Issue 7: Tuning Out the Noise
Media is fighting for my time. And my soul.
Hello again! You’re looking smart today.
New subscriber, who dis?
Oh, it’s just me, Wes. You remember me, right?
Are you that dude that was holding up a boombox outside my window?
No, that was John Cusack.
Are you that fella who sang “Twist and Shout” during the Chicago Parade?
No, that was Matthew Broderick.
Waitaminute! You’re the writer guy!
I’m Wes Locher. I’ve been writing professionally for a decade. I write comic books, video games, fiction, and nonfiction. I write whatever seems fun, cool, and inspiring. I also love helping other writers to demystify the process of making a living through words. This is my newsletter.
Yeah, you’re the one who writes those kids books!
Comic books, actually.
Same thing.
Not at all.
I remember who you are now. Consider me underwhelmed.
Yeah, you and everyone else.
In this issue…
- Bite-sized Games
- Writing Advice
- The Oral History Of…
WHAT HAPPENED LAST ISSUE?
In issue 6, I offered you a free ebook written by writers about the paths which took them to success. It’s the equivalent to the secrets of the universe. You should totally download The Writer’s Path if you haven’t already.
But really, I’m here today to talk about…
GAMES. BUT BITE-SIZED.
There’s so much noise in our media world. Billions of books. Millions of films and comics. Thousands upon thousands of TV shows and video games. What makes you choose what you’re going to experience next?
In the world of books, I found myself drawn to authors. The way I see it, if I’m going to sink countless hours into reading a novel or nonfiction title, I like to know that I’m investing in an author or writer who has released solid, worthwhile content in the past. Stephen King. Neil Gaiman. Kurt Vonnegut, Jr (RIP). Jason Schreier. David L. Craddock. Just a few authors and writers who I will read anything by because I know it will be interesting, exciting, informative.
When reading comics, I tend to follow creative teams—artists or writers—who either tell amazing stories in the medium, or whose art dares me to look away. Brian K. Vaughan. Chris Samnee. Donny Cates. Kyle Starks. Darwyn Cooke. These artists and writers make me love comics more and more with each passing page.
However, for the longest time, I didn’t approach TV, movies in the same manner. Instead, I looked at genres. My natural tendencies for story fall on the sci-fi side of things, so I’d just look for whatever sci-fi films were burning up the charts, or looked interesting. However, as I’ve gotten older, I see that my likes are often connected to certain screenwriters, showrunners, directors.
When I lived in Orlando, Florida in my 20s, there was (and still is) a coffee shop called Stardust Video & Coffee. Stardust had its films organized not by genre, but by director. My buddy Doug and I used to mock the store’s choice of organization for being utterly pretentious, but decades later, I realize that they’re onto something. Nowadays I find myself seeking out specific directors and showrunners amidst a deluge of streaming platforms vying for my attention. I’ll give my time to Edgar Wright. Noah Hawley. David Fincher. Quentin Tarantino. Ridley Scott.
Those who play video games tend to follow genres or franchises, playing the new FIFA, Call of Duty, Assassin’s Creed, or Uncharted games whenever they drop. I love video games. I work in video games. However, the time I must dedicate to a game in order to complete it usually falls somewhere between “absurd” and “impossible” on my time scale, making it difficult to become invested. As someone who has (Owns? Leases?) a toddler, my media time has gradually shrunken down to roughly an hour a day… sometimes less, especially since my daughter now understands that the television is the keeper of her favorite entertainment.
Simply put, I need short games.
So I started seeking them out. After all, there had to be short interactive experiences that were fulfilling and had a decent story… right?
I started researching. Started downloading. Started playing. And wouldn’t you know it… I started finishing games. I found that indeed, I could get great interactive experiences that lasted anywhere from 1-3 hours. (This was helped along by the Nintendo Switch’s handheld mode. Kiddo monopolizing the TV? No problem!) There was a market for these types of games and stories. And then I started paying attention to who was making them. And while these short, bite-sized games came from a myriad of different studios and developers, many of those that I enjoyed the most had one thing in common. They were published by Annapurna Interactive.
A division of Annapurna Pictures, the subsidiary spun off in 2016 to publish games. The effort was led by Annapurna executives along with video game veterans Nathan Gary, Deborah Mars, Hector Sanchez, and Jeff Legaspi, whose resumes show time spent making games for Sony Interactive Entertainment and Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment.
