Love the passions
This is for those NPCs in video games that have great designs, but they’re pretty one note. I’m talking about the NPCs who are so focused on a single goal in their life. Their character designs are usually fantastic and when you meet them you feel like you can immediately get what they’re like. The eccentric bug collector that will buy all your bugs or take them for upgrades. The man that is so fascinated by this very, very specific kind of rock that will give you a bunch of cash for them. And those rocks just happen to be in places of great achievement.
I know that these characters are frequently just filling in the niche roles of some side quests or collectibles, but there is so much darn character in them and I love them. We’re always pushing for more interesting and complex characters, but the passion in someone so one note in these games, which are usually RPGs, is so charming. I can’t get over how happy I am for this person when I finally find that golden beetle or whatever it is they’re collecting.
Maybe they’re someone fascinated by flowering vines, and it turns out flowering vines indicate secret climbable areas. If it weren’t for this person saying, “Oh, look at that one. That flower is purple. Ooh! This one is pink! Oh, I just love flowering vines. Don’t you?” we never would’ve guessed! Okay, maybe we might’ve guessed, but it’s a cute way to point out things. I admit sometimes these people can be a bit annoying, like the guy in Pokemon who just wants to teach you how to catch a Pokemon. I get that that is an important aspect of the game, sir, but I do want to move on with the game. But still, his passion is noted, and I’m glad he just wants to share it.
I guess that’s a good sign of someone who is very passionate about things: they want to share their knowledge and their experiences. It’s the reason why we don’t talk about certain things in games, because we want people to experience the same shock and awe that we went through not knowing a plot twist or something.
If you’re reading this article, it’s likely you’re passionate about games. That’s great! However, it is also quite likely there is something else outside of games that you’re super into as well. Maybe the people in these worlds do have other things they’re chasing after but we just don’t know it in the context of the game. Luckily for us, we can always have many passions. It’s still great if games are your only passion! Don’t let me stop you there!
I get excited with people just starting to get into video games, but fully committing to them. Sometimes they struggle with the disparity between the controller and their character. Maybe they’re getting used to understanding game system intuition. But they still push on through, and it makes me so happy to see them develop a new love for something. Their growth is just as important as mine no matter how long I’ve developed mine.
Wait a minute, maybe in your world, I am the NPC who is just really passionate about video games. Well, I suppose then that you’re part of the community and I’m one of many video game loving NPCs. Don’t let other people push you away from what you love. If what you love is starting to get unhealthy because you’re staying up until four in the morning to play, okay, maybe slow it down a little. Don’t let your dreams be thrown away by someone who doesn’t own them. A small insight from someone who has let that happen, it is debilitating and humiliating. It really cut into how I felt about my self esteem and self worth. Let’s be frank, the video game community can be choking to the individual. They can easily smother what they hype up. It has taken me years and years to repair the damage, and I’m still working on it today.
Oppositely, that is why I love those NPCs. They are unabashedly showing off that they love this thing. They’re (usually) not interrupting anyone else’s lives, but they definitely want to talk about their excitement for something. They’re free.
Too many times I regret falling to that choking idea that what I love to do isn’t good enough for someone else. Or even that I’m not “hardcore” enough to have a passion to belong to a community or something.
And that simply isn’t true. I hope none of us ever has to feel embarrassed about what we love.
Thanks for reading, I’ll see you again.
Elise
Game Praisers 