What the flying fish? Help me understand the greatness of this game!

[himmatsj]

So I got KRZ a few days ago cause well, everywhere I went, I head best games of 2013: Gone Home, KRZ, Stanley Parable, Brothers etc etc.

It had to be good then. Also, I am more than happy to play indie games. I know Act 3 - 5 never came out, and didn't wanna buy this at first, but still got it in the end.

I just finished Act I. Now, please help me understand the greatness of this game. I beg you.

What was go great? It was boring, if anything. Steam shows 1.8 hours, but I spent more than 30 minutes playing around with my nVidia settings to get the best AA look on the game (them jaggies didn't cut it out). Also had to replay Act I twice cause I didn't know the saving mechanics, and spent a bit of time idling/browsing the web.

So, a safe bet would be 1 hour to complete Act 1. No, I am not gonna complain about the length. But O really just wanna know why this is so great considered by the press and quite a number of gamers.

Superbrothers was something unique but the gameplay was boring (aside from boss battles), but it still gave a fantastic vibe and the soundtrack to this day is amongst the best in a game I've played. I personally don't see any redeeming qualities in KRZ.

I'll continue playing, maybe even replay Act 1 in a better state of mind, but I honestly feel I played a completely empty, soulless game.

[Swifterik]

Well, don't know what to say...
Maybe buy next COD or some AAA title and sell this to someone who will appreciate it more! :)

[himmatsj]

Originally posted by cucoru:

Well, don't know what to say...
Maybe buy next COD or some AAA title and sell this to someone who will appreciate it more! :)

See my profile. Most are indie games. I stay away from AAA games for the most part.

[Voider]

Your profile also says you are from Malaysia. It might be a cultural difference.

[himmatsj]

Originally posted by The M:

Your profile also says you are from Malaysia. It might be a cultural difference.

Nah. What kind of cultural difference anyways? As it is, if anything, I am quite influenced by American culture through the media and art (games, movies, music, books).

[Voider]

Originally posted by himmatsj:

Originally posted by The M:

Your profile also says you are from Malaysia. It might be a cultural difference.

Nah. What kind of cultural difference anyways? As it is, if anything, I am quite influenced by American culture through the media and art (games, movies, music, books).

Growing up in an American culture and simply viewing it through movies, games or music isn't the same.

[himmatsj]

Originally posted by The M:

Originally posted by himmatsj:

Nah. What kind of cultural difference anyways? As it is, if anything, I am quite influenced by American culture through the media and art (games, movies, music, books).

Growing up in an American culture and simply viewing it through movies, games or music isn't the same.

Well, even then an American growing up exclusively in NYC or LA would not understand the cultural aspect of this game. They'd have to have grown up in semi-rural, rural or smaller towns to understand the game in that aspect. No?

[Voider]

Not necessarily. Culture extends beyond mere locality. The game actually exhibits a fetishized version of rural American life. It is definitely written from a urban American point of view. That being said, the game exhibits values which are not present in Eastern culture. While there are cultural differences between living in an American city and living in rural America, the core values and identity are much more parallel than with Eastern Asia. That doesn't mean that American culture is better or anything, but you likely would not appreciate it as much if you didn't grow up within the culture. That's okay, though.

[Ercarret]

There are aspects of the game that are likely to only be picked up by Americans, but overall, I'm with himmatsj regarding how Americanized many of us non-Americans are. Even when we're on the other side of the world. There is a gigantic difference between how familiar we are with American culture and how familiar Americans are with ours (or I, as a Swede, am with Malaysian culture; or himmatsj, likewise, probably is regarding my culture).

Simply put, America is everywhere. :)

I can, however, not come up with a better explanation regarding why you didn't like the game. Different strokes for different folks, and all that? I quite liked it.

[Voider]

Let me put it a different way. Culture is more than just understanding it from the outside. You may understand the culture enough to argue with the best of anthropoligists. However, when confronted with an art which is attempting to invoke emotions, there is American culture which will bring forth certain emotions from an American unconsious. It isn't just knowing the history or knowing a broad idea of individualism which is scattered throughout American culture. It is having an attached emotion to the smallest details which arise because of being raised within America. If you liked it and you are not American, that's great. However, European culture is more closely related to American than either is to South-Eastern Asia.

[Ercarret]

I agree, for the most part. Living and breathing a culture, so to speak, is very different from observing it from the outside. That is just as true of people observing America as any other place.

Moreover, I also think that KRZ draws on certain American myths for its motifs. There is something about the mysterious road that seem very American to me, just as we have a certain fascination with our forests in Sweden.

