Essays on Empathy

Okay so, I just played 'Zen and the Art of Transhumanism' and... What the hell is that?? CW: medical violence, breach of consent, chemical castration - Here's the pitch: your character works as a "human upgrade crafter" at H+Corps, a firm that makes specialized implants for private clients. Your job is to make and install the appropriate implants based on the clients' requests. After consulting the client files and the implant designs at your disposal, you quickly realize there are basically two implants you can offer each client: one simply fulfills their initial demand (let's call it "option A"), while the other changes their personality in such a way that they don't want it anymore (let's call it "option B"). Not subtle, but hey, this is a mini-game with a (reasonably fun) pottery gameplay, not a Ghost in the Shell RPG. I decided to experiment with different ways of answering the clients' requests: I gave some the option A, some the option B, and I tried giving one client an implant that wasn't obviously related to her request, but that I thought could yield interesting results in case the game had more open storylines. Here were the results: - First off, unrelated implants don't lead to different stories, they're just considered mistakes and the client comes back to get the right implant. - "Option A" choices systematically get morally questioned by the game's textual narration, and the clients later come back: the implant made their situation better, but they're still unsatisfied and keep asking for more. - "Option B" choices are heartily congratulated by the game, and you get a positive feedback / moral of the story from the client. It's pretty obvious where this is going: playing the game right means overriding the clients' requests, which, according to the scenario, only ever bring them the endless unsatisfaction of material longings. And since we can't talk to clients, help them in any other way, or refuse to serve them, we're left with the only option of implanting them the "wise" upgrade without their consent. So, when we're faced with a 52-yo virgin who's asking for help in finally starting a sex life, we find that increasing his sex-appeal will only make him disappointed that he can't get *all* women (we have to trust the game on this). The only solution we have, then, is to install him the implant that "cancels any carnal impulses". Well, this heart-rending dilemma seems to be the game's obvious first choice: "Sex without purpose makes any existence dysfonctional. Good job." - Initially, I wanted to say that I didn't resent the game's philosophy in itself, nor the fact that it takes position on the clients' situations. And yes, what I actually find terribly wrong is rather the way we're encouraged to, and congratulated for, violating our clients' trust, basic consent, and autonomy, in order to fix their problems "the right way", in a mini-game that obviously doesn't offer any room to navigate such complex issues and find creative solutions. But the more I think about it, the more I'm convinced that the philosophy of the game and the things it makes the player do are not that separate: sure, you can totally have a more nuanced game that criticizes materialism and promotes spiritual awakening. But you can't do that when you're showing such contempt for your characters' stories and preoccupations. You can't help people when you have no interest for why they want what they want. It's not "zen" to think you can just "remove any type of ambition" from a 28-yo game designer because you find him pretentious (and no, I don't care that this one's a self-deprecating joke from one of the creators). It's not "enlightened" to forcibly suppress the libido of someone because you don't see the point in having casual sex. If you think of a 19-yo girl with less than 1000 followers as a "clickbait writer", you're not competent to meddle with her sense of self. And this is called "Essays on Empathy"?? - It might seem like I had very high expectations for what is, after all, a very small game. I don't. I would have been completely okay, for instance, with some kind of amoral, dystopian mini-game where you can either do your best or be an a**hole, and it doesn't matter that much in the end 'cause there's no ethical transhumanism under capitalism. I would even have been okay with a more moralistic version, where some situations just require that you take the initiative of choosing another implant to prevent specific consequences. I don't know. There were options. If it's too small a game for gray areas, just don't make it about transhumanism, damn.

Oyun içinde oyunlar saklı "empati" kurmaya yöneltmeyi amaçlayan ilginç bir yapım. Oyunda birbirinden tamamen farklı birçok küçük oyunu seçerek oynuyorsunuz. Kimisinde bir öğrenci, kimisinde bir ev kadını, kimisinde bir ofis çalışanı veya birinde ise bir çiçekçi oluyorsunuz. Tıklama esaslı oyunlarda bazıları görsel roman, bazıları izometrik, bazısı ise iki boyutlu şekilde görsellere sahip. Her birinin tasarımı ve oynanış biçimi birbirlerinden farklı. Oyunları birleştiren ana temamızı ise "empati" kavramı oluşturuyor. Durumundan muzdarip bir takım insanların yaşamlarına "empati" kurdurmayı amaçlayan olağan hayatı hedef alan ve çoğunlukla depresif durumlara odaklanan deneysel bir çalışma. Yine de her bir oyun için farklı bir teknik sistemsel temel alınarak yapılmasını beğenmedim. Bazı teknik sorunlar yaşadığım oldu. Oyunlar çok kısa ve çoğunda ne yaptığınızı aradığınız, bunu yaparken bulamayıp sıkılacağınız dereceye getirerek rahatsız ediyor. Sonunda tıklamanız gereken bir yere tıklamadığınız gibi bir sonuca varınca insanı daha da rahatsız ediyor. Bunu oyunun adını aldığı "empati tezleri" ya da "empati üzerine tezler" isimleriyle ilişkilendirerek savunmayı düşündülerse ne yazık. Ayrıca bazı yerde "ne alakası var şimdi" diye sorduğum ve "saçma sapan şeyler" diyebileceğim olaylara tanık oldum. Sonuç olarak düşünce güzel ancak pratik yanlış. Önermiyorum.

Unfortunately refunding and do not recommend. I liked the idea but I just can't get over how bad some of the mechanics are. None of the buttons in the main game appear to work (volume, fullscreen(?), exit). Each minigame launches in a new window that cannot be resized. I don't even have a 4k monitor but reading text and actually seeing the games was difficult. Those windows also do not have sound or graphics settings either. The mechanics of each game are not explained well and it makes even just interacting with things difficult... which for interactive fiction games isn't a good thing. I wish I could comment more on the gameplay but unfortunately immediately being launched into a tiny window BLASTING music doesn't make for a good gaming experience no matter how cool the game is.

