ICYMI I'm making a video game called Wednesdays
When people ask me what it’s about, I’m used to playing a little game and ask them:
“What is the worst topic you can imagine for a video game?”
More often than not, they get it on the very first try:
Child sexual abuse. ⬇️
[#]wednesdays #videogames #indiegame #indiedev #sexualabuse
=> More informations about this toot | More toots from pierrec@mastodon.social
Child sexual abuse, especially when in the family, is a huge taboo. Probably one of the biggest ones. But that didn’t prevent novels, comics or movies from dealing with this specific subject. So why not video games?
=> More informations about this toot | More toots from pierrec@mastodon.social
There actually might be a lot of reasons, but the most obvious one it that we “play” video games… and that child sexual abuse isn’t something you want to “play” with.
=> More informations about this toot | More toots from pierrec@mastodon.social
Still. I wanted to make a video game about it.
Because it’s an important topic to me, and, I believe, everyone.
And because video games are what I do.
=> More informations about this toot | More toots from pierrec@mastodon.social
It might be time to address the elephant in the room:
Not explicitly, not metaphorically, not at all. I don’t see the point in showing something any sane person wouldn’t want to see (let alone to exist!).
=> More informations about this toot | More toots from pierrec@mastodon.social
So, that being out of the way, how do you make a game about child sexual abuse?
=> More informations about this toot | More toots from pierrec@mastodon.social
Video games generally allow you to “play” as someone, to embody a character. Then who should you “play” in such a game?
=> More informations about this toot | More toots from pierrec@mastodon.social
Should you play the victim?
=> More informations about this toot | More toots from pierrec@mastodon.social
Certainly not. Video games are all about interactivity, choices. But what defines a victim of child sexual abuse is precisely that they do not have a choice, and even if they “had”, they are not in a situation allowing them to make a free and informed choice (in case anyone needed a reminder: children cannot meaningfully consent to sex). Allowing a victim to make choices would defeat the whole purpose of the game.
=> More informations about this toot | More toots from pierrec@mastodon.social
Should you play the abuser ?
=> More informations about this toot | More toots from pierrec@mastodon.social
Ugh… no thanks. While I do believe it might be of some interest if handled exceptionally well, I’m pretty confident no-one wants to play that, and I certainly don’t want to make it.
=> More informations about this toot | More toots from pierrec@mastodon.social
So who should you play, then?
=> More informations about this toot | More toots from pierrec@mastodon.social
I felt I only had one option left:
Everyone else.
=> More informations about this toot | More toots from pierrec@mastodon.social
Wednesdays tells the story of Timothée Parker, who has been sexually abused as a child. But you don’t play Timothée, you play the people who surround him.
His mother, father, grandmother, grandfather, school teacher, childhood friends, highschool crush, ex-girlfriend…
=> More informations about this toot | More toots from pierrec@mastodon.social
The goal is not to prevent the abuse. It happened already.
The goal is not to encourage Timothée to talk. He’ll do it his own way, in his own time.
The goal is to put together the pieces of the puzzle. To look at Timothée’s story from various angles, and ask yourself: What would you have done? What would you have seen? What could have been different? How?
=> More informations about this toot | More toots from pierrec@mastodon.social
I certainly don’t have many answers to give on the topic of child sexual abuse, but I do hope I’ll be able to raise a lot of questions.✨
=> More informations about this toot | More toots from pierrec@mastodon.social
This first glimpse into Wednesdays' design is the is the first part of a 3-part series.
Subscribe to my newsletter if you don't want to miss them : https://buttondown.com/Wednesdays
=> More informations about this toot | More toots from pierrec@mastodon.social
You can also read all past (and at some point, future) newsletter by following this link: https://buttondown.com/Wednesdays/archive/
=> More informations about this toot | More toots from pierrec@mastodon.social
@Pierrec Je trouve que c'est un point de départ super intéressant, ça me rend vraiment curieux pour le coup
Et ça a un côté vraiment pertinent, dans le sens où "proche d'une victime" c'est la seule position qu'on est tous et toutes certains d'occuper un jour. Comme mentionné, c'est un sujet qui concerne tout le monde
J'espère juste qu'avec un sujet lourd comme ça c'est pas trop pesant au quotidien
=> More informations about this toot | More toots from NemoJmeno@piaille.fr
@NemoJmeno oh, moi je suis blindé ^^
=> More informations about this toot | More toots from pierrec@mastodon.social
@Pierrec Tant mieux alors ^^
En tout cas je suivrai les nouvelles, et merci pour tous ces détails !
=> More informations about this toot | More toots from NemoJmeno@piaille.fr
@Pierrec i like that it places to power in the hands of everyone besides the victim and the abuser.
=> More informations about this toot | More toots from leonardbertos@mastodon.gamedev.place
@leonardbertos seemed like the only way to do it right!
=> More informations about this toot | More toots from pierrec@mastodon.social This content has been proxied by September (ba2dc).Proxy Information
text/gemini