thebakedbeans - Tumblr blog

[thebakedbeans]

Hi tumblr.  Made some dumplings using a recipe my Grandma and Dad gave me for authentic dumplings made exactly like they do in China. It takes awhile, but it makes A TON of dumplings that easily serves 6 - 8 people. Or you can freeze them and reheat when needed. 

Ingredients:   

Dough:

6 Cups of Flour

1 ⅔ Cup Lukewarm Water

Filling:

2 lbs Ground Pork

4 - 5 Napa Cabbage Leaves

1 Tbsp Minced Ginger

4 Spring Onions, Minced

1 Tbsp Salt

⅓ Cup Water

¼ Cup Soy Sauce

1 tsp Sesame Oil

Directions:

Dough:

Add the Flour and lukewarm water in a bowl.

Knead it into a shaggy dough

Turn it out onto a lightly floured counter and knead for 5 - 10 mins or until not sticking to you or the table. The motion is to PUSH the dough, then pull back. Not just press into the dough

Set it aside, covered, while preparing the filling

Filling:   

Chop up the Napa cabbage leaves into a fine mince, then set in a bowl and salt it. Let it sit while the prep the rest

Mince up the ginger and green onions then set aside

Add ground pork to a bowl and add the salt, water, and soy sauce in small additions while stirring in one direction (I chose clockwise) - this will develop a better protein matrix that stays juicier as it cooks.

Add the ginger, scallions, and sesame oil and stir again

Wring the cabbage out dry - it should release a shocking amount of water. Then add the cabbage to the pork and stir

Assembly: 

Rip a chunk of dough off and lightly knead it into a flat disk

Then poke a hole in the center and working your hands around the doughnut shape, stretch out the circumference of the dough

Rip the dough at a point, then roll it into a log about the diameter of an adult thumb  

Cut or rip pieces off the dough log the size of half and adult thumb   

Roll those pieces into balls, then smash flat to make small disks   

Using a rolling pin, roll from the edge of the disk to the center then slightly rotate and repeat, making sure to leave the center thicker than the edges. This will allow more filling to be put in the dumpling. Repeat this till the disk is ~3in/7.5cm  

Put a Tbsp of the filling in the center of the dough   

Press it down to remove air pockets   

Take the opposite ends of the dough and fold them together, Pinch em to form a seem.   

Using your thumb and base of your index finger, crimp/seal the edges to form the dumpling.   

Repeat steps 1 - 6, THEN steps 7 - 10 in batches. Doing all the dough at once will dry it out before you can fill all the disks

Cooking:

 Bring a pot of water to a boil   

Stir it to form a current/whirlpool   

Drop the dumplings into the whirlpool   

Cover and lower the heat to medium   

Once the water starts boiling again, add some cool water and gently stir to form another whirlpool   

Cover the repeat step 5 two more times, or until the meat registers 165F   

Using a slotted spoon, remove the cooked dumplings from the pot and plate em up That's it! Again, it does take some time and is best done with others. But this recipe makes a truly staggering amount of dumplings that last for multiple meals. I hope you make it and let me know how it goes

[thebakedbeans]

Hi Tumblr. As a guy trying to cut weight a bit, I made some french toast with egg whites and chocolate protein powder. It was lower calorie than regular french toast but tasted just as good. Also baked it so no stovetop mess, no flipping, and cooks in a single batch.

Ingredients:

1 Egg White

1 Spoonful of yogurt

½ Scoop Protein Powder

1 Dash of Water

⅛ tsp Salt

⅛ tsp Vanilla

2 Slices of Bread

Recipe can be scaled up pretty easily. Let me know if you all make it and how it turned out!

[thebakedbeans]

Hey tumblr! Made a lower calorie Egg Salad that replaces the Mayo with Scrambled Eggs! Was pretty pleased with the results and made a vid on how to make this dish as well as the thought process behind ingredient subs that can be applied to any dish

Ingredients:

8 eggs

1/2 cup soft scrambled eggs

1 teaspoon hot sauce

1/4 cup chopped red onion

1/4 teaspoon chili powder

Salt to taste

Directions:

Steam the Eggs to make them easier to peel and ensure even cooking

Make the scrambled eggs

Pour 1 Tbsp of water into a pan on medium heat

Crack and scramble 2 Eggs

Once the water in the pan begins to steam, add the eggs

Lower heat to medium low and STIR CONSTANTLY - this is how to get velvety smooth scrambled eggs

Take it out of the pan once you can draw a line through the eggs and see the bottom of the pan consistently

Peel the steamed eggs and chop em up

Combine the chopped eggs, scrambled eggs, hot sauce, onions, chili powder, and salt

Stir to combine everything

Let me know if you end up making this, would love to see how yours came out! As previously stated, the thought process behind subbing out ingredients can be used to make dishes more economical and/or healthier, and I hope you find it helpful.

[thebakedbeans]

Hi Tumblr. Here's an easy recipe for french toast that's baked instead of pan fried which means you can spend time with your date this Valentine’s Day as opposed to slaving over the stove worrying about flipping, batch cooking, and making a mess.

Ingredient List for the base recipe is as follows:

1 Egg

⅛ tsp Salt

⅛ tsp Cinnamon

⅛ tsp Vanilla

⅓ Cup Milk

3 Slices of Split Top Bread

Hope you all get a chance to make this for you and your SO's. Would love to hear how it goes for you and what you top your French Toast with!

[thebakedbeans]

Hi tumblr. Awhile back I had a post on questions asking for questions from people on cookies; common issues or problems  that they had questions on. The top answer was about how to customize and make your own recipes. With the holidays coming up, I also figure people are going to be baking more cookies.

So after thinking about  this, I shot a video on how I came up with 2 custom cookie recipes

Banana Cookies:

Wet

1 Ripe Banana, Mashed

½ Cup White Sugar

½ Cup Brown Sugar

½ Cup Neutral Oil

1 Tbsp Water

Dry

2 Cups Flour

1 tsp Baking Powder

¾ tsp Baking Soda

¾ tsp Salt

Bake at 350F/180C for 14 mins

Peanut Butter Shortbread Cookies

⅓ Cup Sugar (~60 grams)

¼ Cup Peanut Butter (~60grams)

½ Stick of Butter, Melted (~60 grams)

1 Egg (~57 grams)

1 ⅓ Cup of Flour (~170 grams)

Baked at 325F/165C for 20 mins

I hope you find the video and explanation helpful. Let me know if you guys try this out and what you did to make your own cookie recipes! Stay safe and happy holidays!

[thebakedbeans]

Hey tumblr, made a video on common issues people have with roast chicken. This specific one is about how to get a crispy skin every time using some techniques that everyone can do.

It’s the first video is a new series that I will be doing on certain dishes and ways to avoid problems that people often run into with that dish. The first food we’ll dive in on is roast chicken.

Take a look and let me know if you end up trying the technique from the video!

[thebakedbeans]

Another meat and three recipe coming soon! Stay tuned for the full recipe on the next complete meal. https://www.instagram.com/p/CHZS6aTHXRB/?igshid=nlbua4jrw6re

[thebakedbeans]

Hey tumblr. Made a complete meal for a family of 4 in under 60 mins, with leftovers. Was super simple and delicious; video of me making it is above.

Oftentimes with recipes I find that they’re great, but are for only a single dish. I’m left stumped as to what else to make for the meal, as it’s not only going to be a single dish. So here’s a full compete meal for 4 dishes, a Meat and 3 type deal.

Ingredients:

Pork Chops

4x Boneless Loin Chops

1 Tbsp Black Pepper (Optional)

1 Tbsp Cumin (Optional)

Salt (to Taste)

Oil

Baked Potatoes

6x Medium Sized Potatoes

½ Cup Water

1 - 2 Tbsp Salt

Oil

Roasted Veggies

3 Medium Sized Carrots

1 lb Brussel Sprouts

Salt (to Taste)

Oil

Braised Cabbage

½ Head of Cabbage

2 Tbsp Soy Sauce

1 Tbsp Rice Wine Vinegar

Salt (to Taste)

Tools:

2x Baking Sheets

Foil (Optional)

Parchment Paper (Optional)

Fork

Knife

Cutting Board

Frying Pan

Stirring Utensil

Bowls

[thebakedbeans]

Hey tumblr. Made a recipe for a New England Style Clam Chowder that is a bit lighter on calories than standard chowders. Instead of using heavy cream and bacon/lardons, we just use milk and butter and reduce them to get the desired consistency.

