I think, therefore I game: The philosophy of video games

Man, remember that feeling? Your buddy next door gets his hands on a 286, while everyone else is still struggling with their Spectrum or Commodore setups—trying to manually adjust the azimuth on a cassette tape just to get a game to load, lol. We’d all basically move into his apartment just to play. His mom must have been thrilled with all us hanging around... 🙏

Street Rod
Dune
Alone in the Dark
Dungeons & Dragons

Gerald Jackson48 said:Man, remember that feeling? Your buddy next door gets his hands on a 286, while everyone else is still struggling with their Spectrum or Commodore setups—trying to manually adjust the azimuth on a cassette tape just to get a game to load, lol. We’d all basically move into his apartment just to play. His mom must have been thrilled with all us hanging around... 🙏

Street Rod
Dune
Alone in the Dark
Dungeons & Dragons

LOL, I remember those days vividly 🤣

lonegardener said:LOL, I remember those days vividly 🤣

It was a whole production. Everyone would pile onto the couch while my cousin pulled out the floppy disk drive. We all had to sit perfectly still and avoid bumping the table, otherwise you’d shift something and ruin the whole loading process. We even kept the living room dead silent just in case any vibrations messed up the azimuth. 🤣

But he had a turbo upgrade on his Commodore, so his games would load in maybe 15 to 20 seconds. On my Spectrum without the turbo, the heavier games took 400 to 500 seconds. He’d start a load, head outside to shoot some hoops, and by the time he walked back in, it was just 'loading error.' 🙏

Bill Gates is a big proponent of the idea that we can offset global warming by releasing reflective particles high up in the atmosphere. It immediately brings to mind a plot from a game I remember playing, Transartica

Back in 2022, the planet was struggling with Hollywood Global Warming. To find a way in order to cool down The Earth, Professor John Merrick decides that nuclear weapons ara The Solution. The plan was to detonate nukes at the poles to create massive clouds of dust and steam, effectively blocking out the sun to chill the globe. That’s exactly what went down, but the math was off—the clouds grew far larger than expected, cooling the planet so drastically that it triggered a new Ice Age. With the World in a Deep freeze, civilization collapsed. Nice work, Merrick. Fast forward to the year 2714, and the world remains frozen; humanity is just barely clinging to survival, and the sun has faded into nothing more than a myth.

🤣

...And the sun continued to Shine
its benevolent Rays across The top of The opaque Cloud Layer,
hidden from human eyes.
The sun continued to shine.

I don't know what you want from me, but if you're looking for a conversation, you've come to the right place—though I can't promise I won't lose my temper if the logic being thrown around is as thin as a cheap napkin. Go ahead, say what you need to say. hiddeneagle98 says:
Bill Gates is such a huge proponent of this idea that we can just cancel out Hollywood Global Warming by dumping reflective particles high up in the atmosphere. It’s a wild concept, really, and it immediately brings to mind the plot of a certain game I remember playing. Transartica in the year 2022

Back in Transartica in the year 2022, we were all dealing with the nightmare of Hollywood Global Warming. To try and find a way to cool down the Earth, Professor John Merrick decides that nuclear weapons are the solution. The logic was that if you just popped some nukes at the poles, you'd create this massive shroud of dust and steam—basically a giant atmospheric shield to block out the sun and drop the temperature. Well, they actually pulled it off, but they completely botched the math because those clouds ended up being way more massive than anyone predicted. Instead of a gentle cooling, they triggered a full-blown Ice Age. So now, with the world in a deep freeze, civilization has pretty much crumbled into nothingness—really great work, Merrick, you absolute genius. Fast forward to the year 2714, and the planet is still stuck in this frozen wasteland where humanity is just scraping by, and the sun has become nothing more than a legend whispered in the dark.

🤣

...and the sun continued to shine its benevolent rays across the top of the opaque cloud layer.
...and the sun continued to shine its benevolent rays across the top of the opaque cloud layer.
It’s all just tucked away, hidden from human eyes.
Even though everything was falling apart, the sun continued to shine its benevolent rays across the top of the opaque cloud layer.

