Video Games as a Tool to Overcome: Discussion about Animal Crossing
I will start off our discussion by asking you how has Animal Crossing helps you cope with the stress of College and other factors that have been happening recently like the election and the covid 19 pandemic
Emily Geary
@emilygeary · 1:00
So for me, having Animal Crossing permitted me to escape into a really nice little island that I couldn't physically go to, and it really distracted me from all of these stressors. And I think that having been given the opportunity to create something beautiful like my island, it gave me a sense of fulfillment and control when everything outside was chaotic and beyond what my hands and heart could reasonably handle
Emily Geary
@emilygeary · 1:18
This actually makes a lot of sense to me, though, because the game's timely release during a pandemic when folks were stuck at home with little to do, the game allowed folks to relive the nostalgia from their childhood when they otherwise would not have had time to do so. And seeing as the game is progressively getting new content through routine updates, there is still an important novelty to the game, which holds the interest of adults who have played Animal Crossing Series games in the past
And I wanted to ask you, have you noticed an increase in community within the Animal Crossing community? Has there been a larger connection to other Animal crossing players? Basically, what I'm asking is how has Animal Crossing been used for you as a tool to connect with others? And how has that given importance to the game for you, especially during the Coven 19 pandemic, when we must social distance
Emily Geary
@emilygeary · 2:08
Yeah. So I've actually been in these Facebook groups before during the three Animal Crossing New Leaf time in the spotlight. However, I definitely feel much more participatory in the community now through New Horizons, and I think that has to do with the Nintendo Switch console having a really simple posting feature where players screenshot or screen record with ease and then upload to their social media choice with ease. Again, I actually remember when I was playing New Leaf
So we've talked about Animal crossing, but I am curious if you have encountered other games during this quarantine that you have focused on alongside Animal Crossing or other hobbies that have helped you get through Kova 19, the transition from Purdue to remote learning over the springtime, and then now the new structure, this new semester and just in general, being in College and the stresses that that brings what new hobbies? What additional video games have you endured and taken up during this time
Emily Geary
@emilygeary · 1:59
And outside of video games, this isn't much of a hobby. A large, time consuming portion of my life had been dedicating months to researching Bunny rabbit care, and I actually adopted a quarantine pet rabbit just a month ago. Her name is Stella
Thank you so much, Emily, for sharing with us your experience with Animal Crossing how you've used it to overcome the various obstacles that life has presented to you in the coming March with the The covid 19 Pandemic and all of the chaos that brought with it and also just being a University student and how stressful that can be in your day to day life. And please feel free to wish your Bunny Hello. And that is so sweet that you're able to adopt her
Howie Rubin
@Howie · 1:42
I can't tell you how much I enjoyed listening to this conversation. I am an ex video game executive. I ran companies in the 70s, 80s and 90s in both coinoperated and consumer games businesses, and that my group of people actually develop some very, very best selling games. Unfortunately, when we were developing games, everything was based on single players, so we didn't have the tools to do the kinds of interactivity that you can do today
Howie Rubin
@Howie · 1:55
And in playing the game with them, it allows them to compete with the parent on a level of equality. And in doing that, it opens up a whole new area of discussion if you would. So the kid who is better than the parent and playing the game can compete at a different level, and that opens up conversations at a different level. And it can be a real issue important parent child development relationship. I apologize for stuttering through this, but I think you get the Justice