Colonel Sanders Dating Sim was an unputdownable game for me. Even in the midst of finals, with the bleariest of eyes and running on minimal hours of sleep this past week, I could not get myself to stop playing the game once I started it. Towards the beginning, I wasn’t sure if the choices I was making were having any substantial effect on the narrative. But then suddenly, I made a choice that led me to my demise — the game ended. Then and there. I was crushed! That’s when I realized. Even if it feels like a low-stakes game, and even though my choices within this game seem innocuous, they could have major consequences within the game world! With this realisation, suddenly the stakes of the game were raised, as was the adrenaline rush I got from every single choice I made — not sure if it would lead to my character’s demise or victory.
This is an essential element of what made Colonel Sanders’ Dating Sim stand out amongst the other games this quarter. While success always hinges on making the right move in the game, here, it is more about making the right decision that will carry forward the narrative in the right direction, rather than the usual skills required in the game — such as fast reflexes required in shooting at targets, clever thinking required in resource management, and so on. More specifically, it almost seems as if the game is trying to test the alignment of your behavior in the game to the societal norms of the game world — for example, when it boots you from the narrative for reading the room wrong and attempting to kiss Colonel Sanders too soon. (Unfortunately, I am speaking from personal experience with this example!)
I felt this social training acutely during my gameplay. I caught myself wondering, what would be the right decision in this game? Rather than, which decision feels most true to me? For example, when trying to choose between flattering Colonel Sanders to deepen the connection further, or playfully dissing him towards the same effect. The former felt more “correct” but the latter felt more “me.” Ultimately, I went with the former, to avoid being booted from the game. This part of the game almost felt like a conditioning of the mind, i.e. a process of telling a player how they should be thinking.
I love narrative games, and Colonel Sanders Dating Sim was a great example of the creativity and joy of the genre. The fact that it’s sponsored (or something of that nature, at least) by KFC makes it even better — it’s so random. All in all, it’s a very enjoyable game which takes advantage of the affordances of its genre.
I played till the very end, and the culmination of all those hours of playing and strategizing about the right moves to get closer to Colonel Sanders? The fruit of all that labor and time, of waiting for the right moment to strike to make a move on my crush Colonel Sanders? Colonel Sanders finally pulls me aside at the university formal dance and… offers me a discounted meal for when he opens his upcoming restaurant. The game ending sequence plays, telling me this is the official end of the game, and I feel like I’ve been punk’d. It was a hilariously underwhelming end to an equally random game play. For some reason, though, it feels even more perfect than it would have if it were to have ended with a Happily Ever After for me and Colonel Sanders.
