Gainfully Employed is a fun time that ends a bit too soon for its own good. There are many qualities to this FVN, but it unfortunately drops the ball in its scope. This is a story with a lot of potential for exploration of pertinent topics, but the story ends far too soon to make any statement on those, rendering it more suggestion than anything else. Still, it engages in some interesting social commentary with just the right amount of bluntness and the 3D artwork is is a fun addition. Worth checking out for its qualities, but don’t be surprised if it fails to be a cathartic experience.
Modeling the jam's readymade sprites is a cute idea, and the environments sell the VR game vibes. I do wonder if the game could have leaned harder on the representativeness of the visuals, though – POV shots are pretty rare, and it's weird that you can't see the nameplates even though they're a big plot point. Also, the console is a fun idea, but unless I missed something, it feels weird for there to not be a bigger payoff for having it around? In general, though, I would call the presentation a success.
The hurried storytelling feels self-conscious of how recognizable territory all of this is. While the intersection with furry culture provides some fresh, interesting ideas for the story, that angle feels ultimately like a sidenote as the plot spends most of its time on all-too-familiar ruminations on the existential horrors of being an AI trapped in a simulation. The social commentary in particular feels so customary it's not a surprise it's basically speedran in the conversation where the conceit is explained. Explicitly linking the premise to generative AI doesn't help, either; it makes the game feel less grounded in reality, since this isn't really how that stuff works, and comes off as a cheap trick for making it feel more topical.
In theory, it's not a crime to write a story that doesn't say anything new. But in practice, the reading experience felt as weightless as the later Black Mirror episodes when they started doing this premise over and over again. I guess I just wish the writing had the same energy to it as the bold, experimental 3D visuals.
Comments
Gainfully Employed is a fun time that ends a bit too soon for its own good. There are many qualities to this FVN, but it unfortunately drops the ball in its scope. This is a story with a lot of potential for exploration of pertinent topics, but the story ends far too soon to make any statement on those, rendering it more suggestion than anything else. Still, it engages in some interesting social commentary with just the right amount of bluntness and the 3D artwork is is a fun addition. Worth checking out for its qualities, but don’t be surprised if it fails to be a cathartic experience.
Modeling the jam's readymade sprites is a cute idea, and the environments sell the VR game vibes. I do wonder if the game could have leaned harder on the representativeness of the visuals, though – POV shots are pretty rare, and it's weird that you can't see the nameplates even though they're a big plot point. Also, the console is a fun idea, but unless I missed something, it feels weird for there to not be a bigger payoff for having it around? In general, though, I would call the presentation a success.
The hurried storytelling feels self-conscious of how recognizable territory all of this is. While the intersection with furry culture provides some fresh, interesting ideas for the story, that angle feels ultimately like a sidenote as the plot spends most of its time on all-too-familiar ruminations on the existential horrors of being an AI trapped in a simulation. The social commentary in particular feels so customary it's not a surprise it's basically speedran in the conversation where the conceit is explained. Explicitly linking the premise to generative AI doesn't help, either; it makes the game feel less grounded in reality, since this isn't really how that stuff works, and comes off as a cheap trick for making it feel more topical.
In theory, it's not a crime to write a story that doesn't say anything new. But in practice, the reading experience felt as weightless as the later Black Mirror episodes when they started doing this premise over and over again. I guess I just wish the writing had the same energy to it as the bold, experimental 3D visuals.
This is the first 3D CG Only FVN that I enjoyed!