The Storyteller Speaks

New Comic: MMO: ChildFund Interdimensional

In today’s comic, Robin offers a plea for gamer compassion. Gamers, you’ve been there, right?  You’re in your own little world as you wander through the game world. You’re questing. You’re killing boars or goblins while your iPod plays “Singapore” by Tom Waits. And then suddenly, suddenly, some random person sends you a private message…asking for money.

It happens way too often. You can be riding your Frostwolf Howler through the Barrens (which contains its own level of stupidity) on your way to help a buddy through Razorfin Downs (yes, I run my buddies’ lowbies through dungeons), when you get asked by some random lowbie for money. Sometimes they want lots of gold. Sometimes they only want enough for the next level of training.  Either way, it’s annoying.

I remember when gold was hard to come by, but you worked for it. I also know that the Quest Givers Union of Azeroth throws gold at the players.  Initially, I would just say no and ignore the person. But gradually, as my own fortune increased, I found myself getting more annoyed with these beggars. I found myself offering advice: “Go kill trash mobs and sell the loot,” “Go farm copper or tin,” and so on. Regardless of the wording, my tone suggested an annoyance at their lack of a work ethic. I worked for my gold, why shouldn’t they do the same? This anger increased when the players to whom I offered this advice became indignant that I would dareto expect them to work for their money.

This led to an anger at what I saw as a social violation. Who taught them that they could just go up to strangers and ask for handouts with the expectation that it would be given? I certainly wouldn’t approach a stranger on the street, ask for money, and become angry when the stranger refused to give me what I wanted.  I realized then, that I did not have a disconnect between my “real world self” and my “online self.” To me, online interactions were simply computer-mediated social interactions. To these beggars, and probably to many others online, the online self existed in a digital world where different rules applied.  It was this realization that led me to start lecturing them with a tone worthy of Ebeneezer Scrooge.

And so, that seething anger I felt toward these beggars, people I believed to be amoral and lazy, led to this comic. The annoying whispers are problems everyone faces from time to time. And beggars are some of the more annoying – behind gold farmers. And while I hope my chiding of the beggars will change their behavior, I really wanted to poke fun at my own angry response to them.  And offer a Bono-esque plea for others to give to the poor, so I don’t have to deal with them.

Fur & N3rdy Comic: Pun Man

Today I present the second comic in the “Pac-Man Trilogy,” titled “Pun Man.” Part of the inspiration for this strip cam about while I was thinking about how so many classic video games are available on XBox Live and through places like the Apple App Store. As I waxed nostalgically about the games I played in my youth, I started to think about how those games might look to children/teenagers of this generation. And so, “Pun Man” and Jack’s newphew Billy were born.

I admit, video game storytelling has become amazing over the years. Kids today have grown accustomed to always having some level of narrative involvement with their video games. The characters have personalities. They explore developed worlds with cultures and political relations. They have virtual “life-changing moments” in game that can really amaze you. When I first started gaming, back in the original Nintendo days, the narratives of video games were rarely deep:  Mario fights against Bowser to save Princess Toadstool. Link must stop Ganon to save Princess Zelda. The narratives of the games were largely the thesis statements used to explain the plot:  Soldier fights aliens. Hero saves princess. Two sports teams play each other.  That was it. We didn’t get motivation, back story of characters, no personalities came through. It was very simply just play a game for entertainment.

Video games are still there for entertainment, but they have developed as an art form and storytelling medium so much since I was a kid. I couldn’t be happier with this unless I were getting a large share of the profits (or a small share, truth be told). The level of immersion and interactivity with the game world have become so commonplace that it’s almost expected that we will truly feel that our actions have effects beyond the literal button pushing.  Gamers today also need to know the motivations of their characters. I still don’t think we know why Pac-Man ran through that maze, ate those pellets, or had ghosts chasing him.  I know a lot of people who had Pac-Man fever, but I never knew anyone who asked those questions of Pac-Man.

Gamers today ask those questions. I ask them of games myself. The art form that is the video game has matured, and the players have matured in their expectations (if not always in their actions). While this makes sharing the games of my childhood with younger generations difficult, it can only have a positive effect on the gaming industry as a whole. Gamers who demand more artistic and narrative sophistication lead to better, more sophisticated games. Games can demand that we examine our own motivations and those of our society. Games can entertain, educate, critique, and question us.

Video gaming’s future is so bright, gamers have got to wear shades.

PS: Yes, I ended the comic with a cheap Star Wars pun. Sorry to those who hate cheap puns, but I had to use it. I’ve told it many times over the years, and I have no clue where I first heard it. But I love it.