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Gaming, GTA Analysis, The Wolf of Wall Street And Escapism

Anything related to matters of the mind

MrRED72

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Hey guys. My name is Ari, I'm kinda new around here so I'll be making an introduction in the
Introductions & Networking segment of this website anytime soon. that's my first post here. Here I'm going to explain why I decided to quit gaming once and for all. Anyways, I wanted to share something with you.
BTW - pardon my english in advance. I'ts not my native language and I might have a few misspellings here and there.

http://9gag.tv/p/a9xwE2/elders-play-grand-theft-auto-v-for-the-first-time?ref=fbl9

I was surfing on Facebook (still trying to break that habit :) ) the other day when I saw this video bumping into my news feed. I clicked it out of curiosity - and there you go - a bunch of old people trying to figure out how to play GTA5, while enjoying it.
And though its kind of amusing to watch, I think we need to go even deeper into the rabbit hole to see the meaning behind.

I've always been a fan of GTA since I was a little kid, but I never knew why.
I never knew what, exactly, has drawn me and got me hooked to this game.
And it got me thinking for quite a while... I mean, even the old people have already heard about the game, and old people never hear about teenagers' stuff (no offense).
("its a pretty big show... I've seen it on TV... I've seen the trailer").
I'ts been on the TV for god sakes.
why is everyone so obsessed with this F*cking game?

I'ts not the shootings and mass killing, becasue there are plenty of other games where you can do just that.
I'ts also not the cars and the racing, because there are plenty of other games where you can do just that.
I'ts also not the graphics or the storyline (nobody gives a shit about the story these days ).

SO WHAT IS IT?
Let's see. Who is your character? What do you do in GTA? What is the main purpose of the game?
Well... you start as a low-life crook and a criminal, who belongs to the bottom end of society. You complete missions until you slowly become very rich and successful and you own all the turfs and all the bitches and the drugs... well you got the point.
The free-roaming part is also a major thing ( 3:41 - "you can do WHATEVER YOU WANT in this game").

The goal of this game is to be a SUCCESSFULL CRIMINAL -
scratch that-
The goal of this game is to be SUCCESSFULL.

do you see where I'm getting at with this?

almost everyone like this game.
children, kids, teenagers, adults, old people.

- You can do whatever you want: mainly THINGS YOU CANT DO IN REAL LIFE.
- You dont have to take responsibily or accountability for you actions: You have second chances. If you die, you just F*cking die and start all over again .
- You are succesfull: Cars, boats, women, money - in this game, you can have all that.
- Your life is very intersting: You have all sorts of missions, quests, locations, people, etc.

all the things I've just mentioned are things that SLOWLANE-MINDED PEOPLE WANT TO HAVE, BUT CAN NOT HAVE.
they want to be successfull
, yet they are just too lazy to be successful in real life.
they want to do what comes to their mind in the moment (instant gratification) , and they dont want to take responsibilty for it (like killing people).
they want to have interesting life- beacause most chances, their life is pretty boring and dull and mundane in the real world.

The target audience of this game is - SLOWLANE PEOPLE, OF ALL AGES, WITH AN UNSATISFYING AND BORING LIFE, WHO ARE TOO LAZY TO GET UP OF THEIR CHAIRS AND DO SOMETHING TO CHANGE THEIR REALITY.

They want easy solutions to hard problems. They dont want to work hard. They dont want to deal with their problems. All they want is pleasure and they want it NOW.
And im not saying that all gamers are like that - just that MOST OF THEM fit into this category.


And I think ROCKSTAR (The company who made this game) are F*cking GENIUSES for figuring that out and managing to stuff all of those wishes to a single game. And if you notice, nothing has really changed from one game to another - just the graphics. the main ingredients has stayed just the same.

when these come home - they want to escape.
This is why everyone is so obsessed with this game.
It gives an answer for their whims.

9:05
" Had a rough day, I feel lousy... and you go home and you fire this baby up, you're in a different place."

For the people out their who just can't get off of their Xbox... just think about it.
Are you a QUITTER or are you a WARRIOR ?
If you're the latter, dump that playstation or donate it to somebody else. get off your F*cking chouch and read a book. Study. Expand your mind.
Don't waste your time in games, or facebook, or TV. becasue games are games, and life is life.
And YOU CAN'T ESCAPE LIFE. you CAN'T ESCAPE YOU'RE PROBLEMS.
When you turn off the screen... you go back to real life.

And guess what?
You're problems ain't going nowhere.
not so fun now huh?



"Let me tell you something. There is no nobility in poverty. I’ve been rich, and I’ve been poor man. And I choose rich every time. Cos, At least as a rich man, when I have to face my problems, I show up in the back of a limo wearing a $2000 suit …and $40,000 gold F*ckin’ watch! Now, if anyone here thinks I’m superficial or materialistic. Go get the F*ck out and get a job at McDonald’s, because that’s where you F*cking belong!

So, you listen to me and you listen well. Are you behind, on your credit card bills? Good. Pick up the phone and start dialing. Is your landlord ready to evict you? Good. Pick up the phone and start dialing. Does your girlfriend think you’re a F*cking loser? Good. Pick up the phone and start dialing!

