quadshock's Xanga

A Digital Attachment

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 17:35:49 GMT

I recently completed a video game, you may have heard of it. It's called Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots. This blog is not about the game, really, but about something I have noticed about myself for a long time now but have yet to write about. I find it kind of interesting so here we go.

When I was younger, I used to watch these Chinese TV dramas. They would last anywhere from 25 to 50 episodes. If the drama is well done, then each character will have a very distinct personality. Over the span of the entire series, which might take me a few weeks or a couple months to finish, I start to feel like I know the characters. With their little quirks and habits, I feel like I've known them like a good friend. I know how their relationships begin, know pieces of their childhood, and I have "met" their entire families.

This is a good indicator of a good production. If I can sympathise and care about people on the show, then they must have done something (or everything) very effectively. This is why I can get so obsessed about movies. I now have less time and patience for the 40 episode dramas (not to mention, now that I am older I notice too many patterns in the structure of the stories), but I still believe a good one can suck me in. Some of the shows that I used to enjoy in the early 90s, I can still remember today because I was so emotionally affected by them.

I am blogging about this because it happened again with MGS4. Toward the end, I didn't care about the storyline much anymore. This was due in part to the ridiculously long cutscenes and countless plot twists. However, I spent 20-30 hours in three days on the game, and for these three days, I felt like these in-game characters were my family. It sounds corny but that's probably the best way I can describe it. I dreamt about them, and when I wasn't playing, I was thinking about the characters. For example, after saving Naomi Hunter I couldn't stop thinking about her. Not in a perverted way, but kind of like after meeting a new friend that you really like. You might think about them a lot. That's kind of how it felt.

From these experiences I can understand how some people can't seem to pull themselves away from playing video games and watching TV series, as much as other people tell them to "go out more". Maybe they feel like they are satisfying all their social and psychological needs through connections to these "digital friends". Do they really need a girlfriend when they can care for a beautifully animated girl in the game who happens to be--in their eyes-- perfect? Are they really missing anything? If someone plays video games like I played MGS4 for the past three days, he might convince himself so.

I don't think these relationships can replace real-life companionship of course. Because the real world is not this perfect. People aren't programs and are unpredictable. Those who refuse to come out of their rooms and meet people are missing out on a lot. True, they also save themselves from a lot of drama, but without these supposedly negative aspects of our lives, what do we contrast with peace and harmony? Yes, if I met someone like Naomi Hunter in real life, I would really want to know her because she seems like such a perfect person. But if I did meet someone like her, I would know that she cannot be perfect, and must contain some form of human flaw.

Those who are truly addicted to video games and such might not be able to make such a clear and definite distinction. Nowadays, with games liek WoW, people assume that it is automatically less troublesome because the computer players are real people on the other side of the world, on the internet. I still think the same problem remains. Those who are addicted to online multiplayer games also avoid a lot of the true human interaction when speaking to their online friends. It's so easy to be anonymous or role-play on the internet; we can never know what is real and what is an illusion.

I wrote this mostly to express how emotionally attached to some of the MGS4 characters these past couple days. If nothing else, this shows the level of depth video games have now achieved to rival or surpass their film counterparts. This is very powerful work, and in small doses it might even be healthy. Who knows, maybe the occassional stimulation of our emotion is a good thing. But not over a prolonged period. That is what I believe.

Any opinions?

Friday, June 19, 2009

Fri, 19 Jun 2009 18:59:05 GMT

Tuesday, June 09, 2009

Tue, 09 Jun 2009 08:25:48 GMT

"But this cosmic sadness
is just here to remind you
that without Love,
breathing is just the ticking of…"

One reason to be glad the year's over

Wed, 03 Jun 2009 09:41:00 GMT

My schedule this quarter sucks ass.

No one to eat lunch with
No one to eat dinner with
Odd lunch hours
Odd dinner hours
extra class on Fridays
All my classes were in wellman and scilec, practically
Didn't have time for Candice
Didn't have time to watch movies
Didn't do as well as I hoped on midterms due to taking 5 classes
Midterms EVERY WEEK. Seriously, the first, second, and last week were the ONLY weeks without midterms
Conflicting review sessions all the time
Tired almost all the time
No real time to work out

I can't wait till Fall... I love school but not when I can't even eat properly.

Saturday, May 30, 2009

Sat, 30 May 2009 11:29:37 GMT

I'm a happy guy. I am very optimistic even if my facial expression suggests otherwise. I have great friends, and a great family.

Yet occasionally a (brief) wave of loneliness would wash over me.

Why?

stretch

Tue, 19 May 2009 10:11:49 GMT

I am glad I got the five-class quarter over this year... I don't think I can stretch myself that thin next year. I guess it was a lucky decision.

Some things in my life, I am kind of unsure about right now. I am always thinking about the future, usually with certainty. But right now some things are so blurry; I do not know what's in store for me. I guess I'll do it like I've always done...

"You got to keep on truckin anyway"

Quite a creepy video... not gory or anything (based on Mark Twain)

Thu, 26 Feb 2009 12:17:33 GMT

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cqi5F5MqqTQ

My motivation to strive for a new academic standard (for myself) is sporadic. Right now it is low. I have a midterm on Friday. Bad combination.

Get Serious

Mon, 17 Nov 2008 12:24:27 GMT

Get serious or die.

Working hard for a year was great, and I reaped the benefits.

Then I got cocky. And I'm paying the consequences.

All hope is not lost. Get serious now and there is time for redemption. In the working world there are no GPAs, I will have to put in good effort all the time. No petty excuses about taking five classes instead of four, doing this club and that.

"Somewhere in these private minds
The last one comes just in time to
Clear out the chambers, sew up the lips.
That's the price to pay, for hoping every slip's not a slide"

Dreamer

Thu, 09 Oct 2008 06:39:14 GMT

"You know I've always been a dreamer
(spent my life running 'round)
And it's so hard to change
(Can't seem to settle down)
But the dreams I've seen lately
Keep on turning out and burning out
And turning out the same

So put me on a highway
And show me a sign
And take it to the limit one more time"

Balance

Fri, 12 Sep 2008 06:27:38 GMT

One of my philosophies... balance is everything in life....

But so is improvement. Complacency is the plague of our generation.

This summer I tried so hard to improve, and as a result the balance has suffered. It's a little frustrating trying to find the right mix of everything to do. I'm making it sound worse than it is, but I'm starting to notice the buds of this problem. I am hoping it's not like this for the next couple of years, which will be pretty essential to how the next chapter of my life will unfold. Good thing I am positive more than I am negative (but I tend to speak and write about the negative more, which is why no one believes me).

I have until the 24th to complete "it" for bebe... let's see how it goes ^_^

So many problems in life, for everyone, are self-imposed. To a large degree, the ones mentioned here are the same.

It's late... I can't form coherent thoughts.

Many resolutions come new year. Maybe for the first time.

Thank you to all the music, film, friends, family for keeping me afloat. I won't let you down. I just need to stop being so lazy.