"Gone Home" is a narrative, single player game, also referred to as an “interactive exploration simulator”. It starts with a voice message by Katie Greenbriar, the character you play, about coming home after having been abroad for a year. Yet, “home” is an interesting concept here, as she had never lived in this house, since her family moved while she had been overseas.
The place is filled with memories of her parents, Terry and Janice, and her sister Samantha, called “Sam”, as well as of the deceased uncle Oscar Masan who had lived there before. The story unfolds by simply looking through the family’s objects, letters, and pictures in a non-linear way.
The essay analyzes the impact of the point of view, the storytelling, and the characters while basing arguments on game theories and literature.
Inhaltsverzeichnis (Table of Contents)
- About How Katie's Point of View Affects Playing Gone Home
Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte (Objectives and Key Themes)
The main objective of this text is to explore the impact of Katie's point of view on the player's experience in the video game "Gone Home," focusing on how it shapes the narrative and the player's emotional engagement with the characters.
- The role of perspective in shaping narrative and player experience
- The representation of queer identity in video games
- The exploration of family dynamics and secrets
- The use of non-linear storytelling and discovery in video games
- The aesthetics of narrative, fantasy, and discovery in video games
Zusammenfassung der Kapitel (Chapter Summaries)
The text begins by introducing the video game "Gone Home" as a narrative exploration simulator. It highlights the story of Sam, a queer teenager struggling with her identity and her family's lack of understanding. The game unfolds through a non-linear exploration of the family's belongings, revealing secrets and family drama through clues and voice messages. The focus lies on Sam's relationship with her girlfriend Lonnie and the challenges they face. The text then examines the mechanics and aesthetics of the game, emphasizing its reliance on discovery and exploration to drive the narrative. It argues that while the player takes on the role of Katie in a first-person perspective, Katie is a relatively a-dimensional character, leading to a detachment from her story. Instead, the focus shifts to Sam, presented as a complex and engaging character, fostering empathy and emotional connection from the player. Finally, the text explores the representation of queer identity in the game, highlighting how "Gone Home" portrays Sam's experiences in a realistic and relatable way, challenging stereotypes and providing a diverse and inclusive narrative.
Schlüsselwörter (Keywords)
The main keywords and focus topics of this text include: narrative video games, non-linear storytelling, player perspective, queer representation, family dynamics, discovery, aesthetic design, empathy, character engagement, and emotional connection.
- Citation du texte
- Anonym (Auteur), 2022, How does Katie's point of view affect playing "Gone Home"?, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/1334323
