By Serenity Cruz

El Paso, Elsewhere puts the player in the shoes of a man that has been trying to get over a breakup and tries to save the world from his ex. In some cases, this kind of narrative might tend to have some difficulties easily connecting the two topics. You might wonder about whether the main character is telling the truth about his ex being the huge villain without any complete explanation. And you might wonder, how did all this even happen in the first place? A third person shooter game that includes the developers’ version of biblically accurate angels, terrifying mummies, and a vampire can be nightmare fuel, too, because creatures that attack you to death can trigger such emotions. How does it all work?

The way this intricate story is tied with satisfying gameplay – along with the pain that comes with attacking a being you loved – makes for an amazing game. The game, nicely divided into chapters with cutscenes, levels, or a mix of both. The careful way it’s written and acted bring characters to life and believability. That’s extremely important when considering the main character, James Savage, who is determined and dedicated person, despite some flaws. Having such strong emotions portrayed by using a strong voice rather than simply having the player read the text offers a layer of understanding and empathy – and its successfully connects the player to Savage throughout the game. 

The first chapter immediately gives the player a sense of what the game is partially about with the lines, “I tell myself that it would be a one way trip. That’s what love is. It’s the trip between who you were and whatever you become next.” This portrayal of what romance it can be a head scratcher since this is a game with gun use, monsters, and various otherworldly elements. The first chapter also is a tutorial, teaching the player the controls and combinations that the player is going to use throughout the game. While I got  stuck in the tutorial trying to figure out and remember what keys to press fast enough to outpace the monsters relentlessly attacking, this tutorial would be fairly simple for the more experienced keyboard players. The tutorial doesn’t explain why Savage owns a gun other than that the game is obviously taking place in Texas. But a quick search reveals that it’s legal to own a firearm without a permit for people of age 21 and up in that state. 

Each level is a labyrinth littered with monsters within the void, the scenery of each being well made and detailed. The void is a motel which and several hostages need to be saved before navigating back to the mode of transportation, an elevator. As the elevator takes you deeper and deeper into the void, the levels get progressively harder until you reach the bottom where you have to defeat and ultimately kill Savage’s ex, Draculae. She can be seen wearing a black suit, light skin, and her hair tied up in a bun. There is a long silver piece in her hair, which indicates to me that she has strong determination in what she is doing. At times, she pauses in her speech as if she’s withholding information. Draculae was the one who created the void to regain her former power. As you begin to understand her, otherworldly beings from folklore that have some Egyptian traditions are woven into its origin of existence. There is a cutscene in the game that says that when a pharaoh dies, their followers are buried around them to serve as a sense of protection for the pharaoh to make it safely to the afterlife. This resonated with me and harkened back to what I’ve been taught in school. 

In each level/chapter, there’s also rap music playing in the background. Though the lyrics to each song are sometimes basic, it backs it up with the heavy beats in the background. In rap music, you usually hear the rapper saying really good and catchy lines that entices the listener’s ear, dropping heavy bars and rap at a speed that is enjoyable. The pace of the raps in the game are slow at times which can lead many to dislike it since the player would most likely be more used to rap songs that are fast paced.  This adds on to the huge rush that comes from the use of guns and flashing lights, putting you into a head space of “yeah I’m bad, cool, unstoppable, and nobody’s going to stop me from saving the world.” This ultimately leads to a huge pride and confidence boost for the next level. And then I have to completely restart the level over a mistake which results in my own raging frustration. But that factor brings the player back every time because that feeling is too strong to resist giving up that easily. In other words, I’m upset, but I feel I can still beat this thing.

At the end of the day, reflecting on the themes or lessons El Paso, Elsewhere has to offer, I’m thought I was stuck in a world of confusion. The story, music, and gameplay were all amazing. But I couldn’t seem to understand fully the message it has to offer. The closest I can get to figuring it out is that it has to do with love as it’s stated clearly in the beginning and plays a role throughout the game.  Savage, throughout the game, has made it clear that he is trying to save the world from Draculae. Yet he never seemed to express hate for her after the breakup. He describes his emotions by saying something along the lines of “How could I hate her if she’s never laid a hand on me?” It’s evident here that he doesn’t even know whether to feel hate or not when it seems that nothing wrong has happened in the relationship and that the simple truth was that they didn’t work out.

Savage is constantly reminiscing about the past, as if his mind is trapped into replaying these memories to figure out if what he’s feeling now is hatred towards Draculae. Applying it to today’s standards, many people might understand the concept but don’t address it because of how quick they are to hate the person. Maybe that’s the message. Or maybe it’s a question of even self-worth. Both Savage and Draculae have been shown at some point in the game to some degree to question their own self-worth and mention how their actions toward each other made them feel special. I’m guessing that depending on which sticks out more – love, rejection, self-esteem, addiction or the importance of eternal life – is the lesson learned. Thinking about all these things allows everyone playing this game to learn something valuable, however they interpret the characters’ motives.

Bronx writer/artist Serenity Cruz is one of the New York Videogame Critics Circle’s interns from the Mott Hall III Middle School.

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