After the player climbs out of their crash-landed lifepod on the alien exo-planet 4546B, they are met with an electronic music sting and a seemingly endless deep blue ocean. The vast sea stretches beyond their insignificant escape pod and the player’s previous home — a now-derelict starship called the Aurora — is engulfed in flames. A message from the player’s A.I. then plays, “The Aurora suffered orbital hull failure. Cause: unknown. Zero human life signs detected.”  

How this scene is interpreted is based on the player. It could be feelings of eagerness to explore the ocean beyond them, terror about what lies just below the surface or the isolating feeling that you might be the only human on this planet. This is just one example of establishing an effective atmosphere in the 2018 independent video game “Subnautica.”

After about nine days spent on 4546B, the player will receive a lifeline, “help is coming.” A passing space freighter called the Sunbeam is going to attempt to land on this planet to rescue the player. When the player swims to the rendezvous, they are met with the first spot of dry land they find on the planet and a metallic, alien citadel-like structure guarded by a forcefield. As the freighter makes its landing approach, a horn from the alien structure sounds, and it begins to transform into a cannon that eviscerates the player’s would-be rescuers.

No music begins to play. No message comes from the player’s A.I. helper. The player is made to sit in silence as their only hope of rescue is now a giant fireball rapidly descending from the sky. The only sounds that can be heard are nearby alien birds chirping and the waves washing ashore on the sandy beach. When I first played this game, feelings of hopelessness washed over me. “There is no escaping this planet,” I remember thinking to myself as my character sat alone on an alien beach. 

Atmospheric storytelling — while not exclusive to games — is something that video games can do brilliantly well. Music and sound effects (or lack thereof), lighting, pacing, narrative context (tone and theming) and level design all create an effective atmosphere. When games successfully achieve this level of immersion, they can elevate the moment-to-moment gameplay from mediocrity.

Supergiant Games writer and designer Greg Kasavin explained atmosphere is what keeps you in “that moment” at a 2012 Game Developers Conference talk on the atmosphere in their 2011 game, “Bastion.” According to Kasavin, games provide a successful atmosphere when they have three characteristics: tonal cohesion, internal consistency and specific details. “Atmospheric games have a way of rewarding the player,” Kasavin said. “The more you look the more you find there.”

A successful atmospheric and immersive game experience should pull the player into the world and make them feel rewarded for paying attention to the minutia. In the 2009 game, “Halo 3: ODST,” the player will be met with the same feelings of hopelessness and isolation along with a jazzy original score, reminiscent of the classic noir films of the 40s and 50s. 

While being hunted by the religious hegemony of the Covenant in the empty streets of New Mombasa, an attentive player will notice signs and symbols from the city’s A.I. apparating in front of them, serving as a guide to their objective. Even though the player is functionally alone, it helps push the player forward by reminding them that they do have a guardian angel watching over them.

That’s what an effective atmosphere does. It adds a fat, juicy layer of story for the player to sink their teeth into. It can push the player forward or even pull them back. It’s just another reason to love video games.