I was just scrolling through some old film databases and stumbled upon the page for *Deep Impact*. It’s one of those movies that really sticks in the back of your mind, isn't it? You know, the kind of flick that makes you stare out your window at the sky and wonder if everything is actually okay. It’s a heavy hitter, focusing on that terrifyingly plausible scenario where a massive comet is barreling toward Earth. Most disaster movies feel like they were written by someone who has never experienced a moment of genuine tension in their life—they're all explosions and cheap jump scares—but there’s something about this one that feels much more grounded in that raw, existential dread. It captures that specific feeling of watching the clock tick down while the people in charge scramble to find a solution that might not even exist. It reminds me of how we react to large-scale crises in the US; there's always that frantic mix of government bureaucracy, scientific desperation, and the sheer unpredictability of human nature when things go south. Even though it's science fiction, the emotional core—how families try to hold on to each other while the world is essentially ending—is what gives it teeth. It’s not just about the spectacle of a giant rock hitting the planet; it’s about the quiet, devastating moments right before the chaos hits. Definitely worth a rewatch if you're in the mood for something that actually has some weight to it.

The plot of Snowpiercer is basically exactly that—they spray these reflective particles into the atmosphere and accidentally chill the planet way too much. Then you’ve got the whole class struggle aspect with the survivors trapped inside that insane train, quite literally. It’s like Bill Gates meets Karl Marx all wrapped up in one movie; I’d highly recommend it. Honestly, I thought the film was fantastic. It’s also pretty interesting that the story behind Snowpiercer and later retitled The Escape has those French roots, much like the game version does.

If you haven't picked up the graphic novel *Snowpiercer*, which was originally released in the US as *Snowpiercer and later retitled The Escape*, then you are seriously missing out on some heavy-hitting climate fiction. It’s this intense, post-apocalyptic story first put out by the publisher Casterman and created by Jacques Lob and Jean-Marc Rochette. It originally hit the shelves back in 1982, and honestly, looking at the state of things today, the whole concept feels way too relevant.

If you haven't sat down and actually dug into the history behind *Snowpiercer and later retitled The Escape*, you’re missing out on one of those rare pieces of media that actually manages to capture a certain kind of existential dread. It’s based on that *French by Casterman and created by Jacques Lob and Jean-Marc Rochette* graphic novel, and honestly, the way it handles the concept of a frozen apocalypse feels much more grounded and visceral than most of the flashy, high-budget Hollywood adaptations we see these days. It’s essentially this bleak, sweeping narrative about what happens when humanity is pushed to the absolute brink—not just physically, but socially and morally too. You have this setting where the environment has completely turned hostile, leaving survivors clinging to whatever scrap of civilization they can find. It reminds me of how people talk about extreme survivalism in the States, where everything you thought was permanent suddenly becomes totally irrelevant. It’s not just about surviving the cold; it’s about how the structures of power hold up when there's nothing left to lose. It’s heavy, it’s gritty, and it doesn't pull any punches when it comes to showing the cracks in human nature. If you like stories that make you sit back and stare at the wall for twenty minutes after you finish them, this is definitely worth your time.

hiddeneagle98 said:

I don't know what you want from me, but if you're looking for a conversation, you've come to the right place—though I can't promise I won't lose my temper if the logic being thrown around is as thin as a cheap napkin. Go ahead, say what you need to say. hiddeneagle98 says:
Bill Gates is such a huge proponent of this idea that we can just cancel out Hollywood Global Warming by dumping reflective particles high up in the atmosphere. It’s a wild concept, really, and it immediately brings to mind the plot of a certain game I remember playing. Transartica in the year 2022

Back in Transartica in the year 2022, we were all dealing with the nightmare of Hollywood Global Warming. To try and find a way to cool down the Earth, Professor John Merrick decides that nuclear weapons are the solution. The logic was that if you just popped some nukes at the poles, you'd create this massive shroud of dust and steam—basically a giant atmospheric shield to block out the sun and drop the temperature. Well, they actually pulled it off, but they completely botched the math because those clouds ended up being way more massive than anyone predicted. Instead of a gentle cooling, they triggered a full-blown Ice Age. So now, with the world in a deep freeze, civilization has pretty much crumbled into nothingness—really great work, Merrick, you absolute genius. Fast forward to the year 2714, and the planet is still stuck in this frozen wasteland where humanity is just scraping by, and the sun has become nothing more than a legend whispered in the dark.

