End of Day 11 in Die2Nite
Check my previous blog for more information on this game and my referral link if it sounds interesting enough to try out. Depths and Heights "Was good serving with the people who worked through their own prejudices and banded together. I think I learned a lot about a lot of things, including the depths and heights that human beings could behave, even within a game structure. "I think I liked th...
Depths and Heights
"Was good serving with the people who worked through their own prejudices and banded together. I think I learned a lot about a lot of things, including the depths and heights that human beings could behave, even within a game structure.
"I think I liked the game more when we were cooperative. When we were petty, it sucked. I guess that's part of this game experience, although I can't see myself going through it too more times given how bitter I feel about some of the exchanges and behavior I've witnessed. I guess I preferred the parts where we actually backed each other up, like those long expeditions into the desert, sharing resources, that kind of thing.
"I've been tempted to do a lot worse, in a lot of different ways, than I did. I learned more than else about myself and my own tendencies, so despite the bad feelings I got from some of the events that have happened here, I'm happy this was only a game.
"I'd like to think human beings actually facing a crisis like this would act more nobly. Perhaps part of the problem is the anonymity we get. We're sort of ghosts passing by each other unnoticed, which I don't think would happen in a community of 40 or less.
"Anyway, good luck. "
I wrote this on the message board shortly before we were attacked. As I type this, the town is now being attacked by well beyond our defenses, our spirit finally having given out. People fended for themselves in the last moments, adding defensive barriers to their own houses rather than working toward building yet another inadequate defense against the monsters.
Many of the more active members were silent tonight, some had abandoned the game I think, assuming things would fail, while some of the final messages, both private and public, were tinged with pettiness.
Yet, as the above message suggests, there were moments when I was proud to be a member of that town.
I like to think of the last moments of a group, people all doomed to die, are noble ones. In real life maybe they are, at least with a decent enough group of people. In a game, though, there's a potential for even more nastiness from relatively benign people-- and sometimes more benevolence from relatively horrible people, considering you don't feel thirst or hunger, you don't have an infected wound from a zombie attack, you can add up the points and figure you'll be safe and so easily make a sacrifice that real-world uncertainty would make less certain a choice.
So when the pettiness was full-steam in those last few moments, and the accusations were flying, I can't help but think, no matter whether or not MY particular character will die, the town itself is dead. There were nice forum comments commending the town's accomplishments and its people, some written by the people who had stolen resources. Perhaps they had a better perspective than I did; they knew it was a numbers game and they were just trying to add points to their final score by more likely surviving the attack. But I guess, since I consider it a game too, I feel like they lost by giving into temptation, and by refusing to give in, I won.
I guess that's not going to show up in the score, but the peace of mind I get from this feels worth more than a few extra points next to my name.
Checking the results of the attack now...
Many of the names listed under Deaths were some of the better team players, sadly. God... 17 deaths from the attack, and 2 others. And I survived, though I've received the condition terrorized, which means I can't go on expeditions without being useless. 7 people left. And it seems that the town's now in "chaos", which means there's no restriction on behavior, including theft and the like. Well, time to choose between losing my "clean" status and taking a "shot" of Valium, or wasting away.
Or... I guess I can use a vibrator item to get rid of my terrorized status. Oh, those crazy French.