Gone Home

[InsrtCoins]

This is an interesting title that was released today on Steam. I'm interested to hear everyone else's thoughts on it.

If you're curious, I have written a piece about it for my gaming blog.

[mik]

I thought it was interesting, well-made, well-written, and worth playing. I also thought it was not at all worth $20.

[ratsoalbion]

Whereas £13 sounds like a very fine deal indeed for a game described as you have above!

[mik]

It certainly can be. And I have felt that way with other games, of course. It's impossible to discuss without spoilers, but I really felt like the key payoff in Gone Home is what makes it feel like it's somehow worth less than I paid--even though that payoff is decidedly clever (almost nefariously so). It's very interesting, to be sure.

[mik]

If you're curious, I have written a piece about it for my gaming blog.

Just finished reading this. Nice job.

(is the character's name Sarah in the UK version of the game?)

[ratsoalbion]

It certainly can be. And I have felt that way with other games, of course. It's impossible to discuss without spoilers, but I really felt like the key payoff in Gone Home is what makes it feel like it's somehow worth less than I paid--even though that payoff is decidedly clever (almost nefariously so). It's very interesting, to be sure.

Definitely hope to check it out at some point. I've added it to my Steam list based on all the good things people are saying.

[Combine Hunter]

No, she's not called Sarah in our version

I just finished Gone Home, and I think everyone needs to experience it.

[DomsBeard]

No, she's not called Sarah in our version

I just finished Gone Home, and I think everyone needs to experience it.

Fired up steam for the first time in a year or so and I'm happy to see this is on Mac. It looks very interesting.

[Scrustle]

I've not played it, since I'm not sure I could run it, but it certainly looks interesting. The way it does environmental storytelling sounds really cool.

But this gives me a chance to plug two of my favourite Youtube channels!

[InsrtCoins]

I had a great time with it (as I said above), but my biggest problem was its shift in perspective (pretty heavily towards the end) away from telling the story through environmental clues to narrated letters addressed to our character. It's a show vs. tell re-balancing that, while it creates an effective ending, kind of gets away from what made it interesting in the first place.

[James]

Played through this tonight, and (despite my japes in the Games Completed 2013 thread) I loved it.

I certainly understand your point about the increased frequency of journal entries towards the end, Ryan, but I felt that this was somewhat mitigated by the pretty steady ramping up of these throughout the game. I do wonder if the journal entries (peppered throughout, but in essence retrospectively by Katie once she has the journal) could have been removed altogether, whilst leaving the overall effect of the narrative unaffected. Honestly, I doubt they could. I enjoyed hearing them so much that I started to replay some of my favourites by the end.

With so much misdirection going on throughout Gone Home, it'd be easy for the ending to feel unearned, but thankfully the 'blame' for the misdirection is shared equally by the designers and the player. That way, we feel partly responsible for having made assumptions that proved to be incorrect, but that Katie herself would have made.

Sorry, I know that last point is seemingly unsolicited, but it's where my head is currently at having just watched the credits roll.

[Flabyo]

Going to have to spoiler this... please don't read this if you've not finished it...

Spoiler: show

It's strange how by the end of the game you feel you actually know all of these people fairly well, except for Katie herself. Sure, you know she's very sporty and also academically gifted, but there's no hint as to how she might react to the things she learns about her sister and parents.

Then I got to thinking, that's actually the point isn't it? You as the player are role playing Katie, so your reaction is her reaction. She's deliberately an 'everyman' character to allow you to inhabit her.

In my head I imagine Katie confronting her parents about what they've done to her sister and why it was wrong because that's how I feel, but I can see that other players would side against Sam's choices (you can probably imagine what internet comments from the 'bro gamers' lot are like on this one without me needing to spell it out...)

But yeah, I really *really* didn't want to go up the stairs to the attic at the end...

[countstex]

Just finished the experience that is Gone Home. I love storytelling through environment and found clues. Sure the main story is largely told through the audio logs, but you glean so much about the parents, Sam and even some on Katie herself through scraps of paper and letter that I found me self completely engaged in the families life. I had goose bumps through most of the final 'area' and that is always a good sign of successful storytelling in my book.

[Todinho]

I replayed it with commentary mode on and it was very enjoyable I recommend with you wanna get more out of it,the game didnt rock my world or anything but the more I think about it the more I like it.

[Cass]

Absolutely loved it. Felt a bit sore about paying £7.50 for the experience at first (got it on sale) but then, on reflection, I've paid more for films that touched me less. Probably wouldn't have paid full price for it, but even if £15 seems a bit steep, it's bound to be part of a Humble Bundle someday.

Spoiler: show

Loved the tension the game creates between tricking you into believing the worst - the hair dye in the bathtub especially was a nice touch - before revealing that it's actually a rather sweet love story. Also nice to see a) a blank slate protagonist who's not male by default and b) a gay love story.

[James]

I've paid more for films that touched me less.

Films did what?

Sorry! I couldn't resist.

I have to agree. Even paying £15, I did not feel short-changed by Gone Home when put in the context of a new release Blu-ray, or a trip to the cinema.