White Shadows – Spotlight
My interest in White Shadows was quickly piqued when I saw the announcement trailer at Gamescom last year. With simple controls and a dark, eerie world, I’m a fan of games like Limbo and Inside. Infusing the film with noir visuals, a monochromatic colour palette, and a storey that aims to depict some of society’s most pressing issues has me completely enthralled.
A small Ravengirl lives in a dystopian city where “all animals are equal,” and Monokel’s first game, White Shadows, revolves around her. Even so, it’s clear that birds aren’t included in this dictum and have been cast in the role of the underclass in this society inspired by George Orwell’s 1984. In her storey, she makes her way through the city, avoiding the wolves’ eyes as she makes her way through the streets.
It’s as simple as you’d expect the gameplay. A lot of movement is required on both sides of the screen, as well as some vertical traversal, in this 2.5D platformer. You can also play the game with one hand on a PC because there aren’t a lot of controls. There are WASD keys for movement and interaction, and the space bar for jumping in this game.
It’s certainly not a challenging game, but it’s also not easy either. The platforming is forgiving and the puzzles are easy to figure out. The majority of my deaths were due to my own mistakes, which isn’t a big deal since the game is only a few hours long.
Even though this isn’t the first dystopian storey, and it isn’t likely to be the last, it does try to stand out by focusing on a society that accepts violence, as well as an excellent noir visual style. I’ll start with the graphics because they’re what most people will notice.
Steampunk and early-20th-century influences can be found in the city the game takes place in. The vast majority of goods are transported by rail, blimps, or large pneumatic tubes. To remind everyone of the imposing social ladder, there are numerous large airships with multiple propellers adorned with wolf heads. Neon signs illuminate the city and serve as a constant reminder that this world is a dystopian one.
I think lighting is the most important factor in creating the right mood in a film. For example, lighting and shadows can have an even greater impact on a scene when there is no colour present (as in a monochromatic visual). Monokel understands this because he had many moments where he wanted to stop and take in the scenery.
There are also some fantastic camera angles that tilt or wrap around at certain points in the film. Despite the fact that it’s a relatively simple tool, it’s always used to emphasise something. Because of the lighting and placement of everything, it always made me appreciate it more.
The lighting, on the other hand, isn’t quite right. The lighting can be a little harsh on the eyes at times. Further complicating matters was the fact that it appeared somewhat muddled in areas with numerous light sources or at least some that were particularly powerful. Fortunately, the problem only occurred a few times and I wasn’t bothered by it too much.
Music from a different era is used in all of the environments to emphasise the older era’s influence. The fact that it dates back to the 18th century does not detract from its value, however. Like the game’s trailers, it features a lot of classical music.
As a result of their awkwardness, I’m torn on whether or not they should be used. When they started playing, a few of them broke the immersion for a split second. That being said, it did help bring back memories of watching old black and white movies, which I believe is what the film was going for. Both “Flight of the Bumblebee” and “Ride of the Valkyrie” can be used in any scene to add character and intensity.
Only the storey remains after the gameplay and audiovisual aspects have been dealt with. It’s both a significant part of the game and a great transition to what I didn’t like about it.
The storey was entertaining, to be sure, but that does not mean I enjoyed it. As a fan of world-building, I was eager to learn all I could about the fictional city in which the storey takes place. After finishing the game and learning the general plot points, it seemed like the game had a lot of potential, but it never quite lived up to that.
For some reason, I’ve been avoiding making direct comparisons between the game and Limbo or Inside because I think White Shadows can stand on its own. In any case, I think it’s worthwhile to compare how they all handle their stories. While each game has its own storey to tell, there is enough environmental storytelling for players to form their own conclusions and theories after playing.
As much as I agree with this sentiment, I felt that White Shadows needed more context and presentation of the storey being told here. During the process of providing some answers, a plethora of questions are also raised. With so many plot points, it’s impossible to remain coy and hands-off, and the storey suffers as a result.
Let me be clear: There were some aspects of the storey that I was unable to fully comprehend. I’m hoping there are obvious signs that someone else can easily point out to me in a YouTube video once people get their hands on the game to point out because my potential theories are also not that interesting.
