Ink Paper Words' Profile

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Pacific Northwest, United States
In elementary school, I desperately wanted my mother to order books for me from those flyers Scholastic hands out to kids. She refused, citing the "perfectly good library down the street." I exacted revenge by becoming a card-carrying ALA accredited reference librarian. Ha! Take that!

Monday, April 30, 2012

Virtual Walden

Finally! A role-playing video game worth the time you spend being sucked in. Or, as Erik Hayden of Time puts it,
Get ready for some edge-of-your-seat 19th century transcendentalist action!
I guess I have some mixed feelings about this project undertaken by the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts. Is it just me, or is there some degree of irony inherent in a video game about living simply and purposefully? And yet, if people are smart, they will anticipate that when petroleum runs out (there were only so many dinosaurs to turn into oil, after all) reverting back to this lifestyle will be necessary if humankind is to survive.

My only quibble with the trailer is where they state "Walden, the Game, will bring the writing of Thoreau to life in an immersific experience where his work will be encountered by a new generation of readers in a form that will capture their attention and imagination." Cuz you know, words are like, so hard and all.

According to Time, this game is intended as a supplement to Thoreau's text, not as a substitute. What's next, Little Virtual Women? Why not? Sure beats Grand Theft Auto.

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