We’re all looking for the same thing. That’s one of the first things that we’re told in Where the Water Tastes Like Wine, by Dim Bulb Games & Serenity Forge.
That old chestnut of ‘losing in poker to mysterious opponent’ sees us out on the open road to repay our debt to The Dire Wolf (the vocal talent’s of whom, are provided here by Sting). Stories are what our canis lupus associate is asking for as payment, informing us that of course they start off as mere seeds, pure and truthful on account, but on being told and passed around they start to evolve and take on a stronger, newer or perhaps very different (and sometimes valuable) form than before.
Americana is bursting at the seams with subject matter. As the dire wolf tells us – “This land is built on stories, it’s one big story, this country, woven of many small ones”.
It’s understandable as, the huge array of people, personalities and cultures provide a never ending flow of rich tales and occurrences of which to regale a person of almost any persuasion. They are generally presented or requested in the four categories of Happiness or Hopefulness, Sadness or Tragedy, thrill or Excitement and Horror. Each individual tale (as any tale would be) is, nuanced further into a number of different subjects portrayed in the game by tarot cards. Choice/morality being one, Heaven, desires fulfilled, wishes come true being another. There are further, straightforward themes such as Travel or Love.
After a rather dark and beautifully drawn opening sequence we are taken out onto the country map to start our journey. We’re represented as a skeleton complete with hat and old fashioned knapsack. It’s fair to say that visually it’s a big contrast, style and quality-wise, certainly. Whatever the reason for this, we’re given what some may consider a less pleasing low-poly aesthetic to traverse so as to weave our collected stories into the bigger one. The skeleton actually being a good idea as it makes it a lot easier, not just for any type of player to settle into the story, but it doesn’t at any point risk having the main character infringe on the personalities of the other travellers that we come across. This is crucial as the stories that we hear from these characters are considered to be the purest of all which we learn.
It’s pretty simplistic in that we notice a particular area, say a town which may have a series of different stories dotted around it. As well as stories, we may be shown opportunities of which to earn money, health or get some rest. What we also come across a bit further down the line, are versions of the stories that we’ve already told some of the main characters. This time, they're usually a lot bigger, more interesting and in some cases more ridiculous than ever.
Periodically we’ll happen along the aforementioned characters, sitting alone, with their campfire for comfort. Happy on their journey or not, stories are sometimes all that these people have, due to there being very little else for them. As people, we would rely on these connections a lot more, seemingly, when we’re deprived or some might say, 'cleansed' of material things. They almost become a form of sustenance for the mind and for the soul.
Video Introspective:
The first of whom I spoke to was the hobo kid, Quinn, with his dogs Cass & Flip. Quinn is an endearing character to say the least. He’s a little defensive at first, saying that I’m welcome to share his fire with him as long as I’m respectful. He’s usually relatively quick to remind me that he‘s not looking for anyone to look after him the second that he feels, that’s my intention. Of course, simply being allowed into his little world and knowing the boy that lies below the bullish exterior is what we’re looking for ultimately. Essentially building relationships with all of the people that we come across is our goal, regardless of what it is we actually owe and to whom we may owe it.
A story request from our temporary companion will bring up the array that we’ve collected so far, or at least the ones that we’ve chosen to have active at any one time. There are, in total a possible 219 to eventually have at your disposal.
They may say that they’re in the mood for a ‘spooky campfire tale’ or perhaps for ‘something to make them feel a sadness that resonates with their own’. This is where for certain players of this genre, the technical purpose of these sections will almost do a dance with the social aspect and curiosity towards the character and the writing. Firstly I looked at which stories would possibly fit the bill in regard to their request. They aren’t categorized in a way that allows us to simply play it by description. I’d have to think about the yarn and decide on whether it would come across as spooky or maybe tragic. Also, as I progressed through the conversation I would be naturally drawn towards wanting to know certain things about them in regards to maybe ‘Family’ or, say, their take on ‘Authority’. This being the case; I found myself at times trying to tell them not just a story that they’d approve of, but also one that would allow me to hear their opinion on a certain subject or learn a particular part of their history.
Regaling a character with the ‘wrong’ kind of story is relatively enlightening. It’s interesting to see how they take it. What their meaning of it is. This also can, from a more technical viewpoint help you catagorise the story so as to know for next time.
Somewhat of a reminder, that with real conversations, telling a story to someone only to get a completely different reaction can sometimes be a little disappointing but, interesting to note their take on it. It lets you into their personality and perhaps more of your own. Certain parts can be focused on that you didn’t expect, the impact can be far less than you’d thought. A lot of the time it’s quite interesting to be reminded of how much people want to be entertained, even if that wasn’t the sole purpose of telling someone an anecdote or a particular happening. Any comedy actor will tell you that it they never stop being surprised at which parts of a script an audience may laugh at. Do people place us in a position of entertainer by default, regardless sometimes, of context and do we ourselves aim to entertain more than inform?
