The simulator, simulated.

So a few weeks back I came across this post on reddit, basically telling the tale of a game of Minecraft gone terribly terribly wrong. Like putting a bunch of kittens in charge of a tank kinda wrong. The story tells of a minecraft game between friends, where the one rule of the server is to not leave the play area, which was only a few hundred blocks long. Since the world of Minecraft is infinite, and resources (even rare ores) aren’t that hard to come across, normally this wouldn’t be a problem, but make that infinite world into a finite one, and the problems you eventually face will be very similar to those the real world faces. Needless to say, once there was a demand for scarce resources, a power struggle broke out and the group descended into factions, using open warfare, subterfuge and trading to get what they needed.

Now I’ve been on reddit long enough to question the validity of this guy’s story. I’ve also been on reddit long enough to know that crazier shit has happened. Either way it’s a nice story but regardless of the truth it raises an interesting question. Can we use video games like Minecraft to simulate real world occurrences, and predict the outcomes of potential events via such a method? This played on my mind for quite a long while, so I decided to do some digging. (excuse the pun)

Co-Op? Co-Not!

I don’t know if you haven’t noticed, but multiplayer games are a big thing at Hardly HQ. In the world of Youtube it’s difficult to differentiate yourselves from other channels, and we’ve always felt that creating content as a group, and the different and unique dynamics that brings, goes a long way toward making our videos a worthwhile watch. The problem I have though, is that when you play a game in multiplayer, something is inevitably lost from the experience when compared to the singleplayer experience.

Let me break down my criticism into three separate categories, asymmetrical experiences, satellite experiences, and the BFF complex. Now I know you’re probably scratching your head right now, but bear with me, I’m about to explain what the criticisms are, provide examples, and show why I think it doesn’t have to be this way, and how such problems can be overcome. So strap yourselves in, cos this mudafucka’s about to get existential.

Hardly a Podcast - Episode 11: I Only Swore Once

This week, Jamie cures the blind, Simon tries to hide his latent perversions, and Nosh sticks a dog to his face.

Music is credited to bosonHavoc, KtA, CyberSon and Progress105.

Hardly a Podcast - Episode 10: The Dolphin Walk-In Bath

This week, Nosh buys some qualifications, Simon wants you to click a link, and Jamie robs old people!

Play League of Legends and click Simon's link so he can earn more IP :D http://signup.leagueoflegends.com/?ref=4f64dd283cb5d211598395

Music is credited to bosonHavoc, KtA, CyberSon and Progress105.

Hardly a Podcast -- Episode 7: You'd never see a loofah for sale in ASDA

This week, Nosh goes to spend the weekend with his folks, and Jamie and Simon take full advantage of the situation.

Hardly A Podcast: Episode 3 " Hardly Awards!"