Afterlife: Beyond Mere Death In Games

People have a hard time dealing with death. We don’t just grieve over lost loved ones: we mourn complete strangers and celebrities we’ve never even met. Death is a subject that is difficult to approach, so it’s unsurprising that game developers have incorporated death in a way that is either crass, facile or both.

Games don’t really have ‘death’ in the sense of finality: it’s just one long stream of life, punctuated by save points to which we can rewind after a mistake. Narratively, the only universe that exists is the one where we played perfectly. What could be more fake, hollow and unrealistic than a perfect life? Games should be able to give us new perspectives on life, rather than conforming to ideal ones.

Rayman Origins is a Roller Coaster Ride

Warning: This review contains detailed narrative spoilers but only moderate mechanical spoilers. Rayman started with a quirky and fun 2D platformer released back in 1995. Then came the 3D sequels, one that was unrelated to the first game but still