LAGWAR | GAMING'S BEST IN TOP NOTCH MEDIOCRITY

New game releases bring with it a sense of freshness, excitement, and anticipation. I know that whenever I crack open a case with a brand new title in it, there’s a feeling of first experiences, learning the ropes, and being wowed by visuals. This is especially true when the game is highly anticipated or considered a major release. For example, for me the Final Fantasy series has held a bit of a special place in my little gaming heart and playing the latest one for the first time is always a rush.

For others though, there’s a different kind of first, one that extends beyond playing a game when it’s brand new. They’re the gamers you hear about in MMOs that get to the max level within two or three days of playtime. They’re the ones you see posting on forums literally twenty four hours after a game comes out, talking about how the ending is either amazing or a total failure. A hardcore gamer like the above devours a title within hours, eschewing all other activity to make it to the top of the mountain and plant their flag as the first to the summit.

There are a variety of reasons why a gamer wants or is able to be first to the finish line. One is simple bragging rights. It isn’t very often that people who play games can stand out from the thousands and sometimes millions of players who make a title their own. To be able to declare to the gaming world that you were first to something is a thing that is within the reach of any person willing to simply dedicate the time to do so. Another is simple fandom with a twinge of obsession thrown in. There are gamers out there who will have such passion for a title that they’ll create blogs and fansites, participate heavily in forums, and in some cases be known among the developers as some of the most dedicated fans for a particular game. When the game in question comes out, the obsessive fans are the first to play the living daylights out of it and more than likely are the first to experience its content in all its rich (and sometimes flawed) glory.

I can understand why someone would want to be first to do something in a game, but I’ve never been that kind of person. The closest I ever got was when I was playing World of Warcraft as a raid leader, where nights of practice and progression were punctuated with the looming feeling that we needed to keep up our game in order to be among the first to kill something. But even then, I can trace my own personal desire to keep up with that schedule to more of a sense of achievement rather than one of being first to do it.

Really, achievement is at the core of any gamer’s desire to be the first to do something. The thing that has kept me from treating being first as such an extremely important, necessary (and frankly stressful) goal is understanding that feeling like I achieved something doesn’t necessarily mean I was first to do it. I usually play at a normal pace with many games, and while a title that is particularly engrossing will garner a few hours of playtime a session (Fallout 3 being the most recent example), I’ve never felt like I needed to play something in a mad race to the finish line. The sense of accomplishment upon finishing the title is really the same as doing it before anyone else. The only difference is really the spotlight that you get from doing it, which is usually short-lived.

Besides, playing a game and enjoying it instead of devouring it in one sitting makes you appreciate the game more. When you’re not rushing to beat something ,or pushing aside the other elements of a game to get to the end of it, you’re able to see more of what makes the game great. Atmosphere, side questing, alternate choices, and more are parts of a game that might sometimes be secondary to its appeal, but no less important. Extending your playtime with a game that you like simply means that you get to have a more rich and full experience overall, rather than feeling first, but unsatisfied. It is, after all, quite lonely at the top of the mountain.