Bliss and Chaos

[andrewducker]

As various people have recently suggested, I took a couple of hours off this evening and did something for me.

To whit, I played From Dust (see video on my post this morning).

Which was exactly what I needed. A nice simple game, with simple quests that lead you slowly through the game. Pick up sand, and put it down somewhere so that your people can climb over it to get to the next place they need to go. Pick up water and put it somewhere else, so that your people can get into what used to be a lake. Pick up some lava and build a bridge across this river. Watch in horror when you realise that the diverted river is now headed directly into your village. Restart your level.

What's nice about it is that there is very little time pressure (so far). In a couple of places I've had to have things ready for the arrival of a tidal wave, but it's not been exactly hard to do that. So I can spend ages wandering around a level, enjoying the scenery, and then trying to get the palm trees to grow over the entirety of the island for extra bonus background details.

It's felt like a nice little holiday, and I actually feel like I have more energy than I did when I started.

Time for bed!

Comments

[bracknellexile.livejournal.com]

I've just cracked and bought it too. I'll save it as a reward for myself for Friday though, once all the coding's done for the week.

[chuma.livejournal.com]

Sorry for hijacking your LJ. Glad you like your game though :)

[onceupon.livejournal.com]

I'm glad you're enjoying it!

And I think that's one of the things that I am finding so damn appealing about it, too - the lack of pressure. Even when I AM trying to figure out how to keep all three of my villages viable to activate the portal.... Nothing bad really happens if I don't. I start the level over. It's all good.

Because I've been spending so much time gaming lately, I've been giving this a lot of thought - I'm playing Stacking and From Dust and, like, A Kingdom for Keflings. I still want to play, but I had to stop Mass Effect because I could feel myself growing more and more tense just from the game mechanics (I suck at aiming in-game weaponry). Sometimes I really do need something relaxing. It's what I love about Viva Pinata as well.

And I feel a sort of weird guilt, like I'm not a REALLY FOR REAL GAMER because I'm not playing shooters or fighting games... but I don't have the emotional energy for that.

[joexnz.livejournal.com]

Wait, you don't regularly take time for yourself??
I forget that doesn't cross peoples minds. I took a whole room for myself when I moved back in, I'd have gone nuts without it. But then as various people have pointed out, lovingly, over the years I am speshul

[andrewducker]

Not a huge amount. I tend to be gaming on Tuesdays, have another evening per week out, and then in-between I'm usually just lying around feeling exhausted and not actually _doing_ anything very much, because I don't feel like I have the energy.

[andrewducker]

It's my LJ is for :->

And it's not perfect, and I'm sure I'll get frustrated later on, but it's definitely entertaining.

[andrewducker]

You are so totally a REAL GAMER.

And yeah, I'm halfway through the first Dragon Age, and I've been paused for about nine months because going back to it means remembering what the hell was going on, and having a few hours at a time to get properly back into it. I can't play it in 30 minute chunks, and that probably means I won't play it at all until I have a brain again.

[joexnz.livejournal.com]

sounds familiar, I've tended to find that doing a physical activity reasonably regularly, really helps with general energy levels.

Of course getting started when you have no energy is hard.

On that note i have a rock climbing membership in september, if you're interested.

[andrewducker]

Not taking up anything at the moment. I feel too booked up all the time as it is.

Ask me again after Christmas :->

(and thank you!)

[joexnz.livejournal.com]

no problem, going to see how i go with it in september. After that it'll be an occasional thing, but i know plenty of people who do it regularly.

October to March is DDS on tuesdays.

And being booked up, yep i know that one. Between now November I have 2 fridays free.

[channelpenguin.livejournal.com]

good for you - glad you found some chill-out time

[meaningrequired.livejournal.com]

You do get a fair bit of time to yourself, but I don't think you consider it "time *for* yourself". You spend a huge amount of time reading things on the internet and replying to emails.

[onceupon.livejournal.com]

I've been thinking about My Problems With Gaming Identity most of the day, in little fits and starts. I think my problem is that I am a LOT of things. So I'm almost never the person games are marketed to. Ah well.

Games like Dragon Age really do require a significant emotional and intellectual investment. And sometimes that is AWESOME.

Sometimes... not so much.

[in-thy-bounty.livejournal.com]

I'm eagerly anticipating the PSN release now after the video yesterday.

[andrewducker]

It is good fun, and pretty. I worry a little that it will be a faff to control with a controller, rather than a mouse. Let me know!