Simple and Effective

A simple review of some effective games for my third blog post.

 

Dys4ia tells a personal story of going through hormone therapy. It does so with a narrative and mild game play. What I find interesting is how with little interactivity and text in this game was able to produce a strange and comfortable feel in me. I am sure my mild discomfort is nothing compared to the actual trials of going through hormone therapy. Games like Dis4ia that can produce a strong emotional response in a player are very powerful.

Canabalt is another game that evokes an emotional response in me with little interactivity and text.  The game play is simple, run and jump, but the background happenings of destruction and chaos make me feel nervous, worried, and generally panicked.

The game Passage, makes me think about life, partners, games and growing old. The game play is just walking.  I have read many game design books that say that walking is never game play but I think Passage is the exception to this rule.  Passage makes just walking a thought provoking experience.

Everyday the Same Dream is another thought provoking game. It takes the everyday experience of the workday and twists it into a freaky, morbid situation. This game makes me think about life but entirely different than Passage does.

Don’t Shit You Pants. This game makes me laugh. I love the simple objective of the game paired with the crude illustrations and simple text interface. Simply a fun game.