Writing a “depressing” game

Right after the election, I found comfort in Maggie Smith’s “Good Bones.” I find it beautiful and inspiring. The world is a terrible, messed up, fucked up place. And it’s also beautiful. And even more importantly, you get to decide how you live in it. You can make it beautiful. I shared this poem in a group chat with friends as a pick me up. My friend said he found it depressing.

Maggie’s words and the election were both huge inspirations for my game-poem “The Sky is Falling.” The world may be falling apart, but we can choose how to walk through it.

My hope with the piece is that it’s up to you as the player where to put your focus. It’s easy to focus on the left-hand-side of the poem. The strong images of doom and gloom. It’s harder to focus on the fewer, quieter words of peace on the right-hand-side. Despite the fucked up world, you can still choose to move forwards.

After releasing The Start Issue, I was talking to my brother about it. He said he found the first game depressing.