Possibly related to this, if you look back at its announcement trailer, there is a strong breakdown of the storey in the description. Gives a name to places that are never properly referred to and explains things that are only made clear later on in play (read at your discretion). Also mentioned are plot points that fit perfectly, but aren’t properly conveyed. These plot points may have been dropped or altered. It’s difficult to tell because of the story’s structure.
In addition, because it deals with important issues in strong ways, it necessitates a content warning. A content warning is always a good thing because it lets people know what they’re getting themselves into in the event that the game contains triggering content. However, it can set the stage for a game, as it did for me when I began this.
In the game’s warning, it says, “depictions of racism, suicide, violence against women and children, animal cruelty, forced labour, and xenophobia” are all included. Thank you for the heads up. That’s a long list of things to look forward to. The trailers and the demos on Steam had given me a good idea of what to expect, so I was eager to see how the developers handled this content.
After completing the game, I had to go back and watch gameplay videos to see if the message had changed. The Ministry of Light recommends taking a “light bath” every day in White Shadows, a game where the darkness of the birds is deemed wrong and unclean and a “light bath” is a euphemism for racism. Previously, the Ministry of Light was simply known as White Wash Industries. Additionally, there’s a “Whites Only” notice in the final package that was not included.
As far as I can tell, the game had a more savage approach to other issues. The demo ended with a sign reading “Don’t be a burden, kill yourself today” as pigs lined up in front of a “Suicide Box”. If you don’t believe me, just watch it for yourself. “The Founder” thanks you for your service and tells you to drink a beverage called Youglow in the completed game (which was previously called Holy Spirit). Something else has replaced the suicide box.
I understand why some of the content was toned down because the previous messaging was so powerful. A message that supports the overarching oppression theme, which many have likened to 1984, has been substituted for some of the implications. You’ll still see a lot of weird things happen while playing this game, so don’t worry.
When I think back to how brutal the game was before, I wish I had played it. As someone who doesn’t believe in any of the vile messages being spread around the world, I completely understand why this topic is so sensitive. It’s also important to challenge taboo and sensitive topics when it comes to story-telling, as well as for discussion. If you want to be considered challenging, don’t be afraid to be a little bit edgy (or at least not too much).
Because it focuses more on the 1984 elements rather than focusing on specific topics, it doesn’t stand out as much. White Shadows is a dystopian storey, but many of its elements are common to the genre and can easily be overlooked in favour of the “big brother is watching” theme. In a dystopian world where racism plays a prominent role, the setting provides a great opportunity for both storytelling and real-world discussion. I’d love to be proven wrong about that, but I’m not holding my breath for it to happen here.
I’d like to stress that I didn’t find the storey to be a bad one. That being said, I’m curious as to what storey elements may have changed during development despite the lack of clarity in the latter half. Honestly, the only thing I didn’t like about the game was the technical issues I encountered.
In the beginning, the game was plagued by numerous bugs. Stuttering and framerate issues were the two most common issues that gamers encountered. There were also a few instances where I was thrown into a void when something I was standing on suddenly vanished. During one segment, a screen filter that was supposed to be removed at the end of the segment remained in place for a few checkpoints before I realised it was incorrect. After a quick reload, all the weird issues were fixed and the game worked perfectly when re-running the segments to replicate them.
There was an updated patch available, which I used for a second playthrough of the game. It fixed the stuttering issues I had and I didn’t encounter any of the strange issues I encountered during my first playthrough. Since my attempts to reproduce those issues before the patch was sent out were unsuccessful, I cannot be certain that those issues have been resolved.
Other problems persisted even after the update. Jumping seemed impossible at one point, but crouching seemed to fix it. My little ravengirl, on the other hand, became stuck facing left and I was unable to turn her. However, she was able to recover after interacting with a switch. A noticeable number of instances of pop-ins and clipping were not addressed by the patch.
As a “modern fable” that serves as a “mirror” into our “f***** up world,” White Shadows was marketed. In light of how messed up our world is and how relevant many of these issues are, I’d say it accomplishes its goal while also creating a weird and grim setting. Thank you for tackling these issues in a way that I’m pleased with. Models clipping through each other detracts from the stellar quality and passion, but I still took a lot of screenshots.
This is Monokel’s first game and it’s a strong one, both in terms of the visuals and the subject matter. And I can’t wait to see what the development team has in store for us next.
