A revised understanding of quests can help to mediate between games and narratives by showing strategies by which game designers have created meaningful action, often in ways that are either unconsciously similar to or inspired by the literary traditions of mythology, epic, and romance. Specifically, game designers can use level design to create labyrinthine spaces that encode thematic implications, in the tradition of literary allegory.

He goes on to give interesting examples his students constructed in his own teaching experiences.

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Cultivation is quite different from most other games. It is a social simulation, and the primary form of conflict is over land and plant resources—there is no shooting, but there are plenty of angry looks. It is also an evolution simulation. Within the world of Cultivation, you can explore a virtually infinite spectrum of different plant and gardener varieties.

All of the graphics, sounds, melodies,and other content in Cultivation are 100% procedurally generated at playtime. In other words, there are no hand-painted texture maps—instead, each object has a uniquely “grown” appearance. Every time you play, Cultivation generates fresh visuals, music, and behaviors.

Braid also seems fascinating to me in concept. It is described like this:

Braid is an action-puzzle game about manipulating the flow of time. The player journeys through a series of worlds; in each world, time behaves differently. The game provides a mind-expanding experience that is filler-free, treating the player’s time as precious.

Flow is similar to Cultivation in its simulation of simplified and abstracted characteristics of evolution. It can already be played online. The summary of it is not exactly crystal clear, but maybe you’re meant to learn what it’s about by playing it – “play me, don’t tell me”. Why not? In film and fiction, “show me, don’t tell me” is the motto.

Originated as a practice and testbed for Embedded Difficulty Adjustment theory formulated in Jenova Chen’s game design thesis, flOw is a web based game designed to attract a wider audience, allowing players with different tastes to enjoy the experience in their own way. The game features an abstract aquatic world inviting player to dive in, to learn, to explore, to survive…

There are other finalists listed on the Slamdance webpage. Some of them may be more appealing to some readers than those few I have singled out to mention.

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1. can we explore games as allegories for the world we live in?
2. can there be a critical theory of games?

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