Frst a news update on Camp NaNoWriMo....>.> I'm still incredibly behind but with a bit of encouragement and competition I'm working to get caught up. I suppose it's just a matter of sitting down and actually hashing out my ideas with a chainsaw before I get stalled too much. Anyways I have a pretty good idea for where my story will be going and it actually seems to be something I'd consider reading! I hope...
Onto the blog proper!
Today I'd like to talk about the 'Silent Heroes' you see in video games (in particular FPS games). Now in a lot of cases games just simply don't have voices for the characters and that is just that, but sometimes you'll get a game where the character's silence sometimes feels as if it were meant to be. Just to give an example of a few games where this is so (that I know of); The Half-Life series, Portal, The Marathon Series, and The Bioshock Series. I probably am missing a few but these in particular I'd like to focus on. One reason why I focus on video-games however is that the 'silent hero' is something that I feel can only really be done in video games. After all a book where the main character does not talk at all would get awfully boring and probably end up being a side character. In a movie it would be easier, but still not as do-able as in video games where, while the hero doesn't speak the player still gets to be interactive with the story.
One of the things that has always intrigued me about this concept has been the question of the protagonist's agency. You, the player, control the character's actions, but the character is constantly put in situations by some 'other force.' On top of all that, your character never has a voice. Is your character a tool to be used, or are you an opposing force against those who put you in such a situation? I also find it interesting that sometimes the protagonist's lack of voice is sometimes commented on, as if other people note that it's strange you never talk. Everything in games like these seem to put the player apart from everyone else. The character is even put apart from the enemy and the allies, even if these two sides think it otherwise.
The Marathon series really puts to the forefront the question of the character being a tool or a natural/human force. I've already posted about Marathon in a previous post so check it out if you'd like a bit of background, but it isn't vital. Essentially I find it fascinating that Bungie was able to give you (the character) a conflict between yourself and your controllers that plays itself out in the objectives you pursue and yet you are still lead from place to place by anyone other than yourself. Granted, with gaming technology back then it would have been hard to come up with dialogue for your character inside of an FPS environment, and Bungie did give its hero a voice in the Halo series, but in Marathon I felt I had to ask myself why did Mr. Security Officer never talk? Indeed the whole game is about the hero's agency and freedom of action; one line that is repeated in the series is, "Escape will make me free."
Valve's Half-Life series is very similar to Marathon in this regard. Gordon Freeman is a man who, "Is the right man, in the wrong place," constantly. He is put in these places however. I have to wonder about what is really going on behind Freeman's glasses. Even when Freeman is about to break free at certain points, or seems to be making his own way, the story takes a twist and puts him right back in square one. Is Freeman a free man? Or is he merely a tool? We think of voice as playing a pivotal role in how we express ourselves and our agency, but if that were taken away...? I like wondering about Freeman's role in the story, and what kind of humanity he represents, and the story there would be incredibly complex. Sometimes he seems to be a hero at points, and others an unwitting ally of those with ulterior motives.
Tied to Half-Life is Portal, which I've posted about before as well. While my explanation for Chell in my second part of the post seems to negate what I've been saying about the silent hero, in some ways I still feel it to be valid. Perhaps it is more valid in Portal than in other games. In the Portal story you are actually a test subject in a laboratory and your goal is to escape. You are placed in a clear situation where you must break free of the entity that is directing you from place to place. When that control breaks down, literally the walls of the facility become meaningless and you then have to make your way. But, even your escape seems to be directed some how in subtle hints, left behind by painted symbols. Is Chell a test subject or is she choosing to break free from all tests? From here I suppose that these silent heroes are really silent so that they can have a multitude of voices. I feel now that maybe these characters are made this way to represent humanity in these types of situations.
The last series I'll examine is Bioshock 1 (I haven't played the others...). Again this game is very similar to the above games for it's silent hero who has no voice, and is set in a world that is a competition between nature and science. This conflict can clearly be seen to take place in the character himself as there are many points through the story where you are able to choose certain outcomes, and key story points where you cant. The whole world is designed as if to say 'this is what you really are, and there isn't anything you can do about it' but when in fact, the situation might be more complicated.
To wrap up, I feel that silent heroes in video games are an interesting symbol in stories. They can be done well or horribly, but when done well they really mess around with your head and get you to wonder just what the game itself means. To compare; Games where the player has a voice, the story is scripted. While the meaning (if it is a good game) can change just like when one re-reads books, the plot is still carried out in a particular way. The player goes through the game experiencing a situation in an almost complete manner. But when the character's voice is taken away, the player must contemplate just what that means in relation to the story. I constantly feel like I have to figure out why the game developers wanted a character to no be able to speak in certain key story moments. I don't mean to say that 'all' games should have silent characters; I do love games that have incredible stories however they are told. What I do think though, is that the ones where a seemingly vital part of any story is taken away, become interesting to puzzle out and analyze; Why was this chosen to tell the story? What does it change about 'us'?
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Monday, July 11, 2011
Review of 'Spice and Wolf'
NaNo update: Well to say it simply...I'm soooo behind! It's difficult to get focused enough to write like this! It's good for me though and I'm planning on sprinting ahead to catch up...but I'm actually confident as to where my story will be going. The tough part in my plot is yet to come, but I'll deal with that when it comes around.
Onto the blog proper.