I want you to deal with your problems, by becoming rich!"


Don't be afraid to deal with your problems.
Turn that screen off.

Life is the hardest game of all... but it's the one most worth winning.

Just my two cents.

A
 
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MrRED72

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BTW how do I edit this... got WAAAY too many grammer mistakes :p

Hope you'll enjoy.
 

theag

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Did you just figured out what entertainment is?
post-22077-rap-battle-parody-perfect-loop-gLVH.gif
 

Formless

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Credit must be given to how well that gif is looped.
 
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Michał Kóska

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Well,

Even Fastlaners need some entertainment here and there so they can also play GTA V for 30 mins lets say.

I wouldn't tell that entertainment is for Slowlaners only.. Am I wrong??
 
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Digamma

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Investing time in writing a helpful post and all I get is cynical comments... great
Investing like you're gonna be paid for it?
I wouldn't tell that entertainment is for Slowlaners only.. Am I wrong??
People love to play characters. "I'm a fastlaner, I don't do things like X and Y, ever ever ever" is one of them.
Are you productive and are you achieving your goals? Then you rock. Whether you play videogames or not doesn't mean anything.
 

Oswalito

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I'm curious Ari, what happened when you shared this insightful story with your friends/family?
 

Luffy

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Decent post, somewhat insightful, nothing I didn't already know. Props to makers of GTA to figure that out though.
 
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MrRED72

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I'm curious Ari, what happened when you shared this insightful story with your friends/family?


I dont talk to my parents about these issues. I find it more helpful to just deal my problems on my own.
 

Luffy

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I dont talk to my parents about these issues. I find it more helpful to just deal my problems on my own.
How selfish, you trying to run while leaving your family in a hole. You gotta preach my brotha, but you also got to practice it.
 

Even Steven

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Ari, decent post, if not a little long.

I'll admit I hadn't thought about games like that quite in those terms, and I think you've got a point there. Although I believe there's more to GTA's popularity than achieving success in the game. Game play mechanics and other issues can have a lot to do with how well a game is received.

As for the responses you get here, don't fret. When you put your thoughts out there, you'll get all kinds of responses. Sometimes you'll get meaningful responses, and sometimes you'll get quips and gifs. Don't expect that something you think is insightful will be viewed that way by others.
 

James Fake

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It's Freedom.

For all it's worth... the first thing I did on GTA Online was pay $20 real dollars and got a gold Bugatti. (I think I put in less than 10 hours into that game, I don't have much time for games anymore even in my "off" resting time)
 
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MrRED72

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How selfish, you trying to run while leaving your family in a hole. You gotta preach my brotha, but you also got to practice it.

Listen man, you dont know me or my situation, so don't judge me.
You can not change people, at least not in most cases.
however, I CAN change my financial state. And thats what I'm about to do.
I can change my life, but I can't change theirs.
 
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Glorydog

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Listen man, you dont know me or my situation, so don't judge me.
You can not change people, at least not in most cases.
however, I CAN change my financial state. And thats what I'm about to do.
I can change my life, but I can't change theirs.
I like the post, I realized this about video games a few years ago and for the most part stopped playing them. I realized that the time I was spending to reach goals, wealth, etc. in video games could be spent accomplishing things in real life. That doesn't go to say I don't love playing Madden, though! Haha
 

mt_myke

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OP claims GTA is horrible because it lets people feel successful with no work or consequences.

OK.

The reason animals play is so they can learn about the world. Tiger cubs (for example) bat each other around to learn how to fight, how to stalk prey, what they can and can't do, how to find their limits. They do this because the real world (once they grow up and actually need to kill to eat and defend themselves) doesn't give second chances. If they never played, how would they be able to survive in the real world? They'd starve to death or be killed by an enemy the first time they make a mistake.

One theme that comes up on these forums is the idea that you should visualize future success, to the point where you're actually living in it, and then let that drive you forward in the real world (more or less, with many variations). Video games like GTA are one way to do that. Maybe not so much the being a criminal part, but rather than just imagining the Bugatti or whatever you can actually see yourself driving it around in a virtual world - powerful stuff.

Maybe it can be used as a good thing too?
 

ilrein

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@mt_myke I was just about to say this thread is going downhill fast.

Nice defence of gaming, I haven't thought of that angle before, I tend to go with competitiveness, and how people can legit make income from prizepools and streaming.

After all, that's why Twitch got bought by Amazon, the amount of fans that support eSports is massive advertisement money.
 
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Formless

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lol ffs games are fun.

everyone else read books. books are NOT better.

we have games.

deal with it.
 

LightHouse

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What the F*ck, why is TFL turning into a troll fest with young guys these days? What is up with all these responses?


Can't you guys have a meaningful conversation instead of sounding like arrogant dicks?

"I already know, who cares"
"i'm not going to read all that"
"ok"

WTF, get off your computers/phones if you have nothing else then to troll threads with non-sense.

OP had a well thought out post on relating gaming to a mindset. Good for him, it's a worthwhile discussion whether you thought similar before or not.
 

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