Thoughts of a Loiterer (and Gatekeeper?) at the Possible Doorway to Fountellion...
Yes, I’ve read some of the reports, heard the rumours and followed the ‘Fielding testers’ but they say anticipation is nine tenths of delight and I actually enjoy just visiting the doorway and gazing across at it. I was one of the first who came across its appearance in the tower, and was able to bookmark the virtual location. What strikes me is how authentic it appears to be; how simple; how non-glitzy it seems in comparison with the growing hype.
I gaze at the images of animals that appear in the stone carvings around the rusted gate, overgrown with ivy. I put my hand into the mass of leaves and try and use haptics to detect a latch or a keyhole.
Yes, there is a small chance that if I loiter long enough I may be one of the first to witness its opening, but in truth it's not so much this which keeps me coming back.
I actually enjoy just ‘being’ opposite, under the pergola that forms part of the design, sitting on the stone bench beneath it and discussing its potential with other users and ‘floaters by’.
Also, I’m fascinated by the doorway less for what it may actually deliver and more by what it promises to deliver. It’s like loving a trailer for some old, linear movie, more than ever seeing the movie itself and without ever feeling the need to see it.
I have seen a cat, a wolf and many a bird appear in the carvings. What role will they play in the game and how will they feature? Will we be able to embody them, to see through their eyes? I have seen a human face too.
Sure, I have played games. I have been both a designer and shaper in my time and my PIP reveals many progressions and Know-Zone XP. But mostly these days I write and reflect. My Spiral avatar is ‘SourceMage8’ and you can look me up and leave me a message. Or join me on my next visit to the doorway, after you’ve managed to find it yourself that is. It won’t allow me to share the bookmark.
They are calling me 'the Gatekeeper’ now. Some people believe I form part of the world, for publicity, and will appear inside the world, or game…
Perhaps I will be! Perhaps just by finding myself intrigued by this new world, my destiny is now set and lies within it…
I think it’s wonderful. The mystery I mean. That it retains such a mystery in all this age of information. A new creation captures the imagination with its promise of change and power… involvement… new meaning.
And it makes me think about what it might mean to be a ‘Gatekeeper’. What might I, myself, want from such a role, and what would the world provide for me? What would I like to see beyond its leafy design, the long grass and wildflowers I have seen changing on its step? Will they entangle me?
I am trying to answer the question. I think over many of the experiences and games I have seen and played which have been simply fun and those that have helped me or moved me. You may come and discuss this with me as we wait. You know, I meet some interesting and influential people, from new cyberpunks to high-profile guises. I think I may have met Fielding himself, wearing an old, brown cloak. He sat beside me for a time. And I like that I still don’t know if it was him - and that I might find out yet. The talk we shared was... memorable.
Why do we keep following the latest games? Why do I sit here and expect more? Few games have ever satisfied me enough, even the latest, ambitious, big budget titles, vast in scope.
I think the answer lies in the Source, in nature, and in a form of control we all would like over it. I think I would like to see something as vast and changing and which reveals something about myself and lets me feel more connected to both worlds. A truly satisfying game. Will it have a core quest that will help players survive in their real lives once we undertake it? If Fielding and his team have captured just a little of this they may have something... potent. But it will need to occupy a careful balance between the two worlds: the Source and the super, if one is not to overpower the other...
Anyway, my gaming days may almost be past. I would be content almost not to enter and just to read all about it, watch feeds and view the walkthroughs. Or just to linger there. Unless, of course, it is a world that proves somehow… ultimate. That fills me with life again. Or like in the Know-Zones, when one sees things in a new light. And understands.
Where I sit and ponder on the spiralling stairs it is a little dark so I have shaped a virtual lantern myself. It casts a glowing green light and I will take it with me as far as the fabric allows, through the doorway, when it opens.
It’s a symbol you see, of the light I feel we need from these worlds just now. The heavens and the hells we would create. Somehow, a green light just feels... right.'
More Spiral Writings in the live doc here...
What would YOU find in Fountellion, or an ‘ultimate game’? Natter us now or enter below!
No comments:
Post a Comment