Thunder Lotus Games is primarily known for developing action-adventure games, but it decided to go in a different direction with 2020's Spiritfarer. Spiritfarer is a life simulation game that can somewhat be described as Animal Crossing on a boat, where players have to interact with anthropomorphic animals while completing tasks for them and completing various other chores. However, the twist is that, unlike Animal Crossing, the "villagers" in Spiritfarer are not around forever.
The goal of Spiritfarer is to take care of the spirits on Stella's ship and help them pass on to the afterlife. This means that Spiritfarer players periodically have to say goodbye to their friends, and each time is as heartbreaking as the last. It's some of the most emotionally impactful experiences one can find in gaming, and it's really remarkable how the game deals with death. There's a reason why Spiritfarer is considered one of the best indie games of 2020, and the clever way it showcases death is a big part of that.
Death in most video games is presented as something to avoid at all costs. It's failure. But death in Spiritfarer is the exact opposite; spirits pass on in the game when players are succeeding and making progress. This is a fascinating twist on typical video game conventions, with the passing of one spirit in particular being the best representation of how Spiritfarer tackles the topic of death in a masterful way that is really only possible in video games.
THIS ARTICLE WILL HAVE SPOILERS FOR SPIRITFARER
Atul
Spiritfarer establishes a formula of players completing tasks for each spirit on their boat, dealing with each spirit's emotional issues, and then ferrying them to the Everdoor when they're ready to pass on to the next life. As they make their way to the Everdoor, each spirit talks about their lives - both as a human and as a spirit aboard Stella's ship. Stella and her cat Daffodil then say goodbye to the spirits when they reach the Everdoor, giving them a final hug to say farewell.
So even though it's sad to say goodbye to each spirit in Spiritfarer, the game does at least make it clear that players always get to say goodbye, at least. However, the game completely breaks away from that pattern with Atul, who was apparently Stella's uncle when they were humans. In the world of Spiritfarer, Atul is a happy-go-lucky frog who likes to eat pretty much anything and is always trying to be helpful, fixing up parts of the ship (sometimes to the annoyance of his fellow shipmates), helping players collect Lightning in a Bottle during thunder storms, and offering Stella planks and berries.
Even though Atul is typically going to be the second spirit that Stella gets on her ship, he is one of the last spirits that leaves. That's because some of the upgrades Atul needs for his house require materials that players don't have access to until much later in the game. This combined with the fairly common occurrence of storms dotted around the Spiritfarer world map means that players end up spending a lot of time interacting with Atul, likely more than any other spirit in the game.
The developers not only make Stella spend the most time with Atul by making it difficult to finish his tasks, but they also make his departure one of the most heartbreaking. Spiritfarer breaks away from its pattern of letting Stella say goodbye to each spirit by having Atul just suddenly disappear one morning. At first, it may seem as though players have to go find him, like is necessary for some of the other spirits, but then his Spirit Flower appears in his house, and the heartbreaking realization becomes clear: Atul passed on without saying goodbye.
This is one of the most heartbreaking moments in Spiritfarer's story, and a great example of how random and sudden death can be. Sometimes people get to say goodbye to their loved ones, but many other times, they are not afforded the luxury.
This emotional moment would just not have been as effective in other forms of media, as Spiritfarer encourages players to interact with Atul regularly, feeding him, hugging him, talking to him about his life as a human, completing his objectives, and passing by him while he's working on the ship. The game conditions players to think that they are going to get to say goodbye to every spirit, but then subverts those expectations by having him suddenly disappear from Stella's boat. It's a profound message about death that simply wouldn't be possible to replicate outside of gaming.
Those interested in experiencing Spiritfarer for themselves have a few ways to do so. Spiritfarer is available on the Nintendo Switch, PS4, Stadia, and Xbox One, but it's also playable through Xbox Game Pass as well. However one plays the game, just be ready for an emotional rollercoaster.
Spiritfarer is out now for PC, PS4, Switch, Stadia, and Xbox One.