#game discourse

[blueberry-lemon]

You've probably seen this image. I've seen it many times. I have mixed feelings about it.

It's a funny image, and represents a good cause. It's usually posted by people who want to support fairer working conditions for game developers, and want to show support for smaller titles.

It's usually posted in contrast to something like Cyberpunk 2077, Watch Dogs: Legion, The Last of Us: Part II, or God of War: Ragnarok.

There's a part of me that cringes every time I see it, though. I imagine there may be other game developers who feel similarly.

I think the reflexive cringe comes from the phrase "shorter games with worse graphics." People being paid more to work less sounds great, tbh, and barring any sort of production pipeline blocking, I think most devs would be into that.

These are the thoughts that fly through my mind when I hear people say "I want shorter games with worse graphics."

Short compared to what?

Shorter than Elden Ring? Shorter than Hollow Knight? Short like Venba? Short like Celeste? How short could a AAA game be before, even despite posting this phrase, you'd find it unsatisfying or incomplete? How short could an indie game be before you don't consider it a "real game"? Games can be anything from Ulysses to a haiku, but it rarely seems like people are talking about the haiku style of games.

What does "worse graphics" mean?

I just can't imagine a world where "worse graphics" could possibly correlate to Hi-Fi Rush, Undertale, Hollow Knight, Bomb Rush Cyberfunk, Celeste, Mario Odyssey, Wind Waker, A Short Hike, or Hades. Even though those are the types of games that I often see people use this meme in support of. Those games have incredible art that talented artists worked really really hard on. It feels like a bit of a sting to associate those beautiful games with the term "worse graphics." That phrasing, sadly, implies that photorealism is the bar by which all other games are compared.

Forever Games

Where do replayable games, like roguelikes, tycoons, crafting games, and farming sims land on the realm of "shorter games"? They're not inherently any shorter than a big AAA game, and they're designed to be replayable and to suck your time in. That can be great, but it also might be a treadmill that is not inherently any more honorable than a game trying to tell a linear story.

Are you really "not kidding"?

This meme has a very confident, smug energy and I think that tone invites this question: Do you REALLY want shorter games with worse graphics? I know this is going to depend on the individual lives of each human being who's ever reposted this meme, and it can never be truly answered, but it really begs the question of whether or not people REALLY DO WANT "shorter games with worse graphics." Because let me tell ya, there's a lot of shorter games with worse graphics right now and they ain't selling very well. Check the Steam reviews. Ask devs how many copies they sell on itch. There are many devs out there who make shorter games with worse graphics and no matter how many times people post this phrase, people don't seem to flock over to support those projects. And that sinking feeling of "oh, these folks don't mean the games that my friends and I post regularly on itch, they mean Hi-Fi Rush and Wind Waker" is a little bit demotivating, given the gusto with which this meme is posted. There are people whose whole careers hinge on the hope that there's an audience out there that wants "shorter games with worse graphics" and there doesn't seem to be an actual sea change that's helping those projects out. There is a treasure trove of games out on itch that you can play in between hyped releases, but most people's playing habits don't seem to shift.

Lastly...

...there are thousands of devs out there who work hard, collaborating with other devs and artists, to make their games the best they can be. Devs work hard to bring their artistic vision to God of War: Ragnarok or to Bomb Rush Cyberfunk or to experimental indies with intentionally-ragged art styles. Everyone is putting their heart into their art to make something that will connect with the player. Sometimes, this can be pulled off by 1 or 2 people. Sometimes, this will require hiring more onto the team. It's slightly dissonant to see people say they want to see "worse graphics" when you're trying to get a job in texturing or particle effects and want to deliver something your team is trying to push a boundary on. This is true in both small projects and big projects. Artists are putting their stamp on Horizon Forbidden West just as much as they're putting their stamp on Venba. There are artists looking for work in the indie space who want to make better and more beautiful "graphics."

Anyway, no disrespect to people who post this meme. I understand that it's a show of support and solidarity. I understand that it's just a joke. I know that it's not a big deal.

But I'd be lying if I said that these mixed feelings didn't flash through my mind every time I saw this hedgehog. Figured I would share them.

