Save the World

This is somewhat of a spontaneous post, but there’s nothing wrong with having a little spontaneity in you life.

Just today I found a wonderfully insightful video from TED. It’s a talk on how gaming can change the world from Jane McGonigal, who I’m proud to say follows me on Twitter. Seriously, I’m proud of that fact. It makes me feel really special. Her book, Reality is Broken, is on my wishlist. I really want to get it once I have a chance.

Check it out here

Reality Is Broken: Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World

Do you have 20 minutes to spare? If you don’t, please bookmark this and come back to it later. If you do, I hope you find this video as intriguing and insightful as I did.

So what do you think?

I think it’s wonderful.

It made me realize some things.

If I’m playing a game, I am more than willing to throw myself out there for a stranger. I I’ll help people I’ve never met before. I always have a good attitude about it. Never do I think, oh… this task is way too much for me. I can’t do this.

Why don’t we take these attitudes into the real world where we can actually make a difference in people’s lives?

Those attitudes you have in games don’t just have to be restricted to games. They are your true feelings about helping others, they only just feel safe coming out when you’re playing a game.

So consider what Jane talked about in the video.

Enjoy your game.

Enjoy your life.

Save the world.

Cheetos Again?

Gamers tend to have a bad rep when it comes to health and snacking habits; long sessions fueled by Mt. Dew or Monster. Draining bags of chips in one sitting.

Is this you?

I haven’t always been the healthiest person either. I'm still not. 

I remember back in high school I went to a Video Game Design Camp. It was awesome. I had 2 cans of Rock Star energy a day and very little sleep. 

Holy shit right?

Not good.

I’ve never really bothered to care too much about what I eat.

“That’s for dramatic girls.” I always thought.

Well recently I’ve started gaining weight. I’m not happy about it. So I decided to make some changes in my life.

I absolutely refuse to eat at McDonalds, Burger King, or any places like that. When I get fast food it’s Subway, Pita Pit, Jimmy Johns, Quiznos, or something like that. Yum.

Instead of snacking on bags of chips I now reach for other things. Dried fruit is awesome. Trail mixes are yummy. (One of my favorites is one called Brotherhood Mix. I eat it while playing Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood while hanging out with my fraternity brothers. Maximum brotherhood!)

Nature Valley bars are awesome.

Instead of stocking my fridge with soda, I fill it with things like V8 (the good kind not the nasty shit), various kinds of bottled tea (Arizona RX Stress is my thing right now), or even just Gatorade. Opt for the stuff without high fructose corn syrup.

I’ve also recently started exercising thanks to Nerd Fitness. Hopefully by the end of the summer I’ll have my body back the way I want it.

You need to examine your own eating/snacking habits and decide if you need to make changes in your own life.

Can’t live without caffeine you say?

Bull shit.

Just to try it out, I decided to not have any caffeinated beverages during lent. I did without any problems.

After the first week you won’t even miss it.

Now I’ve decided to limit myself to only one caffeinated beverage a week. It’s my little weekly treat.

I want you to be happy.

Guess what.

Making progress towards being healthy makes you happy.

Trust me, I know firsthand.

I’m doing what I can to take steps towards being healthy, and you can too.

Healthiness is proportional with happiness.

So make a change.

Enjoy your game.

Enjoy your life.

Ways to be You

“Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You.” - Dr. Suess


In my last post about personalization I talked about the importance of being individual and unique, but I didn't really touch on ways to do that. (I was stuck in a blizzard)

Whether it's in games or in real life you should always find ways to be you; to be unique.

You're not going to make any waves in this world if you blend into the crowd. You're special in your own way and you should find ways to express that.

When it comes to gaming there is an abundance of ways to be unique. While the things you do in games might not have the same impact as the things you can do in real life, they're still important.

One of the big things you can do, and almost certainly have already done, is make an online presence for yourself. The first step is picking a name. This is important. I use my name across everything I do online.

RogueLieutenant.

It's my Xbox Live gamertag, my PSN name (I never use it. ever.), my Steam name, my Twitter name, and  my name on any site I register on. It's useful and fun to have a name that persists across the web. This way you have your online persona.

Some may use this to be anonymous.

I don't.

I'm not hiding who I am. I don't need to.

I don't use my name to hide behind and antagonize people.

It's just my other name really. I'm Joe, but I'm also Rogue. It's nice to have.

So when you're choosing your name, think of it as your second name. Something you like; something that fits you.

Hopefully your name isn't something like this: xXSnIpEzxX420. Seriously. You can do better.

You're avatar is another good way to portray yourself. Whether it's your Xbox Live avatar, PSN Home, Mii, or whatever else you have. There's so many ways to be unique. You can showcase what games you love, what you like to do, or anything really. An avatar is another good way to personalize yourself in your online space.

