"Just a Game" Yep .... AirWarrior (and Ace's High, for that matter) was just a game. Hell, why stop there, it was just a program. Just a program that kept many people so hooked that they'd sit and play it for hours on end, weeks on end, months and years on end.
A program that was far more addicting than TV could ever hope to be. Far more addicting than some narcotic drugs. Ok, let's coin the term "electronic narcotic". AirWarrior (and any other online game with a large fanatic community behind it) can be viewed as an "electronic narcotic" (or - just a game/program if we want to live in denial).
But what of the "junkies" involved? Are the players of these games simply the clientele of the market? Checkbooks? Credit cards? Are we just numbers in a demographic database that a machine uses to pump out money to keep itself going? Maybe to some we are (EA made the mistake of focusing on that). I don't think HiTech and Pyro sees us that way. I know Blue Baron didn't.
And THAT, sirs (and ma'ams) is probably the most significant link between AW and AH. That is the legacy passed on.
It's NOT "just a game". It became more than that when the first human simpilot got shot down by another human simpilot online and typed (when he re-upped) "Good kill!"
It grew when these pilot's (of the net) curiousities were aroused and they decided to get to know each other better. To create online communities where, through e-mail, bulletin boards and newsgroups, they could share things about themselves both in and out of the game. I know more about people I've never met in person than I know about my next door neighbor. I know birthdays, anniversaries, births, deaths, new car purchases, fathers and grandfather's military histories, dreams, nightmares and even bad jokes and boredom. I've seen members of the community reach out to others in time of need. Granted, I've also seen vile individuals take advantage of others ... but in the wake of that, even, I've seen the community continue to flourish and bond.
Maybe this is all alien to some here. I know there's many here that long preceeded my ignoble entrance that have experienced the same sort of camraderie and community that I'm trying to describe.
And no .... there's no requirement to know the history and background of a game or community to be able to play (and enjoy) it.
But to those who actually DO feel that ... "it's just a game", that the vehicle that brought us all together so we could all share the best and worst of what we have to offer and maybe come out of it a little wiser, a little better for it, deserves no more consideration than the same program on their pc that keeps the clock ticking or the makes the modem dial up, to those, I feel a sense of pity. For those shallow souls will never know that ... it was more than just a game to many.
(Geez! Like anyone wants to dig to the bottom of this huge thread to read MY "epiphany". Except maybe those who want to test their sig while in their cups.)
[ 11-09-2001: Message edited by: Arlo ]
