Straight Paths Through Queer Walking Simulators: Wandering on Rails and Speedrunning in Gone Home

Abstract

This article identifies the limitations of queerness in Gone Home (The Fullbright Company, 2013) by exploring the ways in which players’ movements through space in video games can be considered queer or “straight.” Drawing from Sara Ahmed, I demonstrate how the potential for queer in-game movement in Gone Home has been straightened both by the game itself and by elements of its player reception. Gone Home is widely seen as exemplifying a current shift toward increased LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer) representation in video games. The game is also associated with queerness through its status as a “walking simulator,” a genre with ties to the queer flaneur. Indeed, Gone Home’s gameplay seems to encourage queer wandering, moving not straight but instead meanderingly. Yet, a closer analysis of its interactive elements reveals that Gone Home is far less queer than it may initially appear. The player’s path is rigid and linear, much like in a “rail shooter.” The potential for queer movement in Gone Home has been furthered straightened by speedrunners who play the game along the straightest possible paths. This article argues for player movement as an important site of meaning in video games and calls for an increased engagement with the tensions that surround queerness and video games.

Breaking The Stack: Understanding Videogame Animation through Tool-Assisted Speedruns

“…Other artifacts and practices shed light on similar issues involving shifting the centrality of sensory output and the necessity of game states (and often inputs as well). Scholars have noted similar phenomena in examples such as Cory Arcangel's (2002) completely non-interactive artistic videogame 'Super Mario Clouds' (Franklin, 2009); narrative centric videogame genres like visual novels and so-called 'walking simulators' (Ruberg, 2019); the phenomena of esports broadcasting gameplay on Twitch.tv (Taylor, 2015); machinima videos that leverage videogame audiovisuals and game engines as their creative materials (Lowood, 2006); or even the common use of cut-scenes (Cheng, 2007). The black box of videogame animation is opened in these instances, allowing for different understandings of the potential of videogames.…”

Effects of the Uncertainty of Interpersonal Communications on Behavioral Responses of the Participants in an Immersive Virtual Reality Experience: A Usability Study

“…These items of cues can be kept in the inventory and reviewed whenever desired [ 54 ]. Considering an interest in the study of navigational behaviors of users, Bonnie Ruberg [ 57 ] argues that with a deeper analysis of the interactive elements of the game, the player path is linear instead of meandering despite what it seems the game encourages players to do. The path is already set and the locked, or hidden doors prevent the user to have access to some areas unless they trigger an event or find an object that unlocks this barrier in a predefined order.…”

Players’ perceptions of sexuality and gender-inclusive video games a pragmatic content analysis of steam reviews

“…Authors frame Gone Home in the context of its experiential modality as a walking simulator in some cases (Ruberg, 2020), but frequently also discuss the ways in which the context of familiarity and nostalgia play into Queer experience in this game (Pavlounis, 2016; Sloan, 2015; Veale, 2017). Tulloch et al (2019) discuss the game as subversive in the face of misogynistic gaming tropes, but ultimately still falling prey to white-hegemonic pitfalls throughout the narrative.…”