Magnetism

Curated by Julia H'Doubler Mar 31, 2024

Magnetism is a showcase of games themed around personal connections, both positive and negative, and the forces that draw people together and push them apart. It featured four games, all very different in theme and genre, meant to make players think about the complex ways people interact and connect with each other.

@wondervillenyc Magnetism: Games about Personal Connections Games featured: Neon Knives by Cookie Crayon (https://cookiecrayon.itch.io/neon-knives) The Split by hhmm (https://hhmmhm.itch.io/the-split) Ducklings by Jesper & Jurgen / Pelican Party Studios (https://pelicanparty.itch.io/ducklings) Locked In by Chard and de Fault (https://farfewgiants.itch.io/locked-in) Curated by Julia H’Doubler, resident student curator #wondervillenyc #indiegames #gallery #gamedev #magnetism ♬ original sound - Wonderville

Ducklings

Pelican Party Studios Ducklings is a cute and casual .io game using mouse controls. Play as a caring parent duck picking up as many lost ducklings as possible and bringing them back to your nest. Placed at the front of the show, Ducklings served as a good introduction to the show’s theme. It references the first personal connection most people have, one between parent and child.

Locked In: A Marriage Simulator

Chard and de Fault Locked In is a two player visual novel simulating the breakdown of a marriage during the 2020 pandemic lockdown. Each player controls a member of the couple, with player one using W/S and space bar and player two using the mouse. Placed next in the showcase, Locked In is a complete shift in tone from Ducklings. Locked In shows the more gritty and real side of parenthood as well as the struggles that come with marriage. It depicts a relationship that is neither purely positive nor negative, but displaying both traits, which makes it a perfect example of the theme of magnetism.

The Split

hhmmhm The Split is an online two player cooperative puzzle experience designed to be played on two separate devices. Players are not supposed to see each other’s screen, so communication is essential. Each player has a different screen before them that connects somehow to the other’s, and their job is to figure out that connection and solve the puzzle before them using mouse controls. The game was displayed on two computers placed on opposite ends of the same table. The Split is very different from the other featured games in that the relationship depicted is not in the game, but rather between the two players themselves. The players are “pushed apart,” forced to sit at separate screens, so it is only through mutual cooperation and conversation that the puzzle can be solved.

Neon Knives

Cookie Crayon Neon Knives is a two player competitive game set in a vivid neon crowd. Each player is a random character in the crowd, and they must figure out which character they are and which the other is so they can take out the other. The game was projected on the back of the stage with two arcade fight stick controllers placed in covered boxes so neither player could see the other’s hands. This game is a fun addition to the showcase as an outright negative relationship between two people trying to kill the other. The two players are continuously drawn to each other, like magnets, making it an interesting relationship since most think of negative relationships ending with people being pushed apart.