I wanted to take a look at one of my favorite games, Doki Doki Literature Club. Mechanically, there are a lot of elements that the game uses, and also subverts. The base game is seemingly a harmless romance visual novel. Like in most visual novels, there are some very simple mechanics, like small mini-games and dialogue choices that influence the future of the story and characters. The player is seemingly able to choose which girl character they want to become “closer” with, and this creates intrigue from the start. How do you pick which one you want? What is this weird stuff going on in the background? The aesthetic of the game adds so much to the experience, especially when combined with these (ostensibly drab) mechanics. As you continue playing, the game starts to “break,” and there is where a sense of unease sets in for the player. What really are these choices leading to? At a certain point in the game, there’s some very violent imagery that indicates that you’re not going back to a nice romance simulator, and as it continues on, the player is forced to interact with my favorite mechanic: leaving the game. A necessity for literal out-of-the-box thinking implores the player to leave the game and peer into the source files in order to complete the ending. This is amazing because it really brings elements that have existed in ARGs for years into a more mainstream game—and uses them flawlessly. In order to win, you have to delete files from the game directory! It feels like you’re doing something you’re not supposed to, which is so exciting for the gameplay.
