I am a very non-confrontational person, perhaps you've realised this about me already, but thus makes me the kind of person who doesn't really react well in the company of those that are known as 'Karens.' (By which I mean I generally run and hide.) To those not in the loop, somehow, 'Karen' is a term used to describe an individual, woman or man, (typically middle-aged) who decides to take out all of their angers and frustrations on random folk whom they have no relation too, though again, most typically service workers. What makes a prime Karen, however, are the type of troublemakers who consume Facebook conspiracies all day to make up their primary source of education, communicate primarily in screaming and threats against others jobs, has a healthy dose of racism thrown into the mix, and, last but not least, sports the 'mom bob' haircut, more commonly know as the 'I'd like to speak to the manager.' Such people have been around forever, it seems, but during this pandemic it seems they've really come out of the woodworks to spread their troubling beliefs and really cement themselves in pop-culture history. And you know what happens when you make pop culture history? People make a game about you.
Here comes 'Karen: An Outrage Simulator' to really bridge that gap between the fully functioning homosapiens and the Karen primates, allowing us to finally immersively see how things function inside of those permanent buns of theirs. Truly this is the kind of opportunity that many Anthropologists would kill for, and it's exclusive to those who frequent the stores of Steam for the heavy asking price of around about the cost of a cheap Pizza. (Depending on how overpriced your local Pizza place is.) Though the question must be asked before anyone does take that plunge; do you have mental fortitude to step into the shoes of someone so twisted and vapid? Will the act of assuming such a role completely twist and scar you beyond all recognition? Will playing this game ultimately doom you to someday becoming a Karen? (Probably not but you never know.)
So we've got a game that purposes to simulate what it's like to be a Facebook knight, that's fine and dandy, but you might be wondering what are the milestones such a game would have to reach in order to achieve such a feat. Well according to the Steam page, that includes delving into 6 different scenarios that run the gambit of battling against the injustice forced upon Karen by store clerks, managers, waiters and just about anyone who comes in the way of the righteous indignation of the Karen. The Devs have taken the steps to whittle down Karen's divine powers to an understandable degree too, with three main avenues one can go down to fell any everyday person trying desperately just to do their job; breaking confidence, applying guilt, or whittling patience, all the while attempting to keep one's outrage in check least your powers spill out in a public meltdown that ends up on Reddit. Truly, a lot more thought and effort when into this joke then goes into you typical troll game.
And though the game itself is advertised as a mere 30 minutes, (totally worth the super-cheap asking price in my opinion) the developers intend to cover a lot of ground, not only by replicating all the environments where one can expect to catch a Karen in the wild, but by delving into the mythical past of the Karen. That's right, this is an origin story too, baby, and Vagabond Dog (the developer and publisher) want you to get to the very core of what makes a person as bitter and resentful as this. Move aside Thanos, we're sure to have an even more engrossing origin story in the works here. What more could you really ask for in a meme game created and published quick enough to rap on a current pop-culture phenomenon and have a Covid-related stage. (You can imagine how that one plays out, can't you?)
I always get a little excited whenever I hear about these joke games, as these are the times you really get one-to-one with the community of gaming and get to ride that ever-elusive public zietgiest which becomes a little lost on the bigger productions. I mean just look at the recently announced 'Call of Duty Black Ops: Cold War', (most concise title ever) there's a game that bills itself as all about unchecked government powers, dividing wars of cultures and learning from the past so that you don't repeat it; and yet it releases 10 days after the event it's clearly winking and nodding too. Those bigger companies couldn't ride a modern event for the life of them, it's just impossible given their size and constantly evolving visions. Smaller indie studios, however, have the flexibility to make these little bite-sized games that can come out in a decently relevant timeframe. The bigger studios should leave it to them. (Especially if that means we won't get an incredibly cringey moment where Ubisoft try to dunk on Marin Shkreli again. God, that was so bad I wanted to roll up into a ball and die.)
One thing that I usually don't do when I look up games, unless it's a total train wreck, is read the reviews because they're generally ill thought-out and reductive; but seeing how this was such a short game that riffed off of real-life experiences I thought it might be fitting. I saw one extensive review the caught my eye from a player called 'Minty' who described the game as "Scarily familiar but also insanely ridiculous". Another user 'Erin' said of it "if you've ever worked a job in the service industry, all of your struggles will feel validated". And then there was 'ChannelMagnetic' who summed the whole thing up with "if nothing else, this is a great way to show a 'Karen' that you know how much they suck in real life'. (Which, to be honest, I'm not entirely sure what they're recommending there; Should we force these people to play a game mocking them, but I understand the sentiment.)
As far as smaller games like these go, I think it's great to have these little joke games that are inexpensive and don't overstay their welcome. What's more, this also serves to bring attention to this studio, Vagabound Dogs, who seem to make their daily income by putting together these character driven stories on what looks to be the RPGM engine. (Which doesn't make the games themselves RPGs, I feel the need to point out as a lot of people seem to inherently get the wrong idea.) Honestly, had it not been for this silly title I might never had heard of them and thus I wouldn't have seen their indie game 'Always Sometimes Monsters' which appears to tell a story about relationships, choices and ethical quandarys; all things I really respect in writing. (Also, that is a fantastic title, I have to say.) So from the springs of funny comes genuine interesting games that I will certainly try my hand at someday. (Who'd a thunk?)
The concept of making a game about 'Karen' culture is ridiculously absurd, but thus is so apt in today's world that it's not even funny. (Except it is funny. The game is a comedy.) So much passes us by in life and culture that it's hard to look back on it all and really process it, take it from someone as lost and rudderless as I've been for the past few years. Taking the time to really look at the chaos around you and laugh is healthy, incredibly so, and though it may seem like I'm attributing a lot to a silly joke game the truth is this is something I've been pondering on for a while without a specif blog to unload it onto. (K:AOS doesn't mind being my conduit, does it?) It's just like that recent horror movie which takes into account this socially distanced current reality of ours, Host; having that almost entirely separate perspective on the life we're living can really help set things into perspective. I'm rambling, as I do, so i'll just wrap this up by saying; the game's a hoot and costs less than a fiver; Toss A Coin To Your Indie Developer.
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