Agreed. It is art, but it is art best appreciated from a distance. Something to discuss. Something to show people and examine.

But a game that has an anti-war message by making you slog through thousands of deaths to show you how inhumane it is and how only a psychopath could enjoy it, and makes you do it again for worse endings, and which assaults your ears to show you how reality is breaking, is not actually all that fun to play. It's a very interesting idea, to have the gameplay actually reinforce the message like that rather than run counter to it and reward you for it while trying to tell you that it's bad. But also having the game be enjoyable unless you just want to wank yourself off to your art and having resolved 'ludonarrative disonance' is also important and it missed that mark

Taro's later games have managed it far better, and are far more enjoyable to play and listen to.

Agreed. It is art, but it is art best appreciated from a distance. Something to discuss. Something to show people and examine.

But a game that has an anti-war message by making you slog through thousands of deaths to show you how inhumane it is and how only a psychopath could enjoy it, and makes you do it again for worse endings, and which assaults your ears to show you how reality is breaking, is not actually all that fun to play. It's a very interesting idea, to have the gameplay actually reinforce the message like that rather than run counter to it and reward you for it while trying to tell you that it's bad. But also having the game be enjoyable unless you just want to wank yourself off to your art and having resolved 'ludonarrative disonance' is also important and it missed that mark

Taro's later games have managed it far better, and are far more enjoyable to play and listen to.