Written by Antai 2022 Cohort
Orwell: Keeping an Eye On You is a Text adventures/interactive fiction game. In the game, you are an operator of a system called “Orwell.” You must investigate, pry on people’s privacy, upload information to “Orwell,” and find the terrorists. Orwell is an exciting, unique game. The concept is from George Orwell’s novel “1984”, and his name is in the title, but the game is not as “dystopian” as 1984. It is more like something we are going through right now.
First, the gameplay-text interactive fiction game is not my favourite genre; this kind of game needs a dynamic. In a novel, readers must follow the author’s steps into the story; in a game, the choice should be in the player’s hands. But in Orwell, your choices are minimal. The storyline is linear. Your choices do not affect the storyline; only in the last chapter can your choices lead to different endings.
The most confusing thing was that the game displayed conflicting choices. For example, in the game, Harrison said,” It was Nina…who neglected Abe’s wishes. Juliet said,” You, Nina, and me. Every one of us is guilty of deviating from Abe’s intentions in their way.” I cannot understand why they decide that they are in conflict, that are different people’s opinions, and the game force player to determine whom is the bad guy based on given information. I see them as just different points of view; they are not in conflict with each other. A conflict should be like someone saying something, and the player finds a conflict point, such as a related item or something a character said before, that can prove a lie. Also, as an advanced system, if you upload wrong information, you can not delete it. Why? And if I sense something or someone is necessary a little before the story, I cannot upload it or tag it; the game does not give you that option. You can only drag and upload when the game designer wants you to. More freedom of play can be beneficial. The game is famous for its story, not gameplay; the “Orwell” system is a new security system that spies on all people at all times; it’s like the “Tele-screen” in 1984. The story is about a conflict between security and privacy.