“The game that can give you 10 extra years of life” by Jane McGonigal
Watching this video in class, it came as no shock to me that there were studies that playing games (of any media) can have a positive impact on your life—it was the first time, however, seeing the details of how exactly that worked, down to the intricate calculations and different ways that it positively impacted us.
Jane McGonigal, a game designer, talks about how, from personal experience, creating and playing a video game has been a positive influence on her life, and how it has helped her with her recovery from a concussion that took a year to fully recover from. She talks about Post-Traumatic Growth, which was a concept I have never heard of before. This is something that I wish is talked about more since we always see more research, and news, and development about the negative aftermath of a traumatic and stressful event.
She creates a game-based exercise for the audience to participate in and uses real-world research to tie into the achievements earned as the audience played the game. She states that, because of the smaller tasks that everyone was able to do, and the positive reactions that their bodies have developed because of it, they have essentially earned 7 more minutes to their life; she also states that meeting the goals of these tasks regularly can earn people 10 more years into their life.
Journey
I have personally played the game “Journey” back around the time that it was first released, which was March 13, 2012. I was only a child, but I still remember the things that I felt and experienced when I was playing it for myself.
I remember being amazed by the different landscapes and terrains that I would wander around in, and particularly being fond of the way we could glide on the sandy hills and gain speed and momentum. I remember how emotional the story was despite there being no words spoken a single time—it was mainly experienced by the architecture, and the glyphs and art on the walls, and the moments of action that drove the character to move and experience the adrenaline of escaping a perilous enemy. I remember feeling this sinking pit in my stomach when I saw how worn-down and trodden our character was when walking through the snowy and dangerously cold mountain. I remember feeling happy—and, admittedly, a little bit confused—when we were suddenly energetic and alive again and soaring through the sky with our newfound source of life and energy.
I learned recently within the last year or two that you could actually play this game online with other people! The story doesn’t change at all, but I’m sure it could make the experience of the game more impactful and fun if you were to go through the story together.
A Whole New World (Game)
I’m someone who enjoys playing video games—if it wasn’t obvious by the number of times that I have talked about playing a specific game in my blog posts (aka, Skyrim…). There have been a variety of games that I’ve played; similarly to how I listen to music, if a game is good, and I enjoy the concept and the controls, and can grasp how to do something in a game (whether it’s easy, or the challenge is fun), then I will enjoy that game no matter what genre it might be under.
With that being said, I have become fond of farming games over the years. Farming games are known to have the player play as a new farmer who manages their land and grows their home with every passing season; they live in a town full of other townsfolk that you are allowed to build relationship with, which can lead to special events, which includes learning about a personal part of them that they don’t really share with anyone else. Another common theme found in these farming games is the fact that there is some fantasy element to it that helps keep the game just a bit more engaging for the player, as well as add more depth to the game. A good example of a farming game would be Stardew Valley, which came out almost a decade ago, and is a popular farming game amongst the gaming community.
When I was deciding on what game I wanted to try—that was free to play—I decided that I wanted to try and play Palia. Palia is a farming game that came out last year on Steam, a gaming service that allows the uploading and purchasing of different games, and earlier this year on the Nintendo Switch console. Palia is a bit different from other farming games that I have played; not only is it a free game that is available to download by anyone, but it also doubles as an MMORPG (massive multiplayer role-playing game), which means that the game uses a server for other players to play in, which makes it available for players to play with each other. I’ve had the joy of having one single online interaction with someone who was able to deliver some supplies to me when I was testing out the request feature. It was a really sweet interaction when I sent out a message thanking whoever it was that sent me supplies, and having them with “it was probably me! you’re welcome!”.
This game is definitely supposed to be one of those cozy games that you play to wind down after a long day, or to play when you just want to relax and need a calm part of your day. The game was meant to be played with the intention of building a nice and positive community, but there is no actual push to play with others if that is not the game style you are going for—I assume that you are allowed to play completely by yourself to discover the story. There are in-app purchases to buy in-game currency for special objects and outfits, however they are not necessary to the game, and are more for aesthetics and customization than anything else.
Overall, I’m excited to try and play this game more! I think this will be a nice game to come back to every once in a while since it seems like it’s not a game that relies on constantly logging into to keep up with the story and such. Hopefully, for those who have the means to try it out, you are able to give this game a shot as well!