Go Then, There Are Other Worlds Than These

Ever since we’ve been voluntarily isolating ourselves, Liz and I have had our own projects. But we tracked down a game from Cyan after talking about Myst… and bought a copy of Obduction.

We’ve been playing this on the PS4 for a few weeks now. There’s no regular game nights, just whenever the mood strikes us. We’ve done pretty well, discovering small clues here and there and haven’t resorted yet to looking up clues on the Internet.

One odd thing for me: as much as I like video games, at times this feels less fun to me. Liz enjoys the discovery process, but at times I get overwhelmed at the prospect of problem-solving more things after a day of work.

I think it has something to do with the age of Coronavirus, and my mental state. This should be a game, but sometimes I find it a frustration. The game, for me, doesn’t elicit the same type of escapism that I think it does for Liz; instead, it feels to me like encountering impediments.

The game and world and landscape are quite beautiful. I do look forward to playing and exploring more. It’s just odd to me that I have, at times, such a visceral, negative reaction to a video game. A very unusual thing for me.

Related:
Remembering Myst
Wasting Real Time in Imaginary Places, 2005 (1)
Wasting Real Time in Imaginary Places, 2005 (2)