Ingredients:

½ Large Onion

2 Celery Ribs

2 Medium Carrots

3 - 4 Medium Sized Potatoes

About 1 potato per person

2 - 3 Tbsp of Flour

3 Cans of Clams (6.5oz cans)

2 Cups Milk

Butter (2 Tbsp in total)

Salt

Lemon Juice

Tools:

Knife

Cutting Board

Strainer (Optional)

Pot

Stirring Utensil

I think the most calorie intense ingredients are the butter, milk, and potatoes. Honestly, you could reduce the butter to 1 Tbsp and sub the potatoes with something else if you'd like (sweet potatoes, extra carrots, turnips, etc).

If you guys make it, let me know how it goes. Would love to see how you did!

[thebakedbeans]

Hi tumblr. I was looking at the Creamy Chicken and Mushroom Cavatappi recipe from the Hello Fresh site and while it was pretty straightforward, I thought that it could benefit from some simple tips and tricks for a better end product. I am not sponsored or paid by them in any way, just wanted to show a better method for the dish. Anyone can make it though, whether or not they have a Hello Fresh subscription.

It can be made in advance and keeps well in the fridge. When you want to eat it, take it out and reheat on the stove or microwave. Freezing it might cause some issues though as the cream could separate.

Ingredients:

8 Oz Mushrooms

2 Cloves of Garlic

4 Green Onions/Scallions

20 oz Chicken Breast Strips

1 Tbsp Italian Seasoning

8 Oz Cream Sauce Base

1 Tbsp Stock Concentrate OR Soy Sauce

½ Cup Parmesan Cheese

Oil

Butter

Salt & Pepper

Tools:

Knife

Cutting Board

Paper Towels

Frying Pan

Large Pot

Stirring Utensil

Strainer

Microwave

[thebakedbeans]

Hey tumblr. I realize that maybe the most quintessential healthy protein for a meal is boneless skinless chicken breasts. Oftentimes though I get dry leathery chicken, or chicken with a pale and bland exterior. As such, I thought I try my hand at making a chicken breast that stays moist, but has that golden brown delicious exterior. Above is a recipe of me making it.

Ingredients:  

1 Quart Water   

2 - 4 Tbsp Salt   

2 Chicken Breasts  

Mayo (Optional)   

Pepper, to taste (Optional) 

Oil

Tools:  

 Pot   

Knife 

Cutting Board   

Paper Towels  

Spatula   

Frying Pan

Chicken Breast in my area usually goes for $2.49 - $2.99/lb. So it's not the cheapest, but by no means extravagantly expensive. Especially given how lean and versatile it is. The key is to cut the breast in half to ensure even cooking and to dry the surface of it before cooking. The drier it is, the better crust you'll develop on the exterior.

I hope you guys make it and let me know how it goes! If you made any changes or flavoring combinations, I would love to hear about them!

[thebakedbeans]

Hey tumblr. Been seeing a ton of recipes for soft scrambled eggs that use ingredients like creme fraiche, buttermilk, chives. These are things I rarely have, and not sure others do either. So I made some soft scrambled eggs with cheese instead and they were delicious! 

Ingredients:

    - Eggs     

    - Salt     

    - Cheese   

    - Butter 

 Tools:   

    - Mixing Bowl

    - Stirring Utensil

    - Pan 

[thebakedbeans]

Hello there! Really wanted to show people these crepes I made using beetroots and other cheap pantry staples. It's vegan and includes whipped cream from chickpea liquid. Video of me making it is below:

https://youtu.be/Cq-VkYGGNFk

Ingredients:

1 Medium Sized Beet

2 Cups Milk (Dairy or Otherwise)

1 ½ Tbsp Oil

1 ⅓ - ½ Cups All Purpose Flour

1 Can’s worth of Aquafaba (Chickpea liquid)

¼ tsp Lemon Juice

⅔ Cup Powdered Sugar

Tools:

Vegetable Peeler

Knife

Cutting Board

Blender

Spatula

Frying Pan

You really just blend all the ingredients in a blender, then fry it up similar to a pancake or any other crepe recipe. The Whipped Cream is easy too, just requires a bit of patience.

If you decide to make these, let me know! Would love to see how yours turn out.

