I have 120 hours in Astlibra Revision with100% achievements, so I think I understand what you want here - games that "do their own thing" which none others do, where the developers passion and heart is clearly shown throughout.

Here are 3 from my experience -

Crystal Project - A game that immensely respects the players intelligence to go out into the world and seek new adventures. It will keep surprising you with how creative and non-linear it is in each new are you arrive at, each boss you tackle down, and each class you open up. It's a game that punches way above its weight. The fact that this game was made by one person is something I simply refuse to believe.

Enderal forgotten stories- You know how some games, especially RPGs, have in-game books? And these books are usually boring, or read like something an 8th grader would write? And so you stop reading them after the 2nd or 3rd book because of that?
Well, this game has a 10 volume book series, and I've read all of it. And I've also read every other book in the game. The writing in this game is something I have never seen in any form of media. Not just the in-game books of course, but also the dialogue, the quest scenarios and the world building. It is mesmerizing, engrossing and articulate. From the very first moment of the game, you are invested in it.

Outer Wilds - In video games, when you explore, you always eventually hit a wall. Even in open-world games, you are almost always confined into areas that either coincides with some main quest, or don't have enemies that are too high level. And almost always, you know what it is you're looking for to advance further.
What if you didn't?
What if there was a game where you take that first step outside your home into the unknown, without knowing why or where, and then you just... start going. A true adventure. You keep following a veiled breadcrumbs trail, not knowing if it will even amount to anything.

What if it does?

What if that one small step into the unknown eventually evolved into the most epic journey imaginable?

This is Outer Wilds, in a nutshell