Can you take me to the moon?
Welcome to Geeks & Grounds, a monthly game club where we play a game together
and brew some good conversation! ☕
For our inaugural title, I wanted to pick a game that checked off a variety of elements I treasure as hallmarks of this project: thought-provoking themes, accessible on a variety of platforms, relatively quick playtime, and that 'secret sauce' -- a component that makes me feel like this is a game folks should play. Not because it’s a perfect game. Simply one that should be experienced.
Which leads me to our first title…
To The Moon
ABOUT THE GAME 🚀
To The Moon launched in 2011 from the studio Freebird Games. Led by Kan Gao, this title — and the following titles in this series — focus on two employees from Sigmund Corp, an organization that provides a unique service: granting the final wish of dying people. This is done through changing their memories through an intricate procedure, giving patients a chance to fulfill their unobtained life goals.
In To The Moon, their work centers on an elderly man named Johnny, who has the desire to go to the moon.
Quick Facts:
Released in 2011
Find it on Steam ($9.99 USD), Switch ($11.99 USD), and iOS ($1.99 USD)
Note: The Steam version comes with two free minisodes that expand upon To The Moon universe, in case you’d like to pick those up as well.
Estimate about 3-5 hours to play
WHY TO THE MOON? 🌕
Sentiment and nostalgia played a large role in this month’s selection. When I graduated college, I thought games were not for me anymore. But, for some reason, one day, I downloaded Steam and started to search for Harvest Moon, to see if there was a PC port of Back to Nature.
I didn’t find Harvest Moon on Steam (and, Story of Seasons is where it’s at now anyway) BUT I did find To The Moon. And it changed the way I thought about games. The story is sentimental and sticks with you long after you roll credits. There’s no combat or violence…but there IS conflict. And it has absolutely lovely music and pixel art.
More than anything: it’s not a perfect game. I think in addition to doing some things beautifully, there are some elements in both the gameplay and narrative itself that are perplexing — perhaps even frustrating — to find in a tale about love and regret. This is also a game that has lots of layers, and I think I’ve felt slightly differently about it each time I’ve played. I can’t wait to dive into all of it with you and discuss what makes this game memorable!
KEEP IN MIND 💡
A couple of things I want you to keep in mind as we move forward with our first month!
Content Warnings: I will always do my best to provide content warnings for the titles we play. I’ve listed the topics in-game that may warrant a heads-up below:
Death/Grief
humans
animals (namely, roadkill)
mental illness/ableism
(light) swears or curses
If you’d like additional detail and support about what a game may entail, please feel free to reach out.
Timeline
The game is divided into three acts, which is perfect! You can play through the game at your own pace, but please note that discussion questions may allude to the gameplay based on where we’re at according to the timeline.
Week 1 (by Feb 7th) Complete Act I - Finish the section with the fragmented area (right after the soccer ball memento).
Week 2 (by Feb 14th) Complete Act II - After collecting the “Contained Roadkill Odor” and meeting back up with Neil, head back to Johnny’s bedroom.
Week 3 (by Feb 21st) Complete Act III - Finish the game
Discussion Questions
The discussion questions are located here.
Note: As of Feb 1st, I’ve only added Act I’s questions — the rest will be added in the same link shortly!
How to use these questions? Feel free to copy/paste and answer as you play in a word doc, print it out, or just peruse it and keep questions in mind as you go through the game: do whatever works best for you!
Additional questions and conversation related to the DQs will happen in Discord: feel free to hop in if you’re looking for other folks to talk to about the game, pose your own questions, etc.
Finally, I hope you have fun!
I’m looking forward to hearing your thoughts, questions, stories, favorite — and least favorite — parts of the game. While I encourage you to respond to the weekly question and activities via the weekly newsletter, please don’t forget that the Discord is a great place to connect with everyone else playing. Respond to each other. Ask one another questions! Your perspectives and voice will be what make this community shine: I’m just here to help facilitate and guide.
Thanks again, and I’ll see you in the cafe!
