Issue 364

Stay all day, if you want to

One of the best things I did since COVID-19 hit was get my old university friends into Final Fantasy XIV. We figured it would be a good way to catch up whilst also gaming together when we got the chance to. We’re all over 30 now with a variety of obligations (them: buying houses, looking after babies; me: researching board games to buy) but more often than not we make Friday evening our gaming night.

We’ll log on to FFXIV and Discord and start by dance-emoting in one of the main starting cities. We’ll talk about our weeks, how families are doing, all that good stuff. We’ll then run a couple of dungeons, show off mounts we’ve acquired, rant about colleagues at work, slay some primals, acquire some gil. And recently we’ve taken to heading to the Golden Saucer, FFXIV’s casino,where we’ll take on challengesaround the place, playing until the early hours.

“Why do I findlaborious real-lifetasks alluringwhen presented as a means of entertainment?”

It’s been really nice to find a game that encourages having fun with friends, and it’s been lovely to introduce people close to me to a series I’ve loved for a long time. Gaming has been a real way for me to connect with others, especially since the first lockdown took place. Whether it’s through an online tabletop group, an MMO with friends, or even just remotely playing a Jackbox Party Pack with family, I hope after this whole ordeal is over a lot more people can use games to both connect and stay connected with the people they care about.