A few weeks ago I stumbled on a rather interesting anime while on Hulu. At first I didn't know exactly what to think. Reading the description I didn't feel like this was a show that I'd get into. And even after the first few minutes of the first episode I was a bit unsure. The animation might not be the best or the most iconic and it actually is a little sparse. What I mean is, in a lot of anime there is action (people moving and such) going on constantly, and in heavily populated scenes there is a sense of a great many people. In 'Spice and Wolf' it's mostly just Kraft and Holo sitting or standing and talking, but do not let this put you off! I was drawn in by the delightful dialogue and very intriguing yet relaxed plot. Essentially Kraft is a traveling merchant and Holo is a wolf goddess. Their adventures seem to come right out of a book of myths. Instead of having action and fight scenes like in many other anime, or having an intense and highly dramatic love plot 'Spice and Wolf' mostly has to do with their partnership and with trade. The key aspect to most all the episodes is Kraft's job as a merchant and Holo's interest in it. Of course Holo and Kraft have an interesting relationship that you might say includes love, I won't say that it's typical of other anime. This to me is a drawing point as well as I keep on having to reevaluate how the two interact just as they have to reevaluate their relationship as well.
Now on Hulu the first of the two seasons is dubbed. But, to all those hardcore anime fans out there I will say that I think I like the dubbed version better than the subbed version. The voice actors for both Holo and Kraft are excellent and I grew fond of them. In particular Holo's actor got across Holo's dry wit and imperious attitude quite well and made me smile quite often when she did something ridiculous. Kraft's actor also seemed to convey a rather relaxed and sharp minded merchant. One thing I like about the dub is that none of the characters are voiced by idiot ditzy sounding people with high pitched voices, or with gruff over exaggerated male ones. This to me is a happy medium that gets across what the story is actually trying to do. So in short, if you are wanting a nice relaxing anime to watch that is not one of those typical love drama's that is set in the present day then 'Spice and Wolf' is the way to go. It's free in it's entirety on Hulu (Although for season 2 you have to sign up because it's apparently adult content, although I can't figure out why).
I apologize for this being a shorter post, but I do not want to give anything away about 'Spice and Wolf.' Also I was caught a bit shorthanded this weekend. Next sunday you can expect a full length post to be sure!
Onto the blog proper.
A few weeks ago I stumbled on a rather interesting anime while on Hulu. At first I didn't know exactly what to think. Reading the description I didn't feel like this was a show that I'd get into. And even after the first few minutes of the first episode I was a bit unsure. The animation might not be the best or the most iconic and it actually is a little sparse. What I mean is, in a lot of anime there is action (people moving and such) going on constantly, and in heavily populated scenes there is a sense of a great many people. In 'Spice and Wolf' it's mostly just Kraft and Holo sitting or standing and talking, but do not let this put you off! I was drawn in by the delightful dialogue and very intriguing yet relaxed plot. Essentially Kraft is a traveling merchant and Holo is a wolf goddess. Their adventures seem to come right out of a book of myths. Instead of having action and fight scenes like in many other anime, or having an intense and highly dramatic love plot 'Spice and Wolf' mostly has to do with their partnership and with trade. The key aspect to most all the episodes is Kraft's job as a merchant and Holo's interest in it. Of course Holo and Kraft have an interesting relationship that you might say includes love, I won't say that it's typical of other anime. This to me is a drawing point as well as I keep on having to reevaluate how the two interact just as they have to reevaluate their relationship as well.
Now on Hulu the first of the two seasons is dubbed. But, to all those hardcore anime fans out there I will say that I think I like the dubbed version better than the subbed version. The voice actors for both Holo and Kraft are excellent and I grew fond of them. In particular Holo's actor got across Holo's dry wit and imperious attitude quite well and made me smile quite often when she did something ridiculous. Kraft's actor also seemed to convey a rather relaxed and sharp minded merchant. One thing I like about the dub is that none of the characters are voiced by idiot ditzy sounding people with high pitched voices, or with gruff over exaggerated male ones. This to me is a happy medium that gets across what the story is actually trying to do. So in short, if you are wanting a nice relaxing anime to watch that is not one of those typical love drama's that is set in the present day then 'Spice and Wolf' is the way to go. It's free in it's entirety on Hulu (Although for season 2 you have to sign up because it's apparently adult content, although I can't figure out why).
I apologize for this being a shorter post, but I do not want to give anything away about 'Spice and Wolf.' Also I was caught a bit shorthanded this weekend. Next sunday you can expect a full length post to be sure!
Saturday, July 2, 2011
1st day of NaNoWriMo Camp!
I feel that the timing of my blogpost with the start of NaNo Camp is fortuitous. For those of you who do not know NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month (Link: http://www.nanowrimo.org/) where crazy writers decide that in the month of November to write a 50,000 word novel all in one go. Imagine this as a literary marathon. This is entirely about goal setting and while there are bragging rights involved as rewards (and some neat badges) there are no penalties for non-completion...in fact don't even think about it in terms of complete and incomplete! The whole idea is that writers should sit down, write, and challenge themselves to produce.
Now what is Camp NaNoWriMo? Well...it's essentially the same thing but during the summer! (and possibly other months as well? Link: http://www.campnanowrimo.org/sign_in) Although it's still in beta phase, prospective campers can get together with others and produce the same crazy schedule by choice. 50,000 words over the month of July and I'm diving right in. This is actually my first official involvement with anything WriMo so I'm very excited to be involved with the community. I've done a bit of writing in the past but nothing I've done has been on this scale in this time frame. This will be my first real attempt at writing a novel as all my experience up till now has been with short stories. I don't intend on documenting everything that comes along, but I think every Sunday along with the main post I'll put a tiny blurb at the top for highlights of the weeks writing.
