Body Bargain is an extremely disgusting game. Which is the highest praise I could possibly give it, because it is a game about revulsion. And it is not subtle about it. Set in an unspecified, but probably near future, it revolves around a pair of young sisters in the clutches of a plastic surgeon whose own body is his business card: He has become more cyborg than man. His services range from similar cases of replacement of individual limbs with artificial replacements or complete body replacements, ranging from metallic, as in his own case, to more naturalistic looks.
Seas of Blood… this is going to be a tough discussion for me, because I have to admit this was the gamebook which I read/played more often than any other when I was a kid. Whether this was due to thematic preference, due to gameplay-related strengths or other aspects, we will probably find out. However, I cannot guarantee that I can stay objective at all times. Please excuse the occasional drift into nostalgia.
Darkness holds one of the primal fears of mankind. But why are we afraid of it? We are afraid, because something might be lurking in the utter blackness and when it is trying to harm us we will not see it coming. Since it easier for us to deal with the tangible than with the abstract, we tend to antropomorphise our feelings. And this leads to the birth of the bogeyman, our manifested anxieties. Especially children with their more vivid imagination combined with all their insecurities – born out of inexperience – are prone to conjuring them up. And since your fear can be turned against you, parents use it to make their children behave – as cruel as this might be. Yes fear is a powerful tool: Whomever you are afraid of has control over you. And this is one of the main themes of Bogeyman.
