The Twitter users behind @canyoupetthedog have started a new account which will regularly share the many video game secrets that rest behind waterfalls. “Can You Pet the Dog” is an account dedicated to identifying video games that feature dogs, and whether or not the player is given the option to pet them. This account was born after the vocal disappointment expressed by Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild players, when they discovered Link could not pet the many lovable canines scattered about the game’s massive world.
“Can You Pet The Dog” just reached it’s one-year anniversary on March 5th, and it’s creator seemed to celebrate by adding this new waterfall account. The original account tweets daily and even includes a “Casual Friday” in which posts will focus on other animals, or fictional creatures, that are pet-able in games. @canyoupetthedog has amassed over 400,000 followers and has a vibrant little community of its own. Other Twitter users are often submitting posts and contributing to the account’s content. If anything, this account truly expresses how much gamers appreciate the little features and tweaks in video games developers include when they don’t have to.
The new Twitter account @VGWaterfalls has been following a similar pattern, regularly tweeting out games throughout history that included a waterfall secret. From The Witcher 3 to Banjo-Kazooie, waterfall secrets have been consistently prevalent in video games. Discoveries usually consist of a collectible item, but sometimes the waterfalls contain complex and bizarre secrets like in Earthbound. As @VGWaterfalls reveals, Nintendo’s 1994 turn-based RPG included a waterfall secret which asked for a password. In order to get inside, the player has to stand still for three full real-world minutes, until a new text box appears welcoming them to a hidden area. This is just one of the many bizarre Easter-eggs throughout Earthbound. Check it out below:
This account celebrates the waterfall secret for all it is; an extra step taken by developers to increase the feeling of exploration and discovery within their games. Games that are rich with secrets and hidden content are appreciated by players, and sometimes give them even more motivation to play. For example, the collectible skulls and secrets hidden throughout the Halo series add some interesting effects to gameplay and visuals.
These waterfalls are like a symbol of exploration, motivating players to comb through every corner of the games they play, and see just how far the developers went to create the living world before them. Games like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild were praised for the exploratory freedom they instantly bestow upon the player. Throughout gameplay, the player is constantly testing what they can and can’t do by climbing impressive mountains, poking at waterfalls, and traversing dangerous locations. Players will most likely try to find the limit to their exploration, and how difficult it is to find that limit is the true measure of how alive a video game’s world truly is. People looking for those secrets in past games should love this new Twitter account, although, when it comes to Breath of the Wild, don’t ask to pet the dogs.
Source: Twitter