OneShot on PC
Previous days' entries can be read HERE
As I've got older I've found that I like to streamline conversation with catchphrases - little cliched nuggets that sum up my thoughts without me having to (re)explain my opinion. It's either lazy or efficient, depending on your stance.
A couple of them came to mind while compiling my thoughts on this game. The first, as pertaining to OneShot, goes like this:
"It's the game's job to keep the player engaged from start to finish, not the players job to keep playing something that is not engaging them."
The context, of course, is that I've stopped playing OneShot after a relatively short time and I don't think I'll be returning to it. I wasn't enjoying the game and I'm not going to continue out of some misplaced sense of obligation.
Part of this is down to the format. The game is a top down puzzle/adventure but it has a very RPG feel. There is a lot of interacting with other characters and this means reading a lot of text.
I've never enjoyed this in games; in 35-odd years playing I've never once completed an RPG of any kind.
The rest of the reason is that the game also features elements that are often incorrectly called 'metafictional'. In fact, these are just fourth-wall breaking puzzles and for me most of them didn't land with the intended impact.
When done correctly 'meta' is one of my favourite tools in fiction, but to be powerful or effective it works best when it doesn't break the fourth wall. Despite often being confused, 'meta' and ‘breaking the fourth-wall' are in fact very different things.
A lot of the puzzles and mechanics in OneShot wouldn't work if it were truly metafictional, but, conversely, it's likely that the narrative would be more effective if it could be moved in that direction. In the end it's a 'nearly there' story with some gimmicky puzzles - and it feels like an opportunity missed.
Which brings me to the second of my catchphrases:
"Expectation is the mother of disappointment".
I first heard of OneShot after playing Pony Island; another meta/fourth-wall breaking indie puzzle game that I completely loved. Pony Island is punchy, funny, and completely over the top. There is definite weight in its story and it's important not to miss that - but the delivery and the narrative are in perfect tonal harmony, and I think that's where OneShot falls down.
The feel of the in-game puzzles and game-world are at odds with the moments it asks you to act apart 'in your world' - this may be intentional, but that doesn't mean it works.
I believe the idea is to promote a feeling of care and protection of the protagonist by adding weight to the player’s actions. But I found the disconnect impacted my immersion and was left cold by the maudlin tone of the characters.
It's entirely my fault that I let myself get carried away by people suggesting that if I loved Pony Island I'd love this, that's on me, but take that away and I wouldn't enjoy the game any more, or any less, than I actually did.
I feel I should probably say that, all this notwithstanding, the music and sound are both exceptional.
As I've got older I've found that I like to streamline conversation with catchphrases - little cliched nuggets that sum up my thoughts without me having to (re)explain my opinion. It's either lazy or efficient, depending on your stance.
A couple of them came to mind while compiling my thoughts on this game. The first, as pertaining to OneShot, goes like this:
"It's the game's job to keep the player engaged from start to finish, not the players job to keep playing something that is not engaging them."
The context, of course, is that I've stopped playing OneShot after a relatively short time and I don't think I'll be returning to it. I wasn't enjoying the game and I'm not going to continue out of some misplaced sense of obligation.
Part of this is down to the format. The game is a top down puzzle/adventure but it has a very RPG feel. There is a lot of interacting with other characters and this means reading a lot of text.
I've never enjoyed this in games; in 35-odd years playing I've never once completed an RPG of any kind.
The rest of the reason is that the game also features elements that are often incorrectly called 'metafictional'. In fact, these are just fourth-wall breaking puzzles and for me most of them didn't land with the intended impact.
When done correctly 'meta' is one of my favourite tools in fiction, but to be powerful or effective it works best when it doesn't break the fourth wall. Despite often being confused, 'meta' and ‘breaking the fourth-wall' are in fact very different things.
A lot of the puzzles and mechanics in OneShot wouldn't work if it were truly metafictional, but, conversely, it's likely that the narrative would be more effective if it could be moved in that direction. In the end it's a 'nearly there' story with some gimmicky puzzles - and it feels like an opportunity missed.
Which brings me to the second of my catchphrases:
"Expectation is the mother of disappointment".
I first heard of OneShot after playing Pony Island; another meta/fourth-wall breaking indie puzzle game that I completely loved. Pony Island is punchy, funny, and completely over the top. There is definite weight in its story and it's important not to miss that - but the delivery and the narrative are in perfect tonal harmony, and I think that's where OneShot falls down.
The feel of the in-game puzzles and game-world are at odds with the moments it asks you to act apart 'in your world' - this may be intentional, but that doesn't mean it works.
I believe the idea is to promote a feeling of care and protection of the protagonist by adding weight to the player’s actions. But I found the disconnect impacted my immersion and was left cold by the maudlin tone of the characters.
It's entirely my fault that I let myself get carried away by people suggesting that if I loved Pony Island I'd love this, that's on me, but take that away and I wouldn't enjoy the game any more, or any less, than I actually did.
I feel I should probably say that, all this notwithstanding, the music and sound are both exceptional.
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