Red Pill Thread 2.0: Neckbeard Revenge

Tanoomba_sl said:

So my wife was watching me play "The Addams Family" on my SNES the other night. Now, that was never a terribly popular game, and it certainly had its flaws (iffy hit detection, unfair enemy placement, slippery and awkward controls, repetitive music, etc), but I quite enjoyed it in my youth and I was still enjoying it now. It rewards patience and measured playing, not rushing head-on. The hazards and gimmicks of the levels include an ice level with a slippery floor, a fire level with un-stompable enemies, a library level with secret passages hidden behind giant books (the book titles can be clues), and so on. It was nothing groundbreaking, the graphics were charming but not great, it could be frustrating at times, but I just thought the way the levels were laid out was really clever. You're introduced to enemy tropes (many directly inspired by Mario and Sonic staples), and then they send you through a series of increasingly challenging rooms. There are secrets everywhere if you make the effort to keep an investigative eye out. And the whole game takes place in what is essentially an open-world Addams Family mansion. You can choose which level to go to first and some levels have multiple paths that could lead to optional bosses that will reward you with a permanent heart upgrade.

So anyway, my wife (who's been watching me struggle through the last few stages) said she liked the game, which kind of surprised me. I mean, she's expressed positive observations about games I've played before, but "The Addams Family" didn't strike me as the type of game that would appeal to a first-time observer. I asked her what she liked about it, and she said (with details) that she found the level design appealing. I just basked in the glow of knowing that both my wife and I can appreciate quality game design, even when its hidden under some distracting flaws. I don't think RP would have found me that, and I was a terribly awkward human being for large stretches of my life. Maybe it's "different strokes for different folks", but don't lose sight of the forest for the trees.

...Or something like that. What do I know, anyway? I did beat the game in the end, by the way. The last boss was a bizarre giant judge who made gavels rain from the sky. The end credits include caricature portraits of the developers, which was a nice touch.

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