And while my illness wasn’t terminal, it still felt like a death because of how much I had lost. Other days, I couldn’t use the stairs because I would faint from exhaustion. On the few occasions I did leave, it was either for dreaded doctor’s appointments or to get my hair washed at the salon because I couldn’t care for myself. My world shrunk to the four walls of my bedroom. When I was 12, a chronic illness left me homebound for four years. I’ve battled health issues my whole life. The story’s unexpected and heart-wrenching turn left me in what felt like physical pain because what I saw before me was agonizingly familiar - the kid stuck in bed reminded me of myself. He was never a painter – just a young boy with no control over a terminal illness that eventually kills him. But the truth is Benny never lived past age 11. We’re led from one short memory to the next, where he practices piano tirelessly to appease his mother, falls in love with a childhood friend, and eventually becomes a world-renowned painter.Īt least, that’s what Benny wants you to believe, and what he wants to convince himself. As he tells his life story to the ferry master, the player experiences Benny’s memories through tiny vignettes, displaying his life from birth to adulthood. You play as Benny, a young soul being ferried through the afterlife. For me, those painful times are ones I wish to erase, and it’s a sentiment Before Your Eyes deeply understands.īefore Your Eyes is a short, story-driven indie game with a peculiar gimmick: Each time you blink in real life (the game senses your eye movement through your webcam), the story moves forward. While these moments get blurrier, there are other memories buried so deep you dare not think of them at all. Over time, they become fragmented, turning into quick flickers of light behind your eyelids, reminding you of a time and place long gone. That trip you took as a kid, that first kiss that swelled your heart with joy – these memories fit into a larger picture of who you are. Often, the happiest moments are gone in the blink of an eye. This article contains heavy spoilers for the game Before Your Eyes.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |