Every day the same dream.

September 21, 2010 5:23 AM

Every day the same dream. Every day the same dream.
posted by tybeet (15 comments total)

Previously on metafilter (the game, not the short film).
posted by pharm at 5:37 AM on September 21, 2010

Ah. Feel free to axe this thread then.
posted by tybeet at 5:41 AM on September 21, 2010

"It always starts the same way. I am in the garden airing my terrapin Jetta when he walks past my gate, that mysterious man in black."
posted by the aloha at 5:46 AM on September 21, 2010 [4 favorites]

ROSETTA LeNOIRE
posted by Smart Dalek at 6:02 AM on September 21, 2010

Ah. Feel free to axe this thread then.

Not so fast. The link to the film makes this new again. The music alone is worth the ride.
posted by humannaire at 6:08 AM on September 21, 2010

ROSETTA LeNOIRE
posted by Greg Nog at 6:28 AM on September 21, 2010

yes - i vote to keep the thread too. Way better than the average game to film adaptation.
posted by silence at 6:36 AM on September 21, 2010

Man that other MF thread was ugly. I thought both game and short film were fantastic. Maybe that's because I'm not a gamer.
posted by Potomac Avenue at 7:00 AM on September 21, 2010

Interesting. Have there been other flash game to film adaptations?

Also interestingly, I thought the game worked better, thought the film was certainly well made.
posted by cmoj at 8:59 AM on September 21, 2010

Also interestingly, I thought the game worked better, thought the film was certainly well made.

The game tells an amazing narrative, but I think it depends entirely on how (and in what order) you sequence the events. I may have played it too much like a game the first time, but I saw what they were trying to achieve. I think you have to role-play the character and the circumstances (monotony, repetition, routine) to get the most out of it.
posted by tybeet at 9:26 AM on September 21, 2010

I like that we have sufficient technology now that people can try this sort of experiment, making the video game equivalent of art films or experimental theater or what have you. The results are, I think rather inevitably, a mixed bag but I like that we now have sufficient technological freedom that its even possible for things of this nature to be attempted.

More than that, I think the low budget, often one person, Art Game projects are critical to advancing the field in general. At the high end of the game market things are largely stagnant, other than in terms of improving graphics, in large part because the cost of making a new high end game is so high.

Take a look at the games released this month and you'll note that a staggering number are either sequels, or tie ins with other media, or both.

This month, for example, we have a total of 86 games being released. Only 24 of those games are original, and of those three are basically just tech demos for new controllers. We have 47 outright sequels this month, 12 media tie in games, and 3 expansions.

That seems a bit skewed towards sequels if you ask me. Without the indy people turning out truly new and unusual games I strongly suspect the game market would stagnate completely. The big game companies don't want to risk spending money on something new. Take The Sims, its one of the biggest sellers EA has had in a long time but Will Wright, already an established moneymaker for the industry, notoriously had an incredibly difficult time getting it made, EA didn't want to spend the money on something that hadn't been done several times before and proven to be profitable.

So yay indie game developers and Art Games.
posted by sotonohito at 10:30 AM on September 21, 2010

The monotony of it all started to get to me. I missed my alarm again. The TV blares out white noise designed to make everyone feel better. My wife gives me that blank stare that i get every morning, she only cares that I bring home the paycheck. I don't say any thing to her as I walk out the door. A lady in the elevator says something to me, I try to ignore her while staring at the wall. I flip the hobo dime as I walk to my car. The grinding drive to work only serves to dull the pain, the cow on the side of the road has a better life than I do. Getting out of the car something catches my eye, I reach out my hand as the last leaf falls from the tree. I look at the orange shape in my hand, as an idea start to form in the back of my head. As I walked in to the office I was able to look my boss in the eye today as he gave his usual morning morale booster. The walk to my cubicle seemed to take longer than normal today. As the endless rows fell past me I continued to walk past my little place in this hell, I knew what needed to be done. The vestiges of my doldrums sliding off, I walk out the side door everyone uses for smoking. As i approach the rail I recall how easy the leaf made it look. I close my eyes and step out ... BEEP BEEP BEEP-_- I open my eyes. FUCK, late for work again. (via)

posted by tybeet at 11:19 AM on September 21, 2010

Okay campers, rise and shine! And don't forget your booties 'cause it's COLD out there today!

I enjoyed the game and the film quite a bit, both were very thought provoking. But what I really want to know is where can I ride in one of those outward-opening glass-doored elevators? That looks way more awesome to me than it probably actually is. I also want that Waldorf and Statler poster from the guy's office.

(ROSETTA LeNOIRE)
posted by The Winsome Parker Lewis at 12:01 PM on September 21, 2010 [1 favorite]

College freshman filmmakers have been using this trope for fifty years. Man gets up in morning. Turns off alarm clock. Gets ready for work. At some point, return to beginning, with variations.

I couldn't watch this. I felt like the guy in the movie. "Oh, not again!"
posted by kozad at 7:22 PM on September 21, 2010

What the hell? I want my 8m37s back.
posted by intermod at 7:53 PM on September 22, 2010