More Than Just Walking
I spent about an hour and a half playing the first two stories of this game. This game is a great example of what scholar Henry Jenkins calls “narrative architecture”. Jenkins says that game designers are like architects who build a space, and they put “narrative possibilities” inside that space. In my play session, I found that “walking” in this game is a very active way to make players feel scared, show hidden stories, and make us feel like we are really there.
1. Feeling Scared: First-Person View and Sound
From the very start, the game makes you feel nervous and curious because of the first-person view. You see everything through Edith’s eyes and you walk very slowly. You cannot run or jump around, which forces you to look at all the creepy details in this old, quiet house. This view works perfectly with the music because when you walk close to locked doors or dark corners, the music changes and makes you feel more worried. After I read about the game’s story after the game night, I found out that this family has a tragic curse where everyone dies young. The first-person view is perfect for this because it makes you feel like you are actually stepping into a dangerous situation, and you feel like there is something happening around you. ( But when I ask Butch if this game is scary , he said no , which I found opposite! Even now, when I write this blog, I can still remember the scary vibe …)
2. Nested Design: Breaking the Limits of the House
The second way walking tells the story is through the game’s nested design. Physically, you are just walking inside a small, locked-up old house, but the game uses this limit to create a space that can expand forever. By walking into a locked bedroom and reading a diary or a letter, you suddenly enter a totally different dream world. Molly’s story is a perfect example: the moment you open her diary, the bedroom walls disappear, and the way you move completely changes. You are no longer walking on two legs, but instead become a cat following a bird, a sea monster swimming in the water, an owl flying in the sky, and a wild beast hunting on land. By putting these crazy dreams inside a realistic bedroom, the game turns walking into a magic door to endless different scenes. This matches Jenkins’ idea of “environmental storytelling,” where the physical space itself does the work of telling the story.
3. Game Interactivity: Making Us Feel Involved
Finally, this game shows why games are different from movies and books. In a movie, you just watch a sad story; in a book, you just read it. But in this game, you can decide what is going to happen next, you have to press the buttons yourself to make the story go on. Jenkins notes that games let players actually “enact” or do the narrative events. When you play as Molly, you don’t just watch her hunt; your own hands have to press the buttons on the controller to make the animals catch prey. This makes you feel much more connected to the character because your own physical actions are driving the story.
In conclusion, “walking” in this game is not boring at all. By building a great space, the designers use the first-person view, nested stories, and simple controls to turn a simple walk into a very deep experience about death and family memories.
