The Games We Play

Video games. I used to play them quite a lot. I would spend countless hours in front of my large screen television with my Xbox, playing Halo or Call of Duty 4 online, mercilessly laying a beat-down to all who challenged me. Years before that, it was far worse, for a span of two years I survived on maybe three hours of sleep a night, and seven hours a day of online PC gaming a game called Half-Life (Team Fortress Classic) for which I was the leader of a clan. Now, if you're unfamiliar with what a clan is, think the KKK, except we only murdered people from other clans, and only within the game... Err, I feel like somewhat of a shit for stating it that way? Oh well, fuck it. I was like the Tyler Durden of online gaming. I controlled the lives of about fifty people. To some, I was a friend, to others, a father figure, and to most, a roll model. What we were, in a strange disconnected way, was a family. My clan, within two weeks of becoming a formal clan, was becoming recognized by the top five online gaming clans in the world... This was due mostly to my ethics and rules of conduct which I strictly expected followed. It took a lot of mental energy, and a lot of time, being a leader, a top-notch gamer, and roll model... It all took a toll on my health though, after two years, and I eventually gave it up, the clan life, and then eventually, even the casual online gaming...

What was the point of that story, which I have only explained in minor detail, aside from the fact that I am a complete nerd? Well, I am getting to that. I really enjoyed playing video games, especially of the multiplayer sort, because I was good at them. I am/was almost what you might call and idiot-savant. Put a controller in my hand, teach me the basics, and I'll probably kick your ass. For reals, yo. Anyway... Just recently, being within the last few months, I've been spending time with two new friends, one whom I met through the other, whom I met from dating his girlfriend's cousin whom I will say was bad news for me, she was extremely horrible for me, like, worse than all the years of gaming combined... These friends, a social science student who programs video games as a part-time lucrative hobby, and an accomplished brilliant musician, asked me if I would join them last night at an event where several teams who participated in a twenty-four hour video game challenge were presenting their games to gaming type people... The reason they asked me to join being that, one night, while catching up over a couple of pints, we discussed the possibility of working together to create video games, with me as a writer. So, I went, and I was brought back to a place in my past, where I remembered what it was to be a hardcore gamer. Now, I will not return to the lifestyle, but being involved on the creative end of something I once loved doing to pass time, well, it puts a smile on my face.

:D

There, that is me with a smile on my face. So, as I move forward with my creative projects, I find that I am adding new ones to the table. Expect to get updates on these as well...