Simulation vs. Reality

Throughout our readings I was reminded of a game I played often as a child--The Sims. Although I've continued this into young adulthood, I now recognize what it can teach us about humanity by showing us the limitations of simulated existence. By showing us these limits, we can recognize what makes us innately human, all while allowing us an element of control over a smaller scale version of reality. 

To provide some background: 

The original Sims game was created in 2000, and additional reincarnations of the game have been released up to the present. The game attempts to recreate human life with some alterations to allow gameplay to be possible. Each Sim (simulated person) has several labeled needs (hunger, sleep, sociality, etc) which will deplete over time. Each user is responsible for keeping these needs from reaching empty, at which point the neglected Sim will die. 

The Sims communicate with their own unique language, called Simlish. Creators of the game researched speech patterns and grammar from other languages, and the final product has been built from Ukrainian, French, English, Fijian, and other languages. Considering that we have read translated texts from several languages, I found it fascinating that this dialect was created by incorporating the different iterations of human language, a fabricated language with very real origins. In the same way our languages have evolved over time and location, this process was simulated and transmitted into a virtual environment where it operates like our human speech. Agamben's The Open touches on language as a separation between human and animal: "What distinguishes man from animal is language, but this is not a natural given already inherent in the psychophysical structure of man; it is, rather, a historical production which, as such, can be properly assigned neither to man nor to animal." There are contradictions in his exploration of this, however, language has developed historically to be a facet of humanity. 

This rather silly article on thought catalog is entitled "11 People On Valuable Real Life Lessons Learned From The Sims". Although written for entertainment value, this article's existence proves that several writers have gained insight about human experience through their gameplay. "People are motivated by different things. Some people are motivated primarily by relationships, whereas others are primarily motivated by the pursuit of knowledge, or a wish to make money. These different motives can drive a lot of day-to-day wants and desires." In the later iterations of the game, users are able to choose a Sim's "lifelong desire", which can range from family to popularity to knowledge. Regardless of the path you choose, each requires time spent building skills, reading books, or practicing with a telescope. In order to be fulfilled in their virtual world, they must learn and accomplish, reaching their potential in order to find "happiness". Sims are even aware that they are Sims--there is an option to play "The Sims" when one clicks on a computer to play a game. They do not philosophize existence as we do, but they are capable of a level of reflection. In their daily activities they are able to play a game where they control their own simulated version humanity. 

The Open also discusses the existence of boredom. Agamben discusses Heidegger, "The diversions with which we try to occupy ourselves bear witness to being-left-empty as the essential experience of boredom. While we are usually constantly occupied with and in things (indeed, Heidegger states this more precisely in terms that anticipate those which will define the animal’s relationship with its environment: “we are taken [hingenommen] by things, if not altogether lost in them, and often even captivated [benommen] by them”2), in boredom we suddenly find ourselves abandoned in emptiness."

Computer games are a form of entertainment, a method that we as humans use to delay or avoid boredom. There is something existentially significant in avoiding our innate human boredom by playing The Sims--partaking in human experience in miniature is more interesting than simply existing. Sims themselves can become bored, requiring entertainment within our gameplay. From personal experience I can say that I've spent hours nonstop playing within this virtual world. I do not think this is a unique experience, and we are "taken" and "captivated" by this distraction. In order to avoid our feelings of emptiness in a state of repose, we find occupation in a condensed version of our existence in the form of a game. 

If being human is to have the self awareness that we are human, The Sims acts as a distilled and controllable version of humanity that allows us to understand our own existence.