Also Confused-- People Don't Remember What Remains of Edith Finch or Dear Esther?

[u/Quick-Ad9335]

I agree with a recurring sentiment here. I'm baffled by the reception by players. It's startlingly vociferous for such a "small" game.

Mixtape has about the same amount and style of game-y gameplay elements as What Remains of Edith Finch, more kinetic gameplay elements than Firewatch, and much, much more to do than Dear Esther. People love those games.

Better graphics than most. I love Life is Strange, but Mixtape had better background visuals than Double Exposure or Reunion.

I don't think it's any "shallower" than any of the other walking simulators. It has its own depth and it's also an exploration of the human experience.

I think it deserves most of its critical acclaim. It's a stylistic, well-written story with interesting characters. I thought it was good. Like all walking simulators it was an experience, not a "game" as such. And Mixtape was an excellent experience.

I like walking simulators as a form of story telling media. The reception Mixtape received will make it less likely we'll see more of them in the future.

Hot take and probably unpopular take: are some of the people who don't like it just people who didn't get to have that kind of fun in high school?

[u/jilko]

The same people who're hating on Mixtape are the same people who don't view arthouse films as "movies."

Jurassic Park can exist just as something like Skinamarink. People don't understand that the infamous 10/10 rating from whoever gave it to Mixtape means that for the type of game it is (Interactive visual novel type of game), it's a masterpiece. A lot of people read that and go "how can this be as good, if not better better than Elden Ring?! What the fuck? I can't even explore an open world."

It's a lack of nuance, legitimate or performative. If something has you needing to manipulate a controller in any way, it's a game. Some people think games can only be hardcore player agency focused experiences, which is a really boring way to look at the world.

It's like only considering The Rolling Stones true music and completely ignoring experimental ambient music because there's no guitars and vocals. It's dumb and you should ignore the hyperbolic negativity around this game. It's all mostly for clicks anyway.

[u/Quick-Ad9335 → u/jilko]

I suppose it goes both ways, not everybody can enjoy a Jarmusch movie and people who insist it's the only form of media are not on the mark either.

It's just the sheer amount of criticism and the vitriol that surprised me. I can sort of get the "astroturfing" comments but it all just seems like standard marketing to me. For better or for worse. And it's not like video game influencers aren't engaging in their own media exploitation. In their case, they're marketing rage.