Fun music
The few first games I played were very nightmarish and anxiety inducing—these were A Wonderful Day at the Beach, Sun Garden and Horrible Forest. In choosing games, my instinct gravitated to more lighthearted and enticing titles expecting to be met with a stress-free game, however, most of the time, turned out to be the opposite. A Wonderful Day at the Beach invoked a sense of claustrophobia, frustration and grave doom while I was forced to helplessly watch my character drown into a pool of highlighter blue following every move. This was met with a cringe-inducting lo-fi droning loop, which became more merciless with every octave leap. I left the game feeling as if I had been trolled, before realizing that this must have been partly, if not the point of the game and then shortly discovered Pink Zone. Pink zone felt mind-numbingly warm and familiar—like experiencing boredom in the company of an old friend or like a worn-in fidget spinner. The hieroglyphic-like visuals give the game a primitive aesthetic (along with the sustained, primitive yowl in the distance during the melody of the soundtrack), which compliments the relaxed atmosphere. The pink-on-black color palette also feels very vapor-wave inspired. I think the music in this game is actually very brilliant and I was drawn to the analog textures of the drum-sequencer and synthesizers which flowed playfully throughout the many cadences of the song. All in all, I think it's funny that a game which was created for the sake of being relaxing actually aided me after unknowingly stumbling upon a game that was intentionally deceptive and uncomfortable.
--AG Andy
