Galactic Fantastic: The Week In Gaming

The game space was dominated this week by news that actually leaked over last weekend. I’m of course referring to the Star Wars Battlefront 2 reveal, a game destined to sell by the bucket load given the overarching appeal of the Star Wars IP. The second addition to the franchise will feature new characters such as spider-faced goon Darth Maul and Force Awakens stroptastic Jedi-Goth boy, Kylo Ren. Personally, I’m still holding out for the announcement of Nute Gunray, if only so I can virtually punch him in his stupid, dead-eyed, fat head – fingers crossed.

More importantly than that, is the news that the sequel will have its own single player campaign, a welcome addition, and one that could have made the original game an altogether more attractive proposition. If the trailer is anything to go by, the game will have players take control of an original character, a Stormtrooper no less, and get this, she’s a lady! Three cheers for diversity! Between Daisy Ridley’s Rey and Battlefront 2’s new protagonist, it would seem the Star Wars universe is going all in on its women’s revolution, and I for one think its bloody brilliant. Carrie Fisher would be proud.

Now, If you’re the kind of knuckle-dragging philistine concerned by this development, and by the perceived drop of testosterone levels in the Gamingverse, then worry not. In Mr. Shifty, we’re presented with the archetypal male protagonist, made so famous by video games popularised in the 80s (you know, that decade that happened over thirty years ago). Mr. Shifty is a man with a problem, and he’s gonna fix that problem in the only manner he knows how: with violence. That’s the game. A chaotic whirlwind of phasing and fists, that tasks you with punching baddies to death until there aren’t any baddies left. That’s it. In an era brimming with delightfully complex characters Mr Shifty is a throwback to a time when our video game idols were infinitely more simple beasts. Something that might have been refreshing if the game itself wasn’t so decidedly mediocre. Hotline Miami it ain’t.

Two things that I absolutely love: 1 – Great story telling. 2 – Guardians of the Galaxy. Good thing then that Telltale, narrative boffins behind the excellent Walking Dead games and Wolf Among Us, have combined the two in the excellent first episode of Guardians of the Galaxy: The Telltale Series (for a developer famed for its great writing, that title could sure use some work). If you’ve played any of Telltale’s back catalogue you’ll know exactly what you’re letting yourself in for. If you haven’t, imagine a graphic novel with moving pictures and dialogue choices with a few quicktime events thrown in for interactive good measure.

If that sounds turd (and let’s be honest, it does) I assure you it’s anything but. Just play one, you’ll see. Anyway, I’m happy to report that this next instalment in the company’s oeuvre doesn’t disappoint. The writing is as sharp as ever, the cast of characters delightful, and the music, Lordy’ the music. Rad indeed. In a year that’s felt like every week has seen something altogether ground-breaking released, Guardians of the Galaxy: The Telltale Series comes to us during a week thankfully light on “Uber Titles”, and that’s ok, because you know what: I think it’s dead good.

If you’d like to follow more of Dan Smash’s stuff, check out his youtube channel KaiJuice, or visit his website Kaijuice.net

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Nier: Automata & The Case for In-Game Story Telling

In its visual styling of Nier: Automata’s racy, android protagonist 2B, Platinum Games has helped realize the idea of the “Teenage Boy Character Design School”. Sure, she’s a strong, independent heroine, the like of which is so necessary in today’s landscape, but she’s also a character who can’t climb a ladder without revealing an inadvertent “up-skirt” shot. A design choice surely included with the intention of attracting a certain kind of gamer.

At this point, it would be all too easy to dismiss the game for its sexist depiction of women in video games, a further reminder of the inequality inherent in the video games industry. Except to “do it” like that, would be to do it a most grave injustice. Because here’s the thing: It might just be the most important game released this year. Of course, it isn’t an obvious contender for such a title, but underneath its hyper sexualized facade, is a game teaming with ideas and depth, the like of which I haven’t seen in years

On the surface, Nier: Automata is an action RPG, in which you, a sword wielding, scantily clad femdroid are tasked with slicing and dicing your way to the games fated conclusion. Yes, it toys with genre tropes, a 3rd person action romp first, a side scrolling platform game the next, a twin sticks shooter thereafter before shedding its skin once more to morph into a bullet hell inspired shmup. It’s a game that wears a lot of different suits, and to be frank it wears them all very well. The thing is, that’s not what sets it apart as a game that demands you stand up and take notice of it. Competence in a range of different genres is impressive sure, but it’s within the games medium specific narrative tools that Nier: Automata sets itself apart as a truly unique beast.

