Beyond Eyes
Storytelling Reinvention:
creates empathy and explores the nature of being blind by compromising the player's field of view, forcing them to rely upon auditory and limited visual clues
Game Information
Release Date: August 4th, 2015
Developer: Tiger & Squid
Publisher: Team17
Rating: Everyone
Genre(s): Exploratory, Game for Change, Role-Playing
Price: $14.99
Website: http://www.beyondeyes-game.com
Beyond Eyes is an adventure game about discovery and bravery, focusing on the beauty of the world, friendship, and facing one's fears created by Sherida Halatoe under the moniker "Tiger and Squid." An early prototype of Beyond Eyes in 2011 was Sherida's graduation project, created in an effort to prove that many gameplay elements could be preserved in a meaningful and emotion-driven game. After graduating Sherida started her own studio, Tiger & Squid. In 2015, Beyond Eyes was expanded onto consoles and desktops.
Beyond Eyes reinvents storytelling by creating empathy and exploring the sense of being blind by compromising players' field of view, forcing them to rely only upon auditory and limited visual cues. Sherida's character is young girl named Rae, who has been anxious and fearful of her surroundings since she lost her eyesight. Rae must venture out of her comfort zone to find her lost friend Nani, a cat who is responsible for breaking Rae out of her isolation. On her journey to find Nani, she discovers much more than her friend.
Beyond Eyes is described as:"a modern fairy tale about finding courage and friendship. Step by step, uncover an incredible world, carefully guiding Rae, a young blind girl, on a life changing journey." (Steam)
Sherida's use of limited sight offers the player a small piece of Rae's unfamiliar world, causing the player to discover the world along with Rae, making this game equally fulfilling as it is touching.
References:
1. "Beyond Eyes." Steam. Valve Corporation, 11 Aug. 2015. Web. 7 March. 2016. <http://store.steampowered.com/app/356050/>
Researcher: Anna Hixon
