The Begging.

One winter evening in 2011, a couple of friends came over for dinner, what was supposed to be just like any regular dinner, became a dinner that changed the course of my life. if i remmeber correctly, just after the main course and before desert, I found my self exited about an application installed on one of my friends mobile devices, it was a game! … what now seams obvious, at that time had a certain magic appeal to me; I was playing a game on a mobile telephone device (!!!). 

[ note: as we go further into the future, without ever reaching it, the time gaps between disruptive products get smaller and shorter. we can not even begin to imagine the form that games will have in 20 years - stay alert! ]

in this game i controlled a ninja running up two parallel walls, with one easy touch on the device screen I jumped from one wall to the other, avoiding obstacles and collecting gifts, trying to go as high as i can! … so exciting, so simple, and so beautiful!

[ note: like any decent drama, games have an equilibrius set of rewards and punsihment, that fold out on the way to Resolution. the great new adition is that of user interactivity. ]

A somewhat abstract sense of pure joy and pride filled me as I achieved commanding my little ninja to ever-rising heights, the rush of andrenaline distroted the clearnece of my thoughts ... 

[ note: achievments and feedback ]

Later on that evening as I was washing the dishes, my inner child voice appeared “I want, I want…”, " I want, I want ...". i tend to take my inner child voice very seriuosly! the inner child doesnt send messages from the past, he sends them from the subconscious, its not "I Want to be a ninja!" that my iner child was screaming at me - that would be a bit infantile, it was "I Want to make games!".

[ note: all data driven metrics should leave margin for irrationality and magic, it is scientifcly proven that these form part of us as human beings and our culture. ]

And that’s basically it! A few minutes of playing backflips studios “ninjump” have changed the course of NAFNA, at the time, a small e-commerce firm, and a “to be” game and digital content developer! and with it my life! YUPI YUPI!!!

[ note: big decisions should be celebrated even if in the long run they turn out to be a total disaster! we do not live in the long run ... ]

The day after, reflecting on my epiphany, I have realized that it has been a long time since my 4 hour sessions arcade days! and i imagine there is much more than a wall climbing ninja! The time has come to fill in the gaps; I had to play more games, not just the ones i played as a player, not just the ones i liked, i had to play a lot of games, all of them ... 

wow! i just found a job that playing video games is an obligatory part of it ... YUPI YUPI!!! (again).

thank you, 

be good, and play games, 

* on my first insights and notes of playing games as a pro in my coming post: THE LOGIC OF AN OBSERVATION.