Is A Machine For Pigs best suited to a 'mature' audience?

[Ossie]

I've just added another review to the main reviews thread and thought that it in particular was worthy of discussion:

http://www.theweavingknight.com/2013/09/...eview.html

I think that this part of the last paragraph sums things up perfectly (I've put the most important part in bold):

"I cannot in my best judgement recommend a Machine for Pigs to everyone; this is a game that expects and deserves a certain type of audience, not a screaming YouTube generation, but an informed and mature audience. An audience that can understand the underlying literary roots of a Machine for Pigs and the underlying message that the Machine at the centre of this twisted narrative represents."

What do people here think? Is the review too dismissive of what it refers to as "a screaming YouTube generation" or is it spot on? Given the fairly childish negative responses by what appears to be mostly (but perhaps not exclusively) immature people I have to agree with that statement, but is this unfair?

What do YOU think?

(mature replies only please. )

[Potato]

You know what? Looking at some Youtube comments, I can't agree more. It seems TDD was more of a game that could be appreciated by everyone, since it focused equally on it's story and terror. AMFP leans more on the story, and I think it's that that's why I've seen comments like "not scary at all when he reads notes every 5 minutes". I'm not saying that AMFP doesn't have its faults, but it probably will appeal to a smaller amount of people for some of those reasons. I feel in the minority when I say that I enjoyed all of it.

[Alardem]

A Machine For Pigs has plenty of gore and moments designed to make you jump - as evidenced by a certain inexplicably popular Swede - but the lingering sense I'd gathered from it was a subtle, lingering dread. Part of me wishes I'd heard or seen some of the events alluded to in the text (like the transformation of the Pigs), but the environmental design and the historical context of the story appeals to a different part of me.

I could relate to the evil of capitalist oppression, aristocratic snobbery and the confusing nature of industrial environments much better than I could to a pseudo-medieval castle belonging to a lost relative of Dracula.

[Klarden]

AAMFP, as was TDD really, is a solitary serious experience. TDD COULD'VE been turned into "bet you will get scared" kind of game, "for everyone", and it was, losing half the point of it's existance in the process. But it still wasn't about that. AAMFP is harder to turn into that. It's more of a psychological horror and that's always something that needs attention and looses most of the charm if turned into a "party" playthrough.
I mean - imagine TDD being Silent Hill and AAMFP being Silent Hill 2. Both games are best played alone - not necesserily "alone at home, with headphones, at night and lights turned off" as some of the games ask you - but alone, with all attention to the game. But first SH can, if you try, be turned into a "who gets scared" party playthrough. And it's much harder to do the same with SH2 - the themes are different, the horror is different. It doesn't make one of them better, but that does make them different in how you can approach them, and how you cannot, as it will destroy the point of the game completely.

[Alardem]

The Silent Hill 2 comparison works well in terms of how both sequels use the same universe as their predecessors, but focus on rather different themes and stories.

[General Consensus]

As the guy who wrote that review, I'm pretty shocked and amazed to see a thread dedicated to its central point.

Its nice to see that the response to the Chinese Room has died down a bit, I think they did a sterling effort in story-telling, with that being said, I can understand why people are harsh on its gameplay. I think that Zero Punctuation's Yahtzee said it right that fans are the hardest people on earth to appease. Hence why I think Machine for Pigs wouldn't have any of these issues people are taking with it were it released without the Amnesia title.


Apologies for sounding pretentious, like a twat and mean, just my opinion.

[ruzen]

I dont think they aimed mature auidiance but I susspect they aimed casual gamers.

[Cuyir]

I agree. I've said it and have insinuated it before but a big chunk of people who disliked it are the ones that enjoy jumpscares and play these games and/or mods for these reasons (and because they watched a lets play).

[felixmole]

I've just added another review to the main reviews thread and thought that it in particular was worthy of discussion:
<snip>

Exactly my thought:

I think Paddy's right, the game will be more widely appreciated over time. The two games are, I think, for different audiences, and obviously, many of those who loved the first game snapped on it expecting exactly the same settings.

How many LPs of TDD have I seen where players were moving forward without understanding exactly where they were going and why with the huge amount of notes they'd skipped, and just awaiting some scares. The second game is obviously different from that point.

[General Consensus]

I dont think they aimed mature auidiance but I susspect they aimed casual gamers.

What's your reasoning Ruzen?