LogFAQs > #947920556

4. The Stanley Parable - Anagram
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YzytQUZx4FU

This intro starts with such an ordinary premise, but presented in such a fascinating way. We see how Stanley is nothing more than a number, another cog in the wheel whose job it is to mechanically push buttons in front of a computer all day long. And the accompanying narration is actually a big part of what makes this work, read in a way that sounds like this could be a nature documentary. After the narrator tells us Stanley is Employee #427, he continues to refer to the character not as Stanley, but as Employee #427, emphasizing the dehumanizing aspects of the job.

Then comes the twist, and although I could tell from the start a twist was coming, I wasnt sure quite what it would be. Stanley (and the narrator now returns to actually giving him a name) doesnt get his usual orders, and we see that there are no other people around, as if theyve all just vanished. This is a really intriguing hook that makes me eager to find out what happens next, as the intro ends with the promise of Stanley finally leaving the confines of his tiny office.

Another really nice touch is the way the view pans out from Stanley starting at around 0:37, until we can see the entirety of Stanleys office with nothing else around it, as if his office is the entire universe and nothing else exists. This makes Stanley having to actually leave the office seem like a far bigger event, since its like he is venturing out into the unknown, where for the first time anything could happen.

And now Im tempted to get this game.