amusing diversion

[toby jones]

I found this:

http://www.theblackforge.net/

It is a fairly amusing online game. Low graphics intensity, not sure if it has sound or not (I typically mute mine).

You answer a few questions then the game gets underway.

You progress through various stages (birth, infancy, childhood, adolescence, early adulthood etc etc etc). You make a number of life decisions... Your personality traits vary on the basis of the decisions you make...

It seems to have some degree of psychological sophistication (which is mostly why i found it amusing). Though there are some theoretical biases (not to mention gender biases if you play through as a male vs female). Still, quite an amusing diversion

I'd be interested to know what people think...

 

[Ilovecows]

Wow...obsessed. I have an exam tmr and I spent 1 hr playing this. Damn you for posting it Bahhhhhhhh it's awesome.

 

[73BARMYPgsp]

I spent way too much time on it too, and--

No matter how much college I got--I could not get a decent job.

No matter how many women I met and went on dates with, they were all crazy (married, involved in illegal activities, "forgot" to mention they had children, etc) and I did not want to marry any of them.

I couldn't figure out how to get my credit rating up, because it would not let me borrow money to buy anything.

Every business decision I made based on skepticism cost me a fortune because the opportunity turned into a cash cow windfall AFTER I turned it down.

Maybe I was trying too hard to "win" at the game of life.

 

[Ilovecows]

I was able to get a decent job even with little 'life experience' as you might call it...*sigh* but I couldn't have kids and even after adopting 2 they said that my 'happiness' status was low. BOO.

 

[RileyG]

My thesis is due soon...I am so scared to click on that link.

 

[thewesternsky]

Aww, that was fun! I was successful but neglected relationships a little... I didn't get married until old age . Next time I play I'll have children.

This was eerily like actual life. Hmmm.

 

[toby jones]

It was strangely like my actual life too. I spent so much time trying to be the perfect infant that the program chastised me for missing the opportunities to explore as an infant (which was expected now, but would take a toll on family relationships later e.g., in adolescence). The more I tried to be very very good the more my calmness went down (and my anxiety went up). So very very true, sigh.

I've played through it a number of times and I find it extremely hard to do anything 'out of character'. I want to be perfectly psychologically healthy wah! But what oh what is the psychologically healthy thing to do in each instance (and what theoretical bias is deciding the answer to that question?)

Relationships were hard to figure. I think that the thing with the game (and perhaps the thing with life in general?) is that whether a relationship will work or not depends mostly on your level of committment to it. So... When you hear that your partner has a kid that you weren't aware of before do you take that in your stride (and accept the kid accidentally calling you 'mom' or 'dad' or do you freak out and break off the relationship?) That being said, I got jilted at the alter once (beware the people with low 'trustworthy' scores'. Though maybe it wasn't his low trustworthiness so much as his high anxiety... Complimentary matches seem to be more rewarded (in the game? in life?) than similarity matches - much as those seem tempting.

I want to find the courage to come into life screaming and defiant.

Isn't it weird that... I'm almost scared to try...

 

[toby jones]

P.S. Your spending depends on your thoughtfulness score (the less thoughtful you are the more you will spend each turn).

It seemed to me that health II was one of the highest paying (perhaps the highest paying) profession. Payed more than research, even. Even though research seemed to require more in the way of life experience.

You can buy items to boost scores. Books make you smarter. Gym equipment makes you healthier and so on and so forth. Thoughtfulness... Seemed to depend on what were considered 'thoughtful' responses in social contexts (e.g., encouraging people to come to their own decisions rather than dictating your verdict to them).

Did anybody try out different types of therapy? If I went to friends they invariably shifted the issue to their own problems and I wasn't helped (which might have been determined to my answer to one of the initial questions). When I saw a professional and had a choice I picked psychoanalysis (and got a boost across the board). I'm kinda curious... What kinda boost did you get for picking Gestalt or behavioural therapy?????? Anyone pick those?????

 

[PsyTiger]

Holy time suck, batman! I just killed an hour playing this game and ended up dying from lung cancer! how depressing... and yet, I'll be back for more!

 

[toby jones]

Have I told ya all about this little game I found last night called NetHack???
Open source (free)... Been under development for the last 15 years... They just recently took pity on poor souls like me and made a basic tile (graphics) set so I don't have to play the damned thing in terminal (just think 15 years of focusing on development of plot / gameplay without the focus on flashy but ultimately unsatisfying graphics). Mac users download the 'tile' version. PC users have the option of flashier graphics (just do a google on nethack and you should find them). The notion is that Diablo is a try hard wanna be version of nethack with flashier graphics but not such cool plot / character development. Not sure if it runs on Vista...

http://www.nethack.org/v343/downloads.html

(Didnt' your parents warn you to stay away from people like me?????)

Must write thesis soonish...

 

[Ilovecows]

I played that alter life game 4 times till death . SIGH. Ok no more no more. My last life was an amazing one so I don't want to spoil it...

 

[Ilovecows]

Did anybody try out different types of therapy? If I went to friends they invariably shifted the issue to their own problems and I wasn't helped (which might have been determined to my answer to one of the initial questions). When I saw a professional and had a choice I picked psychoanalysis (and got a boost across the board). I'm kinda curious... What kinda boost did you get for picking Gestalt or behavioural therapy?????? Anyone pick those?????

I did psychoanalytic 2ice and Gestalt once. For Gestalt is said that I colored and talked to chairs. Hmm. But my happiness score went up sharply. I didn't try bhvrl.

 

[scienceisbeauty]

Finally! I can play

 

[karma898]

I wasted so much time playing this yesterday

 

[michalita]

Alright, I blame whoever put this thing up here (Toby!) for my not having done my laundry today!

I'm still in the middle of it but I'm apparently very aggressive and not physically well (I drank poison. Of course. Because, in real life, when I was 3, I drank half a bottle of cold medicine because it tasted good. Go me).

 

[toby jones]

Aw. I got poisoned too :-( Not quite sure what I was thinking... Trying to be creative and exploratory after having been chastised for being too good as an infant. Then I got kidnapped trying to be helpful :-( Next time through I decided to play but not try the stuff in the cupboard / fridge. Got a good boost for being a smart and thoughtful infant. Kinda gutted that that wasn't obvious to me the first time. Gutted, I say, absolutely gutted. Theoretical bias wah!!!

 

[toby jones]

But all is forgiven because now I'm a level 7 human chaotic monk with a wished for pair of blessed fireproof +2 speed boots hahahahaha

(just an hour or so a day, i swear)

Now... If only I can find a blessed scroll of identify...