The writing is dazzling to me. Using drug-induced amnesia as a vehicle for justifying exposition and the player's almost-certain unfamiliarity with the world
spoiler
(which among other things is not round and is a bit more like a disco crown of Pale that is slowly expanding into everything in the material world that is left, ignored by those that know about it because that's how liberals/Ultras/Moralists roll) ::: really got me into it right away on many levels.
I see why so many people are :kitsupogi: about Kitsuragi's characterization. While there's no emojis for Cuno as far as I know, I sort of get why he's a small scale but persistent meme in some parts of the internet. For me, however,
spoiler
I've known and even tried to teach kids like that and it hurts at a psychic level seeing that much bluster, rage, and spite masking so much pain and trauma. Even offering to help makes those types more defensive, so at best it's emotionally draining to just buckle down, wait, and hope they'll ease off of at least one level of the bullshit on their own terms.
I can feel the rare and welcome leftist presence in the writing, primarily the fact that it's a more nuanced (bitterly, sometimes fatalistically so) portrayal than fascists can or do present of their own ideology when given a chance (and they're given so many chances). It isn't that nuanced in its portrayal of fascism (or for that matter hustlegrind Ultra mindset or pretentious ironic detachment cynicism for that matter) but in my personal subjective opinion that's fairly accurate because those lines of thinking don't require much thinking to maintain and analysis of those beliefs threatens them fundamentally, so it's rarely done.
spoiler
The light-bending billionaire I stumbled upon in a cargo crate was infuriating and surreal, much like the existence of his counterparts in our world.
Incoming rant with some spoilers.
The setting is certainly dark and grim, and so far in my playthrough there seems to be very little that my particular character can do to make lasting changes to it, but that moment to moment scraping by to survive experience doesn't feel grueling; it feels sympathetic. I've been called plenty of names and have been concern-trolled regarding the state of my mental health from Gambo fans and related treat defenders before, but I now feel further reinforced in my position regarding misery-porn entertainment after playing Disco Elysium.
The Hanged Man especially comes to mind.
spoiler
The prose descriptions, with some mercifully-limited grotesque visuals, of the decomposing remains of the private contractor mercenary rapist that came to town in fancy armor and pushed the locals too far, were done as perfectly as I can imagine. Unlike GRRM and his associated show producers/directors dubious goals while turning staggering profits, there was no gory torture action spectacle, just the aftermath.
Likewise,
spoiler
The rape didn't have to be presented with full frontal spectacle for hogs to jack off to or for defensive fans to make excuses for. It was a police report with witness and suspect testimony.
Likewise,
spoiler
the field autopsy was disturbing, even grotesque, but once again, it didn't have to, need to, nor would it have been improved by giving visuals to every prose detail.
I'm not done with the game yet, but so far I'm very, very impressed now that I've played it instead of just absorbed it from those that played it. The hints of mysticism and sci-fi/fantasy elements in its cryptozoology and cosmology alike seem just tantalizingly real enough in the story that I look forward to exploring them, no matter how futile (or scary) they may ultimately become.
10/10 so far. Even when it hurts, it hurts in a good way. :kitsupogi:
It isn’t that nuanced in its portrayal of fascism (or for that matter hustlegrind Ultra mindset or pretentious ironic detachment cynicism for that matter) but in my personal subjective opinion that’s fairly accurate because those lines of thinking don’t require much thinking to maintain and analysis of those beliefs threatens them fundamentally, so it’s rarely done.
If you pursue the fascist path in dedicated fashion it actually does get quite nuanced. I won't elaborate more on what I mean by any of that.
As far as I know though Ultraliberal is only ever a caricature because that's exactly what it is and what it deserves.
I may check it out in a spoilers forum or a wiki; I don't think I'd enjoy a fascist run on a moment by moment basis.
No details but
spoiler
it's incredibly depressing. Because that's all it could ever really hope to be.
However it does genuinely have one of my favorite moments in the entire game.
However it does genuinely have one of my favorite moments in the entire game.
Feel free to tell me because I may miss it otherwise.
spoiler
You: I know I can get history back on the right track.
René: The "right track"? This is the right track! The only track. (he gets visibly annoyed) This is the world we shaped, a reflection of what we are: cowardly, ugly, and numb. And there are no second chances. We don't deserve them! You just can't go back and restart — that would make everything MEANINGLESS! (a shadow of pain comes over his face)
Empathy: There's something substantial moving in him, trying to get out.
Volition: He would sooner die than let it surface.
You: What is it?
Empathy: Regret.
You: Regret about what?
Pain Threshold: (as the camera zooms in on Gaston) Him.
You: Him?
Pain Threshold: There's tenderness in the carabineer's look. Tenderness that's curdled into pain or something darker.
You: Ex-love, ex-tenderness...
Pain Threshold: Even worse, a love aborted and smothered, stamped beneath his brilliant boot heel.
René: (you catch the old carabineer's gaze slowly leaving his opponent's wrinkled face as his dark eyes meet yours — whatever turmoil raged in him a moment ago is quelled for now)
Conceptualization: Like the last rays of the evening sun gently kissing the day goodbye, before giving way to unfathomable darkness.
Volition: Willed back into the darkest unexplored depths of his mind — never meant to be shared, seen or confronted.
Composure: A true master of his emotions.
Inland Empire: Hopelessly alone behind the unbreakable walls he spent a lifetime erecting. No one will ever know him.
I know people with that kind of backstory, those kinds of defenses, that kind of unassailable wall of hatred and spite. It's eerie how true that characterization reads. :order-of-lenin:
cowardly, ugly, and numb
/pol/ edgelords drag each other down with both of the former and try to brag to each other about the latter by way of consumption of "guro" and snuff videos.
I now understand why new players are advised not to have less than 2 in the health or mental health stats.
spoiler
That fucking chair, lol.
Honestly, the writing is so good I found the addition of voice acting for all lines to be almost distracting from the text.
I enjoyed arguing with the narrator voice until it lost its cool with me like an irate DM.
There's so much fun stuff hidden away in that game, it's incredible.
The sheer amount of text is definitely up there and then they are not afraid to hide most of it away in weirdly derailed conversations you don't even have to have.
I know it!
spoiler
One example of that was when I asked a shipping container to open so nicely that it did open when I persisted and I basically met what every techbro psychopath thinks will happen to them when the Singularity(tm) comes.
This was so, so much fun to read. Please do another writeup when you have some time ok?
I'm flattered, thank you.
I can't guarantee I have time to play Disco Elysium more every day, but I could talk for hours about other stuff I've played, like FTL and Undertale.
Oh yeah it’s incredible. I’m replaying for the first time in quite a while. You’ll love the ending tbh
Looking forward to it. The adventure is quite a ride so far... even when my character
spoiler
tried to skip on a repair bill, leaped into the air with a double deuce, and got demolished by a nice old lady's wheelchair.
spoiler
I used to think I was just getting unlucky, because the game tells you you have a good chance of passing this check, but I have become convinced it is hard-coded to fail no matter what.
I've done my best to resist save-scumming with mixed results, because I've been told failures tell good stories too (sometimes I just want to proceed instead of being stuck somewhere, though). That said, I'm glad I accepted that fuck-up; it felt as fun as a D&D tabletop natural 1 at a key moment.
spoiler
You can totally pass it, I did once even with pretty bad odds. That said, it's much more fun to not pass it lol
the ending spoilers
You’ll love the ending tbh
I didn't do the cryptozoology quest to the end and I felt that the ending let down the whole game.
You go to the island and you meet a character who has never been seen and barely hinted at before, who confesses to the murder without you needing to use the skills you've developed on your character over the course of the game. I don't like that writing. You could say something about "not having a satisfying ending makes sense for a game set in a cruel hopeless world", but that doesn't change though fact that it's still unsatisfying. Having not done cryptozoology and quit drugs, I don't have enough luck to read (what I've been told is) the very important rest of the game's ending, so that's it. Didn't like that.
When I first played it I did the cryptozoology quest so that probably impacted why I enjoyed the ending more.
The writing is dazzling to me.
I think it's completely unquestionable that it is the best writing in any videogame to date. But not just the best writing in a videogame but writing that is just exceptional even outside of videogames. In terms of videogame writing it is several orders of magnitude better than anything else and to be quite frank it hurts the entirety of gaming because very little will ever come close to it.
I enjoyed
The kid recording sounds outside, that was written with so much empathy.
I enjoyed
The the degree of loving details put into the church and the dice / game development spaces. Also the ambivalence of the former.
I enjoyed
The solidarity of the woman living in a precarious village
