groze: I'm kind of shocked no one mentioned
<span class="bold">Outcast</span> yet! Yes, the game is old and didn't age that well in the graphics department, but it fits pretty much all the points you stressed in the first post. It is truly a remarkable, epic game that gets way too overlooked and underrated, and one that definitely is worth a try. It's immersive, it's non-linear, it has good art design, it's ambitious, it's not overtly realistic and definitely not set in a medieval fantasy environment, has loot, crafting, action, exploration, a story that plays out as a pretty decent space opera film, good humour at times, and it's a testament to what devs can do when they put their minds into it, despite external limitations. Be sure to try it, I think you'll enjoy it a lot.
Other games I'd highly recommend getting from GOG, despite not necessarily fulfilling your previous requirements, would be:
-
Beyond Good & Evil -
Costume Quest -
Guacamelee -
Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver -
Lone Survivor -
MDK -
Nox -
Pathologic -
Psychonauts -
Sanitarium -
Tiny & Big In Grandpa's Leftovers There are obviously other great games here on GOG, but people will likely recommend the better known of those to you, so I'd rather point you out some of the more overlooked titles. I'm also a sucker for point and click adventure games (grew up playing them), but I'm aware it's a very niche thing, so I tried to refrain from sharing those as much as possible -- only including Sanitarium because you said you loved The Cat Lady.
I hope you'll enjoy at least one of those! Have yourself some great gaming this Christmas, kind sir!
Those are GREAT recommendations, thank you kindly! I own Outcast (admittedly I bought it just as much for the soundtrack as I did the gameplay) and Sanitarium. I've played a little of Outcast and it does seem great, though I really need to track down that full screen mod. Sanitarium is probably the game I'm about to start playing and I'm pretty excited about it. Again, thank you very much for the recommendations!