All Our Asias

Автор явно хотел раскрыть некие глубокие вопросы и проблемы, которые его беспокоят. Но по факту сюжет получился довольно скомканным. Больше привлекала линия, в который молодой парень с помощью высоких технологий будущего пытается найти воспоминания умирающего отца. Однако, эту тему так же не удалось показать в полной мере. Картинка и музыка прекрасны, как и неспешные блуждания по сюрреалистичным мирам. Не хватило всему этому великолепию хорошо прописанной истории. Но игре однозначно лайк <333

cool

Waste of time, settings are really counter-intuitive, came back after a break and found game was unsaved

Elegiac.

More or less a tech demo for what would become Melos and Marina's sequel to their first full-length game, Anodyne. That shouldn't discount what this game does itself, however. Much of the geometry is rudimentary and simple, far more minimalist compared to the alien surreality of Anodyne 2. But the story is more involved with the real world complexities of what it means to be "Asian." Melos has explored this topic in later projects of his in his music as well as in future Analgesic games such as Sephonie. The protagonist, Yuito, is a Japanese-American who is exploring the memories of his dying father to gain answers to why his father was the way he was. Now, I'm not totally sure how much I can realistically add to the conversation as a euro-american, nor is it entirely my place to say it. However, something I've noticed especially among Asian Americans is how there seems to be genuine community with one another regardless of their own cultural background, whether Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, Filipino, Han Chinese, Khmer, Malay, Tibetan, Austronesian, etc. Perhaps its how their shared treatment as an outgroup of euro-americans, perhaps its some similar cultural traditions, perhaps its the cultural blending Asian Americans have in similar fashion to that of euro-americans in the "melting pot" of this country, so to speak. I can't say, I'm not Asian myself. Though I still have no doubts cultural chauvinism still plays a role in Asian American though, more likely from Japanese and Han Chinese people. As the game points out, being Asian American, or Asian in general, is not one monolithic experience. Asia comprises of so many cultures, peoples, histories - some underrepresented, some overrepresented. Yuito, Japanese-American, feels that sense of community as an Asian man, but, as Melos points out, what exactly does he have in common with every single other Asian man in the world? Why do we see such community in categories made for us, among people who we really don't have that much in common with? Is it because of those categories, or do we find community among those who see us as human? Sometimes we find community among others who faced the same dehumanization and discrimination we have, because of those shared experiences. In turn, perhaps that blossoms into its own unique culture, into subcultures upon subcultures of its own. I will say, much of Melos' exploration of this topic, and his development of the narrative, feels incomplete in some sense? Perhaps just as our own memories are also incomplete, much like the ones we explore in Yuito's father's mind. Really though, the game itself is quite short, but at least a decent experience. I'm a big fan of Melos and Marina's work over the years, with Anodyne 2 genuinely being one of my favorite games of all time. All Our Asias is interesting as an experimental title in the duo's ever-expanding catalogue. It feels more like a tech demo for the team's later 3D outings, but the atmospheric, dreamlike, pixelated, polygonal landscapes pull you in. I love the ps1-era graphics, though the border art and movement were giving me late 90s pc game vibes. And of course, I can't forget the wonderful soundtrack that scores the experience, composed by Melos as well as some guests this time, including Equip! It's kind of interesting that Melos has had some overlap with the vapor scene, I also noticed BarchBoi was one of the testers too. His music is incredibly serene and tranquil, while equally mysterious and sometimes unnerving. You can kind of tell that his headspace was similar to when he was composing for Anodyne 2 - some of these songs I almost thought were also in that soundtrack! Also as per usual, the game gives you the opportunity after you finish the game to explore a bit beyond the bounds of the beaten path the rest of the game took you along. Though I'm not entirely sure how much there is to really see compared to that of their paid titles - the game itself isn't very long or expansive as their other works of course! As a short, bite-sized experience, I recommend it. Just don't go in expecting this to be longer than 2-3 hours, if that. The narrative could've been a bit more fleshed out perhaps, but the game still provides a meditative experience over identity, culture, and life in the face of death. The music and art are, as they usually are, great, and I'm now tempted to purchase the fan pack for myself!

This is a strange game. It's a walking sim, which I don't mind, but the story is a bit confusing. That might have been intentional, I'm not sure. However, I absolutely loved the whole vibe, with sometimes dreamy sometimes trippy 90s visuals and a great, vaporwave/dreampunk-inspired soundtrack. I couldn't relate much to the story but I liked the themes of race and empathy. It made me think, which I always enjoy from a game.

It was alright. The sluggish movement made it take a bit longer than it really needed to.