Video games have long tried to establish where they sit in the hierarchy of artistic mediums. Lacking the intellectual respect bestowed upon literature whilst simultaneously being viewed as an altogether lesser art form than film. Video games have struggled to find a method of story telling to truly call their own. For years, the video game industry has looked to ape the language of film, leaning heavily on cinematic idioms to tell stories, and it’s a strategy that has worked undeniably well. If a game is hailed as cinematic, its almost always done so in an overwhelmingly positive sense. A quick look at the Uncharted series is all the evidence you need to back up such a theory.

The Uncharted games, for all their moxie, still seem overly concerned with telling a cinematic story. There’s a beginning a middle and an end. 21st century story telling down to a tee. Along the way our hero will face adversity, defy overwhelming odds and meet a colorful assortment of character, who’ll make the entire experience an altogether more enriching ride. Is it original? Hell no. Does it need to be? Probably not. Nathan Drake is what happens when a developer (in this case Naughty Dog) decides to create an interactive take on Indiana Jones, and that’s fine, because lets be honest, who hasn’t at any one time wanted to be Indiana Jones!? My issue is that most games follow this trend, and they do so in a manner that inadvertently means that they fail to embrace the unique attributes of video games that sets the medium apart. It’s largely fine, because most people love film, and even more so than that, it’s a narrative technique we’re all inherently conditioned to “understand”. What Nier: Automata does so well, is that it embraces the aspects of video games that makes them unique. More simply put, it tells a story that could only ever exist in the confines of a video game world.

For those of you unfamiliar with Nier: Automata, the story picks up in the distant future, at a time when the human race has all but vanished from Earth itself; the aftermath of an alien invasion in which robotic “machines” were used to fight the war effort. Humanity has retreated to the moon, and from there, conducts its strategic counter attack using androids to fight back against the alien machine lifeforms. You take control of unit 2B, the sexy, blindfolded, android ninja I mentioned at the very start of this lengthy tome. Now the specifics of the story itself are solid: an interesting yarn examining just what it is to be human, but the story itself isn’t what sets the game apart as a narrative trail blazer. Its the way in which the story is told.

Play through the game once, and you get a neat little narrative arc, the like of which most games offer. Play it again however and things start to get interesting. You see, during your second play through, the perspective shifts to that of a different character. It’s the same story sure, but the game offers it up to you with an entirely fresh perspective, filling out some of the narratives more juicy incidentals. Second play through done, and you have a fully formed story that you’ve experienced through two different sets of eyes, and more importantly through two different campaigns. Its a method that makes the entire cast infinitely more relatable, and forces us ,the player, to pivot our expectations in a wildly inventive manner. This is how all New Game+ runs should be treated. It allows you to keep all the skills you’ve developed through your first play through, and marries it to a fresh perspective that, while familiar, feels entirely new and enticing.

But it doesn’t end there.

Start the game for a third time, and the narrative shifts again, only this time, to a completely new story. A sequel of sorts, that looks to continue the tale you started during your first two playthroughs. It’s a mid mangling way of crafting a story, one that could only be done in the medium of video games, and I for one, love it.

There are 26 endings in Nier: Automata, although 21 of them are non cannon jokes slipped in by director Taro Yoko as a kind of visual nod to the player, that for whatever reason, somewhere you’ve fucked up. That leaves you with 5 “true” endings, that you’ll need to complete the game five separate times to see, and thereby flesh out the story of Nier: Automata in its entirety. Now that sounds like a lot, and as someone who routinely doesn’t revisit games after finishing them the first time round, it was a prospect I wasn’t much looking forward to. The thing is, you never really feel like you’re playing through the same campaign every time you restart. Each of your five playthroughs is different enough to make you feel like you’re starting a totally fresh version of the game, and its this fact, this distinctly “video gamey” method of story delivery that sets Nier: Automata apart from its peers, and makes its particular brand of storytelling so important to the landscape of video games in 2017.

If you’d like to follow more of Dan Smash’s stuff, check out his youtube channel KaiJuice

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How Do you Solve a Problem like 10/10?

We all have them. That game that speaks to you like no other. The title that shaped your entire relationship with video games as a medium. The sacred cow. Bullet proof. Untouchable. For me, that game is Final Fantasy VII. For someone else, Ocarina of Time. Mike’s is Halo. For Jerry its Super Mario World. Dark Souls, Grand Theft Auto, Half Life 2, and on and on and on. My point is, everyone has their own subjective 10. A game that comes along at just the right time, at just the right moment, forging its legacy in the halls of your precious memory, forever. These titles, we call them our favourite games of all time, but make no mistake, these games are not the 10 out of 10 masterpieces we claim them to be. They never were, and they never will be. “Why!?” I hear you cry in terrified indignation! Because the idea of a perfect game simply doesn’t exist. I mean how could it?

