If you're looking for a quirky immersive game for this long weekend, check out the Crush House (Steam page here), where you play the camera person in a reality TV show from the 90s/early 2000s. I've been playing off-and-on since blogging about it last April, and it's enjoyably creepily voyeuristic, surreal, and tense -- though in this case, the tension isn't to shoot enough aliens/zombies/etc. in time, but to shoot enough drama and butt shots before your audience ratings go down.
As a player tip, prepare for a slow start as you get acclimated to the gameplay loop in the first two-three days of shooting. But then the plot twists start popping!
While the concept is beautifully executed, I think this is a case where the experience could be even more immersive, and incorporate voice acting. (Understandably tough to pull off on a lower budget.) I would love to see a live action variation of this concept in VRChat or Second Life (he hinted broadly) where we could enable voice chat and really lean into the live action reality show angle. Steam description below!
Jae has scored the gig of her dreams as the producer on 1999’s hottest reality TV show, The Crush House! The demands are high and the stakes higher as she must cast, film, and produce each season. Play as Jae as you capture the budding romances and explosive drama of each unique season in the iconic Malibu mansion. And no matter what, remember to satiate the demands of your rabid audience or risk cancellation.
Each season is unique based on your chosen cast and the ever-changing audience demands. The longer you manage to keep your show on air, the more questions start to arise. What's up with the cast's dependence on Crush Juice? Where does the Success Slide even go? Clandestine conversations and some good old-fashioned snooping will help you uncover the truth.. providing the Network doesn't get in your way.
Hat tip: Boing Boing.
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