Lana Polansky writes on Killscreen Daily concerning the use of satire in games:
Satire is rarely discussed as an artistic aim in videogames, because we’re still fixated on representing evocative and earnest dramatic tensions. It has been done staggeringly poorly, and has been confounded or even ignored altogether by players one way or the other.
There are some good examples of games that use or attempt to use satire, but it was the omission of one game in particular that really got my attention, Super Brothers: Sword & Sworcery EP. The game, which got its start as an iPad only release (where it is still best experienced) is, perhaps aside from its soundtrack, a satire on the way narrative is presented in gaming. It is not the biting satire of Swift’s Modest Proposal, but it does highlight some of the flaws in video game stories, characters, and specifically the way people talk about the events that take place in any particular game.
If you have an iPad, iPhone, or Steam, and somehow haven’t yet played Sword & Sworcery, pick it up and see if you agree. Whether you think I’m right or wrong on the satire point, you’ll get to experience one of the more memorable gaming experiences of the last couple of years.
(Source: killscreendaily.com)
