Video Games and Escapism or the Need for Isolation

The Games

Stardew Valley, Minecraft, and Animal Crossing are beloved sandbox games about independence, goal setting, and creativity. These three in particular stick out to me because a) Stardew and Minecraft are my top two favorite games, and although I’ve never played Animal Crossing because I’m poor, I watched it blow up over the pandemic and have indulged in a fair amount of “Animal Crossing music to study/sleep/relax/cry to” videos; and b) they all seem to share similar themes or styles that say something about our need for an escape from real life, and our desire for isolation.

Stardew Valley

Farming simulators like Stardew Valley and its predecessor Harvest Moon, give the player an opportunity to build their own farm, grow their own crops, interact with NPCs, and learn how to fish, among other things. I think the reason people are so drawn to games like these is that we need a break from the stresses of life. The whole plot of Stardew Valley is that you play a farmer who hates their corporate nine-to-five job, and when your grandfather passes and gives his farm to you, you have the opportunity to leave your dismal life and make something new. Getting lost in the intricacies and complexities of games like these take us away from our lives and gives us a moment of peace. It could be said that the reason people play video games, in general, is the need for escapism, but I think there’s a difference between the "relaxation" a game like Elden Ring provides, versus a game like Stardew Valley. Or perhaps I'm just biased and uncultured.

Additionally, in these kinds of games, Stardew Valley specifically, you never run out of things to do – it’s what pulls you into the game. You always have crops to water, animals to feed, people to talk to, fish to catch, buildings to restore, and so on. With all these things to do, it creates a nice daily routine. Some of us rely heavily on routines, perhaps others struggle to keep them. I know I at least find it hard to create routines that will stick.

But in video games, you’re not actually waking up before dawn and trudging through school or work. Your character wakes up in the early morning with no fatigue, and you push buttons and watch as they water pumpkins and collect eggs. Once you do these little routines to take care of your farm, you can build friendships with people and go fishing, and kill monsters in the mines. It’s just so peaceful and human – and stress-free for the most part. Even in-game stress is just that, it’s in-game, not real life. When you’re on a pixelated farm where the most stressful thing is winning the town’s Easter egg hunt to get a straw hat, you don’t have to think about Covid, taxes, passing college, or being able to eat.

Minecraft

Minecraft was one of my first-ever video games. I was immediately smitten by the possibilities it laid out in front of me and at the same time its almost complete noninvolvement in the player's actions. The game lets you figure out its rules and mechanics for yourself. For someone relatively new to the language of video games, and the unwritten rules that they don’t help you with, it was a good video game to learn with because of its simplicity in goal – survive. Games like Stardew let you figure out the mechanics, but then it'll give you tips throughout by having the villagers give you tips in casual dialogue, or when you're introduced to something new you'll get tips along with it.

Minecraft can be multiplayer but when played solo, it offers a kind of tranquility and quietness in surviving. There's also an even bigger sense of independence in this game than in the other two. The other two games have NPCs to talk to, but in Minecraft, the most you get is a handful of villagers, and most of the time you don't spawn near one. The villagers also don't give you any tips, they just wander around like lost puppies. So, this game is also about isolation, but it's more about feeling confident in your independent survival.

Building is another significant aspect of this game. When you build yourself a home you feel accomplished and motivated to make it look nice. You try to find a nice area that has a little bit of everything, you get a nice wood and make sure it has enough windows. It gives the player a sense of accomplishment but it's also a really creative process. It's a big part of the community for this reason.

Another point worthy of note is that Minecraft has always been one of the most popular games, but especially during the pandemic it saw a rebirth almost. It has new fans that are just being introduced to it and new content creators that are finding a home in the community. I think this says something about the game being about independent survival but it also says something completely different about parasocial relationships and the need for people to watch other people be social in a time of isolation and through a video game that is often played alone. That's a topic for a different day though.

Animal Crossing

Animal Crossing New Horizons, as I’ve seen, is more of a general life sim. It is about isolation, which definitely says something about why it was so popular during the pandemic. Your character is taking a vacation from work, similar to the concept of Stardew Valley. You get your own deserted island to explore and build upon. It's what you make of it.

It also says something that this game came out and blew up at the beginning and during the pandemic when people were forced to isolate. Covid and navigating this new way of living induced enough stress that people needed a break. But also, people were forced to sit down for a second, and with nothing else to do, they found video games that made them feel human. They found video games that represented what they were going through.

So...

In video games, you’re not actually waking up before dawn and trudging through school or work. Your character wakes up in the early morning with no fatigue, and you push buttons and watch as they water pumpkins and collect eggs. You can build friendships with people and go fishing, and forage food in the forests. It’s just so peaceful and human – and stress-free for the most part. Even in-game stress is just that, it’s in-game, not real life. When you’re on a pixelated farm where the most stressful thing is winning the town’s Easter egg hunt to get a straw hat, you don’t have to think about Covid or taxes, passing college, or being able to eat.

All these games are about independent goal setting, isolation by choice, and creativity. They reflect the human need for a break from real life. I think Minecraft was the first time I discovered that finding an escape could be one of the most relaxing things, Stardew Valley was when I discovered that I love routines and accomplishing goals I make for myself, and observing Animal Crossing made me realize that we as humans need an escape and a way to be alone.

Sources

https://www.geekwire.com/2020/nintendos-animal-crossing-new-horizons-island-escape-quarantined-world-heres-reviews-say/#:~:text=Like%20previous%20Animal%20Crossing%20games,what%20you%20want%20to%20pursue