The Night Fisherman (2020) by Far Few Giants is a narrative-driven adventure game. As a short, free game that may be played through in about 10 minutes, it is a micro-fiction that is experienced like a filmic vignette. In an atmospheric setting that is awash in a violet color palette, the player assumes the role of a fisherman traveling across the English Channel at night. Soon, the fisherman is confronted by an armed member of the English Protection Group, and it becomes clear to the player that the fisherman is smuggling a migrant.

Unfolding through branching text-based options in dialogue while the fisherman attempts to negotiate the situation, the game builds tension through music and the establishing of character dynamics through camera angles. As if a scene from a film, player is able to use arrow keys to view the interactions through different perspectives, amplifying the game’s relationship to cinema: The game’s dialogue takes close inspiration from the opening sequence of the 2009 Quentin Tarantino film, Inglourious Basterds, and the character, Hans Landa. The game addresses themes of racism and violence enacted by the state through actors like government officials through its script, filmic references, and characters. Perhaps of note is the depiction of the migrant, who is shuddering away while hidden as cargo, a silent figure without dialogue in this tense scene of confrontation. There is a tension here in the image of the migrant as an unplayable but pivotal element of this video game, raising questions about representations of the agency of the migrant. The game’s abrupt end perhaps speaks to the unresolved nature of contending with such systemic injustices.

—JY

Further reading

Davidson, Amy. “The Night Fisherman Is a Tense Moonlit Confrontation You Can Play for Free.” The Escapist, July 10, 2020. https://www.escapistmagazine.com/the-night-fisherman-is-a-tense-moonlit-confrontation-you-can-play-for-free/.

Dunbar, Seoirse. “Episode 68 – Reviews of The Night Fisherman, A Short Hike, The Hand of Glory and Gone Home.” Adventure Games Podcast, June 19, 2020. https://adventuregamespodcast.com/podcast/episode-68-reviews-of-the-night-fisherman-a-short-hike-the-hand-of-glory-and-gone-home.

Murray-Daniels, Shonté. “Itch.io’s Anti-Racism Bundle Gave Me Space To Reflect, Rather Than Look Away.” Kotaku, June 12, 2020. https://kotaku.com/itch-io-s-anti-racism-bundle-gave-me-space-to-reflect-1844007436