Experiencing a real appreciation for Place of Respite in Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice right now. It actually has two such mechanisms, the Dilapitated Temple where you acquire most of your weapon upgrades, and the Buddha Idols which serve as checkpoints and places to level up/acquire skills. You get small moments of reprieve and recharge your healing items at the idols in between stealth sections and intense combat sequences, and every once in a while go back to the temple to catch up with NPCs, get new toys, and practice your fighting techniques. It’s a challenging game and I appreciate that the game is equally generous with moments of peace and growth.
100%. They really understand the necessity for tonal contrasts. Can’t have challenge without reward, and sometimes the only reward you need is a nice view.
Yes! I think that leaning into this experience intentionally is so valuable. We aren’t just creating a hub space, we are creating a place for respite. Moves it from what we are making to what value it gives.
On the first day of Destiny 2’s release I stayed up late with a best friend and we began our campaign against Dominus Ghaul’s legions, all to protect the Last City of Earth. The last bastion of humanity’s light in the universe.
With our usual hub space from Destiny 1—The Tower—destroyed by Ghaul’s vicious sneak attack, we had to retreat to the European Dead Zone to a simple makeshift outpost called simply—The Farm.
And as the sun rose on my real day in San Francisco—hundreds of miles from my best friend—It rose too on The Farm in the European Dead Zone. I sat my character down in a relaxed pose, weary from the fighting. Weary from it all.
They…no I think We stared off into the horizon and I think for a moment we both considered—
I wonder what happens next?
I wonder how far we’ll go?
Not just in my and my Hunter’s battle to defend the Last City of Humanity.
But in all our pursuits to nurture, grow and protect the First Planet of Humanity.
To ensure that our First Planet does not indeed become a Last City.
The first game that I can really remember having this feeling for me was Wing Commander. The way that the in-between mission stuff was handled felt so immersive, I've never really forgotten it
Always wanted to play Wing Commander but I didn’t have a PC that could run it. Plus there was TIE fighter. Most of Top Gun IS the in between mission locker room so it is clearly a perfect addition for WC.
I doubt Wing Commander would hold up very well these days. Among other things, it had an absolutely brutal negative feedback loop where when you lost missions, they sent you down the Bad Path in the campaign and things got harder. Look, if I screwed up an earlier mission, making things harder is not going to help me! But at the time? It looked incredible, and it was the closest thing to playing in a movie that we had.
I never really loved any of the sequels - the delightful shock of the first one had subsided, and what was left was the kind of janky game design at the heart of it. But, hell, it's stuck with me for decades, so that first one clearly did something right.
Experiencing a real appreciation for Place of Respite in Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice right now. It actually has two such mechanisms, the Dilapitated Temple where you acquire most of your weapon upgrades, and the Buddha Idols which serve as checkpoints and places to level up/acquire skills. You get small moments of reprieve and recharge your healing items at the idols in between stealth sections and intense combat sequences, and every once in a while go back to the temple to catch up with NPCs, get new toys, and practice your fighting techniques. It’s a challenging game and I appreciate that the game is equally generous with moments of peace and growth.
People mostly talk about the tension of From games - rightly so. But, I found Elden Ring had beautiful moments of peace and serenity.
100%. They really understand the necessity for tonal contrasts. Can’t have challenge without reward, and sometimes the only reward you need is a nice view.
Yes! I think that leaning into this experience intentionally is so valuable. We aren’t just creating a hub space, we are creating a place for respite. Moves it from what we are making to what value it gives.
On the first day of Destiny 2’s release I stayed up late with a best friend and we began our campaign against Dominus Ghaul’s legions, all to protect the Last City of Earth. The last bastion of humanity’s light in the universe.
With our usual hub space from Destiny 1—The Tower—destroyed by Ghaul’s vicious sneak attack, we had to retreat to the European Dead Zone to a simple makeshift outpost called simply—The Farm.
And as the sun rose on my real day in San Francisco—hundreds of miles from my best friend—It rose too on The Farm in the European Dead Zone. I sat my character down in a relaxed pose, weary from the fighting. Weary from it all.
They…no I think We stared off into the horizon and I think for a moment we both considered—
I wonder what happens next?
I wonder how far we’ll go?
Not just in my and my Hunter’s battle to defend the Last City of Humanity.
But in all our pursuits to nurture, grow and protect the First Planet of Humanity.
To ensure that our First Planet does not indeed become a Last City.
Thank you Grant. These are inspirational.
Likewise. Love reading your story. Games are powerful and smart mechanisms serve that emotional power.
The first game that I can really remember having this feeling for me was Wing Commander. The way that the in-between mission stuff was handled felt so immersive, I've never really forgotten it
Always wanted to play Wing Commander but I didn’t have a PC that could run it. Plus there was TIE fighter. Most of Top Gun IS the in between mission locker room so it is clearly a perfect addition for WC.
I doubt Wing Commander would hold up very well these days. Among other things, it had an absolutely brutal negative feedback loop where when you lost missions, they sent you down the Bad Path in the campaign and things got harder. Look, if I screwed up an earlier mission, making things harder is not going to help me! But at the time? It looked incredible, and it was the closest thing to playing in a movie that we had.
I never really loved any of the sequels - the delightful shock of the first one had subsided, and what was left was the kind of janky game design at the heart of it. But, hell, it's stuck with me for decades, so that first one clearly did something right.