Insomnia gives me the solitary time to think. Sometimes dangerous (oh the ideas that percolate!); always interesting; it is time when my mind wanders unconstrained. Unsurprisingly Glitch has occupied some of that mental wanderlust of late. Those rambling thoughts are below.
Some of the things I love most are not related to game play directly but definitely a result of the world we have been given the privilege of occupying. Several threads that cropped up after last cycle are shining examples of that. Sir Mix-a-Latte's thread. Laurali's thread. Nutmeg's thread. Freeman's thread. The unencumbered, unplanned creativity and humor, the community and sub-community personalities, the ebb and flow of passion, flashes of brilliance - there are pockets everywhere and in most threads. But these have really made my heart delight and grow to love Glitch even more.
I wonder how this can be carried forward into the on-going state of Glitch after launch. Some of it is related to the limited size of our citizenship and the realization that we are helping to mold what the general public will see. Our hosts breathed life into Glitch, we have been asked to share in the caring and feeding of their visions and dreams, in some cases turning them upside down and inside out; challenging, poking, prodding, cheering and jeering as we go. We're in a bit of a Utopian state, sheltered and protected, operating a bit out of the reality of the "morrow" for Glitch.
I wonder if we'll feel a sense of entitlement as our world grows; if we'll feel a bit like natives, the elders, a bit jaded and impatient. Will our wonder cease? Will our willingness to be caretakers erode? Will it be needed or desired by our hosts? Or will we fade into the ethersphere as blips on the infinite timelines in the Giants' memories and footnotes on the pages of the Wiki.
I hope that this whimsy, heart and passion will remain once the "morrow" comes. I hope there are the random outbursts of silliness, and that creativity and unexpected awe are woven into the fabric of that time after it dawns. I hope that the shared experiences of our now are more than wistful memories and fuel our on-going interactions. Selfish though that is, I don't want to lose the bonds I've made or see the bonds others have made, lost. I know it does and will happen as it does in the physical world but my hope is that it's an organic thing not something forced solely because our world as we now know it is 'discovered' by other wanderers.
As I think about the reasons why I would return post reset - THIS is why. It's not the gameplay. I enjoy it, but re-visiting what I have already accomplished, rebuilding my space, feels tedious and painful and a disincentive for me. It is absolutely the things I experience that are not direct gameplay that will bring me back. Preserving these things is tantamount to me personally and will almost surely be where I will focus my energies on the "morrow".
Just my sleepless ramblings. And for our hosts, a heartfelt soul-deep and humbled thank you.
g33kgurrl
She-geek of the Firebogs
ETA: As I think about a comment made about changing the tagline for Glitch if the world is limited by the creators visions and not the players, my realization is that Glitch is not the game. Glitch is the community. While the game does and will have bounds, it is our interactions in and out of game, as a community, that are unlimited and unfettered and will take us beyond our wildest dreams if only we allow ourselves to wander there.