- Comparison between new Paper Mario game and new Luigi's Mansion Game
- An honest, somewhat unbiased report on the PS4/XBone fight
- A new short story (which I've finished, just needs some touch ups)
- Rants upon rants
- A cracked article (On Cracked.com obviously)
And other ideas that I probably forgot about, lost to the endless black hole which is my mind. I had enough content to finish each one, but just nothing to push me; nothing to make me sit down in front of my laptop, avoid the endless choices of what is possible, yet unproductive, and finish something worthwhile.
Yet I just finished my first play through of the indie game Proteus. The first thing I did when I finished the game (it took a mere 45 minutes according to my roommate, more explanation later), I sat staring at my screen for a minute or so. I was flabbergasted. A slow survey of my room left me with no answers to the questions I was asking. Proteus left me with absolutely no concept of time. I got up, slowly stumbled to my roommates in the living room, and asked them how long has it been since I borrowed their headphones so I could play the game properly. It had only been 45 minutes.
After gracefully evacuating my bowels, I sat down at my laptop, and I knew what I must do; write down the impression this game left me with, which brings us to this article.
A short 45 minute game immersed me more than anything in my entire life. No video game, movie or book has done such an impressive job to put me into the world. What makes this even more impressive is that the entire game is in 2D... well sort of. Here is a screen shot of the game, about a few minutes in.
You move in three dimensions, in a world where everything is in two dimensions. All two dimensional structures follow the "always watching you" rotation so you never see an object as just a line. With such a beautiful world, exploring is the first thing you want to do. What makes this game unique, compared to most games, is that this is all you do. There is no plot, no characters (except for yourself), no names, no quests, you can't run, jump, or even use an action button. All there is movement, which means all you can do is explore.
At first, this can be jarring. Gamers are so used to following a plot line, or a specific path, that full exploration and no path guidelines can make the game seem like it has no content. Even games like Skrim still have a main story, even if you completely ignore it. Despite being able to spend hours just exploring, there are still concrete things that you can do. Once you get past being awestruck at the in game world, what does Proteus have to offer?
Grandeur, fantasy, mystery, emotion, immersion. These are a few things that come to mind when thinking about this game. Your journey starts off like any new RPG world; curiosity of what the world is like. "Wow, this world is so beautiful! Look off in the distance, I probably can go ovIS THAT A BUTTERFLY? I'M GOING TO CATCH IT!" (My first experience in Skyrim). Instead of doing what I should be doing, like saving the world, exploration is the most enticing opportunity that presents itself. In Proteus, I have no idea what I should be doing, if anything, but damn it, exploration is still the most enticing. As the game develops, the enigmatic world makes you wonder. What is this world about, did I see everything I should see, or did I miss everything? How do I game? I asked this all while playing.
Some explanation of my gaming set up, during the play through is in order. I played this game on my laptop, at night, with my lights off, with a good set of headphones on. If any of you play this game, I recommend the same set up. The darkness is a great contrast to the vibrant colors of the world, and the nice headphones make the constant flux of the evolving soundtrack a much more complete experience (More on the soundtrack later)
At first, I wasn't too into the game, and I was completely aware that I am a guy, sitting at his desk, playing a game. By the end though, all I could notice was the brightly lit computer screen, surrounded by blackness. I knew that there was no way I could stop playing. To loosely quote Inception, I had to go deeper. There were parts that made me twitch, parts that scared me, parts that made me have a stupidly big grin on my face. There were many parts that made me talk to myself/the screen. At one point, I was tearing up, and I couldn't tell why. Constantly, I wondered about this incomprehensible world, and what secrets it holds, yet I know I shouldn't rush back to it, because it wouldn't be the same.
Honestly, that is the only downfall I see in this game. Nothing is going to be as magical as that first experience. I know I am going to go back and try to find everything (if there is more to find). I couldn't tell you as of now if that the game is truly free form and many things can happen in the world, or if the developers are masters at taking you down this one path of a "story". I put story in quotes because 1. there is no plot and 2. I feel like I could have been lead down a path. But if it indeed is a path, you arrive at that path, and travel it how you want, and who knows what I may find on that path, when I travel it again.
The graphics, while are not "next gen graphics", it is still wonderfully done. It's a stylized experience, making you experience a world that most are hardly well versed in. The colors feel alive in this game. Sometimes I would stop moving just to admire a beautiful view. Each time you play, the world is different, though there have to be some constants that will always appear in some place, beyond simple scenery and wildlife. The lack of physical interaction makes some of these constants feel empty, but what it lacks in this department, it makes up in the sound department.
If the beauteous world is half of the reason why this game works so well, the soundtrack is the other half. The soundtrack is the graphic's muse. As with an ever changing world with constants, so is the soundtrack eve changing, with constants. Chickens will make the same noises all the time, but when you encounter them, if at all, always changes. Your movements, what you are looking at, or what you pass by, all adds to the soundtrack of the game. The closest thing I can think of to a game that does this is Rez. Each thing you destroy in Rez, adds to the games overall soundtrack. Well, how your exploration goes also adds to the soundtrack. For every mountain climbed, odd stone passed, and cute animal chased, a piece is added to the music. It may fade away as quickly as it entered, or it may stay with you until it is no longer needed. A soundtrack like this makes the world it encompasses.
Proteus is a breath of fresh of air in today's gaming industry. In ways, it regresses the "progress" that modern games are making, while still keeping the graphical and technological limits that are given by the progress. It's a bewitching game that answers no questions that are not searched by a Google query. After one play through, you may be done with Proteus, or your journey may just be starting, but breaking your Proteus cherry is sure to be something you will never forget. It's Proteus: A love story.
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