commit 7bc07e0a9377581190a19703b3d39790ba303083
parent ca02083ecb5456d5528a7c9d7481ff8a3f2ea055
Author: Ville-Matias Heikkila <viznut@low.fi>
Date: Mon, 25 Jul 2022 14:00:56 +0300
expand the games page, add new entries to concepts
Diffstat:
2 files changed, 50 insertions(+), 0 deletions(-)
diff --git a/concepts.mdwn b/concepts.mdwn
@@ -24,11 +24,14 @@ Design Principles
More theoretical or generic
---------------------------
+ * [[aesthetics]]
* [[artificial intelligence]]
* [[automation]]
+ * [[awareness amplification]]
* [[kolmogorov complexity]]
* [[dependency]]
* [[focality]]
+ * [[games]]
* [[otherness]]
* [[permatechnology]]
* [[public domain]]
diff --git a/games.mdwn b/games.mdwn
@@ -1,3 +1,50 @@
+**Games** have been made for computers since the early years. Playful and
+non-utilitarian uses are an important aspect of any technology – for
+example, playing with hunting bows led to the invention of the musical bow
+and other string instruments.
+
+Computer games are commonly framed as 1) entertainment (rather than e.g. art
+or life-changing experiences), 2) something produced by an "industry" (like
+the film industry), and 3) something that has high demands on the hardware
+resources. Many of the common conceptions are at odds with permacomputing.
+One should therefore look into the "margins" (i.e. "independent" games) for
+a more diverse view of what computer games can be.
+
+Before [[siliconization]], it was a common idea that any computer is
+suitable for playing games – and the most limited computers were actually
+considered unsuitable for anything else. This is something worth returning
+to in permacomputing: target those platforms that are available to anyone
+(either directly or via emulation), and especially those that are no longer
+preferred for utilitarian purposes. Supporting a [[bedrock platform]]
+increases the likelihood that the game can be revisited in an indefinite
+future.
+
+Maximalist [[aesthetics]] is a major driving force for [[obsolescence]] and
+ever higher hardware requirements. It is a better idea to stick to a less
+demanding style (e.g. [[pixel art]]) than to adhere to the mainstream gamer
+idea of "up-to-date graphics".
+
+In the non-digital world, a "game" is often more like an immaterial idea
+than a product (think about the variety of games that can be played with
+playing cards). The same approach can be applied to computer gaming as well:
+Tetris is not really a specific program/product, but a game that any
+programmer can implement in a moderate amont of time. If the logic is
+defined strictly enough, the different implementations can be compatible in
+regards to scoring, competition and skill acquisition. The games that can be
+fully described as sets of rules have the longest potential lifespans.
+
+Computer games often blur the distinction between a game and a virtual
+environment. Game-playing is a goal-oriented activity, but in a virtual
+environment it is not necessary to reach for anything specific. An important
+aspect of simulated environments is that their representations of the world
+can be used to gain insights to the actual world. This is how games can be
+used to [[amplify awareness|awareness amplification]].
+
+# Specific games
+
+These games may be interesting from the permacomputing perspective, either
+technically or otherwise.
+
## Another World
There is very little code in Another World. The original Amiga version was reportedly 6,000 lines of assembly. The PC DOS executable is only 20 KiB. Surprising for such a vast game which shipped on a single 1.44 MiB floppy. That is because most of the business logic is implemented via bytecode. The Another World executable is in fact a [[virtual machine]] host which reads and executes byte-sized opcodes.
