Dear Insane Children,
Our team of artists and designers, powered by your support, continue cranking out some really amazing ideas. The main effort these days is focused on the events that lead us into the story of Alice: Asylum… The Fire, Alice’s confrontation with Chaos, and her transition into the Stage of Denial.
With Denial we’re brainstorming another theatrical presentation (like the one you saw in Alice: Madness Returns) which makes sense when you think about what Denial represents. It’s the mind’s initial protection mechanism after being sent into Shock by a traumatic incident or series of events. It’s the safety net to catch us when the ground slips out from beneath our feet.
Many people, after experiencing trauma, find a way to persist in a state of Denial for extended or even infinite amounts of time. They “put on a show” “re-write the script” and “act” as if nothing ever happen. Many find it easier to stay in Denial by engaging with an ever-changing circus of distractions – work, exercise, entertainment, etc – than to confront the horror of what’s happened and commit to the effort required to learn and grow from it.
So it makes sense that Alice’s Denial is represented as a literal circus and filled with all manner of distractions, acts, and shows. But it’s all an illusion – and a poorly crafted one at that. Then again, we’ll take any distraction we can get when the alternative is a shattered reality.
In Alice: Madness Returns we presented a show by The Carpenter and Walrus. This time around it’s a circus put on by Tweedle Dee and Dum. It’s likely we’ll see Alice conscripted to play a role in the circus – and we’ve talked about seeing her forced to wear a Circus Dress. Others too are forced to wear ill fitting skins…
How will Alice finally escape from this land of illusion so that she can continue her journey towards truth?
Sitting at the center of Denial (the circus fairgrounds) we’ll find a House of Horrors. Perhaps it’s abandoned? Or requires a currency we don’t yet possess. Or, at first glance, is simply NOT THERE. Alice doesn’t see it until other little cracks begin to appear in the facade of Denial. But appear it does – right at the center of Denial. A hulking house of horrors through which we must pass if we’re going to escape the emotional coma.
That escape will cause dissonance – the uncomfortable feeling we get when reality doesn’t align with our expectations. Dissonance triggers our fight or flight response. And when we can no longer flee we’re forced to fight. And fight is exactly where Alice is heading – from Denial to Anger and the realm of the Queen of Hearts.
Speaking of Anger
A lot people carry a bit of anger towards EA – the owners of the Alice IP. And there are often voiced concerns about EA’s role in Alice: Asylum and how that role might threaten or destroy our efforts here. Insane Child IceKiller mentioned this in a question during a recent livestream and I provided an answer – which I’ve now uploaded as a single short video response.
If you too are concerned about this issue (you shouldn’t be!) then head over to YouTube and watch my explainer. Hit THIS LINK to do that now!
It’s Sunday here in Shanghai and the days of rain have given way to blue skies and sunshine. I hope that wherever you are it’s beautiful and bright. Lulu sends her love.
From Shanghai with Sunshine,
-American