The title of the story I'm working on is titled, "Tangled in Steel." Here's the synopsis I posted up on my camper profile page (there is also an excerpt from my first bit of writing there as well):
"A young girl's father on one of the backwater moons of Saturn has a failing merchant business. In order to save the business from a greedy and tyrannical strong-man he must risk all on a trading venture through pirate infested space. But alas! There's a rogue warship stalking the orbits here, rumor has it it's Martian but no one knows for sure. All (insert Daughter's name here) knows is that her father is missing and she must save him (and that she must avoid marrying said strong-man)."
Well I guess failing Merchant business is a bit exaggerated, it's more like struggling. The story includes love, sadness, action, suspense, comedy, and probably other things I haven't thought of yet! When I started yesterday I felt a little like I was in over my head...How am I going to make this story fill 50,000 words? Well that's part of the fun!
Now what is Camp NaNoWriMo? Well...it's essentially the same thing but during the summer! (and possibly other months as well? Link: http://www.campnanowrimo.org/sign_in) Although it's still in beta phase, prospective campers can get together with others and produce the same crazy schedule by choice. 50,000 words over the month of July and I'm diving right in. This is actually my first official involvement with anything WriMo so I'm very excited to be involved with the community. I've done a bit of writing in the past but nothing I've done has been on this scale in this time frame. This will be my first real attempt at writing a novel as all my experience up till now has been with short stories. I don't intend on documenting everything that comes along, but I think every Sunday along with the main post I'll put a tiny blurb at the top for highlights of the weeks writing.
The title of the story I'm working on is titled, "Tangled in Steel." Here's the synopsis I posted up on my camper profile page (there is also an excerpt from my first bit of writing there as well):
"A young girl's father on one of the backwater moons of Saturn has a failing merchant business. In order to save the business from a greedy and tyrannical strong-man he must risk all on a trading venture through pirate infested space. But alas! There's a rogue warship stalking the orbits here, rumor has it it's Martian but no one knows for sure. All (insert Daughter's name here) knows is that her father is missing and she must save him (and that she must avoid marrying said strong-man)."
Well I guess failing Merchant business is a bit exaggerated, it's more like struggling. The story includes love, sadness, action, suspense, comedy, and probably other things I haven't thought of yet! When I started yesterday I felt a little like I was in over my head...How am I going to make this story fill 50,000 words? Well that's part of the fun!
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Tension You Can Cut With a Knife
Today's blogpost will be some advice for writing tense scenes, or scenes with action in them. I do realize that I am not the best writer in the world (and I'm not even published...yet), but hopefully what I have to say will help anyone in this area. Furthermore, I also hope that if there are any flaws or missing items in my advice that those who read this will point them out! Onto the blog proper
I enjoy writing face paced scenes, or scenes that play on high emotions, when time seems to slow down or speed up for all involved. It gives me the chance to lead the reader along and be made to feel as if they to were in the same situation. You know, good heart pumping tension! One of the greatest helps I have for writing scenes like this is music. Ordinarily when I'm writing normally (or a tough scene) music sometimes gets in the way and I prefer quiet. But what I've noticed for myself is that when I'm writing tension/action, music of a like-type helps me. The pace of the piece of music I have chosen for a scene helps me to let the flow of emotion and senses get written down on the page. I can use the music to help shape images in my head and then let them flow into my writing (or so I hope!). The idea here is that action or tension is something you use to make the reader feel tense. Music for me, is a good way to help channel my efforts in this. However when I write like this it is far from perfect. But when I do have it written down I can then chip away at the general structure of a scene and still preserve the essence of urgency. I can even check and correct key observations and details that must be included.
I've found that writing tension or action cannot be too thought out initially or you end up adding in so much to the scene that it becomes another part of the prose. For instance a WW2 action movie has action and tension, whereas a WW2 documentary is more bland and all parts of it are on roughly the same level. Action or tension I feel has to be set somewhat apart from the normal flow of the story (although the boundaries are fuzzy). When I read I usually know that a scene is part of the action or tension is when I begin to feel my heart race, or that when I read I sort of rush through the words to get the feel rather than what is actually there. I want to be able to write scenes where the reader is rushing right along side the characters, feeling the urgency of the situation.
What I've also noticed about action in particular is that it cannot be written too long, or if it is that there should be a few respites (both for the character and the reader). Recently in my own current short story project I found that an action sequence had become far too long. For the purposes of my short story I felt it became cumbersome and too strung out. One of the dangers with writing action or tension is that you can only string the reader on for so long. After a certain point the tension or action becomes meaningless and normal. Action and tension should be punctuation points in a story, peaks in the plot. Having brief pauses in such scenes helps if the action or tension must be continued. The reader then has a chance to catch a mental breath before plunging into the fray again, and actually process what has just happened. However if the action or tension in a given story is such that there couldn't be any breaks then it must be condensed. A long sword fight for example could be condensed into an overall description while still preserving the sense of tension and urgency.
Interestingly enough, I believe the ones to be the best at sustaining action and tension are first-person-shooter game makers. If you pay attention you'll notice that a FPS game is not 100% action all the way through (or at least the good ones aren't). The Halo and Call of Duty series are good examples. Both contain short punctuated action sequences, or in the case of longer missions, breaks from the action. This allows the player's senses time to recover and get ready for the next bit of fun. The fact that these games are so popular is evident in their control of these skills.
