Full Games List
Featured Games
New Games
Reviews
Media
Images
Blogs
Game Updates
Images Feedback Summary
Game Design Highlights
Tutorials
Articles
Scripts
Utilities / Plugins
Resources
Engines
Engine Bulletins
What is Makerscore?
Past Events
Achievements
Misaos
Forums
Post History
Chat
New to RMN?
Full Store List
RMN Music Pack (free)
GONE HOME
Posts
Pages:
1
papasan96
1021
papasan96
View playlists
CloseHas anyone else played this? I got it through Steam a little while ago and absolutely loved it, but it seems to be a very divisive game, with many people hating it. The story really moved me and stayed with me after I finished the game, and the setting also resonated (I used to listen to riot grrrl while at university, and remember seeing Bratmobile and Sleater-Kinney live at the Garage in Highbury...).
If you haven't played it, and like story-driven games with little to no action, I really recommend it. But be warned:
The game is short (2-3 hours max)
For the length many people think it's too expensive ($19.99). I didn't, but you could wait for a Steam sale.
It is NOT a horror game, despite the rather unsettling atmosphere. I won't ruin the story here though.
It is debatable whether this is really a game at all, since you can't win or lose.
I've already played Dear Esther, but does anyone else know any games similar to these? I've also pre-ordered Beyond: Two Souls which seems to be mostly story and comes out in Japan next week.
If you haven't played it, and like story-driven games with little to no action, I really recommend it. But be warned:
The game is short (2-3 hours max)
For the length many people think it's too expensive ($19.99). I didn't, but you could wait for a Steam sale.
It is NOT a horror game, despite the rather unsettling atmosphere. I won't ruin the story here though.
It is debatable whether this is really a game at all, since you can't win or lose.
I've already played Dear Esther, but does anyone else know any games similar to these? I've also pre-ordered Beyond: Two Souls which seems to be mostly story and comes out in Japan next week.
ubon
66
there's a lot of shade thrown on this game by jaded nerds, but I rather like Gone Home. as a game, it really isn't much of anything, but it's an interesting toy. while you can run to the ending very quickly, there's a level of fine detail to the environment that you don't even see in similar titles (dear esther, for instance) and so just going around and looking at things is surprisingly rewarding.
that said, I can't help but wonder what the final result would be if the developers had a larger team and a stronger budget and set their sights on producing a more full-featured adventure game with the same fine detail. I very much think that weird little nothing-games built up out of focus and love have a place in the market, but a little more foundation would help Gone Home be more than a fun and brief distraction.
also, Beyond: Two Souls is horribly executed in all regards but the graphics. it's been hacked together by a man with a neurotic fear of having an editor look at his work, and tries far too hard to be a film to remember about things like consistency, detail, characterization, and player agency beyond the game's first hour. I'd give it a pass, and just watch a longplay or something. Quantic Dream Studios' confused and pretentious approach to development is actively harmful to the development of the medium, and I'd just as well not give David Cage any more cash to fund his next masturbation session with.
that said, I can't help but wonder what the final result would be if the developers had a larger team and a stronger budget and set their sights on producing a more full-featured adventure game with the same fine detail. I very much think that weird little nothing-games built up out of focus and love have a place in the market, but a little more foundation would help Gone Home be more than a fun and brief distraction.
also, Beyond: Two Souls is horribly executed in all regards but the graphics. it's been hacked together by a man with a neurotic fear of having an editor look at his work, and tries far too hard to be a film to remember about things like consistency, detail, characterization, and player agency beyond the game's first hour. I'd give it a pass, and just watch a longplay or something. Quantic Dream Studios' confused and pretentious approach to development is actively harmful to the development of the medium, and I'd just as well not give David Cage any more cash to fund his next masturbation session with.
papasan96
1021
Actually I hadn't heard that much about Beyond except for the review on the Guardian, which made it sound intriguing. I'm deliberately avoiding reading too much about it, so I don't really know the background, designer etc. Anyway, I'll see for myself soon.
I also ordered Grand Theft Auto V at the same time so if Beyond sucks I'll have something else to play with ^_^ Looks like I won't get much work done on my game for a while...
I also ordered Grand Theft Auto V at the same time so if Beyond sucks I'll have something else to play with ^_^ Looks like I won't get much work done on my game for a while...
ubon
66
yeah, reviews are a little deceptive when it comes to David Cage games. he's savvy enough to front-load his content and make the first couple of hours impressive, so any reviewer who doesn't play the whole thing is going to come away with a distorted view.
e: or he's just an idiot who can start off grand but finds his execution quickly falls apart, take your pick
ee: but don't let me make you regret your purchase! if you play it and you can take something away from the experience that's a Good Thing no matter what game it is
e: or he's just an idiot who can start off grand but finds his execution quickly falls apart, take your pick
ee: but don't let me make you regret your purchase! if you play it and you can take something away from the experience that's a Good Thing no matter what game it is
RyaReisender
200
I just think these games are too expensive. I like what they are trying to do, though. Make those games cost $5 or less and I'd buy them all.
papasan96
1021
That's an interesting point. What makes a game too expensive? Judging from various reviews and message boards, many people agree with you. If you go purely by game time and gameplay, then yes, it is expensive. But I got more from this game than many others I've played the same price or more. So for me, it wasn't too expensive. Of course, it also depends on how much disposable income you've got and when you can't afford to buy many games it's better to get ones that will last you a while.
Anyway, as I said it'll probably available on steam sale sooner or later.
Anyway, as I said it'll probably available on steam sale sooner or later.
I'm really glad that games like Gone Home are being made and, even better, getting publicity and exposure on enormous venues like Steam. I don't like restricting the idea of games to things you have to win or lose.
I can understand people considering Gone Home expensive. I rarely have the spare cash to spend more than $10 on a game nowadays, and if I spend something like $50 on a game, I try to get one that will last me a while (my last big purchases were Skyrim and Guild Wars 2). Still, it probably makes sense for Gone Home to be a little more than most games, as it is hitting a particular niche. The people who are really excited will get it right away, and everyone else still gets the chance to enjoy it when the price goes down later.
I can understand people considering Gone Home expensive. I rarely have the spare cash to spend more than $10 on a game nowadays, and if I spend something like $50 on a game, I try to get one that will last me a while (my last big purchases were Skyrim and Guild Wars 2). Still, it probably makes sense for Gone Home to be a little more than most games, as it is hitting a particular niche. The people who are really excited will get it right away, and everyone else still gets the chance to enjoy it when the price goes down later.
Game =/= Video Game.
Dear Esther and Gone Home are video games.
Anyway: I do quite enjoy point and clicks, but Gone Home put me off by pretending to be a horror game. I get scared enough in my own damn home, of course someone else's house, in the dark, in the rain, alone, is going to terrify the shit out of me.
gawd
Dear Esther and Gone Home are video games.
Anyway: I do quite enjoy point and clicks, but Gone Home put me off by pretending to be a horror game. I get scared enough in my own damn home, of course someone else's house, in the dark, in the rain, alone, is going to terrify the shit out of me.
gawd
ubon
66
I never really got the impression that it was a HORROR GAME sort of horror game, but there's definitely sort of a spooky atmosphere to looking through an empty house no matter what's in it. I think a lot of that is due to the sheer amount of stuff there is to see -- if it was the sort of game that just kind of spurs you onward between its scripted set-pieces with nothing in between, the pacing and the atmosphere would both be wrecked. as it is, though, there's no obvious 'okay here's where you should start feeling this way' bits -- and those bits are some of my biggest irritations with games, so I'm really glad.
it lets the player set their own pace and their own progression, which is a really interesting take on things. instead of carefully arranging the game so that the player finds all the bits you've filled in with content and largely ignores the bits you haven't, the fact that Gone Home is comprehensively super-detailed makes whatever the player does feel like the 'intended' thing.
I think it more or less justifies its existence as a video game by the interesting case studies in gameplay and pacing it gives, if nothing else. but I'm a nerd for that stuff.
it lets the player set their own pace and their own progression, which is a really interesting take on things. instead of carefully arranging the game so that the player finds all the bits you've filled in with content and largely ignores the bits you haven't, the fact that Gone Home is comprehensively super-detailed makes whatever the player does feel like the 'intended' thing.
I think it more or less justifies its existence as a video game by the interesting case studies in gameplay and pacing it gives, if nothing else. but I'm a nerd for that stuff.
papasan96
1021
There are some red herrings early in the game which lead you towards thinking it's horror, such as the seances and dodgy dead great uncle. But I think that's the point - it plays with your expectations of what kind of game it is. I also found the atmosphere unsettling, especially as you continue and start to wonder what happened to your sister...
SPOILERS:
SPOILERS:
There are many clues that lead you to think she has committed suicide, so when I finally unlocked the attic I was dreading what I would find. For me, this is far more effective "horror" than if they had put zombies or monsters in the game.
ubon
66
exactly! exactly this! personal horror is so much more effective than THE WORLD IS NOW ZOMBIES-style grindhouse horror that they can barely even be compared. monster horror is largely just an excuse for the player to live out their misplaced badass fantasies and mow down an army of humanoid things that don't matter so it's okay. meanwhile, virtually every person in the world has at some point feared for a family member or felt vulnerable in their own home, and it's the game's recognition of these simpler, more visceral horrors (none of which involve actual viscera) that makes it so satisfying.
Pages:
1
