For my Critical Play, I played A Dark Room by Michael Townsend. It can be played on iOS, Android, and Nintendo Switch, but I chose to simply play it on my web browser where it is available for free. It is a text based resource management game that slowly gives you more context about the world you are playing in. The game is very easy to play and understand, so I would say this game could be enjoyed by most players. However, the target audience would be players that enjoy creative storytelling, text based games, and resource management. Overall, the game invites the player to care about the world through use of formal elements and creative storytelling. However, there was one particular aspect that took me out of the world and made me feel like I was playing a video game.
The game starts out really strong. I immediately knew I wanted to play this for my Critical Play after looking at the start screen for 2 seconds. The blank expanse with only one button you can press is such a great design choice that creates intrinsic motivation. I’m instantly curious, and there is such a low barrier to entry. Just press “light fire”. This home screen is also using formal elements really beautifully. The huge expanse of empty space subverts your expectations and matches the minimalistic nature of the whole game. You can see this in the image on the left. It also makes your progression in the game feel very salient. As your community grows, the screen gets more busy, as you can see in the image below. The contrast between the screen at the start of the game and towards the end of the game makes this change very clear.
The game’s narrative architecture also strengthened my emotional investment in the world. Since you start in just one room with no information, you feel vulnerable and unsure of yourself. However, as you progress and build out a society, you start to feel more confident in the decisions you’re making as you are more familiar with how the world works. You get outside the room and can start exploring forests and villages. By the time I had finished playing for this report, I was super curious what other information would be right around the corner. I was particularly intrigued by what time period this game takes place during. It definitely feels somewhat medieval at first, but the abilities you unlock keep advancing in terms of technology. I wouldn’t be surprised if it takes place in modern times or in the future, with you just starting in a more rural location. The fact that you learn about the world through the environment allows the pacing of the game to be controlled and always keeps the player intrigued. As you explore more locations, your understanding and abilities grow.
As for the aspect that took me out of the game, at one point a pop up appeared that you can see to the left. It read, “a strange thrumming, pounding and crashing. visions of people and places, of a huge machine and twisting curves.”
I was given the option to give in to the urges or ignore them. I chose to give in, curious to see where the game would take me. I was brought to a screen of interactive text and started to read through it. You can see a screenshot of this below. At first, I thought this was a meta offshoot of A Dark Room and would contribute to the original story. However, I eventually realized that this was simply a different game by the same creator, called Penrose. A quick Reddit search told me that I wasn’t the only person confused by this. I felt a little miffed by this, as I had just barely started playing the game when this advertisement appeared. From my searches online, it seems that it continues to pop up throughout the game if you first choose to ignore the urges. If the creators insist on having an advertisement in their game, I think it would have been better placed later on so I could spend more time getting to know the world of A Dark Room before being drawn out of it. However, I would recommend they simply advertise Penrose in other places entirely.
Ethics
In A Dark Room, the body is depicted as a source of interchangeable labor. The mechanic that most clearly displays this is the panel where you can reassign the people living in your village to different roles. Each role uses and provides a certain amount of resources, and villagers can be assigned to any role. Essentially, if you have 15 people living in your village, you can assign each one to any role at any time. You can see the control panel for this below. This mechanic felt a bit strange as a player since it disconnects you from the village. Rather than seeing people as individuals, they are just a means to an end. As far as I can tell, that end is the accumulation of resources. This feels like a pretty bland worldview to have. To be fair, it seems like we are in a pretty bleak situation (maybe post-apocalyptic, maybe medieval times?), so I think a sense of desperation is communicated to players through this mechanic. However, I think the game would be more enjoyable if this were varied a bit. For example, maybe certain individuals want to stick together or require more meat than others. Perhaps more of the villagers could have specializations, and if they are working within their specialization they become more efficient.