I enjoy writing face paced scenes, or scenes that play on high emotions, when time seems to slow down or speed up for all involved. It gives me the chance to lead the reader along and be made to feel as if they to were in the same situation. You know, good heart pumping tension! One of the greatest helps I have for writing scenes like this is music. Ordinarily when I'm writing normally (or a tough scene) music sometimes gets in the way and I prefer quiet. But what I've noticed for myself is that when I'm writing tension/action, music of a like-type helps me. The pace of the piece of music I have chosen for a scene helps me to let the flow of emotion and senses get written down on the page. I can use the music to help shape images in my head and then let them flow into my writing (or so I hope!). The idea here is that action or tension is something you use to make the reader feel tense. Music for me, is a good way to help channel my efforts in this. However when I write like this it is far from perfect. But when I do have it written down I can then chip away at the general structure of a scene and still preserve the essence of urgency. I can even check and correct key observations and details that must be included.
I've found that writing tension or action cannot be too thought out initially or you end up adding in so much to the scene that it becomes another part of the prose. For instance a WW2 action movie has action and tension, whereas a WW2 documentary is more bland and all parts of it are on roughly the same level. Action or tension I feel has to be set somewhat apart from the normal flow of the story (although the boundaries are fuzzy). When I read I usually know that a scene is part of the action or tension is when I begin to feel my heart race, or that when I read I sort of rush through the words to get the feel rather than what is actually there. I want to be able to write scenes where the reader is rushing right along side the characters, feeling the urgency of the situation.
What I've also noticed about action in particular is that it cannot be written too long, or if it is that there should be a few respites (both for the character and the reader). Recently in my own current short story project I found that an action sequence had become far too long. For the purposes of my short story I felt it became cumbersome and too strung out. One of the dangers with writing action or tension is that you can only string the reader on for so long. After a certain point the tension or action becomes meaningless and normal. Action and tension should be punctuation points in a story, peaks in the plot. Having brief pauses in such scenes helps if the action or tension must be continued. The reader then has a chance to catch a mental breath before plunging into the fray again, and actually process what has just happened. However if the action or tension in a given story is such that there couldn't be any breaks then it must be condensed. A long sword fight for example could be condensed into an overall description while still preserving the sense of tension and urgency.
Interestingly enough, I believe the ones to be the best at sustaining action and tension are first-person-shooter game makers. If you pay attention you'll notice that a FPS game is not 100% action all the way through (or at least the good ones aren't). The Halo and Call of Duty series are good examples. Both contain short punctuated action sequences, or in the case of longer missions, breaks from the action. This allows the player's senses time to recover and get ready for the next bit of fun. The fact that these games are so popular is evident in their control of these skills.
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Words to Make the Mind Wander
One of the things I enjoy most about written stories are their ability to make you wander down thought paths. This is also one of my only consolations when reading stories that aren't particularly good, as I can still expand my mind by working out the flaws or pearls of quality that lay buried within it. But in a good story, sometimes I find myself pausing mid-sentence and start to think bout a particular plot twist or story element. Sometimes my eyes continue to drift down the page even though I had stopped reading lines before.
This is one thing that is severely lacking in other kinds of media (with the exception of music and still art which I will get to shortly). Not because of their quality, but because there is no halt to the motion. Even in the slowest movie, video game, or even radio broadcast you are pushed along a river of information that you can only adequately asses after it reaches journey's end. I know you can pause games or films along the way, but to me it is not the same. There is a continuity that is key to these types of media that needs a flow. With books your mind can actually continue the story on tangents that are not even written down, but that you make up as you think. Instead of being pulled down a story, when I read, I feel like I'm strolling through memories at my own leisure. I feel better able to comprehend the world that is being painted. And, even if the story is not that great, I can turn aside from the pages for a while and explore the alley ways that the author didn't think to develop or continue (which happens a great deal when I read my own work!). When I play games or watch movies I feel like I'm 'living' through the story instead of recalling it or being a spectator. In my own head when I read I feel like I can pause the action of a book and yet still be part of it by being able to move through the world as it's frozen and explore any facet I choose. In a movie or game for example you can only really process what you have seen before and what's in front of you; because that is where the action is (this is one reason though, why I like quality 'behind the scenes' additions like LOTR, which would be a subject of another post). Even in non-fiction this is the case. You can pause anywhere you like and go to the places where events occurred or research more deeply into what you see on a page.
I believe my thoughts also apply to still art, and in a different sense, to music. When you observe art you observe a thing that tells not a story, but a representation of a story. Comic books of course fuzzy the line a great deal by combining these two media. Music I feel also should be included here. Yes it does have a continuity that is reminiscent of movies or video games, but instead of pulling you, it leads you. Music has a peculiar ability to let me imagine any sort of story I wish when listening. For example even when listening to music that some people find adventurous or happy I might feel sad or contemplative. Music, like the written word can let a person lose themselves down trains of thought that change or clarify each time it's listened to. This is not to say that video games and movies do not change in meaning, but that usually comes after you watch/experience it.
As I write this however, even in video games is my thinking bit fuzzy. I feel sometimes that in some games that I enjoy quite a bit there are built in pauses, or in some cases branching points. I feel in particular that a good example would be Fallout 3. For those of you who do not know the game, Fallout 3 is an rpg, but an open one. Meaning you can choose to pursue the main plot as quickly as possible, or branch off at any point to explore the rest of the world as you will. But this, in the context of that particular plot has it's own problems. I think a closer example to built in pauses would be games such as Portal 1-2, the Half-Life series, and Bungie's games. These example typically have short but periodical vignette scenes or quiet breaths where the player can then absorb particular parts of the story. I think, in particular the Marathon trilogy of Bungie does an excellent job in this where the story is actually told through text. The gaming part then becomes just a tool so one can get to the next terminal which you can read and think about as you search for the next one.