All that aside, we aren’t penalised for missing the mark with our chosen tale, as the character will talk to you on that particular subject anyhow. The only drawback being that you won’t have caused them to ‘warm’ to you as much and open up some more, on a deeper, more personal level. Never the less, the stories you’ve told will still be retold by them and thus, grow as a result.
There are few different stages to which a story will grow before reaching it’s peak. With each iteration we hear, we will have come across one of a handful of stock scenarios in which we’re told a story by a villager or town dweller for instance, to realise that it’s an exaggerated version of one that we told originally. Usually the person then asks if you think it’s a load of 'B.S' or not. Although this can feel as though the purity of the happening has been diminished, the tales are now worth more when recited. Regardless of how true they may be, the fact that they enable us to become closer to people, to enable a stronger friendship to be forged is main thing.
Telling an anecdote that we ourselves have heard to someone is probably representative enough of how they can evolve. Although we may not completely change something that we’ve been told, there is usually an element of habitual colouring that goes into our account of the particular happening. We could add tone that may change a particular view of a character or their mood. Perhaps paraphrasing what was said can heighten what has happened, to a level we feel that it would serve better at. No one, of course wants to be told a load of ‘cock n bull’, and hopefully, that wouldn’t be our aim! But generally the notion that someone is taking their time to talk to you, to inform, educate or as is the purpose of a lot of stories, entertain you is the preceding factor, usually.
Entering one of the major cities, is always an interesting event. They all have the same standard opportunities. To explore, earn money, go to the store or fast travel via the train station. The store is your basic health and welfare management hub. It’s by no means one of the most important parts of the game but we do need to ensure our health and fatigue is maintained which can be done by simply buying the correct kind of produce, and if we’re in need of money the option is there in the form of either panhandling or looking for work. Both are in equal measures a gamble. At my first opportunity to look for work, I put myself forward for a textile job even though I was aware that my character hadn’t touched a machine in a long while. I was selected and in penance for my falsification of skills, I was brought through to a room full of machines that I apparently wouldn’t be able to make head nor tale of if I’d tried. I was given an option of feigning a catatonic episode (for all the good that may have done me) or admitting my lie. Upon prudently selecting the latter I was merely made to feel embarrassed but given some alternative manual work, albeit lower paying.
Panhandling can result in receiving nothing or a relatively healthy sum, the writing toying with you at times until it comes to it’s conclusion. Begging in one town seemed as though it was going to be a complete wash out due to their being a very popular street entertainer just up the way who of course, captured not just the majority of the passer by’s attention but their disposable income too. Only for it to culminate in the street artist approaching me after he’d finished and kindly giving me a portion of his earnings, saying that he felt bad about his money making success hampering my own.
Choosing to explore a city further isn’t that dissimilar to being involved in another story making event. A lot of them being rather sad or tragic. It’s not necessarily doom and gloom wherever you go, but it captures the general spirit of America during these times. It keeps things simple too; a major city being boiled down to its general essence by way of a story. We see that the open road and urban environments are treated in a very similar manner to one another. The city, basically being a place to refresh oneself financially and physically, before moving on to the endeavour at hand.
Although we have the option of hitching a ride, jumping a train (which can be pretty risky regarding the violent nature of the railroad workers towards train hoppers at the time) or fast travelling. The latter is executed by using one of the keepsake objects given to us upon completing a characters story. Walking was for me at least, an overwhelming preference. It’s not actually that straightforward to just hitch a ride to wherever you’re going or even finding a train that’s servicing a particular station on your route. The traditional method of hiking is usually the most straightforward, and more often than not, quicker than I’d usually assume.
We are further immersed in the cultural feel of each area by the soundtrack, that changes from place to place. There could be a different song playing or a variation of a particular theme-like tune that will alter its style, in accordance to the part of America that we’re in. That alone, was enough to keep the on foot journeying pleasant and evocative enough. Picking up your pace is possible via a little whistling mini game, which I thought was a nice touch. The only downside, was that the whistling wasn’t nearly as pleasant to listen to as the soundtrack. But whistling seldom is.
Each area’s stories aren’t tied in a huge cultural manner to where they happen, mainly as they are very varied indeed. Reminding me a lot of the HBO series Carnivale, It seems as though this period of history, story wise, has a typically strong supernatural, or even magic influence to it, which is communicated to us in a pretty carte blanche manner. On some occasions a few of the stories did seem a little ‘otherworldy’ for the sake of it, mainly being as there was so many of them. They more often than not earned their place though, due to nothing here being straightforward, or what we would constitute as 'normal'. We come across some animals that talk, as if it were pretty much the norm. Séance’s taking place, and demons squatting in rail carriages. Where the Water Tastes Like Wine had a very effective way of getting me to let go of normality. This paved the way for some of the most touching and effective stories, which were the one’s that didn’t necessarily have, three headed demon birds or cows that were partially covered in scales. They were ones that carried with them the simple matter of emotion, feelings of loss, hopelessness or fleeting romance. An extremely touching moment being when I shared a heartfelt kiss with a stranger during a total eclipse. This story when fully grown, took the form of it being called 'The Hearts Total Eclipse' – which shows everyone in it’s shadow, their one and only true love.
