The Awesome and Cool Poll Thread - Poll #131: Would you pay more taxes if it meant receiving a pension when you retire?

[Adsolution]

When I look at what I consider my favourite games, while there's a large mix of everything, a lot of them are more on the realistic side, and I feel like I'm more likely to pick up and play one. I love attempts to simulate reality in a virtual word. Detailed and visceral graphics, animations, physics, interactivity, that kind of stuff.

[Greengoop]

I don’t get the point of realistic video games. Games were made to escape reality, not live them

[Adsolution]

I don’t get the point of realistic video games. Games were made to escape reality, not live them

Sometimes it's nice feeling like you're in reality, but where your actions don't have real world consequences, and you can be as strong or weak as you want. I actually don't like escapism (not as a concept, just for me), because I live in this world, and I have no interest in forgetting that.

[ItzalDrake]

What I can find fascinating about realistic games is how technology has evolved so quickly over time.
It's impressive how now a machine can render such realistic images in real time in a videogame.
I was quite impressed when I have seen the GTA 6 trailer as it was entirely made in-engine, despite I am not a GTA fan I'm curious to see how gameplay will look like

[Adsolution]

Yeah. And there's a real beauty to me in being able to create that sense of immersion. Last year I recreated one of my favourite street corners in this city, I travelled there, took photos of every surface, made them into textures, and modelled every detail. It's a huge joy

[Hunchman801]

I don’t get the point of realistic video games. Games were made to escape reality, not live them

Despite being realistic games, the whole premise of a series such as Resident Evil, in which dreadful pathogen agents give birth to monstrous creatures, is (thankfully) far enough from reality for me to truly feel the immersion.

[DaveRattlehead]

The concept of "escaping from reality" is a curious one. What do you consider "escaping reality"? For me, "escaping reality" means forgetting about my worries, my work and my responsibilities for a few moments, and I have no doubt that I can also do this with a realistic game, because all of them have an unrealistic side. Is there nothing further from reality than shooting zombies? Is there nothing further from reality than having the freedom to run over people with a car with no real consequences? Is there nothing further from reality than participating in a deathmatch where you are resurrected every time you are shot in the head? I could give a thousand more examples, but I'm definitively escaping reality in realistic games

I have serious doubts about what to vote for. I find the unrealistic/arcade games extremely fun, but my favorite games are clearly on the realistic side and they are the ones I've played the most the last 7-8 years.

[Adsolution]

The concept of "escaping from reality" is a curious one. What do you consider "escaping reality"? For me, "escaping reality" means forgetting about my worries, my work and my responsibilities for a few moments, and I have no doubt that I can also do this with a realistic game, because all of them have an unrealistic side. Is there nothing further from reality than shooting zombies? Is there nothing further from reality than having the freedom to run over people with a car with no real consequences? Is there nothing further from reality than participating in a deathmatch where you are resurrected every time you are shot in the head? I could give a thousand more examples, but I'm definitively escaping reality in realistic games

I usually try and pretend I'm really in that situation, even when there are obvious unrealistic elements... kind of like dreams that feel extremely real, even when there's unrealistic stuff going on.

I guess I saw "escapism" as running away from reality rather than coming to terms with it, so when I say I'm not a fan of it, it's because I really make an effort to process and be at peace with whatever's causing me stress before I fully indulge in fantasy, at which point I'm not using it to escape from anything. When I was a little kid, I'd often draw or play games to escape or ignore my parents fighting or whatever. Now when I play games, I usually pretend I have those real life problems in my role in the game, and whatever's going on in the game is just another part of my life. It sometimes helps me sort out my issues or put them in perspective actually, and it's easier to do that in realistic games.

When I play things like Rayman, I can appreciate the art and beauty and adventure without having to forget about the world around me. When I play something like League of Legends or Doom Eternal on Nightmare, or anything else that demands all of my skill and focus, they're just fun ways to challenge myself, they don't really function as escapism for me either.

In ROTD, I'm trying to put a lot of real-world emotion and feelings into the story, I want it to be very personable and relatable, to actually remind you of your real problems, whatever they may be, and hopefully help you cope with them.

Describing any of those motivations as escapism feels a bit misleading, so I don't like to call it that, but maybe someone else would define them as a very pure form of escapism. I have no idea lol.

[DaveRattlehead]

What I'm very sure is real is that people here prefer the unrealistic games!

