Title: Scatter

Developers: Kanatakkun and PyuPyu

Made for: McBacon Jam 4



Writing: I usually forgive grammar when English isn't a first language, but in this case, the game is entirely story driven, so I can't. In addition to spell checkers there are also grammar and diction checkers. It would behoove the dev to invest in one. The writing tries to say a lot by saying only a little. There's really only a handful of lines in the stories. It works by conveying a general feeling, but overall, the message is lost and the story conveys a very different meaning from what the writer likely intended.



Story: To say this is a horror game is...not a stretch but it's difficult. It is certainly horrific, but a horror? Well, it certainly has many of the elements of psychological horror, but it really looks like the writer is conducting an exercise in self-torture. The intended message is, "this is how transgendered feel in modern society", but that's not the message that comes across. Instead of a poignant story that helps you relate to a person that is suffering, this story is completely nihilist and defeatist in tone and execution.

FULL GAME SPOILER IN HIDE TAGS: TURN BACK NOW OR BE FOREVER LOST

You play a

The thing is, the direction this story was going was a good one. The ending could have even worked, too. The way it was presented, unfortunately totally dashed my hopes. I felt like there was no point to what came before. She escapes...to what?

Here is an example of a well-intentioned story that has gone horribly wrong. I can see the message it tried to send, and it failed. I've heard one person say that it has no message, but I disagree completely. It sends a horribly misguided message; an easily misinterpreted message. The writer expresses how they feel by suggesting that the end result is appropriate and...okay. That this should be presented as the right thing to do, the right solution to this situation is disturbing to say the least.

And if this was the message the writer was trying to send, I would urge the writer to consider his, her, or their own position and to realize that there is always another answer that is better than this.



Gameplay: Gameplay is basically of the point and click variety: just examine everything until there's nothing left to examine. Nothing is broken and because the story is short, it works well.

Graphics: Custom graphics, cartoonish, in monochrome. It presents a very dreamlike atmosphere.

Music: Pretty little piano melodies that fit the story perfectly. Overall, taking the graphics into account, the visual and audio presentation is wonderful.

Conclusion: For once, I'm actually not sure whether or not I'd recommend this game. It has something meaningful to offer, and what everyone takes from it will be different, but I feel like most people will interpret it the worst way possible. I feel like what we see in this game was not only not the dev's intent, but completely undermines the real message the game was meant to send. I want to give this a low score, but that would be unfair because in the end, my takeaway of the game is entirely subjective, and doesn't stop the game from being meaningful. However, it's because of this impact this story has had, and on everybody else I know that has played it, the miscommunication of the story's intent has to be taken into account. It's worth looking at. I give it a rating of 3.