But Annapurna wouldn’t just publish any games, instead, seeking out titles that were "personal, emotional, and original".
Realizing that following a game publisher was just as effective in aiming me toward joy as following a specific novelist or movie director, I went all-in and decided to tackle these short games, heavy with themes of loss, joy, love, family, and honor. To date I’ve made it through seven of the publisher’s titles, and I thought I’d share a bit about the experiences, ranking them in the process.
8. Outer Wilds
As an alien pilot, you set out into the stars but find yourself stuck in a time loop. Now, you must unravel a mystery to keep the galaxy from ending, or repeat your mistakes until you figure it out.
This game had a lot of great mechanics, from its tiny, spherical worlds, to the spaceship controls, down to the intriguing level design. For me, the game’s biggest challenge was in learning to control my spaceship, but, hey, that’s cool—piloting a ship shouldn’t be easy, right? I also dug Outer Wilds’ story and mystery (plus, I’m a sucker for any story that uses a time loop as a plot device). You see, as you play, the world… nay… the galaxy gets closer and closer to ending. And when it does, you go back to square one. Sounds annoying, but the ticking clock puts some pep in your step and challenges you to make good use of the minutes you’re given. No time for sight-seeing! Also, bad spaceship piloting really deducts from the amount of time you have to save the world. Just sayin’.
I do have a confession to make… I never finished the game. I really wanted to. I dug it. I moved into a new house and then my PlayStation went into a box for several months, and by the time it was dug out… well… see that whole “time” explanation above. The good news is, Outer Wilds is supposed to be released for Switch at some point, and I look forward to trying my hand at it again once I can play it anywhere.
7. Kentucky Route Zero: TV Edition
Kentucky Route Zero follows truck driver named Conway and the strange people he meets as he tries to cross the mysterious Route Zero in Kentucky to make a final delivery.
I wanted to like this game. I wanted to love it. I wanted it to be my favorite game of the year. Unfortunately it wasn’t. While I enjoyed the experience of playing, and the nostalgia of point and click vibes, this game was too dark in its material, and tried to tackle it in the dark times of a global pandemic. While KRZ is moody and broody and thrilling and mysterious, I’ve promised that I’ll revisit it once the world outside is… brighter. The characters were interesting, the central mystery intriguing, and the game’s variety of mechanics easy to understand and master. However, dark times do not play kind host to dark games.
However, if you want to deal with some shady characters who are clearly keeping their secrets close to the vest and you want to travel to unique environments and squint a lot at the game’s mostly-dark levels, I encourage you to check out Kentucky Route Zero.
It turns out that this game (unknown to me at the time of playing it) was published in fits and starts, and I think that came across in the experience, making it feel slightly disjointed at times. But as far as setting a mood, and building a world… top notch.
6. Donut County
Human Mira works for her friend BK, a raccoon, at the local donut shop in Donut County. She finds BK more interested in a new mobile app, trying to earn enough points for a quadcopter drone, which he does by scheduling the delivery of donuts to the residents of Donut County. However, Mira discovers that these aren't donuts being sent by the app, but actual holes which have been consuming the homes and residents of the place.
Yeah, it’s a confusing story and some of the finer points were lost along the way. However, Donut County’s gameplay is simple… you control a hole in the ground. And you swallow things up. Barrels, fences, cars… And the more stuff you swallow, the bigger the hole becomes until you’re able to eat up entire buildings and cityscapes, ultimately clearing the level.
Donut County also provided a breath of fresh air, and it’s bright, cartoony levels and silly characters were the perfect antidote to Kentucky Route Zero’s darkness and despair. This title is a wonderful example of how a simple mechanic can create a compelling experience even if the narrative isn’t fully-developed (or entirely clear). Did I have fun exploring the game’s cartoonish landscapes and swallowing up everything in sight? You’d better believe it.
5. Gone Home
Gone Home explores the story of an American family's trials, and centers on the adolescence of its youngest daughter, Sam, as she finds her first love with another girl.
Remember Gone Home? It got a ton of buzz a few years ago for… something. I don’t remember what. That’s not to disparage the game in any way, I don’t remember simply because I’m a sleep-deprived adult who has (owns? Leases? maintains?) a toddler. Despite that, the game provides a great little experience of exploring a family home and showcases environmental storytelling to give context to the player’s journey.