[cmykdemon]

honestly? bring back ugly games. low-res, 30fps, baked in lighting... id rather see that than have a game over 140gb of high-res 8k 'look at how realistic this man's pores are' textures everywhere

[crabussy]

"dolphins are completely evil" I actually don't think we should assign human morality to animals with no concept of law or civilisation with an intelligence roughly equating to that of a toddler

[001x456]

it’s unfortunate that (some) people in fandom spaces are starting to get too comfortable complaining and being rude to writers and artists who create contents they personally don’t like (“why are you making this character a top when he’s obviously a bottom? omg do you even understand his character?” “I’m so sick of seeing fan art and fanfic where this character is portrayed as a sadist when he’s actually misunderstood in my opinions, therefore anyone who disagrees with me is wrong and should be shamed” just to name a few I’ve seen) instead of curating their own fandom experiences by engaging only with contents they do like.

you want more fics where (x) is written in this specific way? either write one yourself or politely expressing your opinion about how you hope there will be more fics where (x) is written in this specific way instead of making fandom a toxic place by being rude to writers and artists who dare make contents that are not to your Personal Liking.

if the universe does not revolve around you, strangers and fandom spaces don’t have to cater exclusively to your personal preferences either.

to all my beloved writers and artists, write whatever you want, draw whatever you want. portray that character in whichever way you want to portray. I hope you have fun doing what you love. don’t let anybody tell you what you can or can’t do with the blorbo. go wild. I will always support you

[probablybadrpgideas]

Circle of protection against capitalism

[rideroftherange]

Zelda games have always been as “open world” as the technology of the time allowed. One of the essential aspects of the game is the feeling of going out into the wider world and exploring.

The games have also had elements of non linear storytelling for a long time. But BotW/TotK are only non linear in that they are a collection of stories inside a greater whole that can be told in any order. Or skipped all together if you want to pay $60 for a two hour game.

[watchingwisteria]

listen there really was just something about how in the book, snow’s 3-page descent from hesitant lover boy to deluded mfer happens entirely in his mind. lucy gray gives him no indication whatsoever that she suspects him, that she’s going to leave or betray him. he’s just sitting quietly in the cabin waiting for her to return when that seed of calculated suspicion, which he has needed to survive the capitol, takes a hold of him and chokes the life out of any goodness left inside him. it really drives home your terror as a reader that “oh my god did he kill her? did she escape? what happened to her? why would he even think that?” in a way that when the movie had to adjust for visualization it lost some of that holy shit this guy has lost it emphasis.

[nucleos]

if you are complaining about dragon age veilguards artstyle being inconsistent with dragon age's overall artstyle then I know for a fact, that you have not played all the games. You are lying, because consistency?? in dragon age?? this is Alistar in all three games

[stply]

i don't have a take about this game itself because it's not something i'm particularly interested in nor do i really give a fuck but the wording here is really. uh actually guys only men buy porn games especially the bad ones and only men have kinks and fetishes especially the bad ones actually. everyone knows that no woman or otherwise would ever be interested in anything like that despite. checks notes. 62% of women in a study having rape fantasies. but no only men are ever aroused by anything bad and in fact all men who have ever been aroused by anything bad should be in jail. no one else though because they'd surely never like this type of material

[rideroftherange]

Game ruined.

Grammeowster Chef / Monster Hunter World: Iceborne

[inho-gihun]

“stop romanticizing this ship. it’s toxic and abusive 🤬 people who ship them romanticize abuse🤬” the only thing people will take from your post is that your brain hasn’t developed well enough for you to separate fiction from reality

“fiction affects reality 🤬” by this logic, Hannibal fans are cannibals and people who like horror / slasher films are murderers

“shipping them is insensitive and triggering to abuse victims🤬” by this logic, Squid Game is insensitive and triggering to murder victims and their families, and everything is, one way or another, insensitive and triggering to some people

[questions-about-blorbos]

This request was sent to us and we made a poll in response to it. Send any Blorbo-related question you want to our inbox and we’ll make a poll on which people can vote with their own Blorbos in minds

[001x456]

“why do you ship them?” because I like fun and sexy things

“why do you ship them?” ma’am this is a fandom space, not a test for moral superiority based on fictional gay characters

[todoggukie]

Final Fantasy VII Rebirth (2024) dev. Square Enix

[mofsblog]

Defending Ending 2

Okay I've seen a lot of discourse around the "True Ending" of Clinical Trial and I just wanted to give my take on it. Spoilers under the cut

I know a lot of people didn't like Ending 2's light and happier tone and it being the True Ending and felt like it absolved Lee of any consequences and just put Angel in a dangerous shitty position, isolated with a murderer and argue that it goes against the whole point of the game… But I just really don't view it like that. To me, Ending 2 reinforces some of the game's central themes surrounding consent, neurodivergency and societal neglect.