[thebakedbeans]

Hi there! Been reading about banana ice cream and how it's like a healthier version of soft serve that doesn't require an ice cream machine. I am looking to slim down and happened to have some VERY ripe bananas, so I decided to record myself doing it and make a recipe video. 

Ingredients:

Overly Ripe Bananas

Non Dairy Milk

Honey

Cocoa Powder (Optional)

Peanut Butter (Optional)

Frozen Blueberries (Optional)

Tools:

Knife

Cutting Board

Freezer

Food Processor

Calorie Comparison:

100 grams of the standard vanilla ice cream comes in at 207 Calories. My base recipe without any mix-ins is as follows:

2 Tbsp of Honey = 128 Calories & 42 grams

2 Tbsp of Almond Milk = 8 Calories & 30 grams

5 bananas = 605 Calories & 680 grams

This comes out to a total of 732 Calories & 752 grams. So 100 grams of this nice cream would be around 100 Calories, less than half the standard vanilla ice cream!

You can add any ingredients of flavorings you want, the base recipe is flexible. Let me know if you guys made the blueberry, chocolate peanut butter, or any other version of nice cream! Would love to see your creations. Any feedback is appreciated!

[thebakedbeans]

Easy Poke Bowls (Affordable and Customizable)

Hi there! I made Poke Bowls this past week and wanted to share it with you guys, b/c it was significantly cheaper to make than going to my local Poke Bowl shop and I could add whatever fresh veggies/customizations I wanted to make it healthy.

The whole process from start to finish, including making the rice and defrosting the fish took ~45 mins. YMMV though, depending on your knife skills it I'd estimate the recipe taking from 30 mins - 1 hr.

Below is the ingredients and tools I used, but feel free to sub or add anything you want. That's the best part of Poke Bowls - the customization to do whatever you fancy. It does require some prep work, mostly cutting and some basic prep work. The good news though is that, that's pretty much all the technique needed. It does save a TON of time if you make rice or have some before starting. Otherwise that should be the very first thing you do. Also make sure your raw fish (if using) is suitable for consumption that way, no need to risk it unnecessarily.

Ingredients

Cooked Rice

⅓ of a Large Onion

1 Medium Zucchini

1 Tbsp Oil

2 Medium Green Onions

½ Cucumber   

8 - 9 Sundried Tomatoes 

1 Regular Tomato

2 Carrots

12 oz Firm Silken Tofu Block   

1 ½ Tbsp Cornstarch 

1 lb Tuna Steak (Frozen & Vacuum Packed)

Tools

Knife

Cutting Board

Bowls

Spoons

Frying Pan

Stirring Utensil

Oven (optional)

Sheet Pan (optional)

Assembly

Cooked Rice on the bottom

Sauteed Onion and Zucchini and Tofu go on top of the Rice

Rest of the Raw Vegetables go on top of that

Tuna goes on top of the Raw Vegetables

Sauce of your choosing goes on top last

Cost Comparison

Local Poke Bowl Restaurant: $12.95/Bowl

Estimate @ ¼ lb of tuna in each bowl

Local Market Frozen, Vacuum Packed Tuna Cost: $14.99/lb

Therefore at an equivalent amount of protein, the tuna cost is $3.75/Bowl. Obviously there’s more in the bow than just tuna, but that is the most expensive ingredient.

And that's all there is to it. Please let me know if you have any feedback or if you made it with any subs/additions. Hearing about that stuff makes my day and I think makes everyone a better cook overall!

[thebakedbeans]

Mass Effect Narrative Review

And here’s the second narrative review I promised. This time I’m going to talk about Mass Effect, the trilogy not Andromeda. I also realize that these are more of rambling thoughts than reviews. So eventually I’ll need to call them something different.

I’d like to not talk about the ending though. There’s tons of articles and videos out there already talking about it and anything I have to say wouldn’t be anything new. Instead I’d like to talk about some stuff the trilogy did right. Let’s just jump right in and start with the first aspect that comes to mind: Shepherd’s party.

You get a lot of different party members in a lot of different games. But Mass Effect is one of the first games where the members really mattered to me. They all come with really well defined personalities as opposed to the standard tropes of what makes up a party (except for Kaiden, that dude is cookie cutter boring). Granted there are SOME tropes but I think the game for the most part does a good job of fleshing out organic characters with actual personalities as opposed to the routine values and responses you could expect.

