Review/Impressions - CHANGE: A Homeless Survival Experience
Since it turns homelessness into a game, some may look down upon it. They might say that it trivializes homelessness by not being more realistic about it. They might nitpick its mechanics and criticize its approach.
But I think it helps people perhaps understand a bit more how difficult being homeless can be. It takes core dilemmas like “How am I going to afford food?” or “What can I do to increase my mood?” and makes them part of the game. It also makes the topic more approachable to those wanting to learn more without firsthand experience.
It’s similar to watching an eye-opening documentary that makes us look at things from a different perspective.
Sifting through the Steam reviews, I can see that CHANGE has had an effect on people.
Steam user mwest555 said in their review “It’s not often that a game has such an impact on me; this one was so effective I have donated £100 to the charity shelter today, and will continue to give as much as I can each month.”
Steam user Sil3ntxr3qui3m stated “This game makes you feel so privileged to live in normal circumstances (a home, access to food and clean water, etc.)…I think this game did a wonderful job showing how tough it is to be homeless. I feel like there aren’t enough words to describe how tough it must be.”
Many people can learn through this game how difficult it can be. It can make them appreciate their situation more, thus hopefully opening their minds and hearts more to those that are less fortunate. And I think this is so important.
(click here to read the full review over at IndieGameReviewer.com)
One more game I want to write about from last year’s Indie Revolution Expo is the most important of them all, Poncho. It won the main, game of show award and as you can see in the screenshots it has a very inviting pixel art style illustrated by Matthew Weekes.
Poncho is a platformer that takes parallax sidescrolling seriously. So much so that its main mechanic is jumping forward and backward between 3 level planes. It’s the kind of mind-bending puzzling that, mixed with highly pacifistic gameplay, reminds me of good times playing FEZ.
It’s a good game and sports positive reviews on Steam. What’s disheartening is how hard developing and releasing the game has been for both the team and the publisher. If you’re a game developer yourself, their postmortem is a must-read, but more importantly read the comments. The two sides of the story show how a small mistake (misinterpretation of how deliverables will be paid for) led to a snowball effect of missed deadlines and eventual falling out. It pounds on the fact how hard game development is. If it’s not enough that the tech and art side have a steep learning curve, the business and marketing sides are two whole other skill trees that require hard-earned XP.
What’s next? The two cofounders of Delve Interactive are working on the homeless person simulator Change, while Matthew, the artist, is putting his pixel brushes to good use with Kynseed (just funded ex-Lionheart game) and Electric Sleep (beautifully illustrated, small text adventure).
“What if this was all the money you could spend for the rest of the day?”
Tried a bit of experimental pixel painting for the game Change, something I backed on Kickstarter. It wasn’t doing so hot, so I thought I’d do a bit of promotional fan art to try and help it along.
Change is a homeless survival simulator, where you have to find work, shelter and food in the hostile environment of a busy city. Also, you have a dog. So you know some tough, emotional decisions are going to be made. ;_;
You can find the Kickstarter for Change here - http://kck.st/2r50ebb
There’s only 5 days left, so download the demo and have a play!
I wasn’t able to completely finish Poncho... which is appropriate, because the developer has admitted that the game was not completed to their satisfaction, especially the buggy PS4 port. I’m frustrated by the state of the game because it has a nice world and some good ideas.
Perhaps it’s better to think of Poncho as a late-stage “early-access” game, just with the knowledge that it will never be further updated. It’s important to address the realities of the development up-front because it contextualises some of the problems with the game. It’s worth reading the post-mortem blog post from the lead developer Dan Hayes, as well as the comments section for the perspectives of other indie developers. If you’re bold you can also read the Destructoid article about the post-mortem and its respective comment section, where things get publicly ugly as the publisher and developer lay into each other’s failings.
But what is Poncho? Well, it’s an indie pixel platformer. The gimmick that sets it apart is the plane-swapping mechanic. Our squat robotic hero can switch between three parallel planes using the shoulder buttons. Compared to a recent game I’ve played with a similar device, Xeodrifter, Poncho uses this more to facilitate puzzle-platformer style gameplay. When you factor in blocks that also swap planes, or move when you do, things can get tricky.
There’s other interesting things it does. Some levels have an unconventional structure where you can go either left or right, to tackle different screens with different challenges, and you end up wrapping around eventually. There’s collectibles and hidden abilities to find, most of which are optional... until you need a certain colour key and find you need to backtrack. The worlds are also populated with a variety of fun little robots just doing their own thing, which is purely for worldbuilding.
