Video games that beautifully explore the complexities of death and grief

When one thinks about video games, they often picture something that probably has guns and shooting – or maybe martial arts and racing. 

Video games are often expected to be action-packed and adrenaline-fueled experiences.

While such games are indeed what the general public often comes across with, video games are more than just combat, survival simulations and fast cars.

Video games are an amalgamation of different creative disciplines that humans have loved and practiced for centuries – visual arts, music and storytelling. 

All of these are packed into a digital product a few gigabytes big, and yet it wields the power to subject any individual to a plethora of experiences and emotions without even requiring them to leave their homes.

This power, perhaps, is the reason why video games are capable of providing a safe space to explore and process feelings and events in their lives that are simply too complex for their already-overwhelmed minds to comprehend.

And there is nothing more complicated than death and grief.

Humankind has occupied the Earth for hundreds of years, yet it seems we still have not fully figured out how to deal with loss properly. 

Maybe, we never will.

But this is where video games come in – by illustrating the beautiful complexities of life and death.

So here are three video games that may provide a shoulder to cry on or guidance in the face of the inevitable.

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: GTA developer Rockstar Games in hot water for union-busting allegations

Spiritfarer

Play as Stella, a ferrymaster to the deceased, in this cozy but emotional indie management platformer game by Thunder Lotus.

Spiritfarer requires the player to build a boat to explore the world and befriend and care for spirits, fulfilling their requests and last wishes before finally releasing them into the afterlife. 

Think of it as a bed-and-breakfast simulator with a hefty serving of tears and heartbreak.

With its rich storyline and lovable characters, the game is guaranteed to take its players on an emotional yet cathartic ride.

Its gorgeous art style and atmosphere lure players into a sense of calm, slowly easing them into the heartwarming narratives of each character, who are written and designed so beautifully that one cannot help but get attached to them.

Spiritfarer asks the question of what you will leave behind, and shows that, although bittersweet, there is beauty in goodbyes.

What Remains of Edith Finch?

Explore the bittersweet story of a family plagued by death in ‘What Remains of Edith Finch?’.

Play as Edith and learn about your family’s tragic history by searching through the Finch home.

This first-person video game takes the players through several unique scenarios, each ending with the death of a Finch family member.

‘What Remains of Edith Finch?’ breaks hearts and leaves players baffled, questioning how a family could endure never-ending tragedies and still manage to build a fruitful life.

“Ultimately, it’s a game about what it feels like to be humbled and astonished by the vast and unknowable world around us,” said Giant Sparrow and Annapurna Interactive, the game’s developer and publisher.

READ MORE: Gaming news: Influencers bid “Sul Sul” to ‘The Sims’ creator programme after EA’s

End Transmission?

Have you ever wondered what it’s like to operate a radio tower in a world that is about to end?

You can experience that now through ‘End Transmission?’, a free-to-play management game developed by Team Tall Trees.

Players take on the first-person perspective of Lenna, an avid music lover who broke into an abandoned radio tower and revived its transmitter in a desperate attempt to shatter the silence that has enveloped a world on the brink of extinction.

As Lenna, players will have to use a unique music system to create their own soundtrack and fulfill some last wishes by the nearby town’s residents along the way.

While there is no death shown in ‘End Transmission?’, the knowledge that everything is about to end could still invoke a feeling of dread and grief.

Despite that, the game still shows that mourning the end does not have to be spent in silence and isolation.

Instead, we can choose to fill the remaining days with the music that we love while revisiting and creating new memories that we will hold close to our hearts.

READ NEXT: Gaming news: Malaysia mulls Roblox ban as safety concerns rise