Meta elements in video games are nearly as old as video games themselves, with horror games especially using meta elements to reach players in ways that a traditional game never could. From a first look, War Fantasy by non-Euclidian appears to be a fairly standard FPS, though quickly reveals itself to be a much stranger and more hostile experience. The recent reveal trailer shows the horror elements of the game slowly coming to the forefront as comments and observations are made regarding the game itself.
The trailer opens with dark war imagery, alluding to a mature FPS that the initial glance may have one believe it is. This is reinforced by a cut to a training course where the player learns to target and move. The games central hook then reveals itself as the camera pans away from the screen to reveal that the video game is being played by another character in the trailer. All immersion is shattered as characters begin talking about the game itself and go to a store where the game lines the shelves.
Halfway through, “I am not a person. I am property,” can be seen written over and over again across a whiteboard. The second half of the trailer is focused on the mystery of what the game is attempting to accomplish by training so many individuals for war. The Steam page goes into greater detail about this goal, claiming that the player is nothing more than an obedient attack dog. Toward the end of the trailer, the game’s reality itself starts spiraling into a strange corridor before breaking completely.
While meta elements in games are not as unique as they may have once been, they are still wildly effective when used well and in a good game. Time will tell how War Fantasy chooses to use these elements when it releases on PC.