SLOWING DOWN IN WORLD THAT WONT STOP “LEVELING UP”
What’s going on, guys? Stephen here!
I wanted to be one of the many weighing in on some things happening in the gaming space — and honestly, something that feels indicative of gaming, recreation, and pop culture as a whole.
If you haven’t heard, one of the biggest upcoming MMOs, Ashes of Creation, basically imploded in real time in front of the entire internet. Not a lot of concrete info has come out about what happened behind the scenes. Most of what we have are comments from people involved — through Discord, Reddit, and other places — and none of it is very detailed (probably because of legal reasons).
But from what we can infer, the game went under, and the studio fired everyone involved with the project. One side claims the board of directors seized control of the game, causing Steven Sharif and much of Intrepid Studios to leave in protest. The other side claims there were shady financial practices going on, and because of California legislation, the studio had to shut down until Steven or other leadership could prove they were paying employees properly.
Two very different stories — same outcome:
The only MMO on the horizon that seemed to unite almost everyone is now gone.
So, what am I getting at with this blog post?
Even if you don’t play video games — and especially if you don’t play MMOs — I think this entire situation reflects where a lot of recreational pop culture is heading.
I was watching a video by Josh Strife Hayes about this yesterday, and he dropped a one‑liner that has stuck with me ever since. He said he didn’t understand why people kept saying Ashes was going to “save MMOs” or “save gamers,” especially when we already have MMOs like World of Warcraft, Guild Wars 2, RuneScape, Lord of the Rings Online, Dungeons and Dragons Online, Neverwinter, and plenty of others that are doing just fine.
He said MMOs don’t need “saving.”
Then he followed it with something incredibly poignant:
“Most people today care more about gaining experience points than about the point of the experience.”
The moment he said it, you could almost see in real time that he realized how deep and accurate that statement was. It perfectly captures what’s wrong not only with gaming but with so many recreational hobbies in this age of instant media and instant gratification.
Most people are hyper‑fixated on finishing something just so they can jump into the next thing — a new game, a new project, a new experience — without actually experiencing the one they’re currently in.
There are so many games, books, movies, and hobbies out there that most people will never truly interact with because they’re sprinting toward a finish line that doesn’t even exist.
Recreation is supposed to be enjoyable.
So if you rush through that… What else are you rushing to?
What is the big payoff?
All you really end up with are the stories and memories you make along the way.
MMOs capture this idea in a unique way, but it’s not exclusive to MMOs. So the next time you're in a D&D campaign, or booting up a game for the first time, or even starting a puzzle, stop and think:
What do I want to get out of this experience?
What am I hoping for?
And when you’re done, ask yourself:
Did I actually get what I hoped for?
Or did I just finish it so I could say I was done and move on to the next thing?
I’m going to try to be mindful of this philosophy in our ongoing D&D campaign and with the games I’m playing or projects I’m working on. I bet a lot of us fall into this same trap.
I’m not trying to get too philosophical or anything, but I think all of us have something to gain from slowing down, thinking about how we’re spending our time, living in the moment, and letting ourselves experience something simply for the sake of experiencing it.
Happy Hump Day.
See you guys in The Maze very soon!