One term that encompasses so much discomfort
The harvester is a hard worker. It may not be kusoge, but it certainly looks the part, according to some. You know, what's one man's rubbish heap is another's sacrifice altar.It is impossible to describe. It is blatantly repulsive. produced in the 1990s, right in the middle of the industry's despicable backlash against censorship. Back when computer games were mostly as sexless as a Ken doll, there is gore, vulgar language, and allusions to sex. Gilbert P. Austin, the designer, believed that creating a high concept was the only way to make it competitive with the major players in the business.
It is, kind of. It certainly has the inventiveness and artistic quality of an auteur work, that much is certain, but whether or not it succeeds in conveying its themes is another story.
You take on the role of Steve, who wakes up in his bed memoryless. Not a single memory of the townspeople claiming to be his neighbors or of the individuals claiming to be his kin. Nobody appears to think that he is losing his memory. He has always been such a kidder, after all. He soon finds out that he is the son of a meat factory owner, that he will soon be married, and that Friday is the bake sale to generate money for the funerals of all the homeless drifters that come into town and pass away.
It's simple to see that Harvester's warped take on suburbia is hiding something evil. Speaking with anybody at all exposes that they are somewhat flawed. At best damaged, but most of the time aggressive and insane. A woman contemplates about wasps' association with sexuality. A butcher who supplies the community with red meat even if there are no animals in sight. You may also pay a visit to the town's mortician, who also happens to be the hotel management.
It's unsettling as well as comical. The game's graphics are a mishmash of 3D-generated backdrops from the mid-1990s and awful blue screen effects. Similar to how Jason and the Argonauts knocked up Myst after a night of strong drugs and virgin sacrifice. It's difficult to determine whether the eerie, off-kilter visuals and sequences were intended. No matter how talented they are, they just reinforce Harvester's blatant craziness.
Even Harvester has an odd flow. Getting inside the Lodge, where answers are supposedly waiting for you, is your major objective. To access The Lodge, a towering structure in the middle of the town, you must accomplish a number of requirements. It makes sense.
The best way to handle them is unclear. In the first, you have to discover the postmaster's sinister secret in order to persuade him to offer you an application. Mostly, you just explore the surroundings and gather up things whose use isn't immediately apparent. It will not be long until darkness falls over the town and it is time to go to work.
The riddles are terrible. I managed to get by at first, but ultimately I had to resort to utilizing a guide to help me get through difficult situations. It's just too simple to overlook anything in the surroundings. For you to solve some of the problems, you must be unable to determine what they want of you. Indeed, there is a chance for death in this game. often abruptly. Frequently for no apparent reason.
From tip to toe, this game is frightening. Everything about it. The conversation, the visuals, the soundtrack, and even the background noise. The hum of bright lights, far-off sirens, and gunfire. It seems as if you might remove the game from your screen and discover a cockroach colony below. It's the equivalent of trying to ignore the foul stench emanating from the crawlspace in a video game.
This is enhanced by the storytelling's rapid pace. The narrative steadily becomes darker and darker, even in the early sections when you wander about suburban areas searching for objects to rub against one another. Pinching people in the conceit leads to actions that have disastrous outcomes. Nevertheless, the town's residents go on, maybe concerned for self-serving motives, but never dejected or introspective.
The majority of Harvest's residents are terrible, terrible individuals. They are homophobic, racist, and sexist. Similar to its look, it is unsettling. Even if they're not meant to be empathetic, it might be tough to put up with their insults and endure their lack of compassion. Not everyone will be able to handle it, and Harvester is utterly unrepentant and unyielding.
It is also tough to tolerate the gameplay. As I was reluctant to suggest it previously, a guide may be the best way to enjoy Harvester. Simply said, it's far too simple to overlook anything that's hidden in the backdrop and wind up aimlessly exploring the town. It may quickly come down to pixel hunting—navigating the dialogue in search of a hint as to what to do—and sometimes that hint just isn't there. The game presents you with a clear goal, but figuring out how to achieve it might lead you down a crazy road.
The game's climactic sequence may represent the breaking point. There is a lot of fighting, and the fighting is about as effective as a broken blowtorch. Some of it may be avoided, but in other locations you have to face your adversaries head-on and use your slapstick skills.
At first, I didn't really understand \i>Harvester's statement. It talks about the psychological effects of violence. On the other hand, determining its vector on the topic proved to be somewhat challenging. Is it suggesting that gore and violence are harmless or that the media is utterly sick? When I got to the conclusion, I finally realized that it was a parody of this dread. It provides a parody of the worldview held by the legislators and politicians who were concerned that Mortal Kombat would spark a surge in teenage violence. Somewhere pure, entwined with ominous vines that rise from the ground.
It could, however, depict this in a way that is too extreme. It puts babies and little children in danger very quickly. It shows suicide, discusses sexual assault, and often uses disparaging language. It's arguable if the game could convey its themes and mood without them, but you should simply be prepared for what lies ahead since you can't put the sleeping bag back in its pouch.
To the question of whether it's kusoge, I can't say for sure. I would argue that Harvester succeeds in executing its creative vision, if that is really what makes a game successful. It makes its point without apology, tactfully, or with taste. There are a lot of difficult patches in this game, but if you can get beyond them all, you'll uncover something completely different in the most revolting manner imaginable. Whether anything goes on a podium or has to be thrown down the toilet is up to you.
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