The strange emotions caused by Minecraft multiplayer

Last night got very weird.

After experiencing some problems getting along with fellow gamers on a Minecraft server, me and my house mate (the same man from the Mass Effect 3 Multiplayer post) decided to find a quiet area away from everyone else to start a project.

'Waterfall Farm'

The little waterfall in question. Apart from the crafting table, this was entirely map-generated. (Bonus points for spotting the Creeper who wants to spoil the fun)

With some grass facing this little lagoon, we started building up a little farmstead. The plan was simple: small house, few animals and some crops so that we could have something to do and a steady production of food and crafting materials.

The strange thing was that it didn't take much for this incredibly simple project to become something altogether more personal. Being survival mode, construction was plagued by creepers and other mobs. Gathering animals for stock became not only a vital part of the project but personal tales of over-coming adversity as evil beset us. It was all starting to get a bit biblical.

Look at them, milling around. I don't think they even realise how many times they were nearly blown up!

Then there was the farm house. It started off small, no need for a mansion, and it only ever needed to be practical. However it didn't take long for a few personal touches to creep in and turn it into something a bit odd.

Admittedly, it looks more like a strange prison but...

...it's very nice inside!

Very quickly, this was the place where two farmers were to hold out against the odds. We'd take a floor each as we built it up: sharing design ideas and keeping watch for each other and the creatures of the night. There was one time I watched from the just-installed bedroom window as my partner brought home a cow, only for a creeper to assail them. I nearly smashed the glass with my bow and arrow, but felt a real sense of relief as I saw the creeper outwitted and the cow unharmed. That doesn't happen in real life. It was like being in the old American frontier. We needed the cow, we had to survive. The thought that we might not be able to make a cake was truly worrying, much like the growing recognition of how stupefyingly involved I was becoming.

Pushing the beds together would have probably crossed a line that even the Zelda-themed texture pack would not protect against.

As night finally settled, once the cow had been put in the paddock, we instinctively hurried up the stairs to the bedroom. We laughed at the fact we were so giddy and pleased about having somewhere to 'rest'. Even through we had full knowledge of the absolute ridiculous levels of faux-immersion we were subjecting ourselves to, as we went to our beds and the screen dimmed I couldn't help but look across to the other bed and be glad that my co-worker was ok: that he hadn't respawned back in his original home and lost the livestock.

This had got very silly.

Eventually, after realising that Minecraft-sleep was not the same as real sleep, we called an end to our gaming session. The farm still stands, a testimony to our trials and achievements, and sure enough we will be back to create efficient wheat farms and orchards and pathways to lead us back to civilisation for trade.

Even though this is undoubtedly a foolish waste of time, the beauty of Minecraft is that you can make your own genuine experiences within it. Though it makes me sound like I am being employed by Mojang to say it, you do indeed craft your own entertainment by creating your own little world.

On the downside, I don't see me getting a girlfriend any time soon :/

Can't be put better than that really.

Additional: If you were wondering about the texture pack, it's called 'Xaiwalker' and can be found for download here.

The problem with Skyrim

The Elder Scrolls V Skyrim is potentially the worst game ever. (Please note the use of the word 'potentially')

Skyrim is a massive game. A real achievement in the world of interactive art. I often stop mid-game to just try and take in how amazing it is, and that is exactly the problem: It's too much. When there are enemies to slay, plots to solve and a whole wealth of experiences to be had, it can be really hard to get on with them when you're being distracted by other great stuff that ISN'T game play!

Take the butterflies for example.

It doesn't matter if I'm sneaking up on giants, running from the flames of a dragon or even just trying to get home: I go from Skull-Biter the Barbarian to Giddy McSkipperty the second a butterfly flutters by. In real life, I might take notice of a butterfly when I see one or even take a closer look if it lands, but I hope to high heavens that in a life or death situation I wouldn't take up lepidopterology mid-escape.

It's these breaks in character that unravel the whole role-playing facade. I am, sadly, not an all-powerful warrior hell-bent on saving the world. I do not know the angst of watching monsters tear apart my family, and rightly I shouldn't want to know, but I do want to pretend that's the case and get a cathartic release from braining a troll whilst shouting "I WILL NEVER FORGET!" The problem is though that my core interest, the slightly worrying need to zealously bury hatchets in skulls, does not have a window in it's philosophy for reacting to a scared rabbit diving into a waterfall: which did happen to my avatar.

I'm pretty sure the real life reaction is to yelp, laugh and 'aww' in quick succession. (Sadly I'd probably make it my internet status of the day too). However Skull-Biter would probably shrug off the foolishness of lesser beings, or conversely have a flashback to his dead child diving off a cliff to escape the monsters that now haunt his nightmares: neither of which I could role-play him doing because I was too busy walking round the house giggling.

There are so many things that can distract you; domestic-level interaction, the need for money, physical obstacles between you and what you want, the conflict between desire and obligation and etc. It's nigh-on impossible to maintain a simple character's drive because the world they live in is that much more complicated.

"I just wanted to open a bakery in a quiet provincial town, and provide for my children, but needs-must"
- Spider

Determinism is pretty much part-and-parcel of gaming, in that you are presented an experience to enjoy. The more choice you give the player though, the harder it is to structure their experiences: something important when trying to emulate a persona. Sometimes these experiences tick the right boxes with incredibly satisfaction, but other times this elaborate pseudo-reality of a high fantasy world is just that little too close to the bewildering truth of reality that your own high fantasy gets confused.

Not to make a direct comparison between two very different games, but Crash Bandicoot never had to deal with this shit. He smashed crates and ran down the road to victory. Sadly he won't see the light of day for months now because Skull-Biter is too busy juggling guilt, revenge and vegetarianism, and that's not easy to do with just an axe.