thread: 2006-01-17 : Hurt and Abandonment
On 2006-01-18, Brand Robins wrote:
I think it is the designers responsibility to design games that can "go deep" and get to things that matter, that get at us in strong ways. This, of course, is no easy task—but I think the best way is to go with the whole "what really matters to you will really matter to others" angle. (AKA, Why Hearing About Your Game Should Suck.)
From there, however, I do think that we need to do what we can to build methods for people to deal with the crap that comes up in games. To a degree we do have to let people make it on their own (you can't dickproof the universe). But you can't just leave them out there in the cold lands of emotional turbulence without some kind of tool.
Be those tools ideas for using ritual space (thanks Meg!), specific guidelines for setting up and maintaining social contracts, or whatever it is that you feel will best let others play your game while exposing bad habits and reinforcing good ones, you gotta do what you can to support it.
Else you're selling percocet without the warning lable.
