Last week, I opened up my own farm! Okay, not a real farm, but as much of a farm as I’ll ever have in my life. I made an account on Big Farm and started tilling soil, and planting … plants. It was fun to go through the tutorial since I had the guidance of someone telling me what to click and what to do. As I advanced, though, oddly enough I didn’t know what to do — nor did I have the patience. So I moved on…
That’s the thing about gaming; when it comes to simulated realities, there are no real repercussions to your actions (failures or successes)— this might be a negative thing, in games like Grand Theft Auto (for obvious reasons). POINT BEING I felt no remorse abandoning my land and the animals I was already not taking great care of to begin with.
I moved on to another life, in another game — The Sims.
I’m familiar with how The Sims works, I grew up playing all of the computer games. I’d say it consumed my youth and that’s likely why I have trouble building relationships with people in real life still, into my adulthood! Wow, fun stuff!
It is a beneficial game though, because like I mentioned before, you aren’t as limited in your simulated life as you may be in real life. I planted a garden and contributed to the community in under 15 minutes all without moving from my seat.
These games create a world within itself, in which people can get sick from old food, or drown from being in a pool too long. In these worlds, certain mistakes don’t go unpaid for, which is great when it comes to teaching basic principles of looking after something you’re responsible for. Food can burn, and people can starve to death.
We are responsible for the things we create, and the same goes for real life. Everything we do always has the opportunity to have a lasting impact on the world and our environment.
