Tag Archives: Nate Andrews

Snuff Enough: Hotline Miami, Manhunt, and the Theater of Killing

Posted on November 8, 2012 by Nate Andrews

The question posed in Hotline Miami is rhetorical. “Do you like hurting other people?” Of course you don’t. Or you shouldn’t. But this is a game, and so you do. Killing is often the language of games. It lubricates plots, … Continue reading →

Posted in Critical Conversation | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Fair-Weather Friends: Animal Crossing and Digital Responsibilities

Posted on October 2, 2012 by Nate Andrews

I reappeared in Western again after another extended time away—73 months, or a smidge clear of six years, according to the grumpy squirrel next door who hardly recognized me—to find the town had grown in on itself. Beds of weeds and an army of … Continue reading →

Posted in Criticism | Tagged Animal Crossing , bootstraps , Horatio Alger , Katsuya Eguchi , marxist game design , , Objectivism , Tom Nook | Leave a comment

Chasing Chernobyl: Survival, Pacifism, and the Aesthetics of a World Without Us in S.T.A.L.K.E.R.

Posted on May 7, 2012 by Nate Andrews

The necessity for survival is communicated in no uncertain terms in S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl, the first-person shooter/RPG inspired by the sparse aesthetic of both the 1979 film of the same name and the real-life remnants of the 1986 Ukrainian nuclear meltdown. This is the story of how I learned to look beyond the game, beyond survival, and see something lasting and beautiful in its landscape. Continue reading →

Posted in Criticism | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments