Game.
| Enlightened Entrepreneurship Level – 1 of 16: NPC (Non Player Character) |
| Steps – 1.1.1: Game >> 1.1.2: Gamer >> 1.1.3: The Game of Life >> 1.1.4: Spiritual Gameplay |
| School Subjects: Game Design, Sports, Esports, Psychology, Philosophy, Cosmology |
| Reading List: Think Like A Game Designer, Coursera Game Design Course, Did You Know Gaming, Never Knows Best |
| Guild Prizekeeper: 🤱 The Caretaker || 🏥 Doctor | 🧹🧼 Custodian | 💪 Bodyguard | ⛑️🚒 Rescuer |
| Corresponding Build Button: 🔘: 🔢 KPI Button – Manifestation, Life Formula |
| Corresponding Inventory Item: 4 Animal Brains, 4 Neurochemicals, 4 Brain Wave Rates, 16 Electromagnetic Transformers, 4 Temperaments, 10 Herbal Therapies, 58 Herb Types |
| Prize: Train your autopilot mode. Each person is either an NPC or in control. Why not awaken out of your NPC mode? |
The first step of Level 1: NPC is learning to permanently frame life as the world’s most advanced game in EE 1.1.1: Game.
The concept of a “Game” is a fundamental building block in the Nukanga framework, particularly in the journey of Enlightened Entrepreneurship. Far beyond mere entertainment, framing life and its challenges as a game provides a powerful perspective for developing agency, mastering skills, and achieving your goals. This wiki page delves into the nature of games from various perspectives and explores how this understanding can be leveraged for personal and entrepreneurial growth.
What is a Game? An Academic Breakdown from a Game Designer’s Perspective
From the viewpoint of a game designer, a “game” is a carefully constructed interactive experience designed to engage and challenge players within a defined structure. While definitions vary slightly across game studies, several core components are consistently identified:
- Goals: Games have clear objectives that players strive to achieve. These goals provide purpose and direction for player actions.
- Rules: A set of guidelines and constraints that define what players can and cannot do, how interactions work, and the conditions for winning or losing. Rules create the structure and define the boundaries of the game.
- Interaction: Players interact with the game system, other players (in multiplayer games), and often non-player elements. This interaction is the dynamic core of the game experience.
- Feedback System: Games provide players with information about their progress, the consequences of their actions, and the state of the game world. This feedback is crucial for players to learn, adapt, and make informed decisions.
- Voluntary Participation: Typically, participation in a game is voluntary. Players choose to engage with the game’s challenges and abide by its rules for the experience it offers.
- Challenge: Games present obstacles or difficulties that players must overcome to achieve the goals. The level of challenge needs to be balanced to keep players engaged and motivated.
- Player Agency: The ability of players to make meaningful choices that have an impact on the game state and outcome. Game designers craft systems that allow for player expression and strategic decision-making.
Game design involves the intentional crafting of these elements to create a specific Gameplay experience, which is the interaction between the player and the game’s mechanics and systems. The ultimate aim is to create a compelling Player Experience, encompassing the player’s emotional, cognitive, and social responses to the game. The MDA (Mechanics, Dynamics, Aesthetics) framework is a common model used by designers, viewing games through the lens of their rules (Mechanics), the emergent behaviors and interactions (Dynamics), and the resulting player experience (Aesthetics like sensation, fantasy, narrative, challenge, fellowship, discovery, expression, and submission).
Defining a Game in Terms of Sports and Esports
When considering games in the context of Sports and Esports, the fundamental definition of a structured, competitive activity with rules and goals remains, but with added dimensions:
- Sports: Traditionally, sports are defined by physical activity and skill. They involve a set of rules and customs and are often engaged in competitively, individually or in teams. Key aspects include athleticism, training, specific physical skills, and often a strong emphasis on sportsmanship and fair play. The outcome often depends significantly on individual physical performance and team strategy.
- Esports: Esports, or electronic sports, are organized video game competitions, typically played for spectators. While the physical exertion differs from traditional sports, Esports shares core characteristics: competitive structure, defined rules within the game’s mechanics, high levels of skill and strategy, dedicated training, and often significant prize pools and professional leagues. Esports are characterized by their digital nature, reliance on technology, and large online communities and viewership. Both sports and Esports highlight the competitive aspect of games, where players strive to outperform opponents within a regulated framework.
