The Necessary Recharge

Near the end of a game I recently played, the lead character finds themselves at the end of a perilous experience – alone, frustrated, unable to escape that which troubles them. They turn their head up to the sky and let out an anguished scream – inarticulate, raw, overwhelmed.

It was a moment that really landed for me, as I bet it might for many people who live near my home in the Minneapolis area in recent weeks.

Games often take a lot of heat for being escapist. As if, somehow, a desire to have some time away from the real world represents some sort of moral failing or inability to engage with reality.

In practice, I’ve found the opposite is often true. Within the gaming community, and especially among gaming professionals, I’ve rarely encountered people more engaged and caring about the world around them and the people who live in it.