In Gone Home there are no enemies to shoot, no (difficult) puzzles to be solved, and no monsters attacking you. The game just requires a bit of patience and a lot of walking in order to explore a house—filled with secrets and truths—and deliver a satisfying experience and story. They say you can’t go home again, and Gone Home reminds us why.
4. Florence
The game follows Florence Yeoh, a 25-year-old woman who lives alone and is settled into a monotonous routine of working at her job and mindlessly interacting with social media on her commute. One morning, her phone dies and she follows the sound of a cello and sees Krish, a street performer, for the first time.
Florence was developed by Australia’s Mountains game studios, led by Ken Wong—whom you may know as one of the minds behind one of my favorite mobile experiences of all time, Monument Valley. (I’ve been wanting to write something about Monument Valley for so long.) Wong’s connection to the game was what helped me find Annapurna in the first place. (Seriously, I have half a book written on the topic of Monument Valley.) Florence also stays with what Wong is known for… minimalist, colorful experiences. (I’ll figure it out eventually.)
The story is simple… a single female (Florence) meets a single guy, Krish, and the player helps guide Florence through the little events and moments—both good and bad—that make up any relationship. That doesn’t sound fun on paper, but it’s totally fun, cute, sad, touching, and inspiring. Florence is available on mobile as well (and probably provides the most unique way to experience the game), and is totally worth the one-hour playtime. Highly recommended, especially if all you know about video games is shooting and punching and talking smack to 12-year-olds through a headset.
3. What Remains of Edith Finch
What Remains of Edith Finch is a collection of strange tales about a family in Washington state. As Edith, you’ll explore the colossal Finch house, searching for stories as she explores her family history and tries to figure out why she's the last one in her family left alive.
My third favorite Annapurna experience to date was What Remains of Edith Finch. Edith was released in 2017. I didn’t get to it until 2019? 2020? But, wow—what a fun and unique experience.
Similarly to Gone Home, the game is a lot of walking around an old house, however, each chapter relates to a different member of the Finch family, the stories of which are told through various minigames. I’ve never seen a game pack so many different mechanics into one title before. But rather than be frustrating, these new mechanics that pop up—which task the player with everything from flying a kite, to chopping heads off of fish—serves a storytelling purpose.
I wish I could erase my memories of this game so I could go back and play it for the first time again. That’s how much I enjoyed it. Maybe in the future, such a device will be available.
2. The Artful Escape
A kid living in the shadow of his once great and famous uncle must go on a galactic journey of music and self discovery to become his own version of a legend.
This title is the freshest in my mind because I just played it a week ago. I’m a sucker for music-related games, documentaries, and media—mostly because of my own failed experiences trying to break into the music industry in my 20s. I found The Artful Escape’s story to be relatable as well. On the surface, it’s a story of breaking out from the shadows of your ancestors, but on a deeper level, it was a story about establishing an identity and learning who you are as a person.
There wasn’t a ton of challenging gameplay to this one and the branching dialogue felt a bit forced at times, but this game had amazing visuals and some of the best voice acting that I’ve experienced in some time, with key character voices being performed by the likes of Lena Headey, Jason Schwartzman, Mark Strong, and Carl Weathers.
For a game focused almost entirely on story, I felt the development of the supporting cast was a bit weak, but it’s not like I could make a better game. I can’t code or build stuff, so who am I to judge? Despite questionable character development, The Artful Escape’ was an experience that I’m so glad I had. Sometimes you just have to enjoy the (psychedelic) ride.
Ever wanted to shred on a space guitar and perform a concert for the entire cosmos? Yeah, me too. The Artful Escape lets you do exactly that.
1. Sayonara Wild Hearts
Sayonara Wild Hearts follows the story of a heartbroken young woman through a surrealistic landscape.
That description is sort of short-changing the game from a story standpoint, but I wouldn’t want to say more and spoil it, have you not enjoyed it. Sayonara Wild Hearts isn’t difficult, but it’s fun and touching and simple in all the most elegant ways. Narrated by Queen Latifah, you control a heartbroken character who needs to heal and believe in herself again and in doing so, you experience one of the best action/rhythm games of all time (maybe the only one?).
