unadulterated good
We start with stories of simple people. No conflicts, just hungry caterpillars and playful rabbits.
We go to stories of good and evil, where the pure good folk triumph, but we soon stop believing — we know the good guys don’t always win in real life.
So then there are stories where the lines are blurred. Maybe even anti-heroes, people who aren’t good, but are the main characters nonetheless.
But damn is it refreshing to find a story about good in a dark world. These stories aren’t childish, mind you, but they also aren’t artificially adding depth with darkness for darkness’ sake.
17776 is an ode to humanity. The characters aren’t flawless, but there’s a genuine spirit that underpins every one of them, a love for being alive. It’s uncompromising in its view of what humanity could be, a view that doesn’t include hate, or betrayal, or greed.
You feel the same sense of spirit with the Nomai in Outer Wilds. They bicker, and question, and debate, but they’re all driven by the same desire for betterment of themselves, and understanding of the universe. The good guys don’t always win; the Nomai face trauma and pain beyond belief, but that just makes the way they look up at the stars all the more inspiring.
