WE A R E O F K
A fake band, a real videogame, and the joy of going with the flow
A WONDERFULLY RELAXED STORY, BROUGHT TO LIFE WITH COSY MUSIC
Who are OFK? The answer is slightly complicated. They’re a sort of virtual band, starring in a game about how they got together and started making introspective indie pop. Imagine a low key, achingly hip, hyper progressive Gorillaz, and you’re… probably a bit lost. But that’s OK, because in chapter one of this narrative-driven experience, OFK are a bit lost too.
Pianist Itsumi and singer/songwriter Luca are adrift, living in LA but struggling to figure out their dreams, let alone follow them. That is, until a chance encounter with a disarmingly confident music producer sets them on a new path.
The drama is almost comically low in stakes. There’s anxiety, and heartbreak, and creative burnout, but no real threat or conflict. The characters live laid-back lives, enjoying a near endless stream of support from loving friends. To give you an idea, Itsumi and Luca’s stifling office jobs that they long to escape from into the world of music are… very cool, important roles at a wildly successful videogame company.
And you know what? I love that about it. It’s a wonderfully relaxed story, brought to life with cosy music and a warm, soft art style. As the kids would say, the vibes are impeccable. Wellobserved writing gives every meandering conversation and goofy text chain a remarkable authenticity, slowly building a sympathetic portrait of characters who in less deft hands would be the poster children for first world problems. The demo build only gives me access to the first of five chapters, but by the end of its roughly hour-long run time I’m completely enchanted.
HIT PLAY
That light, leisurely atmosphere extends to the game’s approach to interactivity. Which is to say, there isn’t much, really. You get to choose dialogue options, or what to reply to a text, but it hardly seems to affect the story. And that’s fine—it helps emphasize a sense of going with the flow, involved in the characters’ plights but not in control of them.
The final game will punctuate chapters with playable music videos— again only lightly interactive, but enjoyably surreal, which seems like it’ll be a clever break from the subdued story. More importantly, the songs are really fun and catchy, showing off the genuine musical talent behind the virtual facade. You can listen to their first single, Follow/ Unfollow, on Spotify now.
I can’t wait to hear more of these tracks, in between luxuriating in the band’s engrossing non-problems. Maybe you don’t quite get it now, but when the full game launches this spring, I’ll get to be the one telling everyone I was into OFK before it was cool.