Much like constantly repeating a dull joke ad nausiam will eventually become funny (Family Guy is prone to doing this, though I suspect it's mainly used to meet a contracted running time), you do fall into a trance state during your stroll. I'd say it's a daring attempt at comedy and works very well, but only in retrospect. Is this bad game design, or a twisted attempt at humour? You'll then have to slowly walk back for another 15 minutes. While some may feel that the graffiti is entertainment enough, your only other reward is one of those aforementioned tapes. It will probably take twice that if you choose to read the immense amount of text on each wall. Early on in the game, there's a long hallway that takes around 15 minutes to walk down. The puzzle designs range from obvious to obtuse and some can be downright tedious. But these glimpses of an expanded civilization are optional and can only be viewed by collecting the tapes hidden in the game world.
The only other character you see for a good portion of the playtime is Willie Trombone, a friend who recites the history of The Neverhood through short films. The main character is Klayman who, for the longest time, seems to be alone on his planet. It was experimental, had a strange and unique sense of humour, and had a bizarre, isolating yet simultaneously endearing atmosphere. Released in 1996, The Neverhood's first game - which also shares its title with the company - received some decidedly mixed reviews. I'm aware of very few mainstream entertainment from other countries to adopt this specific medium, one of them being a small game developer called The Neverhood. There is a reverence for clay or plasticine based stop-motion animation in the UK, what with the Wallace and Gromit short films being a staple every Christmas.