Oh I get you. See my follow up skeet! It's a really freeform world, all the narrative is essentially solved via community collaboration and it's all oblique and non-verbal. I have NO idea what they would actually hinge a film off, there's not even really a plot. You play as an avatar. etc etc.
The reasoning in making it into a film = it's hugely successful and has a rabid fanbase, easy money.
What's the other case you're referring to?
"Hey we need to adapt a game, which one?"
"How about one defined by hard as nails mechanics that lead to an awesome sense of accomplishment, non-linear exploration, mostly non-verbal storytelling, and community interaction?"
"Yay let's spend $$$ on turning that into a passive, linear experience!"
The Elden Ring movie is probably the stupidest videogame adaptation project yet, and it will make a gazillion dollars.
Jealous!!
Yeah tutorialisation and/or FTUE are often abysmal, and it's so bizarre given it's a solved equation, and yet games big and small KEEP getting it wrong. And in some ways it feels like it's getting worse!
Oh god it's interminable isn't it.
Last two games I tried had awful intros, which is *still* par for the course. In the era of gamespass and whatnot where there's less sunk cost fallacy than ever, it's arguably even more important an issue than just that of good design, and 9/10 games still get it heinously wrong.
Ryan has a lot of blood on his hands.
I will never understand why games, especially indies, will create loads of beautiful environment art only to have you run through it all with no interactions and nothing to make you pause and appreciate it. Such a crazy waste of resources.
Hell yeah! A fellow Alpharius! Wise choice.
A screenshot from the game with two colorful, fish-like creatures expressing awe
Two years ago today, Harold set off on his voyage aboard the FEDORA. 🫧
Thank you to every player, streamer, and fan who made this handcrafted little world feel alive. It only exists because you cared about it.
And don't worry, we're not done telling stories. 👀
👀🧹🐟🚀👀🧹🐟🚀
I wrote an extremely salty response in agreement to this then thought I'd delete it, write this, and just say 'people conflate meta with good' and 'people conflate cinematic with good', and so something that is meta-cinematic HAS to be good, by default.
People conflate 'cinematic' with 'good', basically.
Chesterton's Fence is strong with this one.
Finally!
I am not the exception that proves the rule, just read it for the first time and am nearly crying
It usually does...
I just launched the prototype of a chill, equipment-lite, procedural, xeno-survival solo rpg I've been working on - madquills.itch.io/decoherence-...
It's free! You get the core rules and the first of three zones (others coming soon). Full info on the page.
I would love playtesters/feedback!
Will do, thanks for the reply!
Just played the REPLACED demo. It's great! Silky smooth combat and animations and a true heir to the 'cinematic pixel-art' style. Stirred up a bunch of feelings - it feels like the game TLN could've been. Very excited to delve deeper into the full thing.
@thunderfulgames.bsky.social hey folks - what's the best way to contact you about reviews/interviews? I write a narrative design column for @debugmag.com and would really like to feature a few of your forthcoming titles in near-future columns.
Blah blah the future is a blank page yadda yadda we can change our own destinies - just get on with it and let me see what actually happens rather than just confusing me with what is or isn’t either actually happening on screen or in overlapping realities. Give me one well told reality please.
I get that to some extent the Whispers and all the crossroads of fate shit is meta commentary on the expectations of the fandom re. the remake of a beloved franchise but any time a story tries to fuck with changing destiny it just undermines the actual character journeys. Also it’s just boring.
Finally got around to finishing FF7 remake. All that Whisper stuff is absolute bobbins. If Rebirth doesn’t pay off all the Sephiroth mystery a bit i’ll be furious because in just the context of Remake he's an utterly awful villain. Arbitrary motivations and personality of a fencepost.
I'm working on one! Well, it's not fully biology focused but xeno-biology in general. Some preliminary thoughts and details on it here! open.substack.com/pub/madquill...
A screenshot from our debut indie game, Röki. A young girl in a red bobble hat runs through the snow.
A screenshot from our debut indie game, Röki. A snow covered stave church.
A screenshot from our debut indie game, Röki. A troll talks to a small child in front of a bridge. The girl says "Are you a troll?"
A screenshot from our debut indie game, Röki. A giant wolf slumbers at the top of a mountain.
Röki is a Christmas movie.
