Galaxy Building Star Control 2

That red monster in the back is a nice conqueror 

The worldbuilding taking place in Star Control 2 is a monumental achievement for a game of its era. The introduction lays the ground work for the game and sets the player up as the saviour of the galaxy. This isn't a game about worldbuilding its a game about galaxy building as the share size of the galaxy is enormous. The start of the game and how to goes about explaining the origin reminded me of games such as the halo and mass effect series. Even going as far as to have a race who's technology was far greater than anyone else's after them. Upon playing the game I found that the dire situation to which the player is placed in does a fine job of giving the player motivation to continue playing it also establishes the world that the player is going into. The many worlds that inhabit the solar system in the game are similar in the way that the player interacts with them however it does enough to make the player feel like each planet is different and unique. Along with these unique planets are the alien races that inhabit them, so far I've only managed to contact maybe half the alien races that I believe to be included in the game. An interaction with each alien race is distinctive and does not feel formulaic, 

The casualties of war

I found the alien race Zoq Fot Pik humurous with their multi-cultural society. The games months carry on and if you miss certain information you miss chances to be able to either save another race or recruit another race into your cause. I found this out the hard way as I did not heed the call for help from Zoq Fot Pik and their entire race were wiped out by the enemy. I felt sad about what happened but also thought that it was a brilliant piece of worldbuilding taking place, a world that does not wait for the player much similar to how real world time operates. It's this familiarity with the concept of time that makes this world much more believable. In this instance I also felt that the best worldbuilders build worlds that people want to actively participate in. When you take a look at books or other video games with well built worlds people dedicate hours and years to thoroughly explore these worlds over and over again, think Skyrim, Lord of the rings or even Destiny. This was more evident to me when I found myself still playing Star Control 2 well into the 18 hour mark, and the more time I invested in this world the more I wanted to see my quest to save the galaxy through to the end.

This is Not a Promise To Share My thoughts on The Stanley Parable Demo

You're almost about to play the demo

The demo that was not a demo but rather a gathering of thoughts that seemed coherent but weren't really coherent but placed in a way to make sense of nothing much at all to begin with. This to me sums up how I felt about playing the Stanley Parable demo. Can this even be called a demo? can it even be called a game to begin with? What is a game? These are the kinds of questions that I ask myself after playing this game. Its breaking of the fourth wall is an experience that puts the player right into the front seat. The game is very aware of the player and it's this awareness that carries this experience, if this is a precursor to the actual game it would do the game justice of encourages players to purchase the retail version to see where the game wants to take you or accuse you of next. 

I did not press this button for 10 minutes

The way the game speaks to the player it feels alive and yet very responsive to what the player is doing on screen, through all the dialogue it never felt to repetitive to the point where the narrator became annoying or overbearing he had the right mix of witty banter mixed in with direction to control the pacing of the game. It starts with the promise of a demo, and continually promises the player of this grandiose demo that's only just around the corner. It's a demo that's built upon the hype factor and trying to encourage the player to do strange things. Due to the way the game is setup I felt the need to constantly rebel against what the narrator was asking me to do, one of the first instances that this happens is the first time you walk into the screen room and it asks you to stay as still as possible for 20 minutes. I moved straight away and it triggered the next event. Another moment in the demo I felt carried weight was the first moment the player is presented with the yes or no answer for if they would purchase the full game, as the player approaches the platform his movement speed is slowed, its gives the player the feeling of physical weight to whether or not they would purchase it. It also likes to mention a lot that the decision to purchase the game should not be taken lately and should be an exciting prospect for the player. The game purposely tries to use reverse psychology on the player to be able to achieve a intriguing level of engagement. There are many scientific case studies where children are given a choice of eating the marshmallow now or wait for another 20 minutes and they would receive another marshmallow, it's the promise of more that some children will wait where others will not. This to me is exactly what the Stanley parable demo is. It is exactly as to what a demo should always be for any video game the promise of more.

Image References

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