Loneliness

Started by Blizzard, September 16, 2012, 08:01:49 am

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Blizzard

The topic title is kind of misleading, because I am not here to talk about loneliness, but to talk about a particular game. Originally I wasn't even intending of actually posting a topic about Penny Arcade's show Extra Credits, but I might as well while I'm already at it.

Long story short, Extra Credits is a show that tackles different topics in gaming and game development from a very different angle that you are usually used to. They offer some insight and very useful information for game developers and those who want to become such. http://www.penny-arcade.com/patv/show/extra-credits
I highly recommend the show as secondary educational material (even though you can also watch it for entertainment value, but not all episodes might resonate with you in that case).

Now let's get back on topic. In one of their episodes they discussed the concept of "mechanics as metaphor".
http://penny-arcade.com/patv/episode/mechanics-as-metaphor-part-1
It includes a short flash that you have to play in order to understand this discussion. You can find the link of the site, but since the actual video is not necessary for our discussion, here's the game: http://www.necessarygames.com/my-games/loneliness/flash I'm not interested in discussing this topic directly, but actually the game itself. Before I spoil anything...

Play the game now before you continue reading.

Throughout Extra Credits there is an emphasis on game being able to become an art form and how games may teach us something about ourselves in ways that we actually never thought possible just as other art forms do (graphical art, music, literature, films, etc.). I am convinced that this game can teach us something about ourselves as well. If you want a somewhat deeper insight what it may have showed you about yourself, you can watch the Extra Credits video as they offer some of the possibilities of how you may have viewed the game (it surely gave me some insight).

What did go through your head while you were approaching the other groups? What kind of significance did you see in them? How did you feel about them all going away? Have you noticed the screen becoming grayer and darker early on? Were you emotionally invested or were you able to dismiss just about everything? Did you feel rejected by the other groups? What went through your mind while approaching them?
These are all questions that I will now answer for myself (because I created them from my experience of the game). Feel free to post and ask more questions and explain your experience.

I already noticed the title of the game being loneliness so I didn't really know what to expect until I saw the first group go away. As I approached the second group and they went away as well, I figured that this would be a lasting theme. I noticed that the background was somehow different at one point, but I only realized what was going on when is started becoming visibly darker. At some groups I wondered what they represent and what I represent, especially the revolving groups made me think of me as a planet trying to get into a solar system while in most lively groups I actually imagined the groups being people. I felt curious approaching new groups and I noticed that as the game progressed I stopped for a moment and observed groups that looked interesting before I approached them actually. My usual reaction when they went away was a childlike "Oh, they are going away, too? Ok." I never saw them going away as rejection. At one point I was actually actively trying to scare them away and enjoyed it as an isolated and fun experience in itself. While walking through the groups that looks like people in traffic, I feel great breaking through the barrier and how everyone just made room for me as opposed to seeing the whole thing actually meaning that they just went away like everybody else.

As I approached the darker and darker ending, I thought that maybe the point of it all was supposed to be to get to the one dot that would not go away (a general idea which I am against and we already discussed this in another topic about relationships if I remember), but it didn't happen. Just me thinking and associating these ideas shows how much this game has actually a potential for discussions about its meaning and how we reflect that or experience it.

The game reinforced my idea of self and it actually also taught me something about myself. It didn't teach me anything directly but more how I have changed in the past 2 years. I have experienced a similar self-revelation in a conversation last night when I looked at it in retrospect and when I broke it down in pieces to understand what happened and how that conversation reflected who I am and how I see myself.

Share your own thoughts, opinions and experiences.
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Quote from: winkioI do not speak to bricks, either as individuals or in wall form.

Quote from: Barney StinsonWhen I get sad, I stop being sad and be awesome instead. True story.

winkio

Loneliness is not about whether or not you are in a relationship (by which I mean dating, girlfriend/boyfriend, married, etc.).  A significant number of people that are not in a relationship are not lonely, and a significant number of people that are in a relationship are lonely.

I see loneliness as social boredom.  The entirety of social interactions can be reduced to inputs, which you receive from other people, and outputs, which they receive from you.  These inputs and outputs can be anything from conversations and interesting stories, to events and social gatherings, to professional contacts and partnerships.  All of these things satisfy the same two needs: to have other people share their experiences with you, and to share your experiences with other people.  Social boredom is what happens when you are stuck with the same inputs and outputs for too long.  You hang out with the same people, hear the same stories, do the same activities together, time after time after time.  Loneliness is what drives you to change your social pattern, and get some new 'inputs and outputs' that you find interesting.

Now often, lonely people have very few social connections, which means very few inputs and outputs.  This makes sense in the context of social boredom, as the less social interactions that occur, the less diversity in inputs and outputs is available.  On the opposite hand, big social networks like cities have many more inputs and outputs, and thus much more diversity.  Nevertheless, an individual may be perfectly content to have very few social connections, or may be very bored with a large spectrum of connections.  Regardless of current social situation, loneliness drives us to change.  Sometimes, this may mean making new social connections.  Other times, it may mean pruning them down in order to see the most interesting ones.  But never make the mistake of jumping into a relationship instead of solving a problem with yourself.

Blizzard

That's a very interesting view and I like it. Obviously I like any concept that drives you to self-improvement.
Check out Daygames and our games:

King of Booze 2      King of Booze: Never Ever
Drinking Game for Android      Never have I ever for Android
Drinking Game for iOS      Never have I ever for iOS


Quote from: winkioI do not speak to bricks, either as individuals or in wall form.

Quote from: Barney StinsonWhen I get sad, I stop being sad and be awesome instead. True story.

winkio

I don't see it as self-improvement.  I see loneliness in much the same way as I see hunger or thirst.  I think your brain has a physical need for information in much the same way that your body has a need for food and water.  If it takes new matter to maintain your physical state, it makes a lot of sense, to me at least, that it takes new information to maintain your mental state.