As soon as I finished the game, I immediately went back and restarted it. Sayonara Wild Hearts is available on every platform, and you really can’t escape it. So just go download it and play it already. Seriously, I’ll wait.
And the soundtrack. Ohhhhh, the soundtrack. It’s better than most actual albums that come out these days. I dare you to get these songs out of your head.
The titles referenced above are just the Annapurna titles I have played. My wishlist is still bulging with titles I look forward to tackling soon, including The Last Stop, 12 Minutes, A Memoir Blue, If Found…, I am Dead, Telling Lies, Ashen, Gorogoa… There’s also a bunch of games that are exclusive to PS5 and PC that I will likely never get to play. It’s unfortunate. Maybe that’ll change in 2099 when people can actually purchase a PS5.
THE TAKEAWAY
Not every game has to be about saving the world to a backdrop of explosions and gunfire. A story about a personal experience—leaving home, coming home, falling in love, falling out of love, or figuring out who you really are—can be infinitely more relatable, and forge an experience in a quarter of the time of a 60+ hour game… and become an experience that stays with you longer. Sometimes it’s nice to play a game that involves firing a rocket launcher at dozens of faceless enemies.
Don’t get me wrong, firing a rocket launcher is fun, too.
WRITING ADVICE
Not every story has to be a world or galaxy-spanning adventure. A great story can take place in a single room. On a single day. It’s all about how that person enters the room, and how they leave, changed.
If you struggle with the scope of your story, reel it in. If the world is too big, think about how you can use the city. If the city is proving to be too much to handle, think about how you can use a single street, a single building, a house, or even a room.
Is your cast too big? Cut characters. Combine characters. Figure out who needs to be present in order for your story, emotions, and themes to resonate with your reader.
The games I discussed above are all tiny experiences with limited set pieces and anywhere from 1-5 characters used to move the story. Each of the games was summed up in a sentence or two at most. You should strive for that same clarity and simplicity, no matter your medium.
THE ORAL HISTORY OF…
Did you enjoy the oral history of the Blue Man Group that I shared in the last newsletter? Of course you didn’t! No one clicked the link. But, hey, it’s cool. This is a judgment-free zone.
I have a feeling that I’ll reel you in with this one…
Xmas or Bust: The Untold Story of ‘National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation’
By Rob Ledonne for Rolling Stone
https://www.rollingstone.com/feature/xmas-or-bust-the-untold-story-of-national-lampoons-christmas-vacation-173969/
It started as a continuation of the misadventures of the Griswold family; it ended up becoming one of the most surprisingly popular and oft-quoted holiday movies of all time.
National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation is the story of beleaguered patriarch Clark Griswold – played by the inimitable Chevy Chase – who tries to engineer the picture-perfect seasonal festivities: the best naturally procured tree, the biggest and brightest (literally) Christmas-light display on the block, the end-of-the-year bonus from his Scrooge-like boss. It’s the only comedy to appeal to those who live for that deck-the-halls spirit, viewers who are dyed-in-the-wool Grinches (“Well, I don’t know what to say, except it’s Christmas and we’re all in misery”) and folks who appreciate the genius of Randy Quaid in his underwear, exclaiming: “Shitter’s full!”
We’ve asked the cast and creators to weigh in on the seasonal classic, which was released over 30 years ago in December 1989. From the intricate planning behind the film’s zany antics to freak snowstorms and cast freak-outs, this is the untold, no-holds-barred story of Christmas Vacation.
Everyone has their favorite Christmas films. It’s a Wonderful Life, A Christmas Story, maybe even Die Hard. National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation is my go-to holiday flick. It’s one of those movies that hits close to home and feels like watching a movie of my own family during the holidays. I’ve probably watched this film more than any other film in existence, so to read the stories behind the movie was a ton of fun.
If Christmas Vacation isn’t your bag, hit up Google and search for the oral history of your favorite holiday film. I guarantee it exists!
Wait… That’s it? You’re leaving?
Well, yeah. This newsletter went much longer than I anticipated. Should I continue with a recap of my week? Do you want to hear about how tired I am?
No thanks. If I want to hear you whine, I’ll re-read some of your past newsletters.
That’s fair.
See you in a couple weeks, then?
It’s a deal.
Great writing advice! Sometimes the best stories don't require so much running around. Loved this post!
I'm sorry to hear about Kentucky Route Zero. That's one I was looking forward to.