While I do think Lee can be manipulative (ESPECIALLY in the Reject route) and consistently hides things from Angel, I do think the Accept route that leads into Ending 2/the True Ending is a product of Angel's own anatomy as much as Ending 1 is. While Angel chooses to forgive him initally for the shrine thing, they don't dismiss or downplay what he did either. While they do display some unhealthy thought patterns (the idea that they never thought someone would ever pay so much attention to them <- which is a belief absolutely fueled by self hatred) that could contribute to their forgiveness, they don't let that blind them from the inherent fucked upness of what Lee's done. This isn't a "Wow, you did nothing wrong. Let's date!" situation. It's a "You fucked up and you hurt me but I'm willing to give you another chance, if you change for the better" situation.

Same thing with the revelation of the murder. Angel does not downplay how upset they are to appease him. Even when they acknowledge Lee killing Brandon probably prevented him from harming future victims as he's a repeated offender who likely wouldn't stop, Angel still acknowledge that Lee didn't know that when he killed him. Angel is consistently able to voice their grievances with him and call him out on the wrongness of his actions, which is why I feel pretty comfortable stating that Lee and Angel's relationship, no matter how fucked up, toxic or unhealthy, is not an abusive one because Angel is always able to voice their issues with him and he is more than willing to listen.

The player, and by extension, Angel is also explicitly given the choice on whether or not to forgive him with both revelations (I especially like that Angel's given the choice to basically back out of the relationship, even after they accept the shrine thing, after the murder reveal), highlighting their agency. Yes, you can absolutely argue that Angel's decision to forgive Lee twice is likely influenced by their loneliness and need for connection and that does make their relationship a bit unhealthy (and interesting/hj) but again I don't think it's abusive.

I also want to point out that even if the Accept route, Angel gives Lee conditions. They don't just accept him willy-nilly. They want him to actually listen to them.

I think that Angel's ultimate decision to forgive Lee isn't just to date him, it's to give him another chance at becoming a better, more rounded person. A large part of the whole game is about how society (the education system and the medical system) tends to fail neurodivergent people, especially those most in need of help. Angel and Lee literally bond over their different experiences of neurodivergency (or implied neurodivergency on Lee's end) and how ultimately society failed both of them (with neither of them managing to succeed in ways they wanted because the system wasn't built for people like them).

There's also the prevalent mentions and implications of past punishments that we can observe through some of Lee's dialogue. He's canonically an ex Mormon, who was probably consistently punished (and abused) for any wrongdoing (some of which we can assume could come down to traits of his neurodivergency as it's not too uncommon for autistic children to get misunderstood and mistreated). Similarly, we know that Angel was put some level of physical abuse and mistreatment by their school in an attempt to "correct" their left handedness and even then it's implied that's only one example of them being abused by the education system.

Both Lee and Angel know what it's like to be punished and hurt after displaying a 'weakness' or a mistake. They've both been hurt by the notion that punishment is necessary to improve a person, which is why I find the Accept route so powerful. I've seen a lot of people complain that Lee doesn't go to jail or face "tangible" consequences but the way I see it, prison would make him worse and remove any chance he has of healing. While fucked up, illegal and his fault, his actions are still partially a product of his upbringing and the lack of support and therapy for him. He specifically mentions that he never went to therapy so he could get his job. Lee is partially the product of an unaccomodating society as much as Angel is. (Also I could go on for hours about how his Mormon upbringing probably skewed his entire view on how relationships are supposed to function and probably made him think love has to be in the form of devotion)

The way I interpreted it. Angel wasn't coerced into staying with a dangerous, harmful person. Angel sees parts of themselves in Lee and is giving Lee a chance neither of them were ever given in a life. They're creating a new life together where mistakes and fuck ups aren't instantly met with punishment or harm. Yes, Lee fucked up horrendously, violating their trust and ignored their wishes but they're both willing to acknowledge that and work on it because maybe for once, one of them's allowed to fucked up without facing an abusive 'punishment' afterwards. Maybe for once, one of them's allowed to fuck up and be given room to grow and improve. And maybe for once, Angel gets to choose how they want their life to go.

