Ben Miller in his paper about Quantic Dream’s game Indigo Prophecy (also known in Europe as Fahrenheit) analyze it from various perspectives. But instead of praising the narrative line or how the “interactive storytelling” is implemented in the game, Miller insists that Indigo Prophecy by using some innovative game systems and mechanics greatly enhance player’s immersion and provides movie-like experience. His essay is simply an analysis of these systems and mechanics.
He starts with differentiation in navigating within the “frame” of the game(menu systems, tutorials, bonus content) and the game-world itself. He concludes that Indigo Prophecy makes the utilitarian task of navigating menus and tutorials meaningful by encapsulating it within established framework of watching a movie. Small details like that pausing and unpausing the game are labeled “Play” and “Stop” add layers of meaning to the experience that makes it feel more engaging and movie-like.
In the next part he refers to one of the two main game mechanics, which provides almost full control over the environment in very different game situations. The majority of these actions simulate real-world activities like opening doors, climbing, but are also used as a main tool in dialogues. This input system, as Miller writes, is clean, easily understood and amazingly straightforward. Character’s virtual actions and the physical similarities to the player’s real-world actions make the game a more immersive experience.
In my opinion one the important things that Miller points out is limited timing in conversations and some game-world events which was truly innovative mechanic back when the game was released. The limited amount of time in conversations automatically increases tension and immersion of the player in the game world. Unfortunately today it is still not a popular tool to use in dialogues.
The second main game mechanic - so-called Quick Time Event system, while raises the player’s level of engagement within the game-world through escalating tension, fails when it comes to distraction, when player is constantly concentrating at when and which button he should press instead of watching cinematic game content.
The last interesting observation was about player’s mental health bar, which is in Miller’s opinion an evolution to the classic health bar in almost any game out there. He noted that by redesigning the health bar to focus on the mental state of the characters, the game implicitly supports both the believability of the game-world and the connection the player feels in regards to the character’s state of mind.
The major thing that Miller is highly critical about is the storyline and how it evolves after the second half of the game which begins after Lucas Kane (main character) is killed and comes back to life. He writes that Quantic Dream spent most of their time developing the first half of the game and had to rush through the final half. This point, while is pure speculation, reflects the truth about poor second part of the story and some confusion that players had in the end.
However, Miller says that Indigo Prophecy remains one of the most enjoyable games he has ever played with some new innovative game mechanics, which were highly successful at increasing players immersion and with narrative line, which provides an engaging cinematic experience. The whole review reminds me of the similar analysis by game's creator David Cage, which was surprisingly self-critical. This review is recommended for new players as well as for those who explored the game almost completely. The last group of readers, in my opinion, will find this review more meaningful as it thoroughly analyzes game mechanics in conjunction with game’s storyline.
No comments:
Post a Comment