![]() ![]() While I have no doubt that this game is art, and I was captivated by the scenery of the island throughout, I concur that it is a gendered and exclusive expression, purposely embedded in a Western canon.īut there are moments where the game riddles me, and makes me think. Many parallels could be drawn with Dear Esther here, which also enscribes the memory of a woman on an island, which I have written about here. The game could be a read as modern-day Pygmalion myth where we see the symbol of a woman through the eyes of the male gaze, and desperately wish her to be real. The central place of The Witness, the mountain, has a huge woman carved into it – a muse, a symbol of longing. “It’s a view of the world that can’t see that all art is influenced by philosophy, other media – not just ones that happen to cut and paste some quotes and videotapes into it.” The Witness speaks to a certain canon of white male art that needs to be disrupted: He suggests that the game uses art motifs artificially and also paints a conventional outdated idea of art. In a very nuanced critique of The Witness in Destructiod, Sean Han-Tani-Chen-Hogan argues that the game does not succeed in its artistic ambitions though, and contributes to the “Romantic myth of the lonely genius, prominent in the art world and game design. Spirtuality, science and art are key themes in the game, and Blow has stated before how much his education in physics inspired him in game design. “The human mind, no matter how highly trained, cannot grasp the universe.” -Albert Einstein Many of these contain spiritual, philosophical or scientific insights about the universe, life and art, such as: The witness series#The player can even watch clips in a theater below The Windmill, such as excerpts from James Burke’s Connections series or the ending of Andrei Tarkovsky’s Nostalghia. The audio recordings that players can find quote the Buddha, B.F. Through intertext, the game positions itself as art even more explicitly. Were those statues once citizens of the island? Are they art created by someone, and if so, who? A lot is open to interpretation from the player. When seen from on top the mountain or one of the towers, the island is a carefully construct art piece in its own right. Still, there is no sign of life, other than audio logs. The island is filled with human artefacts, from gorgeous tree houses and hidden drawings to sculptures. There is a glass factory near the beach as well as a botanical green house. Different locations are related to craft and artistic practices, such as the quarry where stone is gathered and sculptures are made. The idea that games are art – meditative, reflexive, affective – is strongly present in The Witness. The Witness is an art piece – meant to provoke without giving answers.” It also has moments of stark, exuberant beauty – and, yet again, feels like it’s a love story. It’s coherent and consistent, never breaking the world’s rules. “The Witness, by contrast, doesn’t seek that realism, but trumps it. As Dan Griliopolous in Show Me The Games writes: Its aesthetics are simple, but work through magnificent use of color and light. The Witness is a mesmerizing and stunning game. It is a unique and personal expression of the designer, but it is also a game about games, and what this medium can accomplish. Overall, I argue that The Witness is best understood as self-aware art and metafiction. By looking deeper into the symbols and locations, I unravel the meaning of the game in this blog, including the significance of its multiple endings. Other than audio logs, this game has little to no text, making it hard to find out what is really going on and being represented. Different puzzles, most of them consisting of line puzzles on a grid, have to be solved in order for the player to reach the heart of a mysterious mountain on the island. Location means everything as the player navigates a island through the eyes of an unnamed character. The result of this hard labor is a unique first-person puzzle video game with a beautiful aesthetic. This indie game, created by Jonathan Blow, was in development for eight years after he released Braid in 2008. The Witness (2016) has acquired somewhat of a cult status the past years. ![]()
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