Taking more of a disconsolate turn would be an occasion upon which I came across a young girl who carrying a basket, kept daring me to look inside. When I did so, she would cheekily pull it away at the last second. I learnt eventually that the basket contained some kittens. Her playful demeanour turning to despondence when she told me that they were given to her by her mother in an effort to distract her from the fact that her Father was Ill and, sadly, not long for this world. These rather touching events can be ones that we may feel keener than most to talk about, on our next evening by the fire.
Locating any of the main characters can be done on the in game menu map, to then be represented as a campfire as we approach them. On a repeat visit they’ll give you a few lines of catch up chat after of which, they're soon back asking us to entertain them with a story of which to alter their mood.
When we’re sharing this sort of time with anyone in real life, the very element of companionship is enriched and given a higher level of appreciation without it even being considered. The preoccupation that a lot of life’s responsibilities and tasks can give us isn’t there, or at least in the same way that it would be in a more societally structured event. Here, we’re bolstering each others moods and emotions with words and experiences, looking after each other verbally in a way that one may ask you to scratch an area that they simply can’t reach properly. In similar situations myself when hiking across another country, I’ve found singular conversations becoming very deep and philosophical, quite quickly. The general feel of these moments being different than usual in that, I didn’t feel as though I needed to hold back or taper the descriptive depth to what it was I was saying. There was no worry that I was maybe going too deep or the subject becoming too intense. Both of us listening as intently as the other. It seems as though the shared circumstances of us effectively being on the road enabled this inhibition-free conversation.
The in game friendships we make here can feel just as deep. As though you’ve made a true friend, and felt that authentic sense of companionship that you sense when you actually meet someone else who’s travelling. When one of these connections is made, it can be very meaningful and sometimes stay with us forever, regardless of whether we see that person again. We are sometimes left wondering what they’re doing now, and even wondering how you’d interact with each other if you were to meet again.
There are of course characters here that endeared themselves to me more than others, but all of them in their own way, are absolute gem-stones of personal history. Rocio the soft spoken migrant worker, a beautiful soul. Reminiscing of her time back home with her family and leaving me feeling awe inspired by her calm acceptance of the difficult and uncertain path that she has walked, and continue’s to walk as a vineyard worker.
Bertha the Dustbowl Refugee being somewhat similar, sharing with me her experience of looking for work wherever it may be. Further difficulties are with Bertha in that, she’s on her own. Her husband not being able to stick it out, left her and returned to their home city. A poignant observation from Bertha when she tells me ‘When things get bad, everyone’s working so hard just to eat, there’s no time to even get to know anyone.’ Not too dissimilar to how a lot of people live their lives. Working so hard, but aside from the basics, for what?
Which of these people do we feel most drawn to? Who are we most looking forward to seeing again, learning more about and even feeling as though we’d want to help?
Shaw, now a sharecropper after living through slavery tells you that the all he ever asks for is food, shelter and pay, after an honest day’s work and Is it bad to ask for anything more than that?
In some ways, is this all that we can feel we’re owed. Or are we even owed that? When do these basics take up so much of our focus and journey that we are completely convinced, there’s not a great deal more than that? A life on the road can be looked at as a massively simplified version of a bog standard life. Sure you’d hopefully eat, sleep and get work where you can but aside from the physical comforts, the experience would be a lot more varied and freer to a degree. Unsafe and not overly secure at times but indeed, more varied. Looking at the ‘upgraded’ version of such would be perhaps, what? A mortgage, a more stationary and continuous job which allows us to save, to then experience some of what a rambling life may offer for a shorter amount of time. Only with those same comforts that our stationary life offers. Perhaps a nice hotel, nicer meals along with the certainty of them. Would the quality and magnitude of the stories be there though, the experience, the camaraderie, the mind broadening exchanges and the gift of relationships along the way?
What more would one need to ask for in both of those circumstances? Or are we merely left feeling and asking ourselves the age old question: Is there more to life than this? If so, again, what? Have our journeys through life merely been simplified into a few general aims, goals and achievements of which to merely see us through the day’s. Distracted from asking ourselves that one question far too many times, or is there always something more that exists, but is different for each and every one of us? Something that is there to strengthen our individual spirit.
Upon completing every chapter of each our travelling friends stories we see emblematically, the essence of who they are. The undulating spirit that they themselves carry within them. Knowing that we won’t see them again can feel a bit of a shame, but it’s important to remember that we’ve had that time with them and carry their story with us too, and have done ever since we first met them. The story, only growing richer in itself. These particular stories, as mentioned before, being the purest of them all. They never fail to hit the mark when told to another person at the campfire, regardless of the theme requested.
Upon forging a complete enough bond with everyone that we meet on our journey, our debt to the mysterious Dire Wolf, is paid. The beneficiary of the task of course, being ourselves.
As it seems the Dire Wolf knew it would be, all along.
by - OuttaSite
https://youtube.com/c/outtasite
