This idea's random, but I was thinking about it over the last few days... and this forum feels thoughtful.
Spoilers for last year's Zelda: Skyward Sword below.
When I finished Skyward Sword last week (some 55+ hours in), and Link stood with Zelda in the Goddess's outstretched palms, triforce hovering nearby and smiles all around, I felt wonderful, almost ready to cry. The fight against Ghirahim was tiring physically, and I succeeded with a single hit remaining. Demise was easier, but because I was prepared; I never really did get the hang of perfectly accurate sword-work.
Anyway, when Zelda told Link she wanted to stay on the surface, that it was nice there and that they should try to make it a place for their people, I wanted to stay there too. It's not even the same as a game like Skyrim, which is beautiful and interesting and full of possibility (it's actually sort of stuffy/claustrophobic in comparison). I just wanted to be able to be in that peaceful place, the land that would become Hyrule, I wanted to relax there for a little while.
I was thinking about this because some games, after the final boss has been defeated, will allow the player to continue on in the world. Skyrim is an example of this, though the effects of your actions in the world aren't hardly apparent unless you speak with the Greybeards/Parthuurnax. But I seem to recall some games having a post-credits sequence, allowing you to appreciate through game-play the benefits your efforts brought to whatever imaginary land. Paper Mario 64 is a good example, albeit somewhat simplified.
I'm not sure which is really better though... games act as a means to get away, for sure, and the challenges we overcome in them are analogous to the challenges we face in real life, part of why they are so satisfying to find victory in. But in real life there is no ultimate ending, no period of peace extending indefinitely without change (until the console is turned off). There are always more challenges, until you die, basically. So when I had the thought, Yeah, I'd like to stay in Hyrule and make a new home, and my thoughts were interrupted by the fade-to-white the game ends with, I felt like maybe it's for the best that I not be allowed to indulge too much that fantasy of a world having come to stability once and for all.
What does the escapist gang think? Do you prefer to have a game come to a close after the credits roll, or do you like the ability to explore the world changed by your actions, albeit only once on into infinity? And can you help be think of other good examples of this sort of thing, what they're trying to accomplish?
Spoilers for last year's Zelda: Skyward Sword below.
When I finished Skyward Sword last week (some 55+ hours in), and Link stood with Zelda in the Goddess's outstretched palms, triforce hovering nearby and smiles all around, I felt wonderful, almost ready to cry. The fight against Ghirahim was tiring physically, and I succeeded with a single hit remaining. Demise was easier, but because I was prepared; I never really did get the hang of perfectly accurate sword-work.
Anyway, when Zelda told Link she wanted to stay on the surface, that it was nice there and that they should try to make it a place for their people, I wanted to stay there too. It's not even the same as a game like Skyrim, which is beautiful and interesting and full of possibility (it's actually sort of stuffy/claustrophobic in comparison). I just wanted to be able to be in that peaceful place, the land that would become Hyrule, I wanted to relax there for a little while.
I was thinking about this because some games, after the final boss has been defeated, will allow the player to continue on in the world. Skyrim is an example of this, though the effects of your actions in the world aren't hardly apparent unless you speak with the Greybeards/Parthuurnax. But I seem to recall some games having a post-credits sequence, allowing you to appreciate through game-play the benefits your efforts brought to whatever imaginary land. Paper Mario 64 is a good example, albeit somewhat simplified.
I'm not sure which is really better though... games act as a means to get away, for sure, and the challenges we overcome in them are analogous to the challenges we face in real life, part of why they are so satisfying to find victory in. But in real life there is no ultimate ending, no period of peace extending indefinitely without change (until the console is turned off). There are always more challenges, until you die, basically. So when I had the thought, Yeah, I'd like to stay in Hyrule and make a new home, and my thoughts were interrupted by the fade-to-white the game ends with, I felt like maybe it's for the best that I not be allowed to indulge too much that fantasy of a world having come to stability once and for all.
What does the escapist gang think? Do you prefer to have a game come to a close after the credits roll, or do you like the ability to explore the world changed by your actions, albeit only once on into infinity? And can you help be think of other good examples of this sort of thing, what they're trying to accomplish?