I've been listening to a podcast called «Something Rotten» a lot lately in which the hosts talk about how video game writing is often time much poorer than other mediums by comparison. It feels like video game writers only consume game writing, and don't take the time to learn from all the richness cinema and novels have to offer for example.
I'd posit Silent Hill: The Short Message as a prime example of this problem.
From my point of view, the love for this franchise comes from rich stories of trauma told in oblique, yet thoughtful ways.
The Short Message in contrast hits you with its themes like a hammer to the face. It's so on the nose and badly written it's hard to believe. Everytime someone screamed «DUMB» as a bullying slur, I rolled my eyes. It works when written on post-its on the wall, but good god, less is more when it comes to voicing lines of dialogue.
It has a fair level of polish in its aesthetic and some interesting chase scene ideas (although they are more tedious than fully realized), but when a narrative experience leans on a script so appalingly poor in subtelty and subtext, the whole thing falls apart.
I'd posit Silent Hill: The Short Message as a prime example of this problem.
From my point of view, the love for this franchise comes from rich stories of trauma told in oblique, yet thoughtful ways.
The Short Message in contrast hits you with its themes like a hammer to the face. It's so on the nose and badly written it's hard to believe. Everytime someone screamed «DUMB» as a bullying slur, I rolled my eyes. It works when written on post-its on the wall, but good god, less is more when it comes to voicing lines of dialogue.
It has a fair level of polish in its aesthetic and some interesting chase scene ideas (although they are more tedious than fully realized), but when a narrative experience leans on a script so appalingly poor in subtelty and subtext, the whole thing falls apart.