Unfortunately Poncho is plagued by small annoyances, some of which are no doubt to be blamed on the sloppy PS4 port I played, which hasn’t been patched despite the original developer creating fixes which have gone unimplemented. Falling in a pit instantly respawns you on your last safe platform... unless it actually respawns you in an unsafe infinite death loop. Other times block behaviour is unclear and perhaps bugged. Some sections are very punishing by dropping you in an earlier section of the level (more a design imbalance than a glitch). The last straw for me was a particular challenge of moving blocks whose patterns didn’t line up; I could get through most of this demanding section but be unable to pass due to the cycle not allowing me to.
Poncho is at its best when it’s relying on being puzzley rather than trying to be a precision platformer (you can’t even move with the D-pad on PS4, you have to use the analogue stick for this 2D sidescroller; a pet peeve of mine). This isn’t just a case of a game’s vision unable to be realised, combined with a shoddy port; there are more fundamental design issues. However, it is the devs’ first game and I am inclined to forgive it due to the unfortunate behind-the-scenes stories that were offered up, to try and see the positives that came out of this.
I was intrigued by the world and the mysteries of the plot. I enjoyed meeting the characters of this post-human world, from the junkyard’s king and his scattered minions to the robot tribe unwilling to admit they’re machines. I liked testing my brain to think in terms of three concurrent 2D planes (it’s a shame there was no 3DS port). Sadly some sour notes dull the shine and the game ends up less than the sum of its parts.
I admit to being sceptical about the game at first. A game about the homeless has historically not been handled well (looking at you, bum simulator). There's also the issue of poverty tourism - an almost voyeuristic portayal of homelessness. My worries were unfounded.
I spoke to the development team - Delve Interactive - who told me that Change came from a collection of their own experiences. After the failure of their first game, Poncho, they found themselves in difficulties involving depression, debt, addiction and homelessness. Taking these experiences, they wanted to show people what it's really like to live on the streets, in particular the emotional and mental aspects.
I played through the demo today, my avatar having lost everything by paying for his parents care after an accident. I wasn't prepared for how harrowing the game would be. You walk the streets, begging for change and recycling scrap for small amounts of money. You can also search bins for food and study at the library to get a job. You have three meters to keep an eye on - hunger, cleanliness and happiness. It was a never ending battle to even keep one meter topped up. You can also be moved on by police if they catch you begging.
I tried to play the game fairly honestly. Studying to get a job, begging, recycling... But then my morale was at an all time low and I was offered drugs to help. I took them. I refused to steal however, and that meant I starved to the point I didn't want to get off the streets. I fed my dog before I fed myself.
This isn't really a game you can win. Sure you can steal to survive, but will you be caught? You can pay for a library card but can you concentrate enough to study so you can work as a shop assistant? Will they even hire you if you manage to get the right knowledge? You can feed your dog, but can you feed yourself? That sandwich from the bin might feed you, but will it make you sick?
It's a game about hard choices, and sensitively told. Two years of research and development help create a harrowing depiction of what life is like on the streets. I couldn't help my avatar. I only hope this game will better inform public perception of homeless people and mean more people are treated with the compassion they deserve. The team at Delve Interactive are doing a great thing. I look forward to the full release in June.
Το Poncho έρχεται στο Wii U! Βίντεο και στιγμιότυπα
Το Poncho έρχεται στο Wii U! Βίντεο και στιγμιότυπα
Οι Rising Star Games και Delve Interactive κυκλοφόρησαν το Poncho πέρσι. Δεν είχαμε ακούσει και πολλά για τη Wii U version, αλλά φαίνεται πως θα τη δούμε πολύ σύντομα. Tο παιχνίδι θα κυκλοφορήσει στο eShop στις 18 Αυγούστου παγκοσμίως. Μπορείτε να απολαύσετε μερικές λεπτομέρειες, μαζί με στιγμιότυπα και ένα βίντεο για το παιχνίδι, αμέσως παρακάτω! (more…)
Title PONCHO Developer Delve Interactive Publisher Rising Star Games Release Date November 3rd, 2015 Genre Adventure, Indie Platform Steam, PS4 Age Rating E for Everyone Official Website You may have guessed by now that I’m somewhat of an indie fanboy, so when PONCHO came across my radar, I was instantly intrigued. What is PONCHO, you ask? Why is it all capitalized? I may not be able to answer…
