The Rise of The Non-Games
What is a Non-Game?
Good question! If I had to sum it up,a non-game is basically a video game with little to no gameplay. The player is limited in what he or she can do within the virtual environment. For example, the player can move their avatar but do little much else. Instead of player interactivity, you have this sense of player observance. It's difficult to pinpoint the reason why non-games are made. Maybe it's because video games are the perfect media to deliver a an emotional message. Even if the player is moderately involved in the plot of the game, the control of characters and plot progression may allow the player to become more involved with the character and the story than if they were to watch a movie.
So what are some examples? Well, there are quite a few examples of non-games. Remember to not get them confused with simulators. Sometimes simulators feel like they have no gameplay, but it's only because the games are too realistic (I'm looking at you Farming Simulator...). Let's go through three examples of games that I've played which I consider non-games. Once we get through the examples, maybe it'll be easier to explain why they exist in the first place.
I've been intrigued with non-games ever since I played To The Moon from Freebird Interactive which was released about two years ago. My first few minutes with the game instantly brought back the nostalgia of the SNES games I played as a kid. One thing I heard about the game before buying it was that it had a very emotional and complex plot. This is something I think many triple AAA games do not have.If I had to compare it to something, The Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind accurately describes this game yet it has many noticeable differences (I want to get into them, but I feel like there would be spoilers involved). You follow two employees, Dr. Eva Rosalene and Dr. Neil Watts, of the Sigmund Corp as they deal with their client, Johnny Wyles. Sigmund Corp deals in fulfilling wishes of ailing patients by permanently altering their memories to what the client wishes. Since this has a permanent effect on the client's memories, it's only meant to be used on those who are on their deathbeds.
For some reason, Johnny Wyles requests to have his memories altered so that he remembers going to the moon (hence the name of the game). The rest of game details the events of our two employees as they fulfill that wish. Dr. Rosalene and Dr. Watts end up travelling through Wyles memories, going through every important event of his life. The events that unfold are nothing short of epic and somehow, even through the pixelated graphics, the player ends up getting attached to every character in the game. The showstopper is, River, who is the late wife of Johnny. I don't want to spoil anything, I encourage everyone who reads this to play the game. Everything else about the story is just somewhat magical and sort of hard to describe. The way this game deals with desires, love, and just...wanting to go back, really got to me. It will take about a 3 to 4 hours to complete and I recommend to play it one sitting to get the full effect.
The one thing you'll notice about To The Moon is that there is no actual fighting, battles, or equipment that you usually find in other RPG games. In fact, the only gameplay is some weird matching/puzzle gaming which doesn't necessarily hinder the plot progression, but doesn't really add to it either. But for the most part, the player will be moving one of the main protagonists the next plot point. However, there are a few cool event here and there than really invite exploring. Other than, that you just watch the events of the story unfold. The story is put at the forefront of this title with an absence of gameplay to allow for full immersion. And when the story is good enough that the player is begging to know what happens next, gameplay is the last thing the player wants to be bogged down with.
To The Moon only wanted me to find more games like it. There is some sort of charm about not having to be "good" at a game in order to be rewarded with plot and an incredible story. With more research, I was able to come across The Stanley Parable which blew my mind, honestly.
In The Stanley Parable, you play as (you guessed it) Stanley, a common desk jockey who is very good at his job. His job, as Employee #47, is to push buttons that his computer display tells him to push. One day as Stanley was working, he found his computer malfunctioning. He ends up trying to get some help only to find that no one in his office showed up! As Stanley tries to figure out what is happening at his company, he learns that everything he does and thanks is narrated by an ominous voice. The events play out by the player's choices. Do you follow this ominous voice or do you disobey to see what really is going on? There are forks at certain places in the game where the player must choose which path to take. Each choice results in a different scenario with a different ending. It's meant for replay-ability. There is absolutely no gameplay in The Stanley Parable. You just walk. But the narration and the player choice keeps you engaged.
Opposed to To the Moon, The Stanley Parable is less about the story and more about the message. The message is a jab at how video games are an illusion of player choice. Just because the player does something, was it really their choice? Or did the game developers plan for it? Another cool message I got out of The Stanley Parable it's attack on how routine life can be. What use is our life if we just do the same thing day in and day out without really thinking? When Stanley doesn't see any buttons on his screen or see anyone at work, he freaks out. What good is freedom is we just are slaves to the routine?
With the absence of gameplay, the player is not worried about enemies or staying alive. They are worried about what happens next. Their attention is on what is being said and where they are going. Now why couldn't The Stanley Parable be a movie? Well, it would have to be interactive movie which would have been a novel idea, but wouldn't necessarily be executed very well. I mean imagine the cost and the amount of time it would take making so many scenarios blend together based on the viewer's choice. The Stanley Parable was released as just a mod to the famous Source engine that powered games like Half-Life. I don't know how long it took to make, but it must have been much easier to make than a movie. Since the user is constantly moving through the environment and forced to make decisions (if they are so inclined) along the way, it has a more profound effect than watching a very engrossing and well-acted movie.
Now we can move on to my third and final example of a non-game: Dear Esther. Dear Esther is a peculiar title that really carves it's own niche into this niche that I just made-up. There is a story in Dear Esther but it's completely abstract and it sort of changes every time you play it. I played Dear Esther twice (takes about two hours to play through) and I still have no idea what it's about. But I have to say that it does have an amazingly peaceful and serene environment with a tone to match. The main goal of Dear Esther is to get to a lighthouse (at least that's what I think it is) and every so often you'll hit checkpoints that trigger letters that I assume are written by the player to some love/friend interest (or the other way around). The game is very slow paced, mainly to allow the player to take in the details in the environment. So it's not for everyone. I mean you walk at a snails pace in this game.
Dear Esther is the epitome of the non-game by my strict definition. Though there are cases to convince people that every game I mentioned is art, Dear Esther takes the cake. It's like walking through an island landscape painting. It's a game that is all about reminiscing. The interesting thing about Dear Esther is that there is a hint of creepiness subtly placed throughout the game. You have no idea why you are on the island. There are what seems to be signs of life placed throughout the island. And it seems like the island was inhabited at some point by other people. I don't remember too much of the game. But in any sense, it is a very good example of a non-game.
Now why do they matter? Why do people choose to make games with limited interactivity? All I can say is my opinion and my opinion is that developers may think it's an elegant way to present a story. This style of game might be for people who may also have limited knowledge in game development and don't really have the skills needed to balance a fighting game or create maps for first person shooters. But they do serve a purpose in the gaming community. They are almost like one-shot video games. You can play them in less than an hour, but can spend days analyzing them and breaking them down. They don't require so much effort to put in, but the reward is still great. The way I see it, non-games are the short stories of the gaming community. They allow short little bursts of thought provocation.
Now there are a bunch of other non-games out there: Gone Home recently came out, there's Dinner Date, and so on. the genre is not extremely prevalent because, well, the games are not the typical defintion of fun. But it's still a refreshing take on the medium as a whole. They provide a concentrated experience, something people want in from video games like The Last of Us and Bioshock, without the hassle of actually having to be good at the game. You don't get bogged down in the gameplay and instead of being in an intense state of mind, the player can relax and take in the story and the characters. It's a shame there isn't a super popular non-game and I'm sure they'll always be in the under-underground. I suggest playing at least The Stanley Parable. It's very entertaining and it's actually on sale on Steam.
Peace!
 |
| Remember...this is not a non-game..thought it may feel like it... |
For some reason, Johnny Wyles requests to have his memories altered so that he remembers going to the moon (hence the name of the game). The rest of game details the events of our two employees as they fulfill that wish. Dr. Rosalene and Dr. Watts end up travelling through Wyles memories, going through every important event of his life. The events that unfold are nothing short of epic and somehow, even through the pixelated graphics, the player ends up getting attached to every character in the game. The showstopper is, River, who is the late wife of Johnny. I don't want to spoil anything, I encourage everyone who reads this to play the game. Everything else about the story is just somewhat magical and sort of hard to describe. The way this game deals with desires, love, and just...wanting to go back, really got to me. It will take about a 3 to 4 hours to complete and I recommend to play it one sitting to get the full effect.
