"A fast paced interactive storytelling piece that tries to be a meta-platform game based on the stream of consciousness of an egodystonic homosexual hero, but it fails miserably and becomes a piece of non-linear kinetic visual poetry written by a teenager obsessed with post-structuralist French philosophy."
Ergon / logos is a flash game that allows the player to explore their own path in the game narrative. In that aspect, it is similar to games of the interactive fiction genre. These games heavily feature the narrative and the user interacts with the story by typing in text commands. While interactive fiction games are largely static blocks of text, E/L differs in its animated text and by adding the element of time, creating a fast-paced frantic atmosphere.
The game is played entirely with the mouse. The line of text scrolls constantly and when it reaches a branch, the player decides which path to take by moving the cursor over the selected path. That is the extent of the player's participation in the game. There are two levels, the first of which is titled Ergon. It tells the story of a hero whose actions are dictated by an omniscient being (the player). To anyone who has played a Super Mario game, the hero would immediately be familiar; he battles monsters, jumps over bottomless pits to save the beautiful damsel in distress. The videogame cliché takes on a bizarre twist, however, as familiar aspects of a videogame suddenly seem incoherent and frighteningly strange as they are taken out of their context and placed in a real world setting. Along a branch of the narrative, our hero realizes the existence of the player-god. Another branch takes the player to the disturbing plot where our hero is romanced by a monster.
The next level Logos begins as soon as the first one ends. Logos has no clear narrative. Instead, it seems to be a flurry of philosophical thoughts that have little connection with one another, like the ramblings of a mad man. The train of thought transcends to chaos; paths converge, cross one another, go in endless circles, and break apart
There is a duality in E/L that is obvious in the opposite colors of the two levels but not just that. In Ergon, the player controls the hero and his path but in Logos, the scrolling of text is faster and the paths twist and intertwine, making it much harder to control. More often than not, you'll find yourself going in circles. Instead of playing the game, there is a sense that the game is playing you; therefore the roles are reversed. Whereas Ergon gives the player a sense of power and control, Logos instills a sense of chaos and helplessness in the player.
The repetitive and anxious quality of the music suits the game well. The introduction of a time element means that there is a need to display the "feel" of the text effectively and quickly and this can be seen in the play of size and placement of the words as well as the speed at which it scrolls.
The problem of integrating story into game is one of the most challenging aspect of game making. Some games choose to forgo the narrative (most puzzle games, like Tetris) while other games layer the story on top of the gameplay by adding cut scenes and dialogue. It is interesting to see a game that combines a strong narrative aspect with the interactive aspect so seamlessly.
-- Benjamin
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