Mondo Agency uses minimalism incredibly well to disorient the player and create its atmosphere of extremely unsettling psychological horror. The graphics are initially entirely in black, white, and dark gray, leaving all surfaces untextured, blank, and eerily dark. Aurally as well, the only sound in the beginning of the game is your own character's footsteps and breathing over a textured soundscape of white noise and static. In between levels, eerie videos show a creepy figure with a TV-cube head speaking in an old-sounding recording of a foreign language, while subtitled text with intentionally terrible grammar communicates his oftentimes unintelligible ranting. The gameplay is minimalist as well - one main concept determines the challenge in each level (or "submmission"), be it mountains or paths or massacres, and the concept is directly linked to the TV-man's pre-level ranting. All of these unique and minimal choices add up to an experience that entirely disorients the player and makes them feel incredibly, intensely uncomfortable from the get-go, but perhaps the most genius choice within Cactus's minimalism is the subtle disruptions he introduces - red blood, for instance, or the startling distorted screaming of the TV-heads later in the game. With so few elements to begin with, new additions take on a frightening power.
Artist: Cactus
Medium: Internet downloadable game (http://www.cactus-soft.co.nr/)
Year: 2007
Artist Statement:
"Welcome to Mondo Agency! An eerie cyber FPS with horror and puzzle elements. As an agent it is your mission to kill laser indians and save the president! Turn off your lights and turn up your speakers for maximum enjoyment!"
Bibliography:
http://www.retroremakes.com/wordpress/2008/01/08/mondo-agency/
http://www.gamelab.com/reports/2008-jan-indy_interview_cactus
http://www.indiegames.com/blog/articles/index.php?c=ca&y=2007&gid=6
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