Defining a Game in Terms of Psychology, Philosophy, and Cosmology
The concept of a game extends beyond defined rules and competition, touching upon deeper aspects of human experience and existence:
- Psychology: From a psychological perspective, “play” is often seen as a voluntary, intrinsically motivated activity guided by mental rules and involving elements of imagination. It is crucial for learning, development, problem-solving, and emotional regulation. Games, as structured forms of play, provide a framework for engaging these psychological processes. They can foster skill acquisition, resilience in the face of failure (through concepts like “respawning”), and a sense of accomplishment. The engagement and feedback inherent in games can also tap into psychological principles of motivation and reward.
- Philosophy: Philosophically, games and play have been explored for their role in human culture and understanding. Johan Huizinga’s concept of Homo Ludens (“Man the Player”) posits that play is a primary and necessary condition for the generation of culture. Play creates a temporary, separate sphere with its own rules and meaning. Philosophers also examine the relationship between games, rules, freedom, and the nature of reality itself, sometimes drawing parallels between the structured nature of games and the perceived order or underlying principles of the universe.
- Cosmology: In some cosmological or spiritual frameworks, the creation and unfolding of the universe are described in terms of play. The Hindu concept of Leela is a prime example, viewing cosmic activity as the spontaneous, joyful “play” of the divine. This perspective suggests that existence itself can be seen as a grand, unfolding game, not necessarily with a predetermined outcome but as an expression of creative energy and interaction. This resonates with the idea of life as a “playthrough,” where the journey and participation are as significant as any perceived end goal.
Framing Life as a Game to Level Up as an Enlightened Entrepreneur
Viewing and framing your life as a “Game” is a powerful strategy for personal growth and for excelling as an Enlightened Entrepreneur. It’s not about trivializing existence but about adopting a mindset that fosters agency, resilience, and continuous improvement.
Why Frame Life as a Game?
- Increases Agency: Framing life as a game empowers you to see yourself as the main player, the protagonist of your own narrative. This counters the “NPC” mindset by highlighting your ability to make choices and influence outcomes.
- Promotes a Growth Mindset: Games are inherently about learning and progressing. Framing life this way encourages you to view challenges as levels to be overcome, failures as opportunities to learn (“Respawn”), and skills as abilities to be leveled up (“Train your autopilot mode” to be more effective in conscious action).
- Enhances Motivation and Engagement: The goal-oriented nature of games, combined with feedback systems and the potential for rewards (both intrinsic and extrinsic), can make pursuing real-life objectives more engaging and motivating. It injects a sense of Fun and Games into the endeavors of life.
- Builds Resilience: In games, encountering obstacles and even “dying” is part of the process. This translates to a more resilient approach to setbacks in life and entrepreneurship, viewing them as temporary challenges rather than insurmountable failures.
- Provides Structure and Clarity: By defining your own goals and “rules” for how you want to live and work, you create a clear framework for your actions, similar to the rules and objectives in a game.
- Fosters Creativity and Problem-Solving: Navigating complex games requires creative thinking and strategic problem-solving, skills directly transferable to entrepreneurship. Viewing challenges as game-like puzzles can unlock innovative solutions.
How to Frame the Game of Life:
- Define Your Objectives: What are your goals in life and in your entrepreneurial journey? These are your “win conditions.” Break them down into smaller, achievable “quests” or “levels.”
- Establish Your Rules: What are your personal values and principles that will guide your actions? These are the ethical and operational “rules” of your game.
- Identify Your Metrics and Feedback Systems: How will you track your progress? What feedback will you seek and how will you interpret it? This could involve setting key performance indicators (KPIs) for your business or personal growth milestones.
- Understand Your Resources and Abilities: What are your strengths, skills, and available resources (“Inventory” and “talent tree”)? How can you develop them (“leveling up”)?
- Embrace the Playthrough: Engage in the process actively and mindfully. Appreciate the challenges, learn from mistakes, and celebrate your progress. Adopt the attitude of Love For The Game.
- Recognize the Multiplayer Aspect: Understand that you are playing this game alongside others. Collaboration, healthy competition, and building a strong “guild” (community or team) are often crucial for success in the Socio Economic Olympics.
- Maintain Perspective: Remember that it is a frame, a way of approaching reality. While engaging deeply, maintain the awareness that you are the player, capable of adjusting the “rules” or even choosing to play a different “game” if necessary.
By consciously framing your life as a game, informed by the principles of game design, psychology, philosophy, and even cosmology, you equip yourself with a powerful mindset to navigate challenges, unlock your potential, and level up as an Enlightened Entrepreneur. It’s about recognizing that you have the agency to play deliberately, learn continuously, and shape your own extraordinary playthrough.
Sources
Finite and Infinite Games by James Carse
