![]() ![]() It was meant to be organic with the story. “Ultimately it wasn't done entirely for shock value. It's a reasonable response to a controversial scene. “Another 2K staff member was, as a father of “two absolutely adorable kids,” convinced that this kind of visual was unnecessary. “I'm finding this from a lot of gamers,” he says, “that as they're getting older and having children, they get a bit uncomfortable sometimes with how children are treated in certain games.” They would look at this game and go, wow, is this actually a game that I want to finish playing? And if I do, I have to accept what just happened and choose to keep playing this game.” Creating imagery, story, and scenery engineered to upset emotions definitely comes with repercussions, and Williams met some serious resistance internally. “We were hoping that that choice would be mirrored in the players. “That's a moment where a human being, if you were actually a soldier in that situation, you would have to make that very conscious choice of trying to move on and accept what you had done,” he says. Williams didn’t expect such an intense reaction to the harrowing imagery of a mother and child burned alive. We wanted people to be angry because we felt like that was a real emotional response to that scene.” During focus tests, in which 2K brought regular gamers in to play large chunks of Spec Ops and give the developers feedback, players paused the game and left the room to compose themselves. Williams “didn’t care about crossing a line. Angering people was an active goal, particularly with this scene. “We wanted the player to be where Walker was and be angry at us, the people who made them do this,” Williams explains. ![]() At that point, Williams says, “we wanted the player to be in the same emotional position as Walker.” From there, Williams projects Walker onto the player. ![]() Walker inadvertently murders civilians, soldiers, and families. For Williams, the infamous white phosphorous scene embodies exactly what he wanted for Spec Ops. That’s a small touch, but it’s a means of emphasizing Spec Ops’ aggression toward players. Death as well as progress rub salt in your wounds. “Not simply as a simulation, but also as the game itself.” Williams refers to the loading screens, which eventually stop giving gameplay tips and start reminding you of the mistakes you’ve made and the damage they’ve caused. “We wanted that sense that the game was physically opposing you,” says Williams. By telling you this specific, small-scale story about suffering, Spec Ops simultaneously comments on the triviality of war games and the people who play them. It asks, “You find this fun? You enjoy this slaughter? You like watching awful things happen to good or innocent people?” And you say, “yes I do.” Suddenly, Yager Development, 2K Games, and Walt Williams force you to ask yourself why, and to consider the kind of person you’ve become because of shooters. Play At the point you ask yourself this question, Spec Ops is speaking directly at you. Are these visions of what Walker fears, or what he wants? Walker repeatedly envisions himself slaughtering his squadmates, he kills thousands of men, both CIA and American army, and he fabricates painful moral dilemmas. ![]() For those investing emotions into it, this opens up a ton of new questions about the characters and events of Spec Ops: The Line. Williams and the rest of the development team want players to have emotional reaction based on what Spec Ops means to them. This is what makes Spec Ops’ special: It leaves each of its story beats open to interpretation, and they can be as meaningful or empty as you want them to be. They are literally closing their eyes to the reality in front of them.” Later, Williams explains, “there's a tree covered in leaves that, after you pass, if you look back, the tree is now dead, the leaves have completely vanished.” Is it a metaphor for Walker’s desperate hope to find life in Dubai, or is this a basic consequence of his insanity? It’s ultimately up to you. “You'll notice that those eyes are only blacked out in situations where there's something truly horrible in the area. ““There are a lot of pictures of people with their eyes blacked out in the first half of the game,” says Williams. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |