Re-visiting Night in the Woods

I know it’s still too early to get excited about fall (honestly though, is it ever TOO early?). However, as is tradition for me, I start thinking about all of the autumn-themed activities I’d like to participate in. Some of those activities just include movies or games to break out around this time of year. One of those games on my mind lately is Night in the Woods.

Night in the Woods is a game on Steam that came out in 2017. It’s a point and click game where you play as 20 year-old Mae who returns to her hometown of Possum Springs, which is the same and not the same, after dropping out of college.

From a glance the game looks very cute - all of the characters are animals and they live in a charming small town drenched in an autumn aesthetic. They joke - they use puns. There’s a hyperactive dog who puts cups on his head at his job. It’s all the makings of a casual, lighthearted game.

Right?

About 10 minutes in you’re met with this underlying melancholy that only grows louder as the story proceeds. First, the town itself is facing an economic setback with the closing on its coal mines. Next, Mae learns that her friend Casey has gone missing. Most claim he ran away, but you can’t help but escape the sense that something much more sinister has happened. Then the characters come across a dismembered arm (and the mini game about poking it with a stick drives home the stark contrast between aesthetic and content).

Without giving away too many spoilers, you also find that these characters are fighting emotional and mentally straining battles. It’s indicated that Mae herself experiences disassociation and struggles with a deteriorating mental health throughout the game. The others all deal with loss in one way or another. The loss of family, acceptance, friendships, goals, and childhood. Even minor or background characters have progressing stories that make the world feel more tangible and full. Not to mention that this helps ground the game among surreal imagery creating harmonious balance.

Speaking of surreal imagery, some of the most beautiful and haunting moments of the game come from Mae’s dream sequences. Throughout the game Mae experiences vivid dreams connected to her anxieties. In these dreams, Mae is alone in a silhouette town with a vast starry sky above her. The goal is to find different musicians hidden in the shadows. Once found their pillar will light up and they’ll play a melody on their instrument. Each found instrument adds to the overall harmony. The music in these sequences is the main reason I love this mini game. The dreams tend to fit Mae and where her mindset is at the time. Sometimes they’re creating a melancholy song on a calm night. Other times she’s met with statues to destroy or a god-like being that presents her with ominous phrases such as the universe forgetting Mae and the universe itself being forgotten.

To me, the real message of the game is that change is inescapable. Their hometown is changing and the characters themselves are changing as they transition into adulthood. There are those who want to preserve the old ways - to prevent the town from moving into the future and away from tradition or to prevent themselves from growing up. Even the god-like creature’s ominous phrase of the universe being forgotten indicates that the world will continue to spin and change so rapidly that much of it will be forgotten one day - a mere ghost story. But eventually you find your peace with it.

I would say if you’re looking for a new game, Night in the Woods is a casual playthrough with a rich story and beautiful art. This one is perfect for a cool autumn night where you can open the windows, light a candle, and cozy up in a warm blanket and some spice tea.