I experienced something completely new yesterday – a video game that actually pulled me in enough to make me cry.  I have never cried in a game before, although I have teared up a bit at some great endings (Mass Effect and COD4 come to mind). But it was nothing like yesterday. Yesterday I was completely weeping, with tears streaming down my face and filling my eyes so full I could barely see the game I was supposed to be playing.

I tried to resist it. I could tell from some of the first dreams (which are stories told in animated text in the game) that they wanted me to cry. But for the first 12 hours of the game, I felt nothing for the characters. Kaim is too pretty a man, Seth too macho a woman, and Jansen too drunk and disorderly for me to feel connected with any of them. And then, I approached the end of Disc One – the story started coming together, a huge event happened (which I won’t spoil for anyone, please don’t spoil the further story for me), and I completely lost it. That was just good game design right there – a well-told story along with active participation in the events – and one of the reasons I’m still playing the game.

That’s not to say I’m adding this game to my top ten list (at least not when I’m just at the beginning of Disc 2 out of 4). The Mr. has had to endure quite a bit of my complaining about long cut scenes, lame grinding, hours between save points, and overpowered bosses in the earlier levels. But I have to agree with what the Mr. said after I told him I’d spent my afternoon crying into my pillow over some animated characters with terrible clothes and stringy hair. “That’s impressive.” It is. I am still amazed that a video game could capture so much emotional energy and turn it into a playable experience, and I’m looking forward to the other 80 hours I’ll be spending learning the stories of these immortals.