My daughter loved to play Oregon Trail on the computer when she was young. I never quite understood the appeal, but she would laugh about the different ways she would die.\u00a0 I think the whole point of the game for her was dying; I don\u2019t recall her ever surviving the game.\u00a0 I\u2019m avoiding asking if that says more about her or me.<\/p>\n
Last year, I was feeling a little nostalgic and I bought her the Oregon Trail card game for Christmas. I think she might have played it once.\u00a0 Maybe if there were a VR version she would get excited about dying of cholera or a broken leg, once more (just don’t turn off the safety protocols).<\/p>\n
I recently attended a technology conference in Las Vegas.\u00a0 No, I did not skip any sessions to go play games at the casinos.\u00a0 Those stakes are a little too high for me.\u00a0 One of the conference sessions was about using simulations to validate that a system will work the way that it\u2019s supposed to.\u00a0 It was an unexpectedly fun session.\u00a0 Afterward, it hit me:\u00a0 it was just a big role-playing game.\u00a0 I get paid to design and play games.\u00a0 I can turn my projects into MUDs and be the DM, instead of the PM (Project Manager).\u00a0 My job just got a little better.<\/p>\n
Reality check.\u00a0 I might get laughed at if I try to explain validation as a game, although having a dungeon might be useful, on occasion.\u00a0 There\u2019s probably a more effective story I can tell, and I want cooperation from people who have other commitments.\u00a0 I need to find the right story to tell.\u00a0 Isn\u2019t that what we do?\u00a0 We tell stories in games, books, and when we engage in conversation with others.\u00a0 Isn\u2019t that what this is \u2013 my stories told in attempt to connect and engage with you?<\/p>\n
My wife jokes about how our linen closet is now a game closet.\u00a0 At least I think she\u2019s joking.\u00a0 I have a few games, but it\u2019s nothing compared to a friend at work.\u00a0 He has more games in his cabinet at his desk than I have games, total, and he has even more games at home.\u00a0 We usually play a game at lunch \u2013 board games, card games, dice games, games of strategy, games of chance, etc.\u00a0 We tend to stick to games we can finish in an hour, but occasionally schedule time outside of work to play longer games.\u00a0 I still haven\u2019t figured out why my group of friends like Agricola.\u00a0 Having to grow and feed your family is a pain.\u00a0 No, my feelings toward Agricola are not an expression of hidden angst.\u00a0 So there.<\/p>\n
Most gamers have a favorite type of game (board games, cards, dice, emotions) and, depending upon whom you ask, you could be one of anywhere from four to twenty-seven types of gamer.\u00a0 We play games for different reasons, too.\u00a0 Some off us play for fun, others to feel like they belong or are in control, and some people just want to stomp the living daylights out of their opponents.\u00a0 It can be cathartic.<\/p>\n
Regardless of why you play, ultimately, you can create a community of friends, real and virtual.\u00a0 That is what\u00a0LTUE\u00a02018 is all about.\u00a0 Come play with us!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
My daughter loved to play Oregon Trail on the computer when she was young. I never quite understood the appeal, but she would laugh about the different ways she would die.\u00a0 I think the whole point of the game for her was dying; I don\u2019t recall her ever surviving the game.\u00a0 I\u2019m avoiding asking if […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":36,"featured_media":1776,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1775","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ltue.net\/old\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1775","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ltue.net\/old\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ltue.net\/old\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ltue.net\/old\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/36"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ltue.net\/old\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1775"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/ltue.net\/old\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1775\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1835,"href":"https:\/\/ltue.net\/old\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1775\/revisions\/1835"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ltue.net\/old\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1776"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ltue.net\/old\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1775"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ltue.net\/old\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1775"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ltue.net\/old\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1775"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}