Because of the microchip, the
internet and the satellite, we are enjoying an efficiency in everyday life and
business that is utterly mind-boggling. What cars, jet planes and space
shuttles have done for "physical travel", the inventions out of MIT
and Silicon Valley have done for
"information travel" - whether that communication is in the form of a
movie, a photo or a simple verbal message.
On that point, I specifically
address the "entertainment' aspect of technology in the present-day world.
Such satellite-based digital/wireless technology recently turned another
momentous corner in 2016 with the release of Pokemon Go!, thus melding the real
world with the virtual (at least to a certain extent anyway). The
game soundly combined the the technologies of GPS, CGI and wireless
connectivity. But because the players wander out into the "real
world" to play this game, real-world public
safety issues compelled that region of the virtual world to all but disappear.
But now,
there are a multitude of virtual reality games in which millions of players can
simultaneously compete with each other through a worldwide wireless
network of connectivity - without wandering out into the real world. Even though the
public safety issues inherent in a game like Pokemon Go! were eliminated, the latest games using worldwide particiapation tie still the
player's senses entirely to the game - a game in which reality only exists, well...virtually.
Even though the games are
technological marvels (and they really are) what has this kind of
"entertainment" does this do to a young person's perception of
"reality"? As I asked in a previous post, "Will the real 'real
world' please step forward?".
The point is: You can only
be "virtually" killed or injured in a digital video game. A
swipe of the index finger "accomplishes" things in the virtual world
that otherwise take quite a bit more effort in the real world. People are
not required to be in the same room to compete with each other, which of course
is one of the points of this game in the first place. It's also one of
the points of this article - but more as a 'cautionary tale'. These virtual
world acquaintances among players do not require any real world social skills.
It's like being isolated, yet in a large crowd. That lack of true
interaction among young people in their recreational time may create a population
of adults that won't know how to effectively communicate "in person".
And that's the point.
or...
As we have
become ever-increasingly caught up in the virtual world, we dwell in a world
where we seem to be "here, but not here". You know the scene, a group of four convene in a family restaurant and all four are entranced by whatever
device they possess (well, the device that possesses them may be more like it). They're
connected to everything except each other. This is a popular
lament among those who predate the technology revolution.
Suffice it to say that the real
world has been permanently revolutionized by this kind of technology - no
question about it - and it's not going anywhere but up. The
efficiency of everyday business tasks has exponentially soared. Personal convenience has been re-defined. Remote
communications around the globe have, in a sense, shrunk the world.
That's the natural progression of these things anyway - for
better or worse.
But as mentioned in an earlier post, basic
"human" things have gone down in the process. Frequently,
things like in-person conversations, basic social interaction skills,
handwriting skills, actual 'person-to person' camaraderie among family and friends
have taken a back-seat in everyday life if not altogether banished. We're a very
distracted society - no question about that either.
For those in search of a
returning to more "organic" ways of having forms of entertainment in the real
world with real people in the same real room (the original "chat
room" if you will), do not be discouraged! Loria offers what we like to call "traditional gaming".
Yes, behind this genuine editorial is a sales-pitch for the type of
gaming that encourages "real world" camaraderie and competition.
So if you're tired of being led
around by remote control in the world of digital gaming and wish to play games
in the real world, do not despair. Loria,
as a stubborn purveyor of "traditional gaming"
for more than one-hundred years, offers an extensive array of these
games - from our wide variety of home and
commercial slate-top pool-tables to table-tennis, foosball tables, air-hockey, shuffleboard and combination
poker/dining tables and bars,
with stools and chairs to match! We have been the
"go to" place for over two decades for league quality steel-tip darts,
dartboards and dart accessories -
as well as the "royal" game of chess (including an LED-lit version), an
assortment of plastic-coated
playing cards, dominoes and even bingo!
As a fourth generation family-business, we have a hard
time surrendering what we deem important in entertainment - being in the real
world with real people having fun together - unlike the
virtual world of digital gaming, where too often we're "here, but not
here". I don't condemn the world of digital gaming. I just
know that it shouldn't dominate our lives when it comes to entertainment
because then our real lives just become "virtual" as well. Even
in the world of entertainment, making pleasant memories with family and friends
means being in the same room with them (at least for the most part).
