I Want Themes

One aspect of the written word I really appreciate is the ability for a singular voice to discuss big themes in *depth*.

I feel like this almost never happens in visual mediums or games, since once more than one person gets involved, it gets much more difficult keep to focus. Plus, when you have to think about composing all these elements together, themes can get muddled by the necessities of the medium. And even if the stars align and you get a singular voice shining through giving the work some thematic purpose (something like Nier Automata as a random example), they simply don't have the same tools as pure writing to convey it.

You get to pop into someone's head every now and again, and the game is even cleverly constructed to allow for more of that with things like the hacking mini-game etc. But even so, that pales in comparison to the power of pure words, where you can stay in someone's head the whole time. Or get kicked out of someone's head, or pass from one person to the next, rounding them all out and tying them together.

That's why it's so hard for me to really see what other people see in most games that people say have "good stories". They're almost all just pretty simple character pieces, which are definitely kind of interesting, but there's just not much "there" there. Interesting character work is the starting line, as far as I'm concerned. Why would I be blown away by a Bioshock or The Last of Us if they stay hovering around the 1000-foot view of thematic depth?

I want to see an author struggle with big, personal questions and express that through his work. I think VNs and novels tend to excel in this regard. It could be because of the individual nature of most creators. They're usually written by one person (albeit with art or music assets from someone else, in the case of VNs). They're usually 'low budget' (meaning that words have very low creative constraints). And VNs, specifically, often don't go through any sort of publisher (which gives even more freedom).

This leads to a field of very personal stories that are crafted by authors who have some sort of point to make. Of course, it also leads to a lot of trash, but since we live in The Future, it's relatively simple to find some of the diamonds in the rough.

I think my love for these works is why I hate to see them just turned into a set of memes. Specifically for something like Umineko, people like to make a lot of memes out of the funnier or more fantastical parts, or take character moments up to 11. Yeah, that's good for a few laughs, but I crave to see people try to tackle or discuss their takes on the themes that are dealt with. The story is interesting, and fun, and over, but that doesn't mean you have to be done thinking about it. In fact, even that's a theme in Umineko itself!

I want to think about them, grow over time, and think about them again with a different perspective. I want to read about how other people gel, grapple, or struggle with them. I want to see future works start with the themes as a starting point and veer off into different directions with them, or show another side, or show what happens if you take things to an extreme. I want to read and discuss and think, I don't just want to consume and move on, if at all possible.

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Some Big Themes (TM)