The Games We Play

Madeline stacked up the games near the PS4 for a picture, but then it turns out Hollow Knight wasn't the only game downloaded to the system. Rise of Tomb Raider and Jedi: Fallen Order don't have cases, but Spider-Man, Horizon Zero Dawn, and Avengers do. They are three of the games in this stack that Luis and Kal completed during quarantine. They just started Avengers this week. "The graphics are spectacular," according to Luis. "Each Avenger has its own control system. It feels like it's the best of all the worlds."

First Edition Force Friday 2019 Black Series Cal Kestis and Second Sister Inquisitor

Madeline Strum Photography

STAR WARS JEDI: FALLEN ORDER

developed by Respawn Entertainment, published by Electronic Arts

Kal and Luis downloaded and completed this actionadventure game. Set five years after Star Wars: Episode III, Jedi Padawan Cal Kestis is hunted throughout the galaxy by two Inquisitors while attempting to complete his training, escape his troubled past, and rebuild the fallen Jedi Order. Enemy types range from droids and Purge Troopers to wild beasts and skilled Zabrak warriors native to each planet.

"That's the same girl?" Kal asked when he saw the cases

Madeline Strum Photography

RISE OF THE TOMB RAIDER

developed by Crystal Dynamics, published by Square Enix

Kal doubted the PS2 and PS1 versions had anything to do with the game Luis had downloaded. Lara Croft utitilizes pick axes, ziplines, and bows and arrows to complete objectives and side content. She needs a lot of stealth—not Kal’s default mode. He likes to run around and shoot things. Before Luis got involved in Horizon Zero Dawn, Kal liked to run out and confront enemies. Kal completed both games.

Betty's Hornet plush

Madeline Strum Photography

HOLLOW KNIGHT

developed and published by Team Cherry

As Madeline remembers the story, her kids are obsessed with listening to video game music which led them to listening to the Hollow Knight soundtrack. And the graphics were so cute they needed to see gameplay. Then they needed to download it. The first person to play it was Boom, but Betty might be the biggest fan. Everyone draws pictures of the characters and no one can shut up about the game.

Team Cherry is an indie team of three people based in South Australia, according to their press kit. “Hollow Knight is a challenging, beautiful action adventure game set in the vast, inter-connected underground kingdom of Hallownest.” While it took years to develop the game, “‘Keep it simple’ was our visual goal. That mantra carried through to the rest of the art, and was probably integral in us being able to create so large a world in two years.” It’s probably also why my kids are so compelled to draw the characters.

Ghost plush

Madeline Strum Photography

Ghost battling the Flukemarm

Kal Vega

Betty’s Jevel, Papyrus, Muffet, Sans, Mettaton, and Flowey from Undertale

Betty Vega

GOOD AND BAD INFLUENCE

My kids discovered the music of Undertale and became terrified but obsessed. They cannot download the game, but should maybe feel free to be more like the creator. Undertale was developed by Toby Fox and financed through Kickstarter. The campaign launched June 25, 2013, with a goal of $5,000 and ended 30 days later with $51,124 raised by 2,398 people. Fox worked on the project independently, with only artwork and sprites being supplied by other creators, mainly freelance artist Temmie Chang.

Some of Betty's original characters for one of her many video games she is creating in her imgination

Boris, Bendy, Alice Angel

BENDY AND THE INK MACHINE

developed by Joey Drew Studios, TheMeatly Games, LTD.

Betty seemed to discover Bendy by watching too much YouTube before the game came out in 2017. Boom played a demo of the survival game at one of the publisher’s, Rooster Teeth’s, booth at New York Comic Con. He received an activation code, but I refused to download it. —MV

LITTLE BIG PLANET

developed by Media Molecule, Sumo Digital, Tarsier Studios

With a combination of action adventure and sandbox modes, the Little Big Planet series has been in rotaion at Casa Vega for more than a decade. Sackboy is cute and customizable. Karting was fun for head to head competition, but LBP3 unlocked more sack creatures with a bigger variety of skills. Building new worlds was difficult, but the existing levels were fun and challenging. —MV

Homemade Sackboy

Madeline Strum Photography