The series of thoughts that has led me to this post started with the question, “what would be my ideal video game?” I’m not writing about that, but it led to questions about what type of a gamer I am. I’ve played a large number of games, and touched on almost every genre at some point or another. I was reminded of an episode of Extra Credits that talked about Bartle’s Taxonomy. I recall watching that video and trying to place myself in one of those four classifications of online gamers. What I remember most was how I just could not situate myself in any of the types described.
I’m not a killer, as PvP was always nerve-wracking to me and I gravitated towards PvE. I’m not an achiever, and my Xbox live Gamerscore can attest to that. I’m definitely not a socializer as I detest the swathes of drooling idiots that pool in online games. I would rather avoid people altogether than risk running into one of the many people that are on the Internet just to ruin the fun for everyone else. Finally there are explorers, which if a gun was pointed at me would probably be the one I most closely identify with. The problem with that is though I think it’s interesting to discover new things; I’m not so drawn to that aspect. Genre-centric games to explorers, which examples given by Wikipedia include the Myst games, don’t appeal to me. I’m aware that Bartle’s Taxonomy is not flawless. Still, though I would like to pinpoint myself on some gamer map.
I know a few things that I consistently enjoy across games. Primarily what comes to mind is the use and possession of ethereal superhuman abilities; magic, spells, sorcery, so on and so forth. There is something about being the person casting a magic missile into the darkness that I really find fun. Mind you, a text-based game that reads, “You cast a magic missile into the darkness” does not appeal to me whatsoever. I want to see the fire. I want to feel the magic. Some RPGs have barbarian and warrior classes. These class types have abilities that aren’t as magical, such as a sweeping attack or leaping strike. Even if the animation is entertaining the fact that it’s a physical feat makes it less interesting. These things seem less mystical and magical, which is what I am drawn towards. World of Warcraft’s mage, warlock, and druid classes drew me in. Seeing the spell leave my hands and connect with the enemy kept me subscribed for a very long time.
A word I want to use is powerful. In video games I want to have the power, the control over the game world. This is quite a common theme so it’s not something I have to seek in games. On the fact of it this seems to contradict my distaste for the barbarian and warrior types. What is more powerful than a mighty warrior, after all? This contradiction makes me believe that there is something more than control that I can’t place my finger on. I would rather be able to see through walls than smash through them, even though the latter is clearly demonstrates a better control over the game world. Video games with a sense of bird-like freedom are really fun for me, and that sense of independence is liberating. The control I think I crave from these synthetic worlds is one of escape; I want to be able to escape if I so choose.
When asked what super power I would have if I could have one, my reply has always been ‘teleportation.’ The ability to go anywhere and the feeling that it brings is one of the reasons I enjoyed the movie Jumper so much. It’s not that I want to explore, but it’s that I want to be immune to danger. I’d rather avoid and evade than take something head on. This distinction seems to be why I would most closely describe myself in Bartle’s Taxonomy as an Explorer type. I want to explore, but not for the sake of finding things, I want to be free to go where I please. In fact, with the addition of the Elytra in Minecraft 1.9 I found myself teleporting to a high up place, gliding down, landing, teleporting back up to the top and starting it all over again. I did this many times, probably for at least a half an hour, and not to complete any objective. Just the feeling of freedom was enough to drive me.
When I achieved the bird form in World of Warcraft as a druid I must have spent hours upon hours just flying around. I didn’t fight anything or anyone, I held no interest in combat or achievement points, and I wasn’t making much progress in any way shape or form. Nevertheless, I had so much fun flying around, going where I pleased. For the first time in my life I was as close to being a bird as I might ever have come. There was an entire virtual world to explore and nobody to stop me from flying around and seeing with a passive eye whatever was happening. I could fly close enough to a group of players fighting it out to sit and watch. If I was targeted I just fly away and go look at something else. Maybe I perch on that house over there and watch the virtual people live their virtual lives. It sounds boring as I type it out, but it was peaceful, fearless, and completely without stress.
That freedom you might yearn for when looking at birds outside your window as they fly about to where they please; that is the freedom that I want in a video game. Though freedom is truly wonderful it is not the only thing that appeals to me. As I mentioned earlier the slinging of spells in a magical world is incredibly fun. I’ll try to expand on that in another post, but for now I think I’m going to go load up some Minecraft.
Originally published at kionay.wordpress.com on April 25, 2016.