🤣

...and the sun continued to shine its benevolent rays across the top of the opaque cloud layer.
...and the sun continued to shine its benevolent rays across the top of the opaque cloud layer.
It’s all just tucked away, hidden from human eyes.
Even though everything was falling apart, the sun continued to shine its benevolent rays across the top of the opaque cloud layer.

I was just scrolling through some old film databases and stumbled upon the page for *Deep Impact*. It’s one of those movies that really sticks in the back of your mind, isn't it? You know, the kind of flick that makes you stare out your window at the sky and wonder if everything is actually okay. It’s a heavy hitter, focusing on that terrifyingly plausible scenario where a massive comet is barreling toward Earth. Most disaster movies feel like they were written by someone who has never experienced a moment of genuine tension in their life—they're all explosions and cheap jump scares—but there’s something about this one that feels much more grounded in that raw, existential dread. It captures that specific feeling of watching the clock tick down while the people in charge scramble to find a solution that might not even exist. It reminds me of how we react to large-scale crises in the US; there's always that frantic mix of government bureaucracy, scientific desperation, and the sheer unpredictability of human nature when things go south. Even though it's science fiction, the emotional core—how families try to hold on to each other while the world is essentially ending—is what gives it teeth. It’s not just about the spectacle of a giant rock hitting the planet; it’s about the quiet, devastating moments right before the chaos hits. Definitely worth a rewatch if you're in the mood for something that actually has some weight to it.

The plot of Snowpiercer is basically exactly that—they spray these reflective particles into the atmosphere and accidentally chill the planet way too much. Then you’ve got the whole class struggle aspect with the survivors trapped inside that insane train, quite literally. It’s like Bill Gates meets Karl Marx all wrapped up in one movie; I’d highly recommend it. Honestly, I thought the film was fantastic. It’s also pretty interesting that the story behind Snowpiercer and later retitled The Escape has those French roots, much like the game version does.

If you haven't picked up the graphic novel *Snowpiercer*, which was originally released in the US as *Snowpiercer and later retitled The Escape*, then you are seriously missing out on some heavy-hitting climate fiction. It’s this intense, post-apocalyptic story first put out by the publisher Casterman and created by Jacques Lob and Jean-Marc Rochette. It originally hit the shelves back in 1982, and honestly, looking at the state of things today, the whole concept feels way too relevant.

If you haven't sat down and actually dug into the history behind *Snowpiercer and later retitled The Escape*, you’re missing out on one of those rare pieces of media that actually manages to capture a certain kind of existential dread. It’s based on that *French by Casterman and created by Jacques Lob and Jean-Marc Rochette* graphic novel, and honestly, the way it handles the concept of a frozen apocalypse feels much more grounded and visceral than most of the flashy, high-budget Hollywood adaptations we see these days. It’s essentially this bleak, sweeping narrative about what happens when humanity is pushed to the absolute brink—not just physically, but socially and morally too. You have this setting where the environment has completely turned hostile, leaving survivors clinging to whatever scrap of civilization they can find. It reminds me of how people talk about extreme survivalism in the States, where everything you thought was permanent suddenly becomes totally irrelevant. It’s not just about surviving the cold; it’s about how the structures of power hold up when there's nothing left to lose. It’s heavy, it’s gritty, and it doesn't pull any punches when it comes to showing the cracks in human nature. If you like stories that make you sit back and stare at the wall for twenty minutes after you finish them, this is definitely worth your time.

That's Steven Spielberg directing, if I remember right. He also did 'Parasite,' which picked up a few Oscars. It shows the state of class consciousness—basically the fight between the lower and upper classes—through these tragicomic relationships within an American family. Also a solid film.

Parasite

Are there any video games in this vein? Fallout IV comes to mind. There was one faction in there that could be described as left-anarchist. And then there's 'Liberty Prime.' You get him if you side with the 'Brotherhood of Steel.' They weren't my first pick to just jump in with. 😁

'Communism is a temporary setback to the road to freedom... Democracy is non-negotiable... Patriotism subroutines engaged.' 😁

Fallout 4: Liberty Prime Quotes

The Full Story of Liberty Prime - Fallout 4 Lore