I love games that allow for extensive customization and personalization. You feel better about playing as a character you personalized, than as one that looks the same as everyone else. This is because you like being you, not just like everyone else.

Hold on to that feeling when it comes to real life too.

Be you and not just like everyone else.

Find ways to be unique and express yourself.

Enjoy your game.

Enjoy your life. 

Don't be a Dick.

You're not a dick.

At least I'm assuming you're not a dick. You've been nice enough to read this far already so you're pretty cool in my book.

Let’s say you're walking down the street and you see someone drop something, trip, or something like that.

What do you do?

I'm assuming you don't go up to them and laugh at them and mock them for failing. You might even go offer to help them.

Well then why should a game be any different?

If someone screws up in a game, more often than not he or she is criticized, laughed at, or made fun of rather than someone just telling them "It’s fine, we all make mistakes."

Why?

Why can't we be just as kind to others in games as we can be out in the real world? A big part of life is making others happy and feel good. The more you do this, the better you will end up feeling too.

You don't run around purposefully screwing with people in real life, so don't do it in a game.

People play games to have fun and enjoy themselves. Don't ruin it for them.

Make it even better for them if you can.

Would you rather be in a game where you have to deal with dicks, or a game where everyone is chill and just out to have a good time?

I'm hoping it’s the latter.

You should do what you can in life to be as happy as you can, unless making others unhappy is what makes you happy. Then don't do it. That’s a dick move.

Be nice to everyone you meet, be it in game or out.

Try to make them happier after having encountered you than they were before.

Enjoy your game.

Let others enjoy theirs.

Enjoy your life.

The Beauty of a Sunset

I live in North Dakota.

I have my whole life (aside from a year I lived in Germany).

There's not much to look at in North Dakota. You've seen one field you've seen 'em all.

But one thing North Dakota has going for it is its sunsets.

They're beautiful. They're awesome, in the archaic sense of the word.

The sky is painted by a thousand brushstrokes of pink and purple and hundreds of other colors that fall in between.

I suspect most people don't pay it any attention. It's as if someone held up a brand new masterpiece in front of you day after day. After a while most people just push it aside to carry on with their lives.

That's sad.

I would rather be awed by something I get to see all the time than bored by it. We all need to take time to appreciate the beauty around us.

It's there if you look.

The more places you can find beauty the more joy you’ll have, and the more content you'll be in your day to day life.

Look for beauty in the day to day.

That means video games too.

What got me thinking about all this was the Overlord DLC in Mass Effect 2. There is a point when you're driving around in a little hover tank when the tank's computer says: "Geographic conditions indicate an aesthetically pleasing view nearby. Organic life forms may wish to take note."

I took note all right. It was a great view.

I figured the artist, or artists as the case may be, probably didn't just want people zooming by and not looking at their wonderful work. And why shouldn't they? They put in a lot of good work into making the world of the game look wonderful.

Take the time to actually appreciate it.

When I play games I take time to look at the far away, not just what’s up close. It's often what's off in the distance that is the most beautiful and artistic.

Distant backdrops.

Mountains.

Sunsets.

An artist had to create these scenes, and what makes these more beautiful than just a portrait is that they are dynamic, not just static and unmoving. Often you can see it change over time, and I feel that that makes them better than any painting could ever be.

I find the sunsets in Red Dead Redemption to be particularly wonderful.

Just think of how much work must have been put into making that sunset. Incredible. 

Look for beauty in everything you encounter.

Enjoy your game.

Enjoy your life. 

It's ok to be a Noob.

Everyone was a noob at one point in their life whether they want to admit it or not.

No one was playing games in the womb. Everyone had their first time playing a game, and odds are most of them had to get some practice in before they were any good.

Most people forget that.

Lots of people like to put others down if they're new to a game because they're not good at it.

How stupid is that?

You can’t expect someone to be good right away. Everyone learns and gains skill at different games at different paces.

But for some reason, noobs are hated. If you're new to a game and you're not doing as good as the rest of your teammates, odds are they're going to be mad at your or insult you.

Insulting people never accomplishes anything.

Don't worry about them. You're doing your best and you're playing to have fun.

You're playing to have fun.

So don't let any naysayers get to you. Do your best and have fun.

Laugh at them if they're taking the game way too seriously. What's it going to matter in a week? A day? An hour? It won't matter much. What will matter is that you had fun. 

If you're doing your best don't worry about your score. If you get frustrated by the other players, just take a break and come back later.

Its ok to be a noob. We've all been there.

Just do your best.

Enjoy your game.

Enjoy your life.