Hey guys,
Last friday we had our first LET’S PLAY - AT THE MOVIES and it was awesome!
It really was a lot of fun, but first things first. I was pretty nervous during the hours before we started and there were just a few reservations. But in the end there were 16 visitors, plus the two guys the were helping out with the equipment, plus my wife, plus my two bosses plus various colleagues that were sneaking in and stayed until the end. So it was a considerable crowd, and they were just an awesome crowd! (It took place on the same weekend as the gamescom in Cologne, mind you. I think it would have been possible that quite a few more would have attended if it was for the gamescom)
I started off with a little introduction, advising everybody that they’d be filmed (from the back) and that there is also a microphone in the cinema. And that they were very much invited to comment the gameplay.
And that’s what they did! Everybody was just really enjoying the game, its aesthetics and the story and there was cheering, whispering and murmuring, requesting to stop a little while just to look at the scenery and even requests to let the boy die here or there just to see the animations. It was awesome because I could react to everything and interact with the crowd. I was having trouble with one puzzle at some point and asked for help, and everybody was shouting something. It was a beautiful mess ;D
When the last image faded to black there was applause, and it just felt great! I think the game itself is just perfect for the cinema, as we took only about two hours to beat it. And the atmosphere is just so dense, and there is a perfect equilibrium between tension and release of tension. It’s just an expertly balanced game. But the event really showed that playing a game in front of a live crowd adds another fun dimension to gaming. Namely the possibility to react directly to the watching crowd and being rewarded by their reactions. It was really fun!
My bosses donated some champagne for everybody afterwards, so we sat down in the foyer to talk about the game and most of all philosopying about its story. There was a guy who said that he pretty much knew what was gonna happen…until it didn’t happen and quite something else did happen. Indeed, nobody knew were the game was going and everybody was really suprised (fortunately nobody had played it before!). There was a guy who just returend from Calais in nothern France, where he was shooting a documentary about refugees and how they are illegaly trying to get to the UK. He oddly saw some connections between the game and his experiences from Calais and had the idea that he wanted to use some of the gam’s footage for his film.
Anyway, there were a lot of theories around, but it was just fun to be there and talk about the game, what it could have meant but also discuss how the event could continue. And after that night, I very much wish to continue “Let’s Play - at the movies”!
Here are some impressions, as well as a little clip which resembles the genereal mood during the event. The actual footage needs some editing, so I’ll release it a little bit later this week. I’ll keep you updated.
youtube.com/watch?v=TptmORh … e=youtu.be
In the clip the people are speaking german, but It’s easy to get what’s going on.
Thank you guys and gals for your encourangment! Enjoy!
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