Internet Really Chat

Against my better judgment, I’ve been spending some time on the internet recently.

Thankfully, there are very smart, feeling people out there, who say things. For example, Michael Brough says this:

If you like a thing, there’s going to be a ton of other people who would like it, for the same reasons you do. Maybe they haven’t heard of it yet. Maybe you can tell them.

Along similar lines, Yaffle says this:

Just like DJs are having fun with digging for new and lesser known music to then present it to their listeners on the radio or at the club, there could be more of this done with video games, too. I, personally, love reading blog posts with someone’s thoughts on various games they are currently playing — this often makes me look for more information about those games — simple as that.

and

I think simply the increase in circulation of hyperlinks to video games one finds interesting (outside of the mainstream) and wants to share with others in blogs, forums, or, at least, on social media, or even in DMs, would help greatly both players and creators.

Very nice things to say, in my humble imho, and I’m trying to internalize them. The word “intentional” appears only seven times in this blog so far (eight, now), but it’s how I’m trying to be more of [sic]. I’m trying to know myself better, to listen to myself better, and to notice the things that I’m engaging with a little bit more acutely. As part of that, and as folks mentioned above (and elsewhere) I want to maybe talk about the things that captured my attention and imagination, on the occasions I get around to blogging.

So,

Slow Roads

I first played the web toy some time ago, and it’s soon to be (now?) available on Steam.

It’s (at least through the Steam Next Fest demo) simple enough in concept: you choose an environment, and some environmental conditions, and maybe a car? And then you drive indefinitely. That’s sort of all there is to it, and you can get a pretty good feel for it from the web toy linked above. The driving might be a little too slippy for my tastes, but I don’t think it’s going for realism… rather a meditative movement through a near-endless kind of space.

I would love to learn more about the procgen used in this one—it really is seamless, and looks “good enough” not to stand out. And there are some genuinely impressive vistas. At its best, it brings back memories of Forza Horizon 4, where I’d just punch in some random point on the opposite side of the map and drive for ten uninterrupted minutes. This is cozy, to me.

Anyway, it’s really impressive. I’d also like to pair the game with Brendan Keogh’s On Roadtrips, which gets at something like the same feeling I’m chasing here, but with more of a narrative layer just underneath. As he puts it:

A good roadtrip game would be long and boring and mundane with an ever-changing landscape demanding your full attention.

I think I agree!