Hello there,
I’ve struggled with keeping up my professional work ethic since April. This newsletter is the proof of it, you see. As usual, I second guess myself and impostor syndrome kicked in from time to time. On the bright side, I consumed several fiction, games, and animes which I will talk about soon (also next month).
But first, a thought on a random morning.
“Working under pressure”
Frankenstein; or, the Modern Prometheus. A classic novel.
I always thought Frankenstein is the monster’s name. I’ve perceived it as huge, slow, dumb, and green. With a pair of screws bolted in its temple.
I’ve just learned through the novel that Frankenstein is actually the creator of the monster. I don’t remember if the monster has any name (nor I would bother to google them). Its hideousness in particular highlighted over and over again throughout the story. He’s fast, smart, and pretty durable actually. Because of his intelligence, he struggled to humanize himself. He desired for being accepted but because of his “monster” trait, he’s not accepted by anyone including his creator. Throughout the novel, I have a hard time deciding whether to sympathize with the monster or to agree with Dr. Frankenstein that the monster is indeed a threat to humanity.
The monster has killed several people that are valuable to the creator: a cousin, the close friend, and the newlywed wife. On the other hand, the monster didn’t choose to be created and Dr. Frankenstein also directly abandoned him. I can see the justification for the killings. But hey, I’m not a judge and I stop my thought there.
It’s good reading.
Never alone: Kisima Innitchuna
The game is about a girl and a fox who set out on a journey to restore balance to the land. I played this game for about an hour and a half until I’m stuck with a bug. What stands out to me is that the game tries to share cultural insights about Inupiat, Alaska native people. We unlocked short videos and offered the option to watch them every time we passed checkpoints. The short videos don’t help the gameplay itself but it does make me appreciate more about Inupiat culture and what can games do.
It’s a platformer adventure and the environment is, of course, based on Alaska. We control the girl and the fox. I remembered being chased by a polar bear. Multiple times. Man, what a polar bear. We got swallowed by a whale, chased by a fireball man, and tried avoiding some soul reapers.
Despite some bugs, it’s a pretty fun and insightful game. I learned a bit about Inupiat and Alaska through the game.
Serious games social enterprise as a business plan
I entered a funding program called YSE Global 2022 with a serious game business plan. Yes, you read it right. I’m proposing serious games to help solve the climate action problem. There will be a few selection rounds and approved social enterprises will be funded at the end of the event, which is about 6-8 months from now.
I think games could do more than fun. I learned a lot through games and they don’t even force me as exams and teachers did. I failed numerous times and I still get back to the game. Imagine if we’re allowed to learn that way. And yeah, the game design experience back in my master’s degree equipped me with many tools.
For now, I hope we can pass the first round of selection. To be honest, my low self-confidence was really in the way. Part of me already gave up even before we submit the idea. Fortunately, that same part also believes though that through understanding and deliberation, we can move beyond individual action and make some movements to advocate policy change, either through petition, demonstration, public research, or maybe an open letter to the public office.
If I don’t get any funding, well I wouldn’t make it as an enterprise or anything yet. Why would anyone trust me and pay me to make a serious game for them? They can get a better deal with others and they’re right. I’ll do with what I have now.
Closing
Cheers to another bad newsletter. Thank you for being around. I’ll see you next month. Until then, take care.
Sincerely,
one of the unprofessional writers.