That being said, I whole heartedly believe that any given game can, at any given time, be just the game you need at that precise moment. Or otherwise put, there are no universally “perfect” games, but, there might just be a game that’s perfect for YOU.

When I was 6, my Aunt was diagnosed with breast cancer. In the months that followed, I distinctly remember the evenings my parents would disappear to the hospital. They’d return around 10 or 11pm looking like the mere mortals I’d accept them to be many years later. No longer Mum and Dad, Defenders of the Earth, superhuman and unflappable, but just everyday adults, crushed by the emotional heft that comes with watching a loved one pass way right in front of your eyes. I tell you this because while they visited my dying aunt, I was left at home, being loosely baby sat by my elder siblings, who’s only way to keep me busy was to sit me in front of a newly released copy of Super Mario Bros 3. Not surprisingly, it became one of my favourite games of all time.

Now I’ll be honest, in 1991 the “real world” was rather shit. For me at least. A mother perennially on the edge of tears. A dad, angry at his inability to deal with the situation. Siblings, who frankly didn’t know how to act, and me, still too young too fully understand the intricate emotional complexities of the “things” going on. It was all just a bit too much. Only it wasn’t. Because I was always one push of a button away from entering The Mushroom Kingdom. At home, in my room, I had the keys to a gateway to a whole different world. A world where real life worries seemed to disappear. Where rescuing the princess, became the only thing that mattered, and because of that I was able to make it through a time that might have otherwise been an incredibly sad six months of my young life. Right there, right then, it was the perfect game. Hell, in many ways, it still is, but you wont catch me giving it a ten out of perfect ten. I can’t. To do so, would be to deem the entry the perfect game, without an inch of improvement to be made to it. It simply isn’t true.

At the time, subjectively speaking, it was everything I needed, but even then, I like to think I knew it had its flaws. Sure it was fun, deftly crafted escapism, but narratively speaking, where was the games depth!? The princess has been kidnapped you say!? Thats the third time in less than 5 years, change the record already! Now I realise Im reaching, because lets be honest, there’s really very little you can find fault with when it comes to Mario 3, but the fact remains, there’s always something you can find fault with, in ANY game. Because games, like all art, are completely subjective.

Do me a favour: Go and google “Mona Lisa” and rate the thrumpy bint out of 10. It’s impossible right? One person can look at the Mona Lisa and see a painting without peers, a piece of art that single handedly encapsulates a lifetimes worth of skill acquisition, manifested with life like precision on canvas. Someone else might think its a tad boring. We use the “Out of 10” method of scoring games because its what we always have done, and it suits us to wrap things up with a neat and tidy unit of “quality measurement” that we can quickly and automatically identify with, using the least amount of mental exertion. It just falls apart whenever I see a perfect 10/10, because by scoring a game 10, we inadvertently say its perfect: in every sense and to everyone, and that my friends, just ain’t so.

I mentioned earlier that Final Fantasy VII is my “sacred cow”. I played it on the edge of my teens and it spoke to me on a very personal level. Desperate to be treated like an adult by everyone around me, it was a video game of all things that offered me the misguided respect I was to eager to receive. Playing it felt like the developers themselves had crafted a game targeted at adolescents but that did so in a way that made them feel “properly grown up” and because of that, I fell head long in love with it. 12 year old Dan would have scored that game 10/10 over and over again. (Sorry, did I say 10/10, I meant, 100/10. 1000, NAY, a MILLION, INFINITY X INFINITY/10!) In hindsight I can see that my praise for the game was more than a little misplaced, innocent enough as it was.

You see, to 12 year old me, Final Fantasy VII was indeed perfect. I couldn’t tell you what I’d have you change about it to make it better, because in my head, it was already consummately realised. All these years later, I find the same mind set adorably amusing. Of course Final Fantasy VII has its flaws. If I played it today, I’m genuinely scared of the score I’d have to give it, and it’s for that very reason that I refuse to do so. However, re-examining my experience of the game all these years later, is valuable in getting to the root of the problem of handing out arbitrary scores for subjective products: That the “Out of 10” modus operandi is a bad fit. That said, I’m no closer to inventing another method to replace it with.

If you would to see more of Dan’s content check out his youtube channel KaiJuice

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