To go back to books and written stories, this is the effect I hope to achieve in my writing (hopefully because of quality). Reader's should have the freedom to explore the dark or shaded areas of a novel and fill in the blanks. Even the most thorough plots leave so much unexplored, and indeed, the more complete a world is the more questions a reader then has. A good story should be like the most complex maze every imagined: because that maze is built by every step a reader takes in whatever direction is chose.
This is one thing that is severely lacking in other kinds of media (with the exception of music and still art which I will get to shortly). Not because of their quality, but because there is no halt to the motion. Even in the slowest movie, video game, or even radio broadcast you are pushed along a river of information that you can only adequately asses after it reaches journey's end. I know you can pause games or films along the way, but to me it is not the same. There is a continuity that is key to these types of media that needs a flow. With books your mind can actually continue the story on tangents that are not even written down, but that you make up as you think. Instead of being pulled down a story, when I read, I feel like I'm strolling through memories at my own leisure. I feel better able to comprehend the world that is being painted. And, even if the story is not that great, I can turn aside from the pages for a while and explore the alley ways that the author didn't think to develop or continue (which happens a great deal when I read my own work!). When I play games or watch movies I feel like I'm 'living' through the story instead of recalling it or being a spectator. In my own head when I read I feel like I can pause the action of a book and yet still be part of it by being able to move through the world as it's frozen and explore any facet I choose. In a movie or game for example you can only really process what you have seen before and what's in front of you; because that is where the action is (this is one reason though, why I like quality 'behind the scenes' additions like LOTR, which would be a subject of another post). Even in non-fiction this is the case. You can pause anywhere you like and go to the places where events occurred or research more deeply into what you see on a page.
I believe my thoughts also apply to still art, and in a different sense, to music. When you observe art you observe a thing that tells not a story, but a representation of a story. Comic books of course fuzzy the line a great deal by combining these two media. Music I feel also should be included here. Yes it does have a continuity that is reminiscent of movies or video games, but instead of pulling you, it leads you. Music has a peculiar ability to let me imagine any sort of story I wish when listening. For example even when listening to music that some people find adventurous or happy I might feel sad or contemplative. Music, like the written word can let a person lose themselves down trains of thought that change or clarify each time it's listened to. This is not to say that video games and movies do not change in meaning, but that usually comes after you watch/experience it.
As I write this however, even in video games is my thinking bit fuzzy. I feel sometimes that in some games that I enjoy quite a bit there are built in pauses, or in some cases branching points. I feel in particular that a good example would be Fallout 3. For those of you who do not know the game, Fallout 3 is an rpg, but an open one. Meaning you can choose to pursue the main plot as quickly as possible, or branch off at any point to explore the rest of the world as you will. But this, in the context of that particular plot has it's own problems. I think a closer example to built in pauses would be games such as Portal 1-2, the Half-Life series, and Bungie's games. These example typically have short but periodical vignette scenes or quiet breaths where the player can then absorb particular parts of the story. I think, in particular the Marathon trilogy of Bungie does an excellent job in this where the story is actually told through text. The gaming part then becomes just a tool so one can get to the next terminal which you can read and think about as you search for the next one.
To go back to books and written stories, this is the effect I hope to achieve in my writing (hopefully because of quality). Reader's should have the freedom to explore the dark or shaded areas of a novel and fill in the blanks. Even the most thorough plots leave so much unexplored, and indeed, the more complete a world is the more questions a reader then has. A good story should be like the most complex maze every imagined: because that maze is built by every step a reader takes in whatever direction is chose.
Thursday, June 16, 2011
My Portal 2 Review Pt 2: Dear Chell
Caution! This post on Portal 2 CONTAINS SPOILERS! However, even if you have not played the game and just want to read more about it regardless of spoilers then by all means go on ahead :) (although watching a "Let's Play" Video of both Portal 1 and 2 would help you to familiarize yourself with it).
As I said in my first part of my Portal 2 Review the story is, when you actually look closely at it, amazing. It's hard to notice it in Portal 1, as the story is mostly in the scenery. Portal 1 makes you feel that you're waking up in a story almost at the end and that you're rushing to the finish. But, again, the story seems more to do about the world you're in rather than Chell...or so it seems until Portal 2.
So I figure I should put out my base theory about Chell and Glados right out at the very beginning. Glados is Caroline and Chell is Caroline's (Glados') daughter, and her father is Cave Johnson (this might be altered somewhat to say that Chell is Caroline...but I prefer above idea better). Also keep in mind this story assumes that the crazy scientist guy who writes all the stuff on the wall is not related to Chell and is just a crazy smart guy...although I suppose it could be Cave Johnson...which would also make sense for why Rat Man is still alive and cares so much about Chell...
How is this possible? Well to completely answer this question I have to start with Portal 1 and then tell a story. Frist, we have to answer why Chell starts in such an odd situation in Portal 2. Think for a moment: EVERYONE in the Aperture Labs has been killed by a neurotoxin...Except Chell. Why is Chell spared? I'm sure Glados could have circumvented whatever safe guards might have been in place around Chell (or maybe Caroline put them in place herself?) or could have found some way to kill Chell while she was sleeping. On to the next bit of information...Glados makes repeated pokes at the fact that Chell is adopted or has been given away. But notice that even in Portal 1 there is that brief mention of "Bring Your Daughter to Work Day." So by themselves (And even in combination) in Portal 1 these two bits of information do not mean much...until you add them to the bits revealed in Portal 2.
