so give it a try. Here's a quote from Rohrer's statement:

[Passage] presents an entire life, from young adulthood through old age and death, in the span of five minutes. Of course, it's a game, not a painting or a film, so the choices that you make as the player are crucial. There's no "right" way to play Passage, just as there's no right way to interpret it.

Checkout Rohrer's other game, Gravitation, if you found Passage interesting.

Available for all systems, Mac/PC/Linux. Follow the links and download.

Project Website: link
Jason Rohrer's Statement: link