On (game) life and death
I’ve been thinking a lot about life and death in games lately, probably thanks to Left 4 Dead, a game in which I am always happy to die, provided no one did something incredibly stupid. It’s okay to die while working to get better, and further, or to achieve more goals. In L4D, when you win, you know you earned that shit. When you die, that’s cool, too.
I remember, when I was a kid, my dad would be playing through The Legend of Zelda, and he would keep the NES on all the time, even when he wasn’t actively playing, because he would challenge himself to beat it in one life, without ever dying. He and I were always finding new and weird ways to challenge ourselves, but this is the one that I remember, because I would flip past channel three on the television and there’d be Zelda.
I play some games on easier settings, and some games on harder settings, and then sometimes I try to create new challenges, just like my dad, but all I really want is for a game to fall out logically. I don’t want impossible puzzles, or situations in which I have to get lucky or happen across the thing I need. I’ve always hated fighting a dozen battles to get one thing (and yet, I still played a lot of Final Fantasy, including FFXI, more fool me); I want things to be about my skills and effort and I want to always be improving.
All this preamble really does lead to something: a question about dying in games. I’m not talking about those games in which you die again and again because the game is frustrating and you’re trying to find whatever necessary sweet spot is required to progress. I’m talking about those moments when things are hard in a good way, or when you can find a way to get better, faster, stronger, whatever, even if it means you suffer for it. That’s what I look for in games. I know other people who just like to roll through and win, and I’m sure there are other mindsets, too. Anyone up for a little weekend discussion?
tags / life / death / lisha / discussion