Now things get a bit tricky...So first off there is early on that mention of Wheatley's about "Bring Your Daughter..." where he says it was a bad day...that everyone was killed (which is obvious otherwise the experiments would have been taken down). So if Chell was Caroline's daughter then obviously she would have been taken on that work day. Next...I think Wheatley also talks about Chell being adopted which is odd that this continually is brought up.
Fast Forward a bit to when Glados is woken up. So now we have Glados talking about you're being adopted still, in addition to talking about your weight. I don't know about you, but for some reason this really seems like something a terror of a mother would do to her kid...X3 of course I might be wrong. So gradually you continue on until you reach Aperture's lower levels you come into contact with Aperture's earlier story and learn about Cave Johnson and Caroline. During this it is all but said that Caroline becomes Glados (Cave Johnson's last request is that if he should die, then Caroline would be put into a computer to run Aperture). Now...again up to this point it is entirely believable that Chell is just a test subject...Glados is still Caroline but there is no connection. But then you get to the absolute end of the game where Glados is talking to you before sending you off to the surface. She keeps talking about how she needed your help and that now she knew where Caroline existed but with your help she could now delete it. Also she said that at first she wanted you dead, but now just want's you to leave. This to me is very odd...and to me resembles a huge conflict between the Caroline part and the Glados part. Maybe Chell was a living form of conscience restriction on Glados and that as long as she was there Glados could not do what she wanted. But now with Chell simply 'gone' Glados has found the easier path. And Glados triumphs over the Caroline part....or does she?
Now jump ahead to the turret opera song as you ride up the elevator. Sounds nice, no? Well I did a bit of searching to find the English translation and that's when I knew (for myself at least) that Caroline was Chell's mother...The song keeps on saying things like, "My Dear Chell..." and such, even repeating at the very end 'My darling, My dear, My darling..." Could Caroline still be somewhere in Glados' mind? Maybe it's a bleedthrough that comes out in the turret's song? Maybe Glados has put the Caroline part of herself into the turrets?
Fast forward just a bit more to the ending song. Chronology-wise this actually was the part that first sparked my many questions about Portal 2. The song itself seems an odd fit for the Portal story, especially after the song "Still Alive." I listened to the words over and over, each time feeling that something was strange about it. Now I believe I know what that is. This song, to me, sounds like something a mother would say to a kid...but if that mother was still suffering internal conflict about being a mother and being a scientist (etc). I know it's a off the wall thought, but the song really does seem sad, but happy...conflicted. "You want your freedom, Take it, It's what I'm counting on." and, "You're someone else's problem now, that's what I'm counting on."
So...there you go! There are probably major holes that I'm missing here but still...this seems to make an odd sort of sense that falls in line with the Portal story...Why Chell? Why is she so important and why does Glados have such a fixation on her? Why out of all the test subjects in Portal 2 is Chell still alive and not a complete vegetable (you still jump to say you like apples....). It seems as though everything revolves around your relationship to Glados and Aperture Labs...Why would Portal 2 put you through the backstory of Aperture? I mean the obvious answer is to just tell more about Glados...but why would this be done? I refuse to believe that this is simply another case of 'background story' and that there is something more going on...
As I said in my first part of my Portal 2 Review the story is, when you actually look closely at it, amazing. It's hard to notice it in Portal 1, as the story is mostly in the scenery. Portal 1 makes you feel that you're waking up in a story almost at the end and that you're rushing to the finish. But, again, the story seems more to do about the world you're in rather than Chell...or so it seems until Portal 2.
So I figure I should put out my base theory about Chell and Glados right out at the very beginning. Glados is Caroline and Chell is Caroline's (Glados') daughter, and her father is Cave Johnson (this might be altered somewhat to say that Chell is Caroline...but I prefer above idea better). Also keep in mind this story assumes that the crazy scientist guy who writes all the stuff on the wall is not related to Chell and is just a crazy smart guy...although I suppose it could be Cave Johnson...which would also make sense for why Rat Man is still alive and cares so much about Chell...
How is this possible? Well to completely answer this question I have to start with Portal 1 and then tell a story. Frist, we have to answer why Chell starts in such an odd situation in Portal 2. Think for a moment: EVERYONE in the Aperture Labs has been killed by a neurotoxin...Except Chell. Why is Chell spared? I'm sure Glados could have circumvented whatever safe guards might have been in place around Chell (or maybe Caroline put them in place herself?) or could have found some way to kill Chell while she was sleeping. On to the next bit of information...Glados makes repeated pokes at the fact that Chell is adopted or has been given away. But notice that even in Portal 1 there is that brief mention of "Bring Your Daughter to Work Day." So by themselves (And even in combination) in Portal 1 these two bits of information do not mean much...until you add them to the bits revealed in Portal 2.
Now things get a bit tricky...So first off there is early on that mention of Wheatley's about "Bring Your Daughter..." where he says it was a bad day...that everyone was killed (which is obvious otherwise the experiments would have been taken down). So if Chell was Caroline's daughter then obviously she would have been taken on that work day. Next...I think Wheatley also talks about Chell being adopted which is odd that this continually is brought up.
