Game Development Reference
In-Depth Information
Figure 7.8
Scenes from
dys4ia
that express different aspects of Anna's experiences through system
as well as images.
In other scenes, the player controls an object similar to a
Tetris
piece that's trying to pass
through a gap in a wall but is strangely shaped and doesn't fit. Even without a more literal
representation of a human character, Anna's experience of feeling wrong and awkward comes
across clearly, especially as this scene recurs. Eventually, this aspect of the story reaches some
measure of resolution. The player gets a chance to struggle against the wall and knock holes in
it, and a brief scene at the end of the game holds out the promise that even an ever-changing
object can
make it to the other side.
Other kinds of messages can be conveyed through game mechanics as well.
The Best Amend-
ment
(2013) is Paolo Pedercini's response to the National Rifle Association's assertion that “the
only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun.” The game seems simple
at first. In each level, you maneuver a white-hooded character to collect stars, sometimes by
shooting black-hooded characters (see Figure
). As the levels progress, the black-hooded
characters start shooting as well, creating a dangerous playing field. Eventually, something
starts to feel familiar about the movements and shooting of the black-hooded “bad
7.9
guys with
guns”: their behaviors turn out to be recordings of how the player moved and fired on previ-
ous levels! A scene that initially felt like a dangerous, chaotic firefight with a number of dark
enemies turns out to be the result of your own actions while pursuing the goal (collecting stars)
set forth by the game.
The Best Amendment
doesn't explain its message with words, but in
authoring a system that produces certain kinds of experiences when played, Pedercini gets an
idea across: who's a “good guy with a gun” depends on your perceptions, and running around
shooting apparent “bad
guys” leads to a general bloodbath.
