Exactly. (Gaming)

by Kermit , Raleigh, NC, Monday, February 20, 2017, 17:24 (2833 days ago) @ Cody Miller

I don't have anything against easy games. Life is Strange was very easy, but it was still wonderful.

It is all about agency. I want agency when I play. This could be selecting a response that changes something in a game like Life is Strange or Beyond Two Souls, just as it can mean being asked to make decisions that keep me alive in a first person shooter.

I felt little agency when playing Inside beyond holding right, and occasionally being asked to go through the motions of solving a puzzle for which the solution was immediately obvious.

All hail your big brain, Cody. Many weren't IMMEDIATELY OBVIOUS to me. Regardless, I controlled the character and his movements, I experienced failures--both these things made for a different experience than a film would have given me--especially in that one of the ideas of the game is that the character is being controlled much like he controls others.

This is why it's okay to like a game I don't, and why it might be good for you and not for me. I personally felt like I was going through the motions the whole time. If you were challenged, then that is great.

I am kind of doubting my big brain through. Looking online it seems the time people beat the witness is around 20 hours. I've been at it longer and haven't finished. Either I am dumb, or else everybody else is using hints.

Maybe that bigness is relative. I gave up on The Witness (at least for now, although what you described about the patch has renewed my interest). In truth time is my main limiting factor not playing a game these days. Still haven't played the new Deus Ex or Dishonored--about the latter, any progress?