PEGBRJE: Hello Charlotte EP2 and Metamorphabet
These two games don’t have a lot in common. Besides the English alphabet.
Hello Charlotte EP2: Requiem Aeternam Deo is a narrative adventure game made by etherane, a solo indie developer. This is the second chapter in a narrative saga of games, in which the player follows Charlotte as she navigates her surreal world and interact with the denizens of The House, making decisions and trying to understand what’s going on. The first episode is free as it is considered a demo, but from my understanding it is not necessary to play episode two. They can be played as separate entities, but contain the same characters in the similar timeline. The ‘twist’ factor (if you wish to call it that) is realizing that unlike in other games, you as the player are not Charlotte. You are you for lack of better term, referenced as ‘Seth’ in EP 2, a puppet master that assists Charlotte in her day to day decisions. Charlotte comments to you as the player whenever a decision is made with a range of emotions, which leads into my favourite part of this entire game: it’s unnerving due to how the narrative is worded.
To give more context, Hello Charlotte’s world is a bizarre surreal Matrix style multiverse, and even then I’m not certain that this aptly describes it. Characters casually mention these locations throughout the game as just facts of life, such as TV World and how the TVs must be left on at all times, 24/7. The housemates and residents of this ‘False World’ range from Picasso-esque abstract art pieces to hazmat suit roommates that eat soap and fill bathtubs with acid. Even Charlotte herself has vague implications as a self-proclaimed ‘puppet’, begging the question of who we the player are and how human many of these characters truly are.
It’s the dissonance between the writing and the actions we as the puppet master has Charlotte do that reinforces Hello Charlotte’s complete surrealist dystopia. Wandering around her house encounters books that speak of a destroyed world, an overlord that demands constant surveillance, and characters that deal in bizarre services such as the surgeon working on mutant spiders and body parts. Yet their conversations with Charlotte are about the mundane aspects of life — getting food, preparing for school, doing simple tasks around the house. There are hints of nefarious and confusing realities to contrast these simple tasks, leading players down possible theories without giving away too much information to be considered exposition. We have no idea what is exactly going on in this world, why there are dozens of different humanoid peoples or how a cockroach delivered my food in the demo. The style of writing itself is also uncomfortably surreal as Charlotte talks directly to ‘Seth’ more than a few times in the opening scene alone, her aware that they control her actions and don’t seem to mind.
The actions that we as Seth have her perform? More mundane activities. The first task players have is to get Charlotte ready for school and greeting the other house mates. Not something one would expect from a game advertised with a girl surrounded by dozens of drawn eyes, yet it is precisely this simplicity that makes the game incredible in its immersion. We want to uncover what the world is and learn more about it, and completing mundane tasks along the way paints the picture that Charlotte lives in this world at all times. This is her life, her reality, one that we cannot seem to understand unless we exist through her to learn more.
I find it hard to describe my enjoyment of Hello Charlotte because of this overwhelming sense of unease that the game’s tone sets. It’s not the same kind of ‘creepy’ that pervades many games of its kind, such as the ones that I’ve played before. They capture the cognitive dissonance the player experiences and the character in game are experiencing at the same time, something sinister lurking beneath the surface of every action. Hello Charlotte’s unease is directly placed upon the player instead, with Charlotte and the rest of those in this abstract world casually mingling and knowing that this is just how the world is, there isn’t anything surreal of note for them. To this end, I strongly recommend anyone wanting a fantastic narrative adventure to try out all chapters of Hello Charlotte, especially since the first chapter is free. Best way to find out if the game is for you.
I died to the first bad end of the game, and I wasn’t even mad — it made sense that I did, when in other games it would’ve been considered a terrible design decision. If that doesn’t summarize how bizarrely fascinating it is, I’m really not sure what else I can say.
Metamorphabet is an interactive alphabet learning game by Vector Park, another solo indie dev. Within this game, you learn the English alphabet through morphing letters as you click on them, having them change their shape, sound and colouring to allude to a new object starting with the same letter. The game continues onward until you achieve all 26 of them, and one can return to previous letters to reinforce the learning.
A bizarre change from the previous game played, Metamorphabet is aimed at helping kids (and possibly English as Second Language Students) understand what each letter can do and some examples of words that start with the letter. The interactivity comes from the player’s ability to not only click, but drag and manipulate the objects as they morph to see them from different angles. Some objects can perform small animations if clicked on, such as the car’s horn going off or the elephant trumpeting happily. All of these objects start as the letter for clarity’s sake, and evolve as you click at your own pace. They are all accompanied by pronunciation of each word to solidify understanding, which is a really nice touch.
I don’t have much else to say as this is the extend of Metamorphabet: it delivers exactly what it set out to do, making a cute and soft learning experience for anyone wishing to learn their ABCs or teach another. I could easily see this game being an asset in classrooms of younger students or for parents hoping to teach their kids from the layers of accessibility that it offers. If you are looking for such a material, this is the game for you.
It’s even available on mobile with touch support! What’s not to love.
