In August of last year, I went on a bit of a “TRON” kick. I’ve always had some fondness for “TRON,” the wounded puppy of 1980s sci-fi. It’s a movie neither cynical enough to slot in among the “RoboCops” of the world nor coherent enough to spawn a “Star Wars”-like franchise. But as I lamented back in August, it feels as though “TRON,” a movie about video games, has rarely had much luck in its own games. At the time, I posited that games were spending too much energy on the film’s incoherent world-building and not enough on the flashy bloodsports that make up the movie’s most exciting moments.
“TRON: Identity” has handily proven me wrong.
The latest “TRON” video game has no light cycle racing. You won’t toss discs to de-rez folks (at least not actively). Aside from a very fun solitaire-like minigame that crops up every so often, there are very few systems of interaction to be found in “TRON: Identity.” The game is developed by Bithell Games, the studio behind indie darling platformer “Thomas Was Alone,” the licensed tactics game “John Wick Hex” and the popular but brief “Subsurface” visual novels. “Identity” has the most in common with the “Subsurface” games.
In fact, “TRON: Identity” could be described as “Subsurface TRON.” This is a little bizarre– the “Subsurface” games are focused on deep worldbuilding and cerebral ethical decisions. “TRON’s” worldbuilding is notedly absurd, an amalgam of ‘80s faux computer-speak applied to a comically limited understanding of artificial intelligence. It’s also not the kind of series that usually delves into tricky or complicated morality.
But, “TRON: Identity” treats itself with absolute self-respect and earnestness. It takes every ridiculous concept from the films and imbues it with emotional honesty in a way that makes every decision feel sincerely weighty. Creative director Mike Bithell has always had a knack for character writing, and here he takes a crack at the neo-noir (and let me be clear here, it’s very neo).
The player takes on the role of the too-cool-for-school detective with a heart of gold Query (or, depending on your decisions, a detective with no heart whatsoever). Query is tasked with solving a mystery impacting one of the Grid’s upper crust. The mystery itself is interesting enough, but it’s propped up by some truly stunning character writing.
Every player in the narrative feels as though they’ve lived on the Grid for their entire lives. Their theological perspectives are informed by the world around them. The game seems to completely and comprehensively understand its setting, an especially stunning fact given that even the “TRON” movies don’t seem to understand their settings.
For a long time, I’ve reasoned that characters and worldbuilding ought to be on the periphery of a good “TRON” story. “Identity” gave me a different perspective. Maybe good characters and good worldbuilding will make for an effective center to any story– even a “TRON” story.
Sorrel Kerr-Jung is a sophomore studying virtual reality game development at Ohio University. Please note that the views and opinions of the columnist do not reflect those of The Post. Do you agree? Tell Sorrel by tweeting her at @sorrelkj.
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