Fast Forward a bit to when Glados is woken up. So now we have Glados talking about you're being adopted still, in addition to talking about your weight. I don't know about you, but for some reason this really seems like something a terror of a mother would do to her kid...X3 of course I might be wrong. So gradually you continue on until you reach Aperture's lower levels you come into contact with Aperture's earlier story and learn about Cave Johnson and Caroline. During this it is all but said that Caroline becomes Glados (Cave Johnson's last request is that if he should die, then Caroline would be put into a computer to run Aperture). Now...again up to this point it is entirely believable that Chell is just a test subject...Glados is still Caroline but there is no connection. But then you get to the absolute end of the game where Glados is talking to you before sending you off to the surface. She keeps talking about how she needed your help and that now she knew where Caroline existed but with your help she could now delete it. Also she said that at first she wanted you dead, but now just want's you to leave. This to me is very odd...and to me resembles a huge conflict between the Caroline part and the Glados part. Maybe Chell was a living form of conscience restriction on Glados and that as long as she was there Glados could not do what she wanted. But now with Chell simply 'gone' Glados has found the easier path. And Glados triumphs over the Caroline part....or does she?
Now jump ahead to the turret opera song as you ride up the elevator. Sounds nice, no? Well I did a bit of searching to find the English translation and that's when I knew (for myself at least) that Caroline was Chell's mother...The song keeps on saying things like, "My Dear Chell..." and such, even repeating at the very end 'My darling, My dear, My darling..." Could Caroline still be somewhere in Glados' mind? Maybe it's a bleedthrough that comes out in the turret's song? Maybe Glados has put the Caroline part of herself into the turrets?
Fast forward just a bit more to the ending song. Chronology-wise this actually was the part that first sparked my many questions about Portal 2. The song itself seems an odd fit for the Portal story, especially after the song "Still Alive." I listened to the words over and over, each time feeling that something was strange about it. Now I believe I know what that is. This song, to me, sounds like something a mother would say to a kid...but if that mother was still suffering internal conflict about being a mother and being a scientist (etc). I know it's a off the wall thought, but the song really does seem sad, but happy...conflicted. "You want your freedom, Take it, It's what I'm counting on." and, "You're someone else's problem now, that's what I'm counting on."
So...there you go! There are probably major holes that I'm missing here but still...this seems to make an odd sort of sense that falls in line with the Portal story...Why Chell? Why is she so important and why does Glados have such a fixation on her? Why out of all the test subjects in Portal 2 is Chell still alive and not a complete vegetable (you still jump to say you like apples....). It seems as though everything revolves around your relationship to Glados and Aperture Labs...Why would Portal 2 put you through the backstory of Aperture? I mean the obvious answer is to just tell more about Glados...but why would this be done? I refuse to believe that this is simply another case of 'background story' and that there is something more going on...
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
My Portal 2 Review: If Life Gives you a Portal Gun...
News: I know these next two posts may border on flooding my blog, but that is really not my aim. I do have quite a few ideas for blog posts and I try to restrict them to Sundays only, and this project has become incredibly fun. I hope anyone who reads this finds it the same way. Now onto the blog proper!
This is the first part in a two part blog post on Portal 2. These posts will be my personal opinions about the game. But why two posts you ask? Well I am a little tired of people posting handicapped reviews with no spoilers or posting reviews with spoiler warnings sprinkled through the entire piece. This will be a way for me to bypass this. This post will contain no spoilers and focus on a general review of the game as a whole, the gameplay, graphics, etc. The second post (probably around Thursday or Friday) will contain spoilers as it will be a deeper look into the story of Portal 2. That being said, let's begin!
This has been a triumph!
Portal 2, to sum up was a wonderful game. The three things I usually use to weigh a game are story, gameplay, and lastly graphics. Music while awesome, I usually place in a distant fourth because, if it really sucks I can turn it off and use my own music :).
The story of Portal 2 I think does a wonderful job of extending and giving depth to Portal 1's story. While some may say that Portal 1's story was very simple, Portal 2 adds new questions that suddenly make Portal 1 seem the tip of an iceberg. You get a better sense of how Aperture Science came to be and what happened to it. Valve has done an amazing job to create a very intriguing story that has the player asking many questions. As of right now I don't think I have enough skill to go about describing the story any more without revealing anything. So, those of you who read this and have not played Portal 2, take my word for it that the story is amazing and entertaining. It isn't anything on the scale of "A Game of Thrones" but it has a grandness all it's own.
On to gameplay. Again Valve has worked it's magic with physics and a accessible, easily learned set of controls. While the controls are simple, the puzzles and the ways that the game put's these controls to the test are challenging. I wouldn't say that Portal 2 offers the most difficult ever, or that re-playability is endless, but they are fun to play through every once in a while. The physics is the same awesome it's always been and you won't be disappointed by the new puzzle solving toys that the game offers. I think I would have liked a little more difficulty in the puzzles as sometimes I felt that there was a general pattern to how to solve them. Once this pattern was found then it could be run through a second time easily. I think though, that the mot fun that can be had in Portal 2 would come from co-op. Now since I didn't have the capability to play co-op I was not able to judge it, but I was able to watch a couple of let's plays. From what I've seen the best that Portal 2 has to offer in terms of gameplay comes from the interaction between the two people playing. Find a friend and work through puzzles, making funny mistakes and playing tricks...fun to say the least.