I don't, however, find the game to be all that impregnable. I obviously can't speak for either himmatsj or Malaysians in general, but I suspect that we would agree here. I think it's more a matter of taste than cultural differences. :)

That said, I am fully prepared to admit that Americans may find additional layers in it and I would love to hear if you did find anything. I'm a sucker for that kind of stuff.

[Power of Seven]

Originally posted by himmatsj:

I just finished Act I. Now, please help me understand the greatness of this game. I beg you.

Kentucky Route Zero is a different kind of game because it's an adventure game but the player indirectly supplies half of the story. As a result, the game is highly dependant on how creative and imaginative the player is. The more creative the player, the more that they get out of it.

In most adventure games, you'd just click through all the conversation choices until you can read/listen to all the story and then you'd move forward. But in KRZ, it makes your choice meaningful because you'll only get to choose to talk about one topic, and this steers the conversation in a certain direction and you can't go back. From this, certain subtle aspects of both people can be derived, and it depends on how you envision them.

For example, when Conway is asked about how his leg is doing, you will have two choices. You could make him complain about it, thus making him into an old man that's been beaten down by life. Or you can make him act like it's no big deal, thus turning his character into a grizzled veteran that won't give up for anything.

Part of the reason why some people dislike KRZ is because many games (and therefore gamers) don't want that kind of gameplay. They want the game to tell them the story, not the other way around. If you look at most modern FPS games, you'll see that they don't want the player to think about anything. The game tells players exactly where to go, what they need to do, and who they are supposed to shoot. In short, the game tells you everything. Since there's been multiple Call of Duty/Battlefield games that do this, the only explanation is that certain gamers WANT it that way.

[Voider]

Originally posted by Ercarret:

I agree, for the most part. Living and breathing a culture, so to speak, is very different from observing it from the outside. That is just as true of people observing America as any other place.

Moreover, I also think that KRZ draws on certain American myths for its motifs. There is something about the mysterious road that seem very American to me, just as we have a certain fascination with our forests in Sweden.

I don't, however, find the game to be all that impregnable. I obviously can't speak for either himmatsj or Malaysians in general, but I suspect that we would agree here. I think it's more a matter of taste than cultural differences. :)

That said, I am fully prepared to admit that Americans may find additional layers in it and I would love to hear if you did find anything. I'm a sucker for that kind of stuff.

Oh yeah, I wasn't saying that the cultural difference aspect was the definitive reason why he didn't like it, but it could have contributed substantially. You say that you think it is "more a matter of taste" than of culture. At least as I understand, culture will greatly influence your taste.

As far as the little details, what I was mentioning up above about how the game is written from a urban-American point of view, I think that this forms a very fetishized version where American myths of rural America come in. While the game is very tragic, and likely will continue to become so over the course of the next 3 Acts (Jake Elliot willing), it is also very romantic in the philosophical sense of the word. The themes of the game are informed by classic American theatre and historical events which shaped our society. There is mention of the Haymarket Massacre in one portion of the game and the story about the mines is true story in that town of Kentucky. Again, as a Swede, you are likely going to have a more similar mindset, but it isn't completely there, just as I wouldn't be able to understand the cultural significance of art, fully, that is coming out of Sweden. But I still love Little Dragon. ;-) (However, I think Little Dragon is greatly influenced by American R&B and Jazz).

[nabokovfan87]

Originally posted by himmatsj:

I'll continue playing, maybe even replay Act 1 in a better state of mind, but I honestly feel I played a completely empty, soulless game.

WHAT? Dude.... replay it. and if you haven't play episode 2. Episode 2 is when this thing shows it's cards. IF you say KRZ is soulless I think you have no idea what that means.

[Sammy Boi]

Originally posted by himmatsj:

Originally posted by The M:

Growing up in an American culture and simply viewing it through movies, games or music isn't the same.

Well, even then an American growing up exclusively in NYC or LA would not understand the cultural aspect of this game. They'd have to have grown up in semi-rural, rural or smaller towns to understand the game in that aspect. No?

Where the hell are you getting your information I grew up in Chicago and St. Louis cities and I love this game

[Voider]

Originally posted by Fallen Angel:

Originally posted by himmatsj:

Well, even then an American growing up exclusively in NYC or LA would not understand the cultural aspect of this game. They'd have to have grown up in semi-rural, rural or smaller towns to understand the game in that aspect. No?

Where the hell are you getting your information I grew up in Chicago and St. Louis cities and I love this game

He wasn't making a statement. He was attempting to create an extension of my argument in a way which is clearly false. If you read the next thing I say, it is an answer to that extension. He was making an argument by paraphrasing mine, not making a statement about what he believed.