The Vanishing of Ethan Carter

[Blanky]

That's the thing: The more you go slowly and take your time in Ethan Carter, the more narrative that will be revealed to you. However, the game doesn't hold your hand, and it does NOT tell you if you've missed anything.

I got about halfway through the game, then I decided to restart and play it again but more thoroughly. Turns out I had missed some pretty big stuff.

You're probably gonna think I'm joking when I tell you that it looks like you missed the part where

Spoiler

you chase a man in an astronaut suit around the woods, and then you fly up into outer space.

I had missed that. I just went back and did it.

I am absolutely rushing the game. I just did a walk through for the cemetery and I would have gotten it if I wasn't approaching this like far cry.

 

[Blanky]

Finished it. It's really another tech demo. I think I am done with these "story" games. Its graphics alone are worth checking it out for at $10. It shouldn't be long before we're seeing graphics like that in actual, real worlds that have life in them (I don't even think this had animals!).

I can't help but think these story games are getting more cred than they deserve because people feel like they're stupid for admitting they didn't get much out of it. The whole supernatural thing (the sleeper) was just a lot of bollocks.

It was better than Gone Home.

Again, the graphics were really superb.

 

[Stringjam]

Finished it. It's really another tech demo. I think I am done with these "story" games. Its graphics alone are worth checking it out for at $10. It shouldn't be long before we're seeing graphics like that in actual, real worlds that have life in them (I don't even think this had animals!).

I can't help but think these story games are getting more cred than they deserve because people feel like they're stupid for admitting they didn't get much out of it. The whole supernatural thing (the sleeper) was just a lot of bollocks.

It was better than Gone Home.

Again, the graphics were really superb.

I love story / walkthrough games like these. Dear Esther, Gone Home, Ethan, etc.... It's a great change of pace.

I don't know why people would buy these types of games if they knew from the onset that they don't like the game type.

I hate MMOs, so why would I buy an MMO and complain about it being an MMO?

 

[Subyman]

I love story / walkthrough games like these. Dear Esther, Gone Home, Ethan, etc.... It's a great change of pace.

I don't know why people would buy these types of games if they knew from the onset that they don't like the game type.

I hate MMOs, so why would I buy an MMO and complain about it being an MMO?

I agree. I love Dear Esther and Gone Home. I don't say that to "justify getting my money's worth." I genuinely loved how the story unfolded in Gone Home. It was like nothing I've ever played before.

 

[Blanky]

I love story / walkthrough games like these. Dear Esther, Gone Home, Ethan, etc.... It's a great change of pace.

I don't know why people would buy these types of games if they knew from the onset that they don't like the game type.

I hate MMOs, so why would I buy an MMO and complain about it being an MMO?

Gone Home was a piece of garbage (ending was complete bullsh*t, though it was interesting up to that point) and the first of these kind I had tried, but I figured that was a one-off. Now I know that two for two I don't really care for these.

 

[Subyman]

True to my past post, I picked it up last night for $9.99 and played through it. Gorgeous game, possibly the best looking game I've ever played through. Instantly I wanted to play it through Oculus, but I was able to play it on my Swift so it looked really smooth. Was able to max it out with 4x AA and it ran well.

It took right at 3 hours to beat it even with some back tracking because I missed two events. I liked the murder sleuthing where you had to find all the crime scene evidence and then piece together the chronology to see the story. I thought some of the story puzzles were nicely woven into the game and gave it a whimsical feeling while breaking up the crime scenes.

While some of the story elements worked, mostly the pulp-fiction stories, I thought the family dynamics were less realized. I understand what the developers were trying to do, but I think obfuscating the main story behind the boy's psychological defenses made the ending unimpactful. There wasn't enough understanding and suspense created throughout the game to have the effect that the developers wanted the player to have at the end

Spoiler

when it is made clear that the family was trying to help Ethan escape the fire

I think too many indie games are too vague with the way they tell their stories. Mystery can be a good thing, but it must be grounded in something real to provide contrast and perspective. Ethan Carter failed on that front and I think the authors were too high in their own head.

I really enjoyed the game, but I would like to see developers move away from trying to be too poetic or allegorical with their approach to story telling and be more confident in their voice. Tell the story, don't dance around with vague imagery.