The Flower of Death: Death-Positivity and Environmental Activism in A Mortician’s Tale
A Blind Legend: The Interactive Adventures of Sir Edward Blake
In the absence of light, darkness reigns supreme, amplifying feelings of terror and tranquility. The interactive video game A Blind Legend, published in 2015, captures these emotions by conveying the sensation of being blinded, while also fostering gameplay accessible to the visually impaired. Raising awareness about blindness, DOWiNO and France Culture—the developers behind A Blind Legend—focus on the journey of an old legend: the blind knight, Sir Edward Blake.
Values and Responsibility in Papers, Please
Designed by Lucas Pope, Papers, Please (2013) is a border-security simulator in which the player is “assigned to the Ministry of Admission in the war-torn dystopian nation of Arstotzka” (Pope 2012). While the player carries out their daily duties of verifying passports and identities, they put their meager earnings towards providing for their family and paying down their debt. As the days pass, players are presented with more and more responsibilities—bribe offers, pleas, and threats—as the State of Arstotzka demands disciplined performance from its employees and pays only by person processed. No time can be wasted in the 12-hour work day, lest the player fail to earn enough to support their family.
The 2010s: The Rise of Indie Games
Undoubtedly, the last decade was known for its big-budget games. Games like Grand Theft Auto V, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, and The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt made headlines for their massive worlds, epic stories, fun gameplay, and huge sales. But the highest selling game of the decade (and of all time) was an independent game made by a small company called Mojang. A game with blocky graphics, basic gameplay, and a simple story.
Minecraft was the first smash hit from the independent side of gaming. Before its release, games with small budgets and little known developers rarely made headway in the gaming market, with notable exceptions including Braid, Super Meat Boy, and Limbo. It was Minecraft that finally showed how indie games can be just as popular as games made by developers with far more resources and manpower.