I appreciated starting the course with this game, as I was able to complete it in one sitting in a few hours span. I cannot say that I had fun while playing What Remains of Edith Finch. It was such a beautifully intriguing, tragic story that I enjoyed both for its narrative and imagination, but I would not consider it fun to play. To be completely honest, it was a little depressing to live out the deaths of the characters. In a way, by going into their letters and journals and reliving their deaths, you are the one who kills them. That being said, I loved how each death/character was so unique in the gameplay of their story. My favorite by far was Lewis’ tale of how he became trapped in his own dream world. It required some concentration to be the hero of such a beautiful, fairy-tale land but also be working tirelessly in the factory at the same time. I loved how the imaginary world slowly overtook reality, and the graphics of the land reminded me of The Little Prince. It made me so sad because I realized pretty early one what was going to be happen to Lewis. As a beginner gamer, Edith Finch didn’t give me too much trouble, although I need to get my hands on an actual controller or at least a mouse since I was using the arrow keys and trackpad. The only part I really got stuck on was during Molly’s story as the monster; I got a little lost and turned around. Each story was engaging and I felt many different emotions depending on whose story I was living. I think that this was a wonderful example of how video games should blend story with gameplay. There were no true cut scenes -- besides the very beginning and end -- as I had to move around constantly to get more snippets of Edith’s narrative. The game never gave me enough time to actually read the family members’ memoirs because it just thrust me into the individual’s life, or rather, their end. To know what was going on, I had to truly experience it and progress in the individual stories and in the rooms. I really think that making each story unique and tailored to the individual was an extremely smart decision. It keeps the player on their toes and intrigued again and again. I found myself almost looking forward to the new death, as morbid as that might sound. Although I don’t think the game needs it, if the developers ever wanted to make a sequel, I think a very cool thing would be if it falls Edith’s son and how he avoids countess bizarre deaths, breaking his family’s curse time and time again. It would be an interesting continuation of the original game. I really hope that the other games that the class looks at during this semester match the level of technique and interactive storytelling that Edith Finch seems to have mastered.
Screenshot from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CCcxXA4lWOc
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