Reality is broken - Chapter's 6&7

In chapter 6, Jane talks about “Becoming a part of something bigger than ourselves”. Specifically she is referring to gamers and their need to be a part of something better. She begins by giving the example of Halo 3, when they asked their players to begin the race to 10 billion covenant kills.  This seems like an impossible task, what they are asking is for every man woman and child on the earth to kill 2 bad guys each. What Bungie (creators of Halo) is counting on, is the gamers need for an epic win, they are expecting a few thousand hardcore dedicated gamers to step up to the plate and pull up the slack for those who either have no interest or are just unable to compete in this challenge. This is exactly the type of participation they received because in just 565 days they managed to complete this task. What Jane then goes on to discuss is the potential for this teamwork to benefit us in some tangible way. She talks about how we have been able to assemble the world’s largest army; they all just got a little sidetracked playing Halo. What Jane is suggesting is that instead of collaborating over fictional events we bring real world events into fictional environments and attempt to solve them. Instead of investing millions of dollars into the next Call of Duty franchise why not create a new game targeted at the mass videogame audiences. Call it “Mother Natures Revenge: An angry planet” and instead of teaching your participants to snipe off his enemies head, teach him how to communicate, how to brainstorm; teach them how to think.

In Chapter 7, Jane talks about the benefits of Alternate Reality. In this chapter what she is trying to establish are the benefits to living in a gamified world. She begins her argument by talking about an ARG known as Chore Wars. This is a game, which attempts to put a point and reward system on your everyday chores. The point of this Alternate reality is to improve the “dirty work” that you are forced to deal with every week. She states that a game such as this is fun at first but within the first couple of months your participation begins to fade. This is exactly what is hindering many of the mass ARG’s which people are trying to create. There is something, which draws you to a game such as this initially, but there is nothing to keep pulling you back in. She then begins to talk about ARG’s that you play out of necessity. Specifically she is speaking about a game that she created called super better. This is an ARG in which the participants must impose upon themselves. The game has a few set rules however it is for the most part up to the participant to clarify those rules and tailor the game to their specific needs.  It is a game that attempts to make your life a little easier and is meant to be played while you are ill or not feeling well. It allows the player to remove the stress from their lives, and allows the player an excuse to get people to care for them. Jane is looking for the perfect blend, using the problem solving skills we see used in ARG’s mixed with the mass connectivity we see in the big box games. She is looking for an idea that will not only change he world for gamers but for every man woman and child living on this planet.