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Video games: the indie influence
Independent video games are diverging from themes and protagonists of traditional blockbusters, which, in turn, are adopting some of their innovative ideas. A look at some recent and upcoming titles from independent publishers and how they differ from big publishers’ launches.
INDEPENDENT TITLES
Papo & Yo
Minority Media Inc
Papers, Please
Lucas Pope
Gone Home
The Fullbright Co.
BIG PUBLISHER LAUNCHES
Grand Theft Auto V
Rockstar Games
Call of Duty: Ghosts
Infinity Ward
The Last Of Us
Naughty Dog
Papo & Yo
Plot: A young Brazilian boy discovers a monster inhabiting a dreamy South American town while hiding from his alcoholic father.
Protagonist: Quico, the boy, must learn to control his fears while tiptoeing around characters with unpredictable, addictive personalities.
Papers, Please
Plot: Serve a fictional Eastern Bloc country—and make enough money to provide for your family—by manning a border checkpoint.
Protagonist: An overworked, underpaid border officer who must be an expedient perfectionist to keep his family from poverty.
Gone Home
Plot: A young woman returns home after time abroad only to discover a house devoid of people but full of secrets.
Protagonist: The teenaged romance of Sam and Lonnie is the heart of this understated game of discovery.
Thralled
Plot: An escaped slave searches for her missing child in a surreal take on 18th century Brazil.
Protagonist: Isaura, the runaway slave, is burdened with a slouch and tormented by the memories she endured in captivity.
Grand Theft Auto V
Plot: Three criminals join together to perform heists in a fictional open world inspired by Los Angeles.
Protagonists: Michael, Franklin and Trevor —three men from different backgrounds who share a love of violence, crime and women.
Call of Duty: Ghosts
Plot: What’s left of a U.S. special forces team conducts clandestine missions behind enemy lines in an alternate future.
Protagonists: An elite team of super-secret soldiers (the “ghosts”) who are as adept at shooting guns in space as they are underwater.
The Last Of Us
Plot: A seemingly cureless infection has turned humans into zombie-like creatures. Only the rugged survive.
Protagonist: Joel, a hardened middle-aged man who begrudgingly forms a father-like connection with the teenage girl he must protect.
