Critical Play: Play like a Feminist – Valerie

Florence is an interactive story game created by Mountains. It is available on Android, iOS, Nintendo and Windows, and can be played by people of all ages. The story and message may resonate most with teenagers and young adults. 

To play Florence as a feminist means to experience the vulnerable everyday struggles of a female character, which is not typically common in video games. It means to accept its unconventional format as a valid form of gameplay. Florence intertwines feminist theories by promoting the ideas of agency and independence, and challenging the expectations toward romantic relationships. A main critique for the game is to place less emphasis on Florence’s relationship with Krish, but more with her mother and, most importantly, herself. 

Florence effectively challenges the existing notions of a narrative video game. As a soothing interactive story, it allows the player to remain in a “never-ending narrative middle” rather than engaging in a conventional climax-centric narrative, which was a rule imposed by a male theorist, as mentioned in “Play like a Feminist” by Shira Chess. The narrative also jumps between different points in time rather than following a linear timeline, accurately representing the feeling of reminiscence or an unpredictable train of thought. Typically, women shy away from “hardcore” video games because of exclusivity and harassment. However, the unconventional format of Florence makes it a game more approachable to a female audience. As someone who never felt like I could identify as a “gamer”, this game really helped me feel comfortable and included. Rather than catering to the male perspective through explosions, violence and unrealistic body types, it enhances the emotional and personal aspects of the game, and focuses on women’s experience, notably through the use of a female main character. 

We play the game from the perspective of Florence, a 25-year-old woman who is struggling to navigate her work and relationships. From the start, the player learns to embody Florence, witness the adversities a woman faces in life, and resonate with the feeling of wanting to reconnect with your inner child and chase your dreams. We are able to experience the small, vulnerable moments in everyday life, rather than only the most grand, dramatic plot changes, which only makes the character more relatable. Moreover, by allowing the player to make choices and take an active role in the story, Florence promotes the feeling of agency. For example, in the scenes involving the phone call with the mother, you can incorporate your own thoughts and desires by hanging up, picking up, or choosing different tones of dialogue: “Okay, got it” vs. “No, I’m busy, don’t find me a boyfriend” etc. However, this all only creates the illusion of control – the player doesn’t actually make an impact on the overarching storyline. Nevertheless, it still represents “gaining a voice in a system of power” and teaches ideas important to feminism.

Early in the story we are introduced to Krish, Florence’s lover. Krish helps defy the traditional expectations of a heterosexual relationship by acting as a respectful and equal partner to Florence. The two characters engage in a mutually symbiotic relationship where not one person is in power and they push each other to follow their dreams. The game also shows the raw and difficult moments of a relationship. Despite the touching romance, the narrative does not conclude in the “satisfying” way one would expect – that the pair would eventually find their way back to each other after a bad breakup. Rather, they each go their separate ways while taking the lessons learnt from the relationship. Florence was able to gain independence, reconcile with female figures in her life and pursue her dream of being an artist. This ending shows that women do not need to rely on a man to feel fulfilled or to succeed.

A piece of critique regarding the ending was that it felt a little rushed. After Florence recovered from the breakup, the game briefly showed scenes of her success in art and conversations with her mom before ending. At that moment, I wished that the story could have spent more time looking at the relationship between Florence and her mom, as well as her life after Krish. I suspect that by witnessing Florence’s self-driven path toward her dreams, the players could get a clearer picture of what the game is trying to express, and to more deeply understand Florence’s inner life. By spending too much time on Krish and Florence’s relationship, the game takes away from the idea that Florence doesn’t necessarily need a man to achieve happiness.

In general, Florence has a beautiful and calming art style that draws the player into Florence’s world and makes them want to stay forever. The game cleverly uses shapes and colors to represent emotion. For example, rounder shapes mean pleasant tones while sharper shapes mean harsh tones. We also see Florence’s world go from bleak and blue to colorful and vibrant as she rediscovers herself. In the picture below, we see that they also used red to depict an argument – a great moment of showing and not telling. 

Discussion question: With the gaming industry being predominantly male, how can the players broaden the definition of “real” games and generate more inclusivity within the gaming community?