No, most people probably wouldn't have made the same choices as Angel but its still their decision to make. Yes, it's likely influenced by their pre existing loneliness and trauma. Yes, Lee would have to put a lot of work in to change himself and that will take time and there's likely some unhealthy beliefs he'll always struggle with. Yes, Lee and Angel's relationship is far from conventional or completely healthy, but fuck man, I think they're giving eachother room to figure it out together and idk, there's something beautiful about that to me.

They're both very mentally ill but they're trying and there's something about that that I find oddly comforting. Most media with the yandere trope never really provide the option for the yandere character to actually try to reflect on their actions and maybe learn better ways to cope and honestly I was so sure that both endings would involve someone dying in some way because these types of stories don't tend to go well. Usually, after a certain point, a character's just framed as "too" far gone, "too" mentally ill, "too" fucked up and beyond saving and they usually die a tragic or poetic death (i.e like Ending 1). But Angel looks at Lee and his actions and decides fuck it and to say no to that. They make the choice to give Lee another chance any way after what he's done because they don't see him as irredeemable. I just really like the way they both get to live in the end and make a better life together and what that says about neurodivergent and mentally ill people.

[gloomygloworm]

hi i'm here to cause more problems in the fandom!

ive seen some posts recently talking about "why the hell do people WANT to see slavery in veilguard, why are they so obsessed with oppression?" and i can answer this, as a brand new member of the fandom!

cause i had no fucking idea that elves were considered second class citizens until my friends told me!

i had no idea that the crows were so severely flawed, or that the antaam were proud warriors (other than canon fodder,) or that minrathous and tevinter as a whole had this huge problem with slavery.

i just yesterday after doing research into other games discovered alienages, about the dales, about who andraste was and who shartan was. because even reading the codex entries the game seems to fail to make any general connection to all previous games and the world they crafted at all! what the fuck is the chant of light? whats the major religion? what IS andrasteism? what do you mean the crows buy children and torture them - what do you mean they arent just exaggerated circus clowns that kill people? i get it, part of it is perspective. but you'd think dock town - a VERY POOR section of minrathous, would have an alienage? that we'd see more elves doing menial labor or trailing behind nobles as slaves?

also i keep hearing shit about the viper being the pope? or tarquin? where the hell is this info? quite frankly the game doesnt make the codex tempting enough for me to want to 100% it (ESPECIALLY finding out about this terrible "secret ending" that makes me fear picking up ANY MORE codex entries since i already have 2 out of the 3 you need to get it???)

the obsession with slavery isnt because i want to be oppressed, if i wanted that all i have to do is go be in public because im both queer and disabled living in a red state. its about what THEYYYYY the GAME CREATORS put in their own game. slavery! which now, despite how RAMPANT it supposedly is, i have no clue about! i only know about half the shit i do because my friends have been in the fandom a decade and im playing through origins now with them. which, btw, whoa what a game! not afraid to be icy and bitchy and HARSH in an environment where they cultivated that exact reaction.

i like the scenery in veilguard. i like the amount of mingling npcs in locations that make it feel more full, i like the soundtrack and the graphics and the companions as characters. i dont like the story! i dont like the lack of environmental storytelling or the discrepancies in information that i feel like i should know. it feels like its taken the same landslide that pokemon has - going from being called a loser by Gary to having no less than 3 best friends at any given time. There's such a lack of conflict like the game is scared to express the spectrum of emotions and personalities that people deal with day to day. i like my escapism the same as anyone else but if im walking through a city known for treating elves like second class citizens no i wont be surprised if im called a "knife ear" casually by some drunk moron who cant even stand straight.

no ones looking to be oppressed. we're looking for what you advertised to people ages ago - a complex story with serious consequences for the actions of others!