Let me begin tonight America with something that has NOTHING to do with the actual topic of this post. Marshmallow Cream is quite possible the most delicious substance ever conceived from the minds of human beings. If by some freak chance, aliens can see the inevitable aftermath of George Bush’s Nuclear Holocaust from their home planet, I hope they come visit our now obliterated planet just so they can find the formula for making Marshmallow Cream…they certainly deserve it.
Now back to your originally planned programming.
The virtual version of me is far more successful than the tangible, fully functional version of me. He has a job, he is actually quite far in the Journalism world. He has a smokin’ hot wife and some adorable little bastards running around causing mischief. Seems like I’ve done a pretty good job in making a quite affluent and joyful person right? Too bad this little pixelated personification isn’t anything like me. The only thing Sim Cody Kloock and I, the REAL Cody Kloock have in common, is our name. (And the love of Journalism! *thumbs up!*)
I find it fascinating that I can sit at the computer for hours playing around with this fake little man: making virtual friends for him, getting him a promotion, getting him some sweet “woohoo” with random wenches, and raising his skill points in various things like cooking, mechanics, and the ever fun charisma. Then I find it sort of disheartening when I take a gander at my own low skill leveled, low occurance of “woohoo”, jobless, and hermit-like life.
It’s so easy to just click around and tell him to “Study…Cooking” or “Do Homework” or “Woohoo” but it’s pretty hard to find ways to do those three things in “the real world”, and that’s what I hate.
The Sims is quite possibly the easiest form of escapism available. Instead of throwing oneself in to alcoholism or drug abuse or RRRRRAAAGGGGGGEEEEEE, you can just pop in the DVD and start up the game. You can be whoever you want to be. You can look however you want to. You can live wherever. And the best part is, no one is going to give you flak for your choices because if they don’t like you:
YOU CAN DELETE THEM!
I wish I had that kind of power (sort of, I mean…there is always murder, but murder is wrong). But in the Sims, you’re always right no matter what your decision is because you can just always get your job/spouse back. No one in “the real world” means to get fired from work. No one means to get caught cheating by their spouse. No one means to sprint through the quad while crunk on Jose Cuervo.
The Sims is possibly one of my favorite games of all time because I can just do whatever I want to. I always make myself have this wicked sick beard, a ridiculous amount of charisma and cooking points, and everyone seems to love me to death.
The only thing of the above list I have in real life is the wicked sick beard, but it’s hampering my ability to get employment and therefore my ability to get promoted and that’s one of my WANTS…it needs fulfilled before my aspiration meter dips TOO low in to the red and I get a visit from the Social Bunny.
“EA Games: Challenge Everything” they say, more like “EA Life: Escape Your Crappy Existence”
My main problem though, is the fact that anyone who plays the Sims realizes that they could be doing exactly what they’re doing in the game, in real life. That always bothers me. It’s as if watching tv in real life, or having a conversation with someone isn’t satisfying enough so I have to watch a virtual version of myself do it for me to find entertainment. What does that say about me? Or the 100 million people who play the Sims. Are we that bored of our everyday life that we have to recreate ourselves to do exactly what we’re bored of? Or is the problem deeper? Are we just trying to make someone feel as distant and bored as we do?
Maybe we’re just playing a game…but maybe we’re the ones being played.
Excuse me, I just got the sudden urge to go “Study…Cooking”.
Cody.
