keys of a gamespace. An expressive game

sebgenvo · Tue 19/02/2013 16:01:44

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EXPLORE, DECIDE AND FACE THE CONSEQUENCES:

VIDEO GAMES ARE NOT A TRIVIAL MEDIUM OF EXPRESSION

An expressive game allows you to dive into someone else's life in order to explore his or her psychological / cultural / social problems. You can experience his or her ethical / moral dilemmas and face the consequences that occur of such situations.

Keys of a gamespace is part of this approach of video games, linked to the research of SÃ©bastien Genvo on the expressive potential of game design. Just like cinema or comics, we think that video games in general are not a minor medium of expression. They can also deal with heavy or complex topics. For example, the following works have been sources of inspiration for our project : Mystic River, EraserHead, Twin Peaks (movies), A Town faraway, Black hole, American Splendor(comics).

In order to achieve its goals and in order to be accessible to everyone, our game is free.

Reviews :

PC GAMER: "an incredibly engaging, gorgeously presented and confidently delivered game."

JTM GAMES :"it will take you on an emotional, psychological, and ethical interactive journey that can only be experienced through the art of gaming."

Freeware Genius: "It's a rare gem in the world of retro gaming and I can honestly say I hope we see more games like it in the future."

The Daily Telegraph: One of the year's best free games, 2011

Gamespy: Gamespy's 101 Free PC games of 2012

Hope you enjoy the game, feedback is welcome!!

SÃ©bastien.

an Urpney · Wed 20/02/2013 08:16:02

Spoiler

- Loved the art style of this game.
- Puzzles seemd a little simplistic due to very little interaction. Couldn't understand why the heart starts the machine.

Now about my playthrough:
I killed the father and said that our history determines who we are. At the end the game said that I punished my father for something that wasn't his fault as I don't believe in free will. That's just plain wrong.
- I killed the father to eliminate the threat he posed. One of basic elements of punishment is that it's supposed to teach something - if that element is not included, it's not punishment (just as death penalty isn't punishment). My choice to kill the pedophile was based on pragmatic reason (he won't hurt anybody), not a moral one (he needs to suffer for his crimes).
- I do believe in free will, but I also believe that our choices and our history determine who we are. We have free will, but free will is not absolute - our history determines our selection of choices and regions we can explore using our free will. Some doors are already open, some we can opem ourselves and some will remain locked forever - and this is based on our history and choices we made.
Philosophical and psychological aspects of the game could benefit from a little more polishing.

[close]

Grim · Mon 25/02/2013 00:11:27

Finally got a chance to play, and I've got to say this: what an amazing game!!! I loved everything about it!!! And it seems like it's made exactly for people like me, because I can really identify with this message. Hell, it feels like it's a game about ME! I can't forgive my father for certain choices he made in his life but I've learnt to be totally cool with this. And I also try to see life like a game, or creation of it.

Thanks so much for reminding me that there are still such great indie games around!

As a matter of fact, I'm going to give my wife a kiss right now...

sebgenvo · Wed 27/02/2013 14:50:55

Quote from: Grim on Mon 25/02/2013 00:11:27
Finally got a chance to play, and I've got to say this: what an amazing game!!! I loved everything about it!!! And it seems like it's made exactly for people like me, because I can really identify with this message.

Thanks a lot!! I've also played to The cat lady few weeks ago, and I loved it! To tell you the full truth, I even bought it twice, online (the first time) and the Dvd version, because I wanted the OST so much, the music was also amazing. I think we share the same thoughts about game design and it feels so good to see other game designers doing works that are so close to our expectations.

But there's more. I am writing a book about Maniac Mansion for the University of Michigan Press, and I was so surprised to see a tribute to this game, it was a very interesting way of revisiting this classic, so I'll talk about your game in my book. Anyway, I think we have to keep in touch

Quote from: an Urpney on Wed 20/02/2013 08:16:02
Spoiler

Now about my playthrough:
I killed the father and said that our history determines who we are. At the end the game said that I punished my father for something that wasn't his fault as I don't believe in free will. That's just plain wrong.
[close]

Spoiler

Well, at the end, I've chosen to judge the player's decision in some sort of caricatural way, this is intended to make him or her react and think about the choices that have been made. And sometimes, it works

[close]

Many thanks for the feedback!