Love, Loss, and Lost Odyssey

David from PassionForGames writes: "Since home console gaming’s inception nearly 50 years ago, the industry has tackled most subject matter. Violence, in particular, has remained a reliable standby. Many games either parody the industry’s absurdist violent depictions or chastise gamers for finding pleasure in killing. This is worn out discourse in 2020.

With so many gruesome experiences, then, it’s shocking how few examine violence through the same lens as Lost Odyssey almost 13 years on. Most games providing commentary on violence in media take the easy way out. They attempt to make players feel bad for the violence the game is forcing them to commit because trivializing murder is wrong or something. Lost Odyssey is more nuanced than that. Violence isn’t shamed. Rather, it’s used to illuminate the aftermath–Loss. Loss of loved one’s lives, loss of freedom, loss of security, loss of happiness, and loss of identity"