Pathologic 2

Initially started playing this game again as a way to avoid doing my stressful real life responsibilities. Game stressed me out so much I've had to put it down and fulfill my responsibilities as a way to take a break from the game.

Great game, but after a point it gets kinda difficult running around hungry, thirsty and exhausted to complete time sensitive tasks, only to then come back home and play this game

Best game I have ever played after Disco Elysium. I can't even call it a game. It is a unique experience, one of a kind. I believe this game is not for everyone. If you enjoy reading every sentence of beautifully written dialogues, Dostoyevsky-like philosophical questions about life/death/religion/sin and complex game mechanics that replicate the hardship of a real life experience - this is for you.
Huge recommendation - don't watch/read anything. It will affect your gameplay. Just try it for 2-3 hours and reach Day 2. If it is for you, you will be absorbed. If it is not, forget about it - it's just not for you and this is perfectly fine.

I love this game with all of my heart. I will sing its praises forevermore. Let me try to explain why.
This game is a game about failure. Failure of the characters, failure of the town, failure of you the player, it's about losing. But it is in losing that the game shows how strong you can be. How sturdy the floorboards of the theatre's stage is. How desperate the citizens of the town get when the food runs out. How desperate you get when there's no one left to help you.
It is a game about love. And death. And loss, and pain, and anger. Water, plus forward vector.

there three games that gave me that "this is Literature" vibes.
planescape torment, disco elysium, and this

This is the most intellectually stimulating game I have ever played.
It is gruelingly hard, it challenges you as a player and a person. It will shake you around and play with you like a chew toy time and time again until you sit back and truly start to grasp the larger picture of the narrative at play.
It took me 3 years and 4 playthroughs to finally reach one of the two main endings (on intended difficulty), and I've never felt so accomplished.
I have another 50+ hours on GoG, I bought the game twice over because I love it so much and the developers have created a true work of art.
If you enjoy a game that will challenge you at every turn, make you completely rethink the way you consume media, where the choices you make affect the lives (and deaths) of every character, then Pathologic 1 and 2 have a wretchedly wonderful journey in store for you.

Pathologic 2 is a challenging game, but the difficulty is done in such a way that it adds to the experience rather than detracting from it.
The resource scarcity forces tough decisions, items you need to survive are also needed to save NPCs from the plague. Combat is high-risk, and dying comes with penalties that persist across saves. Every choice can cost vital resources, which are often better spent elsewhere.
Time is probably the most valuable resource. You won’t be able to do everything or save everyone. You have to prioritize which objectives to complete, often at the expense of others. Do you take the shortcut through plague-stricken districts at great risk to yourself, or take the long way around and spare your immunity boosters?
The game is bizarre, harsh, and utterly compelling. "Fun" isn't quite the word I’d use to describe it, the game seems to work against you at every turn, but overcoming its challenges is deeply satisfying, and it makes for a really memorable playthrough.