Day #17 June 8, 2011

I apologize for my extended absence as of late. I've been meaning to get back to this thread but I've been involved in some more real life stuff lately and it's quite refreshing. I'm digging the change of pace, and I think I just needed a break from the monotony. What caused me to seriously look at my playing habits was an article I read in a May issue of EDGE magazine.

The article covered an online game I'd never heard of by the name of Cow Clicker. I'm not saying it's not a popular game, I'm just saying I've never heard of it which are two very different things and is kind of the source of my anxiety. Anyways, the game was created as a satirical criticism of social gaming. Normally I would've laughed at what I was reading but it really got me to thinking about myself in contrast to online gaming.

One particular part of the article struck a cord with me:

Quote Originally Posted by EDGE staff
So, for example, his players implored him to create and offer Cowthulu, a cute-looking cow with tentacles modelled after the HP Lovecraft beast of abject horror. When Bogost finally crafted the cow, he made it so that you couldn’t buy it with accumulated clicks. Instead, you had to spend real money. And the players hated him for it. At the thought of frustrating his players, Bogost chuckles, relishing this object lesson in making wishes and getting what you wished for, even if it wasn’t what you wanted. But, much to his surprise, the players kept on playing, and kept on enjoying his increasingly problematic cow game. “No matter how much shit you throw at people, they rise above it. It’s incredible how resilient people are.”
So I noticed I'd found myself in a Cowthulu conundrum. I've already sketched out the digression of wanting linkshell features implemented to that of merely the recognition of an easily fixed issue that everyone agrees on, except for one person. While I don't think we'll be getting charged for linkshell administration options when they are finally implemented, I'm of the opinion it's more difficult to create a Cowthulu than it is to allow linkshell leaders to kick offline members from their linkshell. If it's not, this game has much bigger problems from a standpoint in which I have no expertise, but I'd venture to guess it's the underlying engine making everything needlessly complicated.

I've started to notice that I don't really game much anymore. I've FFXI'd a lot for the past 7 years, but I haven't gamed. I don't involve myself with gaming anymore. I involve myself in FFXIV, and I'm beginning to really question that. I was never one to think of this issue as being a microcosm of the game itself until I started reading a lot of other people's comments on this board.

In closing, I apologize a second time for not posting as aggressively as I'd determined originally, but I've been paying a little more attention to my real life. I don't think that requires an apology.

If you'd like to read the whole article that I quoted from you can find it here