Desert Bus, Midgar Edition

[rynling]

One Man’s Two-Year Quest Not to Finish Final Fantasy VII
https://www.newyorker.com/tech/annals-of-technology/one-mans-two-year-quest-not-to-finish-final-fantasy-vii

Many have poured scorn on Curry’s venture, particularly since it doesn’t have a charitable component. “This is the most pathetic waste of man hours that could have been used for good that I’ve seen in a long time,” one typical YouTube comment says. On the forum where he first heard about Dick Tree’s idea, Curry posted a spirited, if nihilistic, rebuttal. “To say that our lives are pointless and our achievements meaningless is to state the obvious,” he wrote. “No matter how grand our achievements or how broad their scope, time turns all to dust and death destroys all memory. But that does not mean we cannot ascribe our own meaning to what we do.”

These are bold words from someone whose mission in life was to stream himself grinding to Level 99 during the first reactor mission with Barret, but he's not wrong.

Also fuck the idea that everything has to be done for charity. I'm not saying that there's anything wrong with raising charitable donations, of course, but it's okay to do things just for fun. Not everything has to be about money.

I really love this sort of absurdly unnecessary level grinding, by the way. I find it calming and meditative. It's one of the reasons why I love the Bravely Default series, and it's why I'm looking forward to the Pokémon Diamond and Pearl remakes coming out next month.

Comments

[runicmagitek]

I really love this sort of absurdly unnecessary level grinding, by the way. I find it calming and meditative.

Legit tho! I finished 13 Sentinels earlier this year with 20+ extra hours to the typical playthrough because I kept replaying combat sections after long stressful days at work. It was the only thing that calmed me down. Sometimes you just need the power trip of plowing through goons with a flick of your wrist.

[rynling]

> Sometimes you just need the power trip of plowing through goons with a flick of your wrist.

I understand that this is one of the primary appeals of MMORPGs, and every once in a while I think about picking up FFXIV, but also, like. The part of me that enjoys level grinding is not necessarily the part of me that enjoys socializing with other people. Sometimes I just want to disappear into a beautiful fantasy world while not having to worry about responding to text messages.

This is also why I still pay full price to download games onto the console instead of pirating them. The way I see it, what I am paying for is the privilege of not having a keyboard in front of me while I play games.

When I saw your photo of heading out to an isolated cabin with your Nintendo Switch, I was like, Fuck yes. Living the dream.

[runicmagitek]

I have had so many people try to sell me on FFXIV, but the idea of paying a monthly subscription to play a single game for I don't know how long while also needing to interact with other real people... yeah, you absolutely nailed it with this: Sometimes I just want to disappear into a beautiful fantasy world while not having to worry about responding to text messages.

And thank you! I wish everyone a very playing Nintendo Switch while chilling in an isolated cabin 😎 one could get used to that!

[lassarina]

Sometimes grinding can be very meditative for me and sometimes it's infuriating. I ground out so many levels in Bravely Default, but I'm currently hissing and complaining aggressively about doing the same in Suikoden III. Funny how that happens.