I stare down at the crying infant in his hospital bed, powerless to doing anything to help. Instead I pace the room, looking anywhere else. The continual crying puts me even more on edge.

It’s a precarious edge on which I balanced for most of That Dragon, Cancer, a heart-wrenching journey of a father trying to cope with his infant son’s fatal cancer diagnosis. It’s also the true story of Ryan Green (lead game designer) and son Joel, who died in 2012.

Dragon maybe be the pinnacle of gaming narratives for me. The strength of video games as an art form lies in combining a crafted narrative with a live player’s participation, which I think creates more effect and engagement than passive observing. The story could have been a tragic movie or novel, but as a game, it is an entirely different experience. By the end, I smiled when the child laughed and occasionally cried with him.

Despite the premise, Dragon isn’t actually all doom and gloom. There are scenes that come straight out of a child’s imagination (one of the principal characters is a child, after all), and they do much to lighten the mood. Playing with constellations on a field of stars, wandering through an idyllic forest: These sections also serve to characterize and interact with baby Joel more, because for the realistic portions of the game, he is usually in a hospital bed.

The game employs a point-and-click adventure, with no noteworthy features in its play. Because the game has a laser focus on plot, that’s to be expected. The settings are roomy enough that taking a minute to look around and explore feels worthwhile — the art design is pretty enough that you’ll usually want to. The character models are very abstract, with only vague features. It’s jarring at first glance, but after playing for a while, I realized it made it easier for the player to place people from their personal lives in the story, giving the experience more meaning.

I could only come up with two flaws in the game: First, the dragon metaphor isn’t used very frequently, undercutting the title; second, That Dragon, Cancer is very short for its asking price ($15). Three hours at most. Well, I think that for emotional impact alone, the game is worth the money. Those looking for lots of content for their money might want to wait for a sale.

Play this game. At some point in your life, play this game.

Thank you Ryan Green for sharing this with the world.