thread: 2005-12-01 : The World IS a Better Place
On 2005-12-03, Curly wrote:
In Ron Edwards' recent war story parables, he portrays you Forge guys as a buncha grizzled burn-outs. Like PTSD characters in a Bruce Springsteen song. Triumphant burn-outs, but still.
Even victors can 'bring the war back home' in their skulls; and have trouble adjusting to peace & prosperity.
From my Johnny-come-lately perspective; you guys are -jumpy-.
And rightly so. The internet is a hell of a place to expose your generosity & passion to every contemptous nay-sayer/ fatuous poseur/ pedant / and well-intentioned bumbler who comes down the pike.
But, still: jumpy. It makes me jumpy just to make contact with y'all. Gotta be careful that sudden movements or loose remarks don't set you off. I end up posting 3x as much as I intended, just to clarify that I'm not hostile.
Is there a designated spot on the Forge or elsewhere, for players & designers who feel FRIED to talk about it? Is anyway. the VA hospital for the Forge, so to speak? It seems to be serving that function at this moment.
Better games and good actual play will prevent additional battle scars. But is that enough, to undo hair-trigger jumpyness already acquired?
Maybe games explicitly designed to address & soothe the players' neuroses—could help.
That's what I was getting-at, here.
When I said 'this self-examination' in that post, I meant the Closeted thread in particular.
Otherwise, time heals all wounds, I guess.
Either that, or a well-adjusted next generation will swoop in and exploit your innovations, minus the Marvin The Paranoid Android baggage. Probably leaving you feeling robbed. I know you guys ARE the happy future people, compared the bad old days. But still, but still, but still.
I've been presumptuous as hell, to stride in here & armchair diagnose like this. I don't regret it yet, tho. So here goes... Submit, Monkey!
This makes TC go "Not a hospital..."
I see Anyway as more of a new recruit training center. This is the place where a lot of people who don't *get* GNS come to learn, grow, and then go out and design. At least, that's how I see it. Vincent may have a different POV.
