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September 06, 2004
Ender's Game
So I just re-read "Ender's Game", and I was struck by the following quotes, particularly as they pertain to games and interactivity:
"'The mind game is a relationship between the child and the computer. Together they create stories. The stories are true, in the sense that they reflect the reality of the child's life.'" (Ch. 9)
It's funny, but giving equal creative time to the human and the computer actually makes the game more interactive than if the human had more control. Bouncing off of a computer's ideas would open you up to more possibilities than if you were just pushing yourself for new ideas. Obviously, this sort of interaction would need crazy AI, but it seems like maybe you could come up with a primitive version of this game by feeding the computer information about your vital stats and feelings, so that it could use them to influence its parts of the story.
"Perhaps it's impossible to wear an identity without becoming what you pretend to be." (Ch. 13)
I just really like that observation.
"That is the Earth, he thought. Not a globe thousands of kilometers around, but a forest with a shining lake, a house hidden at the crest of the hill, high in the trees, a grassy slope leading upwards from the water, fish leaping and birds strafing to take the bugs that lived at the border between water and sky. Earth was the constant noise of crickets and winds and birds. And the voice of one girl, who spoke to him out of his far-off childhood. The same voice that had once protected him from terror. The same voice that he would do anything to keep alive, even return to school, even leave Earth behind again for another four or forty or four thousand years." (Ch. 13)
I was really impressed with this paragraph, because I am really interested in the sort of immersive experiences that interactive media can create. It was an important reminder that each of us has our own experience of things and places, so that famous landmarks and facts are not enough to create a convincing world. It's the little details, the pieces that have personal meaning that speak to us more. For example, to me London is not just Big Ben and double-decker buses: it's Indian food, and having to look for cars up the wrong side of the street, and the sandwich guy who learned that I always wanted a toasted cheese and tomato sandwich, and the haunting sound of street musicians echoing through the tunnels of the Tube stations. It would be impossible to guess which details will be most important to each human being, but the answer cannot be to give up because it's impossible. The more effort that's made to notice any sort of perceptual detail, the better the experience will be.
I know my observations are pretty vague - I'm still learning the state and direction of interactive media, so I'd love to hear what more experienced voices have to say about this stuff.
Posted by rosenblj at September 6, 2004 05:18 PM
Comments
Fantastic book, enjoyed that a lot myself. The ideas and passages that took place around Ender's training as a child and the "war" games they played were most interesting to me.
Posted by: Mike Brinker at September 7, 2004 03:36 PM
ender's game is somewhat of a staple around here, no less so cause scotts a big fan. i do like the quote on pretending and identity - thank you for picking it out. itll prob end up in my thesis somewhere, as its quite relevant to the narrative work i plan on exploring this year.
Posted by: tripp at September 8, 2004 08:55 PM
Ever play that fantastic shooter "Halo" that everybody loves? well apparently the makers of that game have read ender's game to. In the much anticipated sequel, there is a new kind of alien called drones, who are nicknamed by earthlings (in the game, mind you) Buggers. ka-winky-dink? I think not.
Posted by: Spencer Keene at October 20, 2004 07:48 PM
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