One way it does this is by allowing you to talk to them as people with different attitudes and beliefs. They have different aspects to them that make them seem more human. For example, Ashley seems like the typical soldier. Comes from a long line of them, values family and unity. But then as the games progress you get to see that she believes in a higher power, support humanity’s self reliance, and that the army discriminates against her family b/c her grandfather was the first general to surrender to alien forces; so she works twice as hard as anyone else to improve. Those last two traits might be connected as she wants humanity to be only beholden to itself as her ancestor’s experience with aliens has been a negative one. Now I’m not saying these are well defined traits, but they’re enough to make her seem like an actual person. Someone with memories, thoughts, feelings. She seems like more than just the typical trope of a tough as nails soldier who follows orders and had a gruff exterior. Ashley might have those traits, but they’re not all that she is. That’s what makes personifies her and fleshes her out.

I’ll cite another example, Mordin Solus. At a quick glance, he seems like the typical run of the mill smart talking scientist. The type of person that then they speak, everyone else gets lost and asks them to repeat what they said. But after talking to Mordin and learning about him Shepherd learns more. Mordin is a great singer, and the type of guy to focus on the ends more than the means; but is also a deeply regretful man. Mordin has taken some real fucked up things in his past. Though he understands his actions were necessary, however still mourns the fact that it happened at all. Eventually he starts a clinic to heal the plagued, but still retains his do what is necessary outlook; dude kills some local gang members and leaves their bodies outside his clinic as a message. Shepard can even ask him about killing to which Mordin will reply something along the lines of healing people and killing people can both be helpful. It all fleshes out his character and changes him from the “scientist” into just another member of the crew with their own unique disposition.

The reason I bring all this up is because losing these companions is one hell of a blow to both the player and Shepherd. When I mention mechanics supporting narrative this is what I mean.

In the 3rd game, Mordin is going to die. It is preventable, but for the most players Mordin dies. Depending on what you said to him earlier, he might even sing a song that he sang for Shepherd in the previous game. That shit destroyed me. But it’s great to know that the pain that was felt by me as a player was echoed by Shepherd the character. After the mission people will all give their condolences and Shepherd will respond accordingly, but it was a poignant moment where I felt like I was fully synced up to what Shepherd was saying and feeling...utter devastation at the lost of my friend.

It happens again with Thane. The ill, dying assassin Shepard meets in the 2nd game. I helped that man reconnect with his son. Then in the third game that same son is with his father in the hospital donating blood so that his father can live. Seeing him there makes Thane feel all the more real as there were actual consequences and outcomes that occur from previous actions. Many games have characters go through arcs, but even if they learn in that arc they don’t really grow after it’s over. Thane does, he becomes loyal to Shepard. Which I choose to understand as him fighting that much harder and with more unity than otherwise because of the respect that Shepard earned from him.

And of course come the 3rd game Thane died on me. In this game his illness has progressed to the point where he needs to be hospitalized. But his last act is a heroic one, and I’d still like to think it was out of loyalty to Shepard (assuming you earned it in the previous game). As he lays on his deathbed his son reads a prayer. Thane was always a religious man so it befits him. Turns out though that the prayer was not intended for Thane, but for Shepard. There’s a line in the prayer that reads “and he/she will be a companion to you as he/she was to me”; and I remember putting Thane is my party all those times, levelling him up, using his skills. He was a companion to me indeed. That was the first time a game made me tear up. I was going to miss my companion. To me it was more than losing just a video game character, it was losing a friend.

You might think that I’m reading too much into the game or giving it too much weight. But I think Mass Effect gave the characters enough personality and vibrance to make their loss have actual meaning behind it. Other mediums do this all the time, and I see no reason why games would be any different. The narrative of the game has just as much an effect on me as any other story. The exception is that I am way more involved in Mass Effect’s story than many others as I have direct involvement in the lives of the characters. So to lose one, means I took an action that led to their death; in a way you could say that I played a large role in all my companion’s deaths. That weight is great though, like a compelling tragedy, the emotional pain makes the narrative that much sweeter.

Now I’d really like to emphasize how much effort Bioware put into the characters in Shepard’s crew. For almost every single person, I can answer the question “What do they do when they’re not on the job?”. Because for a lot of other character for a lot of other games that question remains unanswered. I literally have no idea what Fawkes from Fallout 3 does when he’s not following me. However I do know that James Vega works out and cooks food when he’s not on mission. Tali helps the helps run the ship’s systems on the Engineering deck. Samara does her weird biotic meditation. The fact that I can answer this question means there’s enough internal logic behind the people to make their actions and by extension themselves seem real. Their world does not revolve around Shepard’s, just like how my friends and family’s lives don’t revolve around me. Therefore I would treat them like I would treat any other person. And the more I treat them like real people the better my interactions with them become, then I’ll actually end up liking most companions; Shepard’s team feels like a real team to me because I know these people so well and what they can/can’t do.

The second point I wanted to bring up was the continuous narrative between games. Yes, there’s a lot of gripe about how the endings didn’t take into consideration your past actions. But there is still a fair amount of content that depends on previous events. Even if it equates to a mere war score number, playing the first game all over again really does make me ponder some more choices.

For an example, at the end of the first game Shepard has to make a major decision regarding the fate of the Citadel Council. Whether to spend resources to save them and the ship they’re on, or save those resources and let them die. If you haven’t played the sequels then the choice seems pretty black and white. You pick the option that agrees with your paragon/renegade status. But I went back and played all 3 games again. This time thinking “if I were Shepard, what would be the best decision?”. The answer I arrived at is that the best decision is the one that helps to stop the reaper invasion. So even if I’m paragon, maybe it’s better to let the council die so that the resources that would’ve been used to save them can be used to stop the actual reaper invasion once it happens. Turns out that that’s true in the third game if you played as I did, and I was able to use those resources in the final battle instead of wasting them in the first game.

That’s a real consequence for your action. Some may say that a war score number is a shallow way of conveying that action; but remember way back when I said that I enjoy games where the gameplay mechanics support the narrative? Well now it’s time to discuss that in more detail.

Overall I don’t think war score is a bad mechanic. In the end everything Shepard does is to stop the Reapers. A war score number is a metric to see what his past actions have done towards this goal. A short term and impulsive Shepard will have a very low war score as they should, and a Shepard that has thought through each choice will have a higher score. It ties a tangible mechanic to the narrative path that the player chose. So all the narrative that follows is because of the mechanics that created that outcome; and those mechanics themselves were created because of the previous narrative events that happened before. It’s like a cycle that runs on the player’s choices.

Not the most elegant method for sure, but it does the trick. The gameplay ends up reflecting what the player is doing. Which is really a huge part in what I look for in a strong narrative. Games like Fallout 3 or Fable don’t really change the way they play based off the narrative. In those games some people might like you and others won’t due to your morality. There’s never a point where the player doesn’t get to experience a huge chunk of content or entire groups of significant people might not be there because of what the player did (yes you can argue Metaton won’t be there if you blow it up, but there’s about 2 significant characters in the whole town and one of them still survives). Few games can match that level of narrative exclusivity.

It also makes each player’s experience unique. One player’s army may not be the exact same as another player’s. Sure there might be some strong similarities, but depending on previous actions there can be huge differences too. Saving Wrex means that the Krogan won’t be complete assholes, and killing him/letting him die means that the galaxy is real hesitant and untrusting of the Krogan. That’s a massive dichotomy that rests on a scene that spans less than 5 minutes. Again, serving as a reminder that what you do in each game affects the others down the road. It’s the whole butterfly flapping its wings type of thing. The galaxy’s attitude towards the Krogan depends on that one part in the first game, so fucking that part up can ruin the Krogan as a whole.

This type of storytelling lends a sort of permanence to the overall narrative and game feel. Mass Effect does have an edge though in that it was created with multiple games in mind so it can stretch the end results over a longer period; But I think the result is still strong, even with the ending controversy. The realness of the characters couples with the responsibility behind each move you take means that the trilogy really does have mechanical support for the story and emotional weight rivaling any other story from games, movies, books, etc. Hell I’d go so far as to say it’s pioneering better stories for games. Think about how many games now have decisions carry over from previous titles. Not saying Mass Effect was the first to do this, but it certainly is one of the most famous; and if we have more games that can do this or similar stuff, then I think we’re going in a great direction.

