Well, in light of my dwindling number of days left before I’d have to return this wonderful laptop to MIT, I finished off Dreamfall: The Longest Journey today. I had bought both games: “The Longest Journey” and “Dreamfall: TLJ” as part of a package at the beginning of my Boston trip. They were heralded as two of the finest modern adventure games in existence, and the saga was epic. Now that I’ve played through both games, I can see why they deserve accolade. They’re definitely not your run-of-the-mill adventure games… for one thing, they’re deliberately created for adults, not children. The writer doesn’t hold back with mature themes and language, and yet, those themes are also not made into a fetish the way they would have been if it was targeted at an adolescent group. This is very clearly written by an adult, for adults, and very much out of Continental European sensibilities. It’s very postmodern, permissive, and comes from a slightly cynical view of society. I wouldn’t call it a literary masterpiece exactly, but it’s clear that the writing is well-done, and in sync with a lot of current-day life philosophy.
I appreciate the experience. The Longest Journey trilogy is only two-thirds of the way through, and yet I’m impressed. Though it definitely feels more like a film experience than a game (especially Dreamfall, the second game in the series), I suppose that arises from the lead designer, Ragnar Tornquist, being a Film Studies major in university. I had actually met the guy during the Asian Game Developers Summit last year, but as I hadn’t played TLJ or Dreamfall yet, I didn’t have much to talk with him about. But after having played his games, I’m impressed by the use of literary techniques. Very good twists and turns, great foreshadowing in some cases, and nice direction of art and sound to create dramatic tension at key moments in the story. A very emotional experience. Mind you, I’m just praising the good use of techniques and skill, not the philosophy behind TLJ. It doesn’t touch my heart the way Les Miserables does, for instance, and I strongly suspect that it’s because of a conflict of values more than anything else. While I can be interested in the world that TLJ creates, my soul finds it slightly alien.
I just wish that one day, someone would be able to create an adventure story that can truly cater to Christian sensibilities, and make it as powerfully-moving as it can be. I don;
