Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Hit Me with Your Best Shot

Rose and Camellia has been described as the "best Japanese Victorian slapping Flash game ever made" by fans of this virtual catfight that follows the potential humiliations of humble widow Reiko by the proud aristocratic women of her deceased husband's family in which Reiko literally must hit back to advance in the game. Kotaku reviews the sequel here.

The collision detection in the game may be more theoretically interesting than mechanically responsive as the women in Reiko's life violate norms of politeness and therefore egg on player vs. player style combat action.

Parents may be horrified by a game that could easily translate into playground fighting from its stylized form, but Rose and Camellia is also relatively light on violence compared to the homicidal fury of other Flash games that children commonly play. Furthermore, unlike "happy slapping" in the real world, there is a narrative rationale justifying participating in these violent interactions, since the player will merely be slapped into defeat if she refuses to slap back.

For context here is another slapping Flash game. This one actually isn't much of a game.

Thanks to Dan McGrath for the reference.

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