Games about Social Issues and the Human Psychosis
#1129622
10/25/17 10:21 PM
10/25/17 10:21 PM
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Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 83,312 In the Naughty Corner
BrownEyedTigre
OP
The Sassy Admin and PR Liaison
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OP
The Sassy Admin and PR Liaison
Sonic Boomer
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 83,312
In the Naughty Corner
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There are an increasing number of games popping up with topics such as political correctness, depression, anxiety, child abuse, gender identity and various other topics that have been pushed into the forefront via social media and the news. WITHOUT - and I stress again, WITHOUT getting into a debate regarding some of these issues which can be a hot topic, how do you feel about these games? Does it intrigue you to check it out or does it turn you off? I do find that most of these games tend to have a high rate of positive reviews so I know they are popular. Thanks for your feedback! Ana
Don't feed the Trolls
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Re: Games about Social Issues and the Human Psychosis
[Re: BrownEyedTigre]
#1129694
10/26/17 10:09 AM
10/26/17 10:09 AM
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Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 20,081 Near St. Louis, MO
Draclvr
Reviews Editor - Hints/Glitches Mod - Site Support
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Reviews Editor - Hints/Glitches Mod - Site Support
True Blue Boomer
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 20,081
Near St. Louis, MO
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I really enjoy these types of games. I also enjoyed The Cat Lady and Diamonds in the Rough. When the issues are woven into a compelling story, they can be thought provoking. I do a lot of reading and sometimes I read books that are totally entertaining and sometime I prefer something more down to earth. I don't have to agree with the premise or resolution of the issue either.
Gardens put to bed for the winter. Time for some gaming!
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Re: Games about Social Issues and the Human Psychosis
[Re: BrownEyedTigre]
#1129699
10/26/17 10:49 AM
10/26/17 10:49 AM
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Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 83,312 In the Naughty Corner
BrownEyedTigre
OP
The Sassy Admin and PR Liaison
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OP
The Sassy Admin and PR Liaison
Sonic Boomer
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 83,312
In the Naughty Corner
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CaptainD, you raise good points! I agree with your review remarks because I have a lot of online friends that rally for these kinds of issues, whether or not they suffer with them, but they are glowing about their opinions of the games long before even so much as a real screenshot appears! I'd like to think they'd give a fair review, but I believe many of them would give it high ratings because they agree with the message. Drac, that's interesting and a great way to expand your knowledge of topics! I personally loved Fran Bow and Among the Sleep. They were outstanding games in every way. They seem to stand out from the others I have encountered. I have not been even tempted to play any of the others I come across for a host of reasons. I generally go for the lighter side of games so that they don't depress me as well! Thanks for your opinions CaptainD, Mad, Drac and oldbroad! Appreciate it! Ana
Don't feed the Trolls
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Re: Games about Social Issues and the Human Psychosis
[Re: BrownEyedTigre]
#1129720
10/26/17 02:10 PM
10/26/17 02:10 PM
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Joined: Jul 2005
Posts: 906 deep south
8dognight
Settled Boomer
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Settled Boomer
Joined: Jul 2005
Posts: 906
deep south
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It's thumbs down from me when a game is a well-intentioned slog through dull tasks that lead "like a tedious argument of insidious intent to an overwhelming question," in all likelihood to an overwhelming question I don't want to think about. I probably am playing a game in the first place to avoid overwhelming questions. I can think of two examples, one from the left and one from the right: "A New Beginning" and an anti-evolution narrative set on a spaceship. I do not recall the name of that one; you could not progress without forcing the player character to reach certain conclusions. Whether from the right or the left such games are more infomercials from hell than anything I want to play.
At the other end of the joy spectrum are both Inner World games yet they both have a clear message, which is save the world from authoritarianism so we can all breathe. An example on the right is Darkestville Castle in terms of two NPCs and our hero's, okay anti-hero's to get nitpicky, authoritarian goals. The Inner World games are tongue in cheek left; Darkestville Castle tongue in cheek right. All three romp through politics.
Between the two extremes is a game like Culpa Innata whose essence is political yet whose narrative, characters, and puzzles are engaging enough to allow me to ignore the message for the sake of the experience. While I'm not a big fan of Game of Thrones, as television or in the books and I have masochistically read them all, many gung-ho fans regard GoT in the same way I do Culpa Innata. They ignore or avoid parsing GoT's climate change message while savoring the story.
I usually dislike games about psychosis particularly if the player character is the psychotic one. All these years later, Black Mirror continues to offend me, and I will never play any of the sequels. I look at blurbs about games that say things on the order of a "hard-hitting psychological tale of horror" with a jaundiced eye and translate as "overgrown boys think it's cute and original to gross me out with blood-soaked cliches."
Science fiction notably and fantasy to a lesser extent are both often political. Horror as a genre tends toward xenophobic parable which I see mirrored in casual game plots.
Stephen King has some great essays on writing horror that go into fear of the other as a theme. I'll see if I can find a title.
Last edited by 8dognight; 10/27/17 05:11 PM.
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