Episode 133 - Mental Health and Animal Protagonists
Show Notes
Ben has TOO MANY game codes, so Aunt Norah is here to help! This back to back episodes… episode contains two conversations themed around the games Ben has been playing for review purposes. In the top half, they talk about the representations of the mental ailments in the games Next of Kin and RATSHAKER™. In the latter half, they talk about the handling of the animal protagonist in Spirit of the North 2.
PART 1 - The portrayal of mental fitness topics in and opinions about Next of Kin and RATSHAKER™
00:00:20 - Going global-ish and an explanation of the next batch of Norah episodes
Next of Kin by Spelkväll Games -
00:02:23 - Story description and the trailer, and Norah’s thoughts on the trailer…text box speed
00:05:27 - Her interest was piqued, solving the mystery, in-game trigger warnings, and not light
00:07:40 - Mental disorders, differences between dementia and schizophrenia, and trivializing
00:10:00 - Excellent mental health focused games, and generational perspectives on sharing
00:15:27 - Life experiences with schizophrenia and Alzheimer’s disease, and the garden hose
RATSHAKER™ by Sunscorched Studios -
00:18:07 - A horror experiences, trademarked, and trying to be clever with the description
00:20:25 - The controls and game mechanics, a schizophrenia simulation, and the trailer
00:23:38 - Effective scares, cracking the rat for a light source, and it’s normal for horror
00:26:47 - Final thoughts on the importance of mental health awareness and empathy
PART 2 - Telling a story with a silent animal protagonist and opinions on Spirit of the North 2
00:30:43 - Welcome, figuring out the topic, and an appetizer for the word folklore
Spirit of the North 2 by Infuse Studio -
00:31:34 - Being a fox in Iceland, similarities to Stray, and Norah’s thoughts on the game trailer
00:33:37 - The technical trailer, a disagreement on feedback, and complaining in social media
00:37:15 - Finnish folklore, Icelandic settings, a fox’s mental faculties, and game description
00:40:11 - Customizing your fox, and Ben gets excited about… VIKING HELMETS ON CATS?!
00:43:00 - Boss fights, waiting for the giant bird in the coliseum, and lots of running around
00:45:42 - Not an observant animal, a silent protagonist, and no connection to other foxes
00:49:14 - Zen and the art of being a fox, from a previous generation, and total playtime hours
00:51:21 - No detectable side-quests, de rigueur, the perspective, and some camera problems
00:53:58 - The delicate balance of game design, thoughts on adding a narrator, and beauty
00:56:00 - The internal monologue of animals, cozy camping does not exist, and show closing
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References, Links, and Tags
For more information about Next of Kin from Spelkväll Games…
https://store.steampowered.com/app/3027980/Next_of_Kin/
For more information about RATSHAKER™ from Sunscorched Studios…
https://sunscorchedstudios.co.uk/ratshaker
https://sunscorchedstudios.co.uk/
For more Information about Spirit of the North 2 from Infuse Studio…
https://www.playspiritofthenorth.com/
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