The Witness: A Window Into Autism

Braid creator Jonathan Blow released a game called The Witness recently. At first glance, it's just another walking simulator in a pretty environment. But as I played the game, I realized just how much it reflects autism. This may seem like a weird connection, so let me explain.

I have high functioning autism, as I'm sure you already know. I'm not exactly secretive about it. When I was playing this game, I was mesmerized by the patterns everywhere. Take a moment to look at a still from the game below.

Notice the abundance of patterns in it. The shadows of the leaves, the leaves themselves, the bark... Patterns are very pleasing to people with autism. The way the environment is seeped in them to create the game's uniquely beautiful island was no doubt crafted by someone who is on the spectrum. Then there is the actual gameplay mechanics, the puzzles.

Each puzzle seems very alien on the outside. There are seemingly meaningless patterns embedded in the puzzles around the environment. What is the point of this? How does this relate to anything? But as you understand how the puzzles work, it provides a window into how the world around you works. Notice how pattern heavy everything is, yeah? Adopting this new way of thinking, this autistic way of thinking, changes the way the player sees the world around them.

Another way this reflects autism is how you wander about this environment, you don't talk to anyone, but instead interact with your environment by touching things. This is even further accentuated by the fact that you are on a deserted island. I need to touch things to really understand them, I need to feel the textures and get the tactile stimulation. I love to walk around barefoot to feel the texture on the ground. I love to pick up insects and spiders and feel them walking on my hand. The impact of their steps shows me how they're thinking and what their general mood is. The obsessive compulsive puzzle solving is another reflection of how an autistic brain works. The way I feel compelled to touch things and draw patterns is shown quite well. Making lists is very soothing to me, it gives me a lot of pleasure. Especially things I can pour over like creating a Pokemon team (Pokemon is very important to this as well, which I will discuss in just a moment). My tics, my laser like focus I have on things that really interest me, my repetition of things that are soothing to me... This obsessive behavior is shown quite well in the game.

I would not be surprised at all if Blow himself had ASD. This certainly isn't the first time someone on the spectrum has made a game, after all. Satoshi Tajiri (the creator of Pokemon) is an adult with Asperger's Syndrome. The world of Pokemon is based heavily on autistic thinking. Systems, algorithms, and patterns make up the core of the world. There is very little dialogue, usually just a couple of lines or someone monologuing. Another aspect is how good and evil are very clearly defined, to the point where you can determine a character's alignment based solely on their outfit.

Patterns and algorithms are everywhere in the real world. Science uses a lot of mathematics and equations to explain physical phenomena. Everything in life requires at least some degree of mathematics, too. Even as simple as planning out your monthly budget. Being shown a pattern oriented way of thinking allows one to see the world in an entirely different way. Now clearly this is not the correct way, the world and especially human beings are not so dichotomous. But to be shown a vastly different view of the world certainly helps to understand it better. After all, diffusion fuels innovation.