Welcome to the Library

My game, “Welcome to the Library,” is trying to argue that libraries are under appreciated, both by the government and by the general populous. Being a librarian is hard work, with little reward. Conversely, another problem is addressed - the game emphasizes time, and you must get rid of the patrons in a timely manner. This leads to the patrons being viewed solely as a problem to be eliminated; the player cannot view the patrons once they are gone. Moreover, the game argues that once a library is too full of patrons (when a certain number of backlogged patrons is reached) the library ceases to function; you lose. The game is dark; there is no win condition. The game is like tetras - you are set up to fail. This makes the game a Sisyphean endeavor, endlessly repetitive with no chance of achieving the supposed goal of winning.

This game can be interpreted in ways I did not intend, of course. The player could feel anger towards the librarian, who is shooting patrons willy-nilly with a random stack of books, little caring for the patrons personal needs or questions. The patrons could appear to be tools of the politician, a nameless hive-mind of endless repetition. The job of the librarian could suddenly appear dull, monotonous, and unappealing. It could easily seem that all politicians dislike libraries, which is untrue. All patrons could appear to dislike libraries, which is also untrue. There are a multitude of misinterpretations possible with this game.

Despite the unintended interpretations, I hope that players of my game will recognize the difficulties involved with being a librarian, and will gain some modicum of understanding of the governmental pressures put on public libraries.