Jordan
Level 1
One time known as Flaming Pear.
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« on: July 08, 2017, 12:13:14 PM » |
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So I was recently talking with someone who described a computer game they had just played as being "poetic" . This wasn't the first time this has happened: I've run into several instances over the last few years (as others of you probably have) of someone describing a game they've played as "poetic" or having some "very poetic moments."
I know that we're all tired of the "games and art" discussions, but this has got me thinking about why someone would call a game poetic specifically--as opposed to simply "good" or "artistic" or something else. What makes a game specifically analogous to poetry in someone's mind? As far as I can tell, there haven't been too many conversations around this specific topic outside of academia. I've got a few ill-developed theories of my own, but rather than setting the discussion off in a particular direction, I'm interested to know what some of the rest of you think.
I'm curious about:
1. Examples of games you might consider to be poetic (both "obvious" and "non-obvious" examples are fine).
2. (If you have time) Why you would consider the games you've listed to be poetic. (again: as opposed to simply "good" or "artistic" or some other adjective)
If you don't have time to defend your selections, a simple list of games is perfectly fine, as it would be interesting just to see correlations and contrasts between different people's lists.
If you see this topic as too closely related to the "games and art" discussions that we have all already had, my apologies: feel free to skip.
[PS: I realize there's lots of room here for a whole meta-conversation around whether poetry itself is good or bad or stupid, and whether games should ever be compared to other mediums... but for the moment I'd like to set those questions aside.]
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« Last Edit: July 08, 2017, 07:56:37 PM by Jordan »
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Armageddon
Level 6
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« Reply #1 on: July 08, 2017, 08:04:17 PM » |
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Kentucky Route Zero Ico Night in the Woods What Remains of Edith Finch Dear Esther Myst Gone Home Silent Hill 2 Metal Gear Solid V  |
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s0
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« Reply #2 on: July 09, 2017, 01:29:23 AM » |
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"Black bullets are red, white ones are blue, I have a space ship and I'm gonna shoot you" - Ikaruga
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Jordan
Level 1
One time known as Flaming Pear.
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« Reply #3 on: July 10, 2017, 03:36:15 PM » |
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"Black bullets are red, white ones are blue, I have a space ship and I'm gonna shoot you" - Ikaruga
Love it.  |
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Raptor85
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« Reply #4 on: July 16, 2017, 03:00:46 PM » |
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Silent Hill 2
A lot of people miss how incredibly deep silent hill 2 actually was, there's literally NOTHING in the game that isn't symbolic to James past. (except the joke endings but that's forgivable because the joke endings in the early silent hill games, especially the dog ending in 2, are literally the best endings in any games...ever) The game is the definition of poetic. It's a shame that so many of the elements in 2 were reused in later games by other devs because they were "popular" and the entire point was missed. |
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-Fuzzy Spider
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Bad_Dude 2017
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« Reply #5 on: July 17, 2017, 12:45:05 AM » |
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Remember seeing that circumcision symbolysm in sh2, and being like "whoa, finally someone caught zionists red-handed".
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K
Level 0
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« Reply #6 on: July 17, 2017, 02:15:28 AM » |
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Maybe Nights into Dreams. Poetry, like art, uses a variety of ways to create meaning. Poetry, though, is characteristically rhythmic. And I suppose Nights has the rhythmic quality to it, going through the stages performing similar movements  Ha, I think I'm just trying to make the word fit |
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PatrickECS
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« Reply #7 on: July 18, 2017, 05:16:45 AM » |
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Besides the games already mentioned:
Typoman is quite literally poetic since you change words to influence the world.
Lost words is also very poetic, currently still in development.
Although not the best point'n'click adventure, Saucer-Like's dialogues are pure poetry.
Type: Rider is more an interesting exploration about what you can do with words but it fits here as well in the context.
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litHermit
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« Reply #8 on: July 18, 2017, 06:27:43 AM » |
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Zelda Link's Awakening and Majora's Mask both strike me as somewhat poetic, maybe it's due to their melancholic undertones. Poetry and melancholy often go hand in hand.
Journey, and other stuff by thatgamecompany feels poetic, they often strike emotional responses easily, even without words, they have a certain rythm.
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Panurge
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« Reply #9 on: July 18, 2017, 12:47:01 PM » |
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For me, something poetic is capable of evoking a very specific sentiment or mood without explicitly describing it. Shadow of the Colossus is the best example that comes to mind.
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Armageddon
Level 6
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« Reply #10 on: July 18, 2017, 05:57:44 PM » |
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How could I forget Fatale by Tale of Tales???
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omnilith
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« Reply #11 on: July 19, 2017, 01:23:42 PM » |
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Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze
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desdemian
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« Reply #12 on: July 20, 2017, 08:01:06 AM » |
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Today I die. It's pretty much a playable (short) poem.
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XianXian
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« Reply #13 on: October 30, 2018, 04:49:14 PM » |
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I found Alicemare to be profoundly creepy and fairytalesque. The writing was really beautiful. And I had a really like deep feeling when I finish playing it. The House of Fata Morgana, Lisa the Pain, The first episode of The Silver Case are some other ones I can think. I wish narrative design was appreciated more. The beginning of Mother 3 kind of makes me cry sometimes.
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ARF Initiative
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« Reply #14 on: November 06, 2018, 07:54:33 AM » |
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I gess in the "poetic" category we could include Gris.
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raymondcarveriii
Level 0
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« Reply #15 on: November 20, 2018, 09:39:10 AM » |
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Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze
lol |
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