Prompt 5
The most memorable moments of the game was trying to chase Phil around the various levels, which was an interesting interaction in my opinion. Many of the games didn’t have a sense of urgency like this game did, which is a unique feeling this game provides. Rather than taking things slow and trying to immerse myself in the environment around me, I felt like I had to chase Phil, otherwise I worried he might get away. I found myself almost entranced in trying to get to Phil as fast as possible, taking the shortest route to close the distance between myself and him. I didn’t have the luxury of just running around randomly, especially once Phil transitioned to another level all together. The most surprising thing about the level to me was how I was able to move and chase Phil while Phil was still moving in what seemed like a routine. Whenever I tried to make some sort of loop with animating actors, the playable character would freeze and never be able to move.
I think one thing the designer could never be prepared for is a possible exploitation of the game and specifically Phil’s movement. If the player were to back Phil into a corner, I’m not sure where the game would go from there. However, I was never able to trap Phil, even though I found myself testing this mechanical limit to the game. Perhaps there is a sort of “out” for Phil written in the game’s code that prevents this from happening.