[thebakedbeans]

Dark Souls Narrative Review

Alright here we go again, it’s been a LONG time but the last narrative review got some more views so here I am again; and to make up for the gap I’m going to release 2 reviews back to back. This time it’s just going to be a narrative review with a focus on mechanics as metaphor. The game this time is Dark Souls, a game very near and dear to my heart. I’d like to talk about what the narrative does right, and how the game presents some of its ideas through its mechanics.

So jumping right into this. I could be wrong about this but every game that has a narrative usually has some central theme, feeling, or idea it tries to get across. Dark Souls’ is the idea of triumph over incredible odds. Hundreds of people have written about how the game accomplishes this theme, but I’d like to take a look at how specific mechanics and set pieces reinforce it.

When you as the player first start a new game, you’re greeted with an intro cinematic that both shows a bleak oppressive world and the legends that conquered it. Sets the tone well, the player understands both the general atmosphere and the relative strength of these legends. The player even sits in their jail cell looking hopeless until someone else drops the key into your cell. Then your character stands up and they look hideous; nothing like you made them in the character creation screen. The only weapon they have is a “broken straight sword” that does dismal damage. In terms of starting a game, Dark Souls makes you seem weak and utterly powerless. Contrast that with the cutscene the player just saw with literal gods throwing lighting, and you can see how the game start makes you seem insignificant.

Within minutes you’re greeted with a boss that seems insurmountable; and it’s the first actual enemy you encounter. It towers over you and almost every attack takes away significant portions of your HP pool. So you run away and feel like you’ll be unable to defeat this first boss. But then you go through the rest of the tutorial and learn the basic controls and get your items and the game shows its true colors. It gives you an edge over the first boss by allowing you to halve its HP pool. Suddenly this boss doesn’t seem so impossible; and the player feels that fighting chance.

That is, in my opinion, the core feeling that Dark Souls conveys. It echoes this feeling all throughout the design. The interconnectivity of the world forces you to re traverse areas you’ve beaten; areas that probably have you a difficult time with on your first run through. But now you get to go back stronger, better equipped, and more experienced. Those enemies that were so troublesome before become fodder; you mow right through them. Dying again and again to the enemies in Undead Burg on my first day only to go back later and get through the section without taking a hit is a moment of empowerment few games can replicate.

The game doesn’t restrict you either. You see something interesting, you can go there and find out what it is. There’s no rail roading or hand holding, allowing players to set their own goals. There’s no best build,  gear, or really any best playstyle. Whatever you want to do or use, it’s viable. The game just encourages you to become skilled enough to the point where the weapons and armor you want to use, can be used.

Some weapons and armor sets in Dark Souls are just better than others, that’s a fact. But you’re never relegated to using them. What I mean by that is that in some games, using the “rusty old dagger” just plain will not do much damage (if any at all). I think the term is, non-viable. Things the player can do, but have such a minimal effect that it’s fruitless to do it.  But here everything is viable. Fuck there are videos if people beating the game using the rock band drum kit as a controller. I’ve seen people do Boxing runs where they just use fists and no armor; Their damage to enemies is less, but it’s not such a minimal amount; their attacks have some impact behind them, even though it’s significantly less than if they’d used a weapon. It’s insane, but the players and thus the characters are skilled/strong enough to be able to do it. It’s reflective of how encouraging the game can be. So when people say the atmosphere of a Souls game is depressing, I say that it’s not; the games gives you embers of hope all throughout and really does fill the player with a sort of brightness amidst its sea of darkness.

When I ask for games with more interactive narratives, this is what I’m referring to. A game where the narrative is reinforced by the mechanics and actions the players takes. These are video games after all, different from movies and tv. Not saying that those are bad forms of media, or that we should always strive for 100% interactive narratives; but I think having games that do this do 2 things. First, it allows us to tell more personalized and unique stories; My chosen undead was a psychotic ugly piece of shit, and yours may have been different. How many mediums have access to that type of narrowcasting to such a degree? The second thing it allows is for games to differentiate themselves from movies and cinema. I know gamers and game makers have been reaching for some recognition for awhile now; and most of us want the respect that other media receives. But I’m not sure we can do that until we stand out in some way. We’ll never make better movies than the movie industry. However we can make better interactivity than movies or any other media.

Dark Souls is one of those games where the mechanics serve a reinforcement for the narrative. From the way you learn to play, to the feelings you get as you progress; Dark Souls manages to weave a narrative that really intertwines the player’s actions and thoughts with that of the character’s and the game world.

I know i’m not bringing up any new point really, all of this has been said analyzed and said by other before. Though i’m not sure how many people have brought up the point that Dark Souls is a game that does an excellent job aligning the player’s mindset with their characters.

Let me elaborate on this. You know how in most games, you role play as the main character? But you never really allow yourself to fully become them. Sure the game allows you to think as if you were that character; saying what they would say and doing what they would do. However, there isn’t a 100% synchronization going on. Dark Souls, while also not achieving this 100% sync (no game really can) gets closer to it than anything else I’ve ever played.

The game really puts you in the shoes of the Chosen Undead. Both of you start out completely inexperienced and foreign to Lordran. The rules and systems of the world are a mystery. But the game never railroads you on a set path. You (and the Chosen Undead) go somewhere because you chose to go there. Yes there is that “fate of the undead’ prophecy thing, but it’s very lax in terms of how and when you do things. Essentially the game adapts to your pace as a player, and thus as the Chosen Undead.

By not restricting players/characters and letting them choose their path/gear/morals, Dark Souls gives you the sense that you are boundless in capability and able to accomplish anything as long as you really have the desire to do so. You want to go to The Catacombs first? Go for it. It’ll be hard as all hell, but for those who really want it, Dark Souls lets them.

As you and your character learn more about the world, you get better at navigating it. The immersion here really makes you feel like you’re learning how it all works. At the same time you as the player learn this, you character does too. For an example of this not working, take Mass Effect for example. I’ll use the first one as it’s supposedly the most RPGish of the trilogy (and we don’t speak about Andromeda). As the player gains knowledge of the world, Shepard already knows everything. As you get better at the gameplay, Shepherd is not narrative wise getting better at fighting people. Mechanically yes, he/she is; but it’s never like anyone tells you that you’ve gotten better at shooting people since Eden Prime, the first mission.

Dark Souls, as you get better at the game, your character actually gets stronger and more skilled in a narrative sense. I mean look at the moveset of the starting weapons. It really doesn’t look like your character has any extensive training. They look like they’re just swinging their weapon around in a mostly logical manner. If I gave a longsword to someone who had no fencing experience, they could do all the same moves that the Chosen Undead could with a standard longsword. If i give a gun to someone who’s never shot a gun before, I doubt they’d be as accurate or effective as Shepard is. But as you go through the game you learn how to use your weapons, and suddenly the swings and attacks you use seem more practiced. Like you have previous fencing experience to know what moves to do, and when to do them. It’s knowledge both the player and character gain, and serves as a great example of seamless transition between gameplay and narrative mechanics.

The last example of gameplay bleeding into the narrative isn’t profound or anything it’s just a neat idea. See when undead give up they hollow, meaning they lose their minds and wander aimlessly. They lose all will to do anything. I personally think this is reflected when players stop playing the game, or give up. Because as long as a player is controlling their chosen undead, that chosen undead has a task or a will to do something. A player who puts down the controller, never plays again, essentially removes the agency and will of their chosen undead to do anything. That undead never gains the ability to do things again, as they have no player inputting controls; so for all intents and purposes, the player has caused their chosen undead to hollow. In fact I’d even argue story wise, that those hollowed characters are the undead before you who failed the Chosen Undead quest. The game states that you are not the first undead undertake this journey. Many have failed before you; I’d like to think that all the players that gave up on the game make up the chosen undead who’ve failed.

I know i’ve just given a lot of tangential examples, and it’s probably hard to read. But I think each of the examples given show how good of a job Dark Souls does at weaving together gameplay and narrative. Whether or not this is intentional is something I’d love to ask From Software, as I have no idea. If we had more games that could do this type of stuff, then imo games would really come into their own as a unique medium. As game narratives are now, there isn’t a massive amount of difference between the way our “narrative heavy” games tell stories as compared to other media. Not saying that they don’t have good stories to tell; however the way they tell them isn’t drastically different. You play the game, you get a cut scene. The interactivity between player, characters, and the overall story don’t really have any cohesion. Having that connection enhances a player’s connection as their able to make it their own and It’s one of the reasons why I want games to have more gameplay supporting narrative mechanics.