The one thing you'll notice about To The Moon is that there is no actual fighting, battles, or equipment that you usually find in other RPG games. In fact, the only gameplay is some weird matching/puzzle gaming which doesn't necessarily hinder the plot progression, but doesn't really add to it either. But for the most part, the player will be moving one of the main protagonists the next plot point. However, there are a few cool event here and there than really invite exploring. Other than, that you just watch the events of the story unfold. The story is put at the forefront of this title with an absence of gameplay to allow for full immersion. And when the story is good enough that the player is begging to know what happens next, gameplay is the last thing the player wants to be bogged down with.
 |
| Smells just like RPG Maker! |
In The Stanley Parable, you play as (you guessed it) Stanley, a common desk jockey who is very good at his job. His job, as Employee #47, is to push buttons that his computer display tells him to push. One day as Stanley was working, he found his computer malfunctioning. He ends up trying to get some help only to find that no one in his office showed up! As Stanley tries to figure out what is happening at his company, he learns that everything he does and thanks is narrated by an ominous voice. The events play out by the player's choices. Do you follow this ominous voice or do you disobey to see what really is going on? There are forks at certain places in the game where the player must choose which path to take. Each choice results in a different scenario with a different ending. It's meant for replay-ability. There is absolutely no gameplay in The Stanley Parable. You just walk. But the narration and the player choice keeps you engaged.
Opposed to To the Moon, The Stanley Parable is less about the story and more about the message. The message is a jab at how video games are an illusion of player choice. Just because the player does something, was it really their choice? Or did the game developers plan for it? Another cool message I got out of The Stanley Parable it's attack on how routine life can be. What use is our life if we just do the same thing day in and day out without really thinking? When Stanley doesn't see any buttons on his screen or see anyone at work, he freaks out. What good is freedom is we just are slaves to the routine?
 |
| Poor Stanley... |
With the absence of gameplay, the player is not worried about enemies or staying alive. They are worried about what happens next. Their attention is on what is being said and where they are going. Now why couldn't The Stanley Parable be a movie? Well, it would have to be interactive movie which would have been a novel idea, but wouldn't necessarily be executed very well. I mean imagine the cost and the amount of time it would take making so many scenarios blend together based on the viewer's choice. The Stanley Parable was released as just a mod to the famous Source engine that powered games like Half-Life. I don't know how long it took to make, but it must have been much easier to make than a movie. Since the user is constantly moving through the environment and forced to make decisions (if they are so inclined) along the way, it has a more profound effect than watching a very engrossing and well-acted movie.
Now we can move on to my third and final example of a non-game: Dear Esther. Dear Esther is a peculiar title that really carves it's own niche into this niche that I just made-up. There is a story in Dear Esther but it's completely abstract and it sort of changes every time you play it. I played Dear Esther twice (takes about two hours to play through) and I still have no idea what it's about. But I have to say that it does have an amazingly peaceful and serene environment with a tone to match. The main goal of Dear Esther is to get to a lighthouse (at least that's what I think it is) and every so often you'll hit checkpoints that trigger letters that I assume are written by the player to some love/friend interest (or the other way around). The game is very slow paced, mainly to allow the player to take in the details in the environment. So it's not for everyone. I mean you walk at a snails pace in this game.
Dear Esther is the epitome of the non-game by my strict definition. Though there are cases to convince people that every game I mentioned is art, Dear Esther takes the cake. It's like walking through an island landscape painting. It's a game that is all about reminiscing. The interesting thing about Dear Esther is that there is a hint of creepiness subtly placed throughout the game. You have no idea why you are on the island. There are what seems to be signs of life placed throughout the island. And it seems like the island was inhabited at some point by other people. I don't remember too much of the game. But in any sense, it is a very good example of a non-game.
Now why do they matter? Why do people choose to make games with limited interactivity? All I can say is my opinion and my opinion is that developers may think it's an elegant way to present a story. This style of game might be for people who may also have limited knowledge in game development and don't really have the skills needed to balance a fighting game or create maps for first person shooters. But they do serve a purpose in the gaming community. They are almost like one-shot video games. You can play them in less than an hour, but can spend days analyzing them and breaking them down. They don't require so much effort to put in, but the reward is still great. The way I see it, non-games are the short stories of the gaming community. They allow short little bursts of thought provocation.
Now there are a bunch of other non-games out there: Gone Home recently came out, there's Dinner Date, and so on. the genre is not extremely prevalent because, well, the games are not the typical defintion of fun. But it's still a refreshing take on the medium as a whole. They provide a concentrated experience, something people want in from video games like The Last of Us and Bioshock, without the hassle of actually having to be good at the game. You don't get bogged down in the gameplay and instead of being in an intense state of mind, the player can relax and take in the story and the characters. It's a shame there isn't a super popular non-game and I'm sure they'll always be in the under-underground. I suggest playing at least The Stanley Parable. It's very entertaining and it's actually on sale on Steam.
Peace!
 |
| Pretty touching part of the non-game To The Moon |
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