Written by William G Chandler Jr., May 19, 2016, at 6:33 a.m.
There are always video games’ rules. Video games have paths and levels to adjust to and advance in to win the game. Stipulations exist where you lose in a game and start from the beginning, or take on great challenges. Video games do not provide unexpected moments to disrupt the game.
Video Games Still Do Not Mirror Life
Life gives you those moments. Video games give you a steady diet of some challenge. My life challenge was to prepare for my annual car inspection. In a way, life provides a steady challenge, but without the exact restart button. I had new tires. My vehicle had new struts. Only one more step and my car was ready for inspection. On a four-lane highway, while in the flow of traffic, a driver from the opposite lane attempts to make a turn, over three opposing lanes, into a traffic entrance on the opposite side of the road and collides with my vehicle to push it onto the curb.
While playing Slightly Mad Studios’ Project Cars, suppose you built a car to its maximum benefit and some random vehicle went out of control, off-screen in the game, and hit your car off the track. The game ends. There is no way to start over. You have to find another way to get a new vehicle built in the same way. The reality is I was lucky after what did happen. It is good to be alive and I am thankful. However, life and video games have yet to mirror each other exactly.
Even Electronic Arts The Sims provides a casual goal outcome. Video games provide a similar reason to challenge. You cannot give up, in, or stop trying to get to the final goal. Star Fox Zero has a challenge where the game speeds up in a place that has tight quarters. You have to be comfortable with your ship under the guidance of Star Fox, not Fox McCloud, as I mentioned previously. You move quickly, get to the end of the level, and see the next challenge. I have done this at least ten times and have yet to get past the challenge.
However, you see the end. The finish becomes clear. Take on the challenge, get to the next one, or complete the game. You keep trying, and push. Insurance settles the matter. You rent a vehicle. At some point, you get another car. Life continues. It continues during the accident. Life never settles in, but you must fight on.
The same thing goes for most video games. Star Fox Zero will end. The next challenge may be Donkey Kong Country Returns: Tropical Freeze, complete Fast Racing Neo, or embrace more Nintendo NX information while looking for that specific Nintendo title to appear on Nintendo Wii U. Donkey Kong Country Returns: Tropical Freeze has specific challenges that push a player’s skills. Nintendo NX seems like a fun idea. It is a question of Nintendo’s new hardware format. Life is good, and video games are, too.