I’ve never liked FMV games. Something about live-action footage pretending to be interactive has always made me cringe. They feel like awkward movies trapped inside clunky game mechanics as they are simultaneously too stiff to be cinematic and too scripted to be playful.
What surprised me most was how alive the experience felt. Even though the footage is decades old, the live switching between cameras gave it a weird sense of immediacy. And knowing that this same game once caused Senate hearings over its violence only made everything funnier. Seeing these tame, almost cartoonish scenes condemned as corrupting in 1993 felt surreal gave the experience a kind of meta humor.
To be totally honest though, by the end, I still wasn’t a fan of FMV games. They’re clumsy, dated, and absurdly overacted. But Night Trap at least made me understand why people love them, not for their gameplay, but for the spectacle, the shared laughter, and the nostalgia. Watching it live felt less like gaming and more like watching an inside joke unfold on screen one that everyone in the room was in on.
And I will add, just because I feel the need to say it, just because I didn’t like it doesn’t mean it doesn’t have a place. Even though I probably wouldn’t choose to spend my time interacting with other game mediums like Night Trap, I do still think its an interesting experience that I’m sure some type of gamer would enjoy!
I totally get what you mean about FMV games feeling awkward — they never really know if they want to be movies or games. I wasn’t able to make it to the panel, but your post really helped me get a sense of what made Night Trap interesting. The way you describe that weird “live” feeling from the camera switching makes me kind of wish I’d seen it in action.
And I agree — it’s so funny that something this cheesy was once considered dangerous. Even if FMV games aren’t your thing, I like how you highlight their value as a shared experience and a piece of gaming history.