Hidden

“Serious games” are those meant to be played for a purpose other than primarily entertainment. Sometimes that means it’s a flight simulator, or a military training game, or one of those workplace harassment things we get to do once a year in corporate America. Here’s a list of some good ones.

Hidden is a short narrative game by Pixel Ghost made for PlayJam 3 about homelessness. He travels a lot (many of the characters in Life’s 2 Short: Unhooked were based on real people he met while doing charity work), and he met a woman while in a San Francisco hostel that was just staying there for the night. Even though she had a job, San Francisco rents were too high so she had to live in her car, only using the hostel occasionally when she could afford it. I lived in the San Francisco suburbs and spent 75 minutes commuting to the city for work – it was a big reason we moved to Colorado a few years ago. Could never afford to live in the city, there was no way. It’s only gotten worse since we left.

In Hidden, you play as someone without a place to live. People are eating and you try to talk to them, but you’re ignored. They warn you to not speak to their child. Some of them won’t even look at you. You do find $5 in the trash, but that’s not enough to get a night at the hostel, not even close. You have a health bar, and every interaction with a human that treats you like nothing makes your health drop. Eventually, it’s night and you have to settle for a place to sleep just out of sight, behind a dumpster. Safer than a park bench. It’s brutal.

People that live on the streets aren’t supposed to be there. We’ve failed them as a society. There are a few things you can do to help, even if it’s as small as naming-your-price for Hidden – all proceeds are donated to UK homelessness charity Shelter. It’s important to remember that they’re people, too, and until everyone is able to get their basic needs met, we’ll never be a truly free world.

(Get it on Itch.)