Let's go with another interesting poll here... A few weeks ago I asked you about your smoking habits, but what about your drinking habits. Do you usually drink alcohol? Which are your favourite drinks? Or maybe you find it disgusting? Let's find out

So, poll #93 is... Do you drink alcohol?

[Adsolution]

I kinda grouped this one into the smoking question, but yes... it's a daily thing for me. I'm having a lot less than than I used to and manage to go for stretches of not having it, but I'd say it's still a problem. I was so athletic and trimmed until my mid-20's and I want to get back into that before it's too late.

[Hunchman801]

I'm a huge wine and spirits enthusiast, and I drink on an almost daily basis, though not necessarily in large amounts. I for sure enjoy my bedtime brandy!

On regular occasions I drink more than I should though, and while nothing bad ever happens besides me being a bit (or very ) tired the next day, I feel like it would be healthier to slow down a little.

[Greengoop]

Where’s the “I’m too young” option?

[Hunchman801]

That's a good point! Some people do not drink at all for reasons other than the taste (health, age, etc.).

[ItzalDrake]

Yeah that's me, I don't drink for all those reason.
The main reason why I don't drink alcohol is because I hate the idea in general if losing control of my mind, so I would never enjoy getting drunk, also, I've always seen it as a bad thing when I was a kid so I promised myself to never drink alcohol.

Of course alcohol is not bad when drunk with moderation

[DaveRattlehead]

I'm a huge wine and spirits enthusiast, and I drink on an almost daily basis, though not necessarily in large amounts. I for sure enjoy my bedtime brandy!

Didn't the world's oldest person drink wine every day? Now you have an excuse to keep doing it

It would have been interesting to know when all of you started drinking alcohol (if ever did), but what we can say is that most of us definitely drink. Hopefully not too much!

So next poll is about your paranormal experiences... No, being lucky/unlucky isn't paranormal activity, even if it seems so sometimes . Feel free to share your stories. Have you ever experienced any paranormal activity?

[Hunchman801]

Didn't the world's oldest person drink wine every day? Now you have an excuse to keep doing it

Totally statistically significant.

As for paranormal experiences, nothing to report on my part.

[DaveRattlehead]

R squared = 1. No doubts here

I have doubts about this story. When I was a kid, I saw a shadow which looked like a man going downstairs. Suddenly, he stopped, he stared at me and started running. I've always thought this was real and I was truly convinced about it, until a few months ago I experienced sleep paralysis for the very first time. It's impossible for me to remember the exact details, but what if that story was a consequence of sleep paralysis and not a real ghost? What if that time was my first sleep paralysis experience and not the one I mentioned a few months ago?

[Hunchman801]

Come to think about it, I do remember my bedroom door opening itself when I was a kid, but it was probably a dream or it just wasn't closed properly. It felt weird at the time, but I very much doubt it was a ghost.

[DaveRattlehead]

Most of the experiences usually have some kind of explanation or it's something silly that you would never think of initially (wind, you didn't place an object properly and that's why it falls, temperature change that makes the wood creak...). I also gotta say one thing, and that is that the mental factor is crucial for this kind of experiences. The perfect example of this is my friend (I won't say his name in case he ends up reading this someday ). He was a person who didn't believe in ghosts and had always thought it was bs, until he started dating a girl three years ago. This girl always heard noises, saw strange figures in her room and unknown beings in the mirror... And now my friend also sees these entities. He's probably paranoid, but now try to convince him when his girlfriend also sees these ghosts.

Another friend also told us about a brutal experience. His grandmother died of COVID a few years ago. He was studying in another city and made his life there until he came back to my hometown around a year ago. At one of his meeting with people from the city, one person stared at him and asked him directly if his mother or grandmother had recently passed away. He affirmed that his grandmother had indeed passed away. He ended up in shock when this person told him that he was seeing her and could communicate with her.

Are these stories true? I wouldn't want to think that they are trying to trick me, but we also have to keep in mind that many people lie a lot in order to get attention or to look cool.

[Hunchman801]

Another friend also told us about a brutal experience. His grandmother died of COVID a few years ago. He was studying in another city and made his life there until he came back to my hometown around a year ago. At one of his meeting with people from the city, one person stared at him and asked him directly if his mother or grandmother had recently passed away. He affirmed that his grandmother had indeed passed away. He ended up in shock when this person told him that he was seeing her and could communicate with her.

Meanwhile, that random person had a huge celebration as their joke finally worked after trying it on hundreds of strangers on the street.