Critical reviews about Gone Home emphasize the game 's non-violent immersive nature. For instance, game writer Nilson Thomas Carroll argues that Gone Home is a genuine and completely non-violent game with a nontraditional story (2014). I, however, think that there is a darker side lurking beneath this game.
It successfully reveals inner lives of the family in a haunted house in 1995. From discovering the journals of Katie’s little sister -- Sam, we get to know that Sam falls in love with a brave young girl who is at the height of post-punk teenage rebellion. This lovable queer story serves as an honest and relatable depiction of what it was like growing up queer in the nineties (Rankin, 2016). Since the game contains Sam’s audio journals, …show more content…
Lien says that “through finding photos, notes and various objects around the house, the stories of the individuals and the bigger story about the family are slowly pieced together (2013).” So we can see that the juxtaposition of objects within the environment can tell a story without explicitly explaining to the player what is happening in the room. There are scattered notes from Jan’s old friend that contain recent gossip about Rick. In addition to that, under Terry and Jan’s bed, Jan hides a book given to her by Rick. The bookmark insides says “Enjoy the book! I feel happier knowing it’s in the hands of a discerning reader. Rick.” Every night when Jan finishes reading the book, she thinks of him. It is like a very quiet form of worship (Grant, 2013). Also, she hides receipts from the beauty salon in the air conditioning duct after going on a date with Rick who secretly invites her to a concert of Earth, Wind and Fire. These pieces evidence seem to have no connections with Terry, but Terry is the direct victim of this …show more content…
He mentions that Terry should stop keep utilizing cliché genre tropes and relating his book too much with his experience. His father knows exactly what happened to Terry, but does nothing to help. Here, Gone Home talks more than the hidden violence. It is also about the silent abuse. By deliberately ignoring Terry’s traumatic experience and his emotional needs, Terry’s father turns himself into an abuser, too. His inability to help brings his son the long-lasting pain.
Despite the lack of blood and gore, the cold violence makes the game uncommonly dark. Blogger Tyler Dantuma posted that “while not all of the conflicts are directly dealt with or resolved between the characters, those that are covered wrap up their ends in mature, realistic ways that add to the humanity of the story (2016).” I totally agree. The spaces left between the game and the real world need us to spare time to look into. Doing nothing won’t help -- silent abuse will only lead to a worsening
It successfully reveals inner lives of the family in a haunted house in 1995. From discovering the journals of Katie’s little sister -- Sam, we get to know that Sam falls in love with a brave young girl who is at the height of post-punk teenage rebellion. This lovable queer story serves as an honest and relatable depiction of what it was like growing up queer in the nineties (Rankin, 2016). Since the game contains Sam’s audio journals, …show more content…
Lien says that “through finding photos, notes and various objects around the house, the stories of the individuals and the bigger story about the family are slowly pieced together (2013).” So we can see that the juxtaposition of objects within the environment can tell a story without explicitly explaining to the player what is happening in the room. There are scattered notes from Jan’s old friend that contain recent gossip about Rick. In addition to that, under Terry and Jan’s bed, Jan hides a book given to her by Rick. The bookmark insides says “Enjoy the book! I feel happier knowing it’s in the hands of a discerning reader. Rick.” Every night when Jan finishes reading the book, she thinks of him. It is like a very quiet form of worship (Grant, 2013). Also, she hides receipts from the beauty salon in the air conditioning duct after going on a date with Rick who secretly invites her to a concert of Earth, Wind and Fire. These pieces evidence seem to have no connections with Terry, but Terry is the direct victim of this …show more content…
He mentions that Terry should stop keep utilizing cliché genre tropes and relating his book too much with his experience. His father knows exactly what happened to Terry, but does nothing to help. Here, Gone Home talks more than the hidden violence. It is also about the silent abuse. By deliberately ignoring Terry’s traumatic experience and his emotional needs, Terry’s father turns himself into an abuser, too. His inability to help brings his son the long-lasting pain.
Despite the lack of blood and gore, the cold violence makes the game uncommonly dark. Blogger Tyler Dantuma posted that “while not all of the conflicts are directly dealt with or resolved between the characters, those that are covered wrap up their ends in mature, realistic ways that add to the humanity of the story (2016).” I totally agree. The spaces left between the game and the real world need us to spare time to look into. Doing nothing won’t help -- silent abuse will only lead to a worsening