Emotional gaming philosophy

Lore & Background

Flower was intended by Chen to provoke positive emotions in the player and to act as 'an emotional shelter'. Chen described the game as 'an interactive poem exploring the tension between urban and nature'. He designed the game around the idea that the primary purpose of entertainment products like video games was the feelings that they evoked in the audience, and that the emotional range of most games was very limited. To make Flower have the 'emotional spectrum' that he wanted, Chen looked at the development process as creating a work of art, rather than a 'fun' game.

Did You Know?

• Flower was Chen and Thatgamecompany's first game outside the safety net of academia.
• During Flower's development in 2008, Chen was named to the MIT Technology Review Innovators Under 35 list.
• The company ranged in size from six to nine people at varying stages of Flower's development.