Afterthoughts: Fl0wer on PS3

Afterthoughts: Fl0wer

When a person attempts to define what a game is, the obvious starting point usually goes something like this: said protagonist A is caught up in conflict Y and needs to stop antagonist B before world Q goes up in flames. Throw in a few baddies, some platforming elements, and perhaps a good-looking counterpart and, oddly enough, you get the other game I’m playing: Prince of Persia.

Ok, so I’m being a little obtuse.

In truth, a lot of games abide by the same formula even when the main character(s) constantly change from game to game. But every now and then a game comes our way that makes us reassess what video games are and what they should aspire to be. Fl0wer is one of those games.

To it’s benefit, it tries oh-so-very hard, for the first three levels, to make us think it’s not a game. But make no mistake; for all of Fl0wer’s lovely trappings, the fundamentals are still there. I mean, seriously, I just said it has ‘levels’. Not enough for you? What about the swirling read goal “tornado” at the end of each level. Or the use of falling leaves to mark how well you’ve done “seeding” every flower in the level?

But to fault it for doing what a game is supposed to do is not worth the time or effort. First of all, the game play is very, VERY, solid. Much more so than Fl0w ever did, coming off as more of a stoned-out proof of concept than a fully fleshed out game. Every time you gain speed and start flying through blades of grass, watching the fields part and flutter in your wake, it’s just awesome. If it were just that, without any music, it would still be awesome. But then you hear the music kick in as you fly by flower after flower…and it’s just a one of a kind gaming experience.

As far as I’m concerned, this game is a gigantic gamble by Sony. Even for a company that puts the “W” in weird games, who would ever think that a game about a dream-sequence from the point of view of an indoor flower would be a game that anyone would want to play? Or that it a game of that type would be fun, especially once the game gets out of that “tricking you” phase I talked about earlier.

Upon finishing level three, it becomes obvious that not all things are right in Fl0wer land. The open fields are being covered in human detritus: electrical towers, gigantic buildings, and unnecessary clutter. A greater message ensues about the constant struggle between the world outside our city’s borders and the human world that always seems to find a way to build around it, over it, and when push comes to shove, right through it. And, if you’re not expecting this, which I wasn’t, it comes as a bit of a shock.

But why should it, really? We’ve been saying forever, in the gaming industry, that games should have a message. This games message couldn’t be much clearer. In fact, the message is so obvious that it is quite honest and effective, adding something to the gameplay I didn’t expect: emotion. Of course I don’t expect every person to have an emotional response equal to mine, but I couldn’t help but be moved by the idea of a flower dreaming about what it would do to be outside; about the lengths a flower would go to just be somewhere it could exist as it was intended to be…not in a flower pot on a window sill. It’s such a simple desire, but clearly one worth playing the game for, as well as finishing the game for. How satisfying it was to come to the end of a game having created something rather than destroyed it. How unusual in a medium that prides itself on being the most shocking to be shocking in a totally different and unique way.

And last, but certainly not least: this game is gorgeous. Everything is rendered so beautifully, and thought about with such care. It was so refreshing to see the game mechanics wrapped around such a beautiful graphics engine. Every time you dip down through the blades of grass, watch as the flowers bloom right underneath you, and cause the area around you to bloom, Okami-style, into a living, breathing, field makes the game incredibly satisfying. And every action you take is complemented by and equally lovely musical track that ebbs and flows as you do. It is an overall aesthetic that is chocked full of soul and an indelible sense of individuality.

In closing, I feel Fl0wer is a game that is worth playing if only to see how we can, occasionally, slow down our game-playing routine for something that is much softer; less sinister, and still reap the rewards of having played something quite rewarding and special. It’s a game that, perhaps, takes itself a little more serious than it should. But it does it because, in the real world, flowers can only exist…not dream. This game is here to ask a wonderful question: what if it could?

It’s not often that such a good game gets built around such an abstract premise.