Papo & Yo

A short story of a boy and his Monster

I guess you could say I've lived a sheltered life, although I like to think of it instead as a protected and loved one. However, not everyone has had the same experience as I have had growing up, and I see that apparent in the lives of some of my students. Teaching in less affluent and more transient parts of the neighborhood has exposed me to children who have gone through some rougher parts of growing up. I can only imagine what it is like to be one of these students living in a broken or abusive and unstable home. Fortunately, there is one game that attempts to re-imagine this experience and present it in such a way that engages players regardless of their history with themes of abuse and violence.

This is the story of Papo & Yo

Papo & Yo is a game by Minority Media that tells the tale of a boy named Quico who, like many other kids, lives in his own imagination. Players take the role of Quico as he searches for his sister with his robot - Lula - and his large beast of a friend - "Monster". Together they make their way through a puzzling labyrinth themed like a surreal South American Favela, unraveling a touching, revealing, and at times disturbing relationship between Quico and Monster. 

Beneath the basic exterior of simple gameplay (jumping, platforming, activating switches, moving object from point A to point B, etc.) and beautiful artistry of the landscape, there lies a very profound story and experience. With the use of very few text and employing simple pictures and tutorials to teach the game mechanics, the game puts players in the shoes of a child who must learn through trial and error. Then, it introduces characters with unique interactions to the player, and all interactions are suggestive of something more in the boy's reality.

[WARNING SPOILERS AHEAD]

This game has little to do with actual text and everything to do with metaphor. Your interactions with the characters and actions in the imagined favela tell an alternative story of Quico's reality. Although nothing is revealed to you in full until the end, Quico struggles with abuse by his father at home, and rationalizes it by living in his imagination - his safe place. Monster is a manifestation of his father in Quico's imagination. Monster is typically calm and usually fast asleep. You play with him, guide him along with fruits, even bounce on his belly when he's taking a nap. However, he loves frogs, but they induce in him a fierce rage when ingested. When he is enraged, Monster chases you around, slapping you and sending you flying. They player does not die or get hurt, but when Monster changes, the game suddenly becomes dark and the music turns frightening. You are compelled to run, to hide from Monster. This is the key element of the game, simulating what it's like to be abused.

Monster before eating a frog and after eating a frog

The story concludes with you leading Monster to another plane where you replay the scenes of your life. The fanciful world is shown to be a parallel of Quico's reality. Then, you are challenged with leading an enraged Monster to a bed where he is put to sleep for good, with you as the agent. This seemed to resemble a trial and you were the prime witness indicting your father for abuse. At this point, the story ends, the future of Quico uncertain. 

The game reveals Quico's reality when you transform statues of Monster into statues of your father.

Teaching Points:

Papo & Yo presents a great opportunity to teach the theme of child abuse, alcoholism, and ultimately strategies for dealing with crises. We have Quico, who is constantly running. That's all he can really do. He cannot fight, he cannot really hide. All he can do is run and try to "reason" with Monster. I see this as a learning opportunity for students, not just in seeing the connection in the game and making it to their own lives, but also figuring out what other ways of dealing with conflict are there.

From a literary perspective, this game is riddled with opportunities to teach metaphor and symbolism. Quico's father is a monster. Educators can teach students to see more into the game mechanic just like we teach students to read into the writing mechanic. Why is the only thing Quico can do is run? Why is it that the setting is of a run down favela and not a mansion or a jungle? These questions probe the player's mind as they are experiencing the game and hopefully incite critical thinking and opportunity for discussion and learning.

StupidSensei's Grade:

This story is an absolute A+ for its story and game design. It is simple enough that nearly everyone can pick it up and play but immersive enough in theme that students of any background can feel engaged. I was able to power through this game in a little over 3 hours, and it is organized in chapters so creating lesson plans around this game might be quite simple. It is $15 via the HumbleStore which I find to be reasonable considering a good book is about that price and there is yet no free borrow service for games. I highly recommend this title for educators to address this issue.

Happy reading and beware of frogs!

~StupidSensei