Onto graphics. As I'm sure everyone who has had interest in Portal 2 knows (from screenshots and such) Portal 2 is an amazingly stunning game. Just like in Half-Life 2, Valve does an excellent job in making the world seem incredibly large. The scenery is all quite extraordinary and you can become lost in simply observing the different panoramas. My one and only gripe with Portal 2 is that while you can see a large world, I did feel a little limited in where I could go. This however is a small gripe. You do always get a sense that you are 'going' places. Furthermore in those moments of high speed running (like being chased) you also feel a sense of scale, like the world is zipping by. I suppose what I'd like to see Valve do is something akin to a combination of the Portal premise and Fallout 3. The idea here is that you actually get to explore the Aperture labs in an open way and accomplish objectives, but do so at your own leisure. Now of course such a project would be incredibly huge...but it is something I'd like to see sometime! (Valve if you read this...)
Lastly, music. I have to say, the music in Portal 2 is far an above the music of Portal 1 (I am not yet voicing my opinion about the ending song however!). The music however is the kind that blends into the ambient sounds which I count as a good thing. It's awesome to say the least. You only notice it if you listen for it, but when you forget it's there it becomes part of the world around you. It's a pleasant effect. The ending song I actually like quite a bit. I know a lot of Portal 1 "Still Alive" fans might troll me on this, but the more I listened to it the more I came to like it. The odd tune grows on you and you just start to think when you listen to it. "Still Alive" was a good song, but I felt it was just a sort of parting shot by Glados. "Want You Gone" is such an odd choice for the end of Portal 2, because of it'd oddness it raises questions about why it was chosen for Portal 2...Here is where I start treading on the ground for my second post so I will cut off here. I hope this was great to read and that if you haven't played it, will make you want to give it a try!
This is the first part in a two part blog post on Portal 2. These posts will be my personal opinions about the game. But why two posts you ask? Well I am a little tired of people posting handicapped reviews with no spoilers or posting reviews with spoiler warnings sprinkled through the entire piece. This will be a way for me to bypass this. This post will contain no spoilers and focus on a general review of the game as a whole, the gameplay, graphics, etc. The second post (probably around Thursday or Friday) will contain spoilers as it will be a deeper look into the story of Portal 2. That being said, let's begin!
This has been a triumph!
Portal 2, to sum up was a wonderful game. The three things I usually use to weigh a game are story, gameplay, and lastly graphics. Music while awesome, I usually place in a distant fourth because, if it really sucks I can turn it off and use my own music :).
The story of Portal 2 I think does a wonderful job of extending and giving depth to Portal 1's story. While some may say that Portal 1's story was very simple, Portal 2 adds new questions that suddenly make Portal 1 seem the tip of an iceberg. You get a better sense of how Aperture Science came to be and what happened to it. Valve has done an amazing job to create a very intriguing story that has the player asking many questions. As of right now I don't think I have enough skill to go about describing the story any more without revealing anything. So, those of you who read this and have not played Portal 2, take my word for it that the story is amazing and entertaining. It isn't anything on the scale of "A Game of Thrones" but it has a grandness all it's own.
On to gameplay. Again Valve has worked it's magic with physics and a accessible, easily learned set of controls. While the controls are simple, the puzzles and the ways that the game put's these controls to the test are challenging. I wouldn't say that Portal 2 offers the most difficult ever, or that re-playability is endless, but they are fun to play through every once in a while. The physics is the same awesome it's always been and you won't be disappointed by the new puzzle solving toys that the game offers. I think I would have liked a little more difficulty in the puzzles as sometimes I felt that there was a general pattern to how to solve them. Once this pattern was found then it could be run through a second time easily. I think though, that the mot fun that can be had in Portal 2 would come from co-op. Now since I didn't have the capability to play co-op I was not able to judge it, but I was able to watch a couple of let's plays. From what I've seen the best that Portal 2 has to offer in terms of gameplay comes from the interaction between the two people playing. Find a friend and work through puzzles, making funny mistakes and playing tricks...fun to say the least.
Onto graphics. As I'm sure everyone who has had interest in Portal 2 knows (from screenshots and such) Portal 2 is an amazingly stunning game. Just like in Half-Life 2, Valve does an excellent job in making the world seem incredibly large. The scenery is all quite extraordinary and you can become lost in simply observing the different panoramas. My one and only gripe with Portal 2 is that while you can see a large world, I did feel a little limited in where I could go. This however is a small gripe. You do always get a sense that you are 'going' places. Furthermore in those moments of high speed running (like being chased) you also feel a sense of scale, like the world is zipping by. I suppose what I'd like to see Valve do is something akin to a combination of the Portal premise and Fallout 3. The idea here is that you actually get to explore the Aperture labs in an open way and accomplish objectives, but do so at your own leisure. Now of course such a project would be incredibly huge...but it is something I'd like to see sometime! (Valve if you read this...)
Lastly, music. I have to say, the music in Portal 2 is far an above the music of Portal 1 (I am not yet voicing my opinion about the ending song however!). The music however is the kind that blends into the ambient sounds which I count as a good thing. It's awesome to say the least. You only notice it if you listen for it, but when you forget it's there it becomes part of the world around you. It's a pleasant effect. The ending song I actually like quite a bit. I know a lot of Portal 1 "Still Alive" fans might troll me on this, but the more I listened to it the more I came to like it. The odd tune grows on you and you just start to think when you listen to it. "Still Alive" was a good song, but I felt it was just a sort of parting shot by Glados. "Want You Gone" is such an odd choice for the end of Portal 2, because of it'd oddness it raises questions about why it was chosen for Portal 2...Here is where I start treading on the ground for my second post so I will cut off here. I hope this was great to read and that if you haven't played it, will make you want to give it a try!
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