It is day two of the snowpocalypse and so far our sanity is mostly intact. To be honest… being snowed in would be much harder were it not for the fact that for the past three years I am leaving the house like once or twice a week. I’ve gotten exceptionally good at staying home. On Wednesday we received around four inches of snow, and over night it appears that we gained another three or so. This means the level of the snow is now above our front porch. My wife is off right now due to snow days and has seemingly made it her personal mission in life to clear the front porch.
Throughout the day yesterday we saw no signs of life from our neighborhood cats. I largely took this as a good thing because it probably meant that they had found some warm hidey hole and were safe and happy. However over night they started to roam again which prompted us to put some food out on a plate. Throughout the night we were visited by three cats… but sadly no “greybie” which is the one that lets us pet him. I am hoping he found some warmth and food elsewhere. I suppose we will keep putting out food on the front porch in the hopes that the neighborhood cats can at least come get it if they need it. In the backyard we have seen no signs of tripod, but with her I know she has access to some rabbit burrows where she hid out during last years much colder weather.
On the game front I have continued my journey into Control. I think probably the most remarkable thing about this game is its set pieces. Like this level design is just gorgeous and framed with cinematic flair. The Bureau has this characteristic of simultaneously looking like every government office you have ever been in. while at the same time evoking an otherworldly and “not quite right” aspect that is very hard to place. Sure the rugs are very reminiscent of the Overlook Hotel from The Shining, but other elements also serve to create this timeless unreality of the place. If anything it reminds me of the treatment of the TDA from the Loki series, which admittedly came out after this game. It does make me wonder if anyone on the staff drew inspiration from Control.
The other aspect of the game that I am absolutely in love with is all of the care that has been placed in the educational materials scattered throughout the Bureau. There are a number of how to videos reminiscent of the educational films of the seventies. There is even this series of films that are puppet shows about a group called the “Threshold Kids”. All of this only serves to add additional texture to this world and make it feel all the more real as you explore it. I’ve never beaten the original Half Life or Half Life 2… but this game continues to remind me of what I have played of both. Additionally there is a gigantic spoonful of X-Files and Parasite Eve in play. The more I get into it, the better the story gets.