Braid

[Marduk]

I know we have some gamers in here, so I thought I'd try to get some feedback on this one.

I know I'm a bit late to the party on this one, but I just finished playing through Braid, and WOW. THIS is what games are supposed to be like. The artwork is beautiful and rich, the gameplay is complex yet intuitive, and the storyline is multi-layered and ambiguous, while still approachable and comprehendable. To anyone who hasn't played it, I recommend it. It is the best indie game I've played. Ever.

Have any of you guys played it? Thoughts?

[Portia]

One of my favorite pieces of journalism from the past year was an article in The Atlantic about this game and its creator. It sounds intriguing, and his current island game sounds evens better.

[Whistler]

oh, yes, I have played it! The puzzles are delightful and sometimes a little beyond believable like "is this really what I have to do!?" As for the story... it's one I think Nabokov would approve of, complete with hidden meanings (have you looked up any of the discussion online about the main character being Einstein?), which is appropriate for a game. And I love, love, love the last level.

There are many other art games and indie games out there that are also awesome. You might also like Bastion, Limbo, and Journey (although that one's just for the PS3, but it's so short and worthwhile that anyone who wants to come over and play it in three hours is welcome to). The story in To the Moon is pretty good sci-fi, and it's mostly story (and Dear Esther even more so). Oh, and I really like the game designer Christine Love. She has some free games like Digital a Love Story, which is set in an old-timey computer where you dial onto BBSs (http://scoutshonour.com/digital/)! And Don't Take it Personally Babe, It Just Ain't Your Story is also a lovely commentary on what social media might become in the future (http://scoutshonour.com/donttakeitperso ... yourstory/). Her most recent game, Analogue: A Hate Story, is set in the future where you're trying to figure out what happened to a ship from AI chat logs... and basically the ship's society reverted to feudal Korean culture.

CAN YOU TELL I AM KIND OF INTO VIDEOGAMES. What other videogames have you liked?

[Giovanni Schwartz]

CAN YOU TELL I AM KIND OF INTO VIDEOGAMES.

I feel like Whistler is channeling her inner Yog.

[Marduk]

I've played Limbo, it wasn't my favorite. I need the storyline to be a bit more nuanced and developed. Braid is about as far down the wormhole as I want to go. I also played Dear Esther, and HATED it. For that reason. I haven't done a TON of indie games, I'm usually more of a mainstreamer (I play DoTA a lot.)

[UffishThought]

I haven't tried Braid--maybe I will, now. I liked Limbo alright, but I'm not great at the coordination platformer things, so I never quite finished it. Do you like adventure games?

[Whistler]

Yeah, I never got through Limbo myself.

What did you hate about Dear Esther?

[Marduk]

The storyline was far too ambiguous. See, Braid has a lot of different interpretations, but they are all interwoven. So the ambiguity leads to a diversity of interpretation. I think Dear Esther just didn't hold together. It tried too hard to be ambiguous and the story line basically fell apart.

[Portia]

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc ... _page=true

Here's the article for those interested. I am not a gamer, and I still devoured it. Highly recommended.

[Whistler]

I loved Dear Esther's visuals, and you're right, the story doesn't make a lot of sense (even when you read all the possible monologues). I was fine with it being a kind of surreal experience though.

That interview with Jonathan Blow... was that one where he said all other games are crap? It made him seem really arrogant/aloof (and endeared him to a lot of other game developers... not). I loved Briad and look forward to The Witness, but the man himself is annoyingly elitist sometimes.

[Portia]

Haha, he definitely came across as elitist. Still an interesting article. (I'm pretty sure me reading my print articles on the Meaning of Games in an indie bookstore makes me an elitist, at that.)

[Talons]

I loved playing the demo of braid, but I couldn't bring myself to buy it. I realize it's not much, but I am kind of crazy about not spending money I don't have to.
Maybe when I allow myself to get back into video games...

[Whistler]

talons, are you on steam? I'll happily buy it for you the next time it's on sale.

[Talons]

How much does it usually go on sale for? I deleted all of my games a month back so that I could focus on writing a grant, but now that I'm finished maybe I'll come back. I guess I still have an account though.

[Marduk]

Steam sales are usually between 10-50%, although this one was originally a pay-what-you-want, so could've been as low as a buck.

[Whistler]

yeah, I think I've seen it for $3 or $5 before... there's usually a huge sale in summer and another around Christmas/Black Friday. Maybe I'll post somewheres here next time I see it on sale (GoG, formerly Good Old Games, has periodic sales as well, although I don't think they distribute Braid).

[Talons]

yeah, I think I've seen it for $3 or $5 before... there's usually a huge sale in summer and another around Christmas/Black Friday. Maybe I'll post somewheres here next time I see it on sale (GoG, formerly Good Old Games, has periodic sales as well, although I don't think they distribute Braid).

That would be awesome, thanks!

[Marduk]

Resurrecting this thread to remind people that, as Uffish pointed out, Braid is on sale today for 75% off. I'm betting most people have spent two and a half bucks on far stupider things.

[Talons]

It would be my luck to have that happen the day I decide to take a break from the Internet. Oh well, Thanks anyway. I assume it will go on sale again.

[Whistler]

GUYS Jonathan Blow said he liked my gaming blog on Twitter.