I must admit, I didn't enjoy the games all that much. However, I'm giving a thumbs up to this particular game because it beautifully highlights a crucial aspect often overlooked, these games we play to pass the time are rooted in 'real' stories and real people. This game brings to the forefront the most genuine connection between the two parties, the consumer and the developer. It's a tribute to the true essence of gaming. Just don't skip the videos; they are as important as the games themselves.

Essays of Empathy is a fascinating collection of short, narrative-driven experiments. I genuinely enjoyed my time with it overall, and the sheer variety of concepts kept me intrigued enough to see the package through to the near-end. (Finished most, but gave up on 3 games) However, it’s nothing to write home about and leaves me neutral. A handful of the games suffer from clunky controls, and the collection defaults to an annoying windowed screen mode. Pro Tip: If the windowed mode bothers you, press ALT + ENTER on your keyboard to force everything into full screen. Ultimately, your enjoyment of this bundle will completely depend on what you pay for it. For the €2,50 sale price I picked it up for, I have absolutely nothing to complain about, it's worth a couple of bucks just to see what they were trying to do. Plus the pixel art is pretty! However, if I had paid the full standard price of around €13, I would seriously be questioning my life decisions right now. A decent bundle of quirky slice-of-life stories, but wait for a deep discount.

I initially wanted to give this a negative review. I would still recommend aspiring game developers to try this “game.” The real value lies in the documentaries rather than the games themselves. The developers share their inspirations, decisions, and struggles, making this feel more like a development diary than a traditional game. The ten games included are mostly simple game jam style projects made using GameMaker Studio. From a quality standpoint, they are not very polished. There are no save points, the settings doesn't work very well etc. I vaguely remember seeing some prototypes on itch, and some games were in the team's other game "The Red Strings Club" (great game btw), and for the average Steam player who might not familiar or interested in game development, the games alone may feel underwhelming compared to other paid games. While I have not finished watching all the documentaries, the stories so far have been honest and emotionally engaging. They show the human side of game development and make the creators easy to relate to. So although I first wanted to leave a negative review because the games do not meet typical paid game standards, this experience still feels meaningful. Because of the stories behind the games, I am giving this a positive review.

+ Плюсы Идея очень хорошая: через истории рассказать про переживая, выборы, чувства, мысли и саму эмпатию. Но исполнения идеи нет в игре. Только ещё музыка достаточно приятная.  - Минусы  1) У каждого из 10 уровней своя игровая механика (спасибо за разные, но одинаково скучные истории с такими же диалогами...сеттинги и герои не дают проникнуться атмосферой ситуации - поэтому никакие эмоции, а уж тем более эмпатию или сострадание не испытываешь), но почему уровня хватает только на 5 минут? А видео от разработчиков к каждому уровню по 15 минут?!? Ребятки, если вы столько времени говорите, как важно ментально здоровье, как важно не выгореть на работе, что такое токсичные отношения - то вы блогеры, а не разработчики игры.  По синопсису разрабы заявляли, что через игровую механику мысли донесут - но этого не происходит. И игра действительно превращается в просмотр их видео. И уже на 3ем видео начинаешь уставать от их нытья про то как они сами почувствовали выгорание от игры. Я хочу спросить - а где тогда эти колоссальные усилия? 10 мини-уровней по 5 минут и всё...Они видео записывали и монтировали дольше, чем уровни придумывали. 2) Личные фото разработчиков как значки достижений. Да, у игры должна быть душа, что за ней стоят настоящие люди - и для этого есть официальные соц. сети. Не нужно себя пихать везде (внутри игры уже и так насмотришься на разрабов!) Поэтому в целом - разочарование от игры. Надеялась на интересную психологическую пиксельную игру, а получила топорные диалоги персонажей и набор видео. Даже по скидке - это не прокатывает, поэтому возврат.

ОЦЕНКА: 1 / 5 Ну, что ж. Вот он, живой и яркий пример, когда за "работу" над "играми" берутся сами знаете какие отбросы. Каждая из "игр" это тупорылый, гнилой, бесконечный пи*дёж. Непропускаемый, неинтересный, невыносимый. Пи*дёж, пи*дёж, пи*дёж. А если он вдруг заканчивается или вообще не начинается, то геймплей оказывается таким убогим, что лучше бы вся игра на пи*деже и закончилась. Видит бог, если он существует, что я пытался дать этому мусору шанс. Я запустил и попытался сыграть в каждую из этих так называемых игр. Я даже закрывал глаза на сжв-моменты, хотя этими моментами мне в глаза тыкали так рьяно, будто хотели ослепить. Но это дно Стима. Раз вы здесь читаете это, вы его достигли. Вы на нём. А сверху вам на голову с*ут и с*ут разработчики. Снизу уже мало кто постучит, камрады. Всё это приправлено длинными непропускаемыми роликами с о*уительными историями от разработчиков, где вы каждый раз будете любоваться транс-женщиной. За ролики дают ачивки. И статус попущенного. За ваши же деньги. Без негатива, конечно.

This is a fascinating anthology of games which could not be titled more aptly. Just as the name says, this game contains a collection of several small games that are all designed to elicit some form of empathy from the player. For me, this was mostly highly successful, my favorite stories being about the 2 comedians and the Wife to the artist so far. Both brought more than a tear to my eye. There is also a lot of insight about how each game was made which is cool. I haven't looked into it much yet, but I appreciate that it was all included. The end of 1145 a Vivid life had me mad confused though.

This game contains 10 different small video games. And every single one of them is a proof that video game can be art.