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Videoverse’s first chapter is the perfect portrait of early internet fan forumsMakes me long for the Miiverse
Makes me long for the Miiverse
Luckily, Emmett doesn’t have to contend with such antiquated restraints in Videoverse, as his portal to the internet is built right into his enormous Nintendo DS-like home console, the Kinmoku Shark. As well as using it to play games reminiscent of old 16-bit classics, there’s also aNintendo Miiverse-esque social networkon the Shark that Emmett uses to chat to his friends, post fan art of his favourite game, Feudal Fantasy, and feel part of something bigger. What hasn’t changed since those early internet days, however (or indeed, the internet today) are the types of people he interacts with - there are trolls, of course, but there are also plenty of nice people here to support him, and the emergence of seemingly new user (and budding fan artist) Vivi quickly becomes the main subject of Videoverse’s current free demo that’s available as part of Steam’sStorytellerFestival.
VIDEOVERSE – First Gameplay TrailerWatch on YouTube
VIDEOVERSE – First Gameplay Trailer
It’s a real time capsule of how I interacted with the internet in those early days - Videoverse is set in 2003 - and the way developer KinmokuGames captures the nervousness Emmett feels working up the courage to post his artwork, not to mention the resulting elation when he gets a few likes, is absolutely spot on. Characters speak in their own kind of slang, disregarding any semblance of punctuation (as you do when chatting online), and even the proto memes of the era (remember Weebl and Bob?) are on point as well.
But even in this 30-minute slice, it’s clear that Videoverse isn’t just regurgitating 20-year old (lawd) internet in-jokes and calling it a day. Take the Feudal Fantasy community, for example. While clearly a play on the real-lifeFinal Fantasy games(I see you,Final Fantasy VIIIopening scar references!), the way it fuses together anime and a more historical setting makes it feel distinctly its own thing, putting you right into Emmett’s shoes as you continue digging into this cool new thing you’ve just discovered. Plus, alongside those more obvious early 00s memes being bandied about in the Off Topic pages, there are still plenty of posts that either don’t have any real-life references, or are ones I’m simply not aware of, making its monochrome threads still feel like a new and mysterious place that has plenty going on beneath the surface.
It’s not yet clear how much the story will guide you in this way further on in the final game, but you do still have a fair amount of freedom in how you engage with Videoverse otherwise. You can be a jerk, you can be sweet and supportive, you can play the middle ground, and the tone and general vibe of the community will morph and adapt accordingly, the developer has said, so I’m intrigued to see how this all works in the final game. For now, though, your message of reassurance to Vivi results in them eventually sending you a message, thanking you for your support and a like from them on one of your drawings. Emmett is beside himself with joy, but just as he decides to log off Videoverse for the day, the demo comes to an end, leaving me on tenterhooks as to what’s going to happen next with his newfound friend.
Fortunately, I won’t have to wait too long to find out, as Videoverse is currently set to launch sometime between July and September later this year. There’s also still a day to go on itsfree demoif you’d like to give it a try for yourself, so head on over now before theStoryteller Festivalcomes to a close tomorrow on April 1st.
