Similarly I always think about that game Dust 514, which was a very cool experiment that I think was just about a decade too soon (and on the wrong platform).
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I wonder if the localization of that is as miraculous as it seems. A DS visual novel, in English, published by Nintendo (I think?), way before the ironic VN thing happened which lead to the small interest in the genre we see now in English speaking places.
I think you misread the game title
oh lol I did. was thinking of hotel dusk!
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An interesting line of thought nonetheless!
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Iāve been reflecting on why Iām becoming jaded with games recently and my memories keep coming back to two things. Games for me were mostly valuable for two axes of experience, social and aesthetic. Occasionally I have found a game highly enjoyable for itās āmeaningā or what itās about but they are so rare (maybe ten or less games that have stuck with me, in my entire life, fall into this category). I feel that the strengths of games are primarily, but not exclusively, as a particularly engaging social lubricant or a playable synaesthetic meal. I donāt think this is a particularly new revelation but Iāve been thinking about it a lot.
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I also think thereās been a drop-off in the novelty of new releases since late 2020 (say roughly since Yakuza 7) thatās probably unequalled in the past decade, at the same time as thereās even more free too much everything all at once, which doesnāt help with overall filtering
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One way to develop that thought is that both the āsocialā and āaestheticā sides can be broken down into subcategories that are almost opposite in terms of why you would play a game at all. For example,
Two types of sociality:
- Intimate, laughing, couch-party
- āCoworking spaceā. A joint project with conversation on top, or even mostly in silence but with an ambience of quiet collaboration
Two aesthetics:
- Energized, propulsive dopamine cycle. A relentless craving/fear ā reward/punishment loop that, even after you step away from the screen, leaves you still on edge and excitedly strategizing
- Gently active contemplation. A meditative state of flow
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idk i think iāve nearly always had a clear idea of what i want to get out of games, which is opportunities for spatial exploration. cool action and storytelling have been welcome bonuses, but never seemed like the fundamental draw. before games* i was into things like mazes, railways and adventure playgrounds, and these days i spend much of my time thinking about geometry, architecture and landscaping
(*by whichā¦ i mostly mean videogames, but i suppose the umbrella could also encompass physical games like pinball and mini golf)
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and what i love about videogames in this context is their ability to teach me different āmodesā in which to get the most out of engaging with certain environments/settings, such as the particular weight & sensitivity of a player character, the set of verbs available, the way information is organised and emphasised (aesthetics), and how all this combines to incentivise certain behaviours and draw your attention to qualities in your surroundings you may not have noticed before picking up the game.
itās like having all these keys (ā¦lock sense or map sense, both work) for making sense and meaning out of the world. and once you realise how wide open and arbitrary the possibility space is you can begin dreaming up new ones, with a given situation and task in mind perhaps. itās a really empowering way to shape your thinking
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You might find this podcast interesting. I wish I had something insightful to add, but your post made me think of it.
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Now that you mention it, that indescribable ability to immediately know how a map functions through years of playing so many different and bespoke map systems is something I recall fondly. To the point where you can outguess artificial structures before they are revealed (I guess this is the gamer gene being activated etc).
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whenever someone uses āsendā in the sense that they were made to laugh I imagine being sent to the farplane like FFX. Yuna telling a joke so good/bad the lingering dead leave this world
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i loved all the games that do this and id click delete just to see which ones would. The only ones i remember were Onimusha 2 and Shinobi
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I used to play Melee singleplayer modes obsessively and I was always gripped by a strong desire to somehow visit the empty utopian park space of Allstar mode. I want to sit on this bench and take in the surroundings.
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thereās a weird managed corporate garden feel I think about and I still havenāt nailed down why it appeals to me
The green XP fields of Barry Levinsonās Toys
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Itās an aesthetic that should be horrendous but I think thereās a deep-seated sense of perfection about it. A pristine world with no issues - too childish to exist. Toys is a good call here.
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Looks like HAL Labs is 3 blocks away from the Imperial Palace park. This may have been based on a feature in the park, but I canāt see any fountain/thoroughfares like it on google maps today.
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