A game as a way of coping with the reality
The first reviewed video lasts for twenty-seven minutes and features a child playing Minecraft. It starts with the child opening the game on his computer. He draws circles with the cursor while waiting for the game to load. The child begins playing by trying to kill the animals that surround him. Then, he continuously tries to fire arrows in the woods and the sky. Next, the player chooses the weapons and other artifacts he wants his character to have. Those include several types of arrows and potions; he drinks the potions as he continues to walk around his surroundings. Throughout the game, the child is often talking to himself. His voice does not show irritation or anger; the boy is probably commenting on his actions.
The child moves to a different location and starts to choose various items of equipment for his character. He selects several materials for building as well. Then the player starts building a railroad, digging some holes along the way to make it curvy. Supposedly, the child does not know what results he wants to achieve as he removes some parts of the road and makes buildings instead, and later shifts back to his initial decision. It is unclear whether the boy is not sure how the game operates or is bored. He creates a long and curvy railroad and puts a building block at the end of it. When the player finishes the railroad, he examines whether everything is in the right condition and sets a trolley. By the cart, he reaches the end of the road and digs a hole at that point, falling into it. It is unclear whether the child has planned it or not.
The player then starts to dig himself deeper down the hole and to click on the subjects around him to see if it can help. He seems nervous and irritated; the boy does not know what to do next. The child tries to build a construction that will lead him back to the surface. It does not help because he cannot jump on the top of his building. When the player realizes it, he decides to dig a deeper hole instead. He falls deeper and deeper and reaches the point where the textures do not exist anymore. The screen turns red, and the boy has to restart the game.
The player starts the new game by picking the necessary items for his character. He chooses several items weapons, including a sword and a bow, and some pieces of blue clothing. The boy puts the selected items on his character. Then the player picks blocks for building purposes; it is clear that his decisions are significant to him as he spends much time on choosing the pieces. At the same time, it seems like he is not sure how he will use the chosen items. The child then makes a walk around his surroundings and decides to exchange some of the things he had selected.
Some moments later, the player observes his surroundings from a bird’s eye view and notices a crack in the surface. He jumps inside and decides to light several candles along the crevice. He goes deeper and deeper inside, exploring the narrow roads. When the player notices a bird, he tries to kill it with a sword. The child gives up after several unsuccessful attempts. Instead, he kills another creature that appears right next to him to gain some money. Then the child goes back to his starting point and starts building a high construction to destroy it in a short time. The player talks to himself and sounds irritated; it is unclear what the purpose of his actions is. Soon, the boy destroys his building and creates another one with a different shape. It is unclear what the player is planning to do with it. He adds horizontally located blocks and builds a big wall. Then he creates a passage by destroying two blocks in the middle of the wall and closes the game.
I believe that the child is bored and does not know what to do to entertain himself. It is clear that he has no purpose while playing the game. Some of his actions show that he might feel irritated or disappointed. He clicks on the objects a lot, moves around, and does not try to do anything valuable. Notably, the child remains silent most of the play. He does not show any emotions while playing the game. To me, it is interesting because usually, children tend to express a broader range of feelings than adults can. At the same time, the boy’s actions reveal that he is not feeling calm while playing the game. I believe that the player might not know what the game was initially designed for, so he uses it as an opportunity to build and destroy objects. It might be the boy’s way of coping with the reality he faces in his real life. The video reveals that the player does not follow any purpose and does not have any objectives while playing the game.
A game as a way of making dreams come true
The second reviewed video lasts for twenty-nine minutes and features a child playing Minecraft. It starts with the child opening the game on her computer. The player waits patiently while the game is loading. From the beginning of the game, she starts building a neat-looking house. The player’s actions seem purposeful and accurate; they do not look impulsive or undeliberate. The house is surrounded by a small garden that the girl supposedly has been working on for some time. It is clear that she has dedicated much effort to create it. The building is well-designed and looks like a real-life house; the player seems to enjoy what she is doing. It is possible that the girl is trying to recreate her family’s home or is designing the house of her dreams.
The actions of the player are slow and thorough; she builds the walls of the house brick by brick weighing her every step. She puts every block on the right place and never misses the position. The child’s movements are consecutive; she seems to know what she wants to achieve while playing the game. It feels like the player is an adult since there is no unnecessary actions and emotional reactions to the game. Indeed, the girl does not spend her time on useless activities, such as clicking on the objects around her. She is concentrated on making the house look good and building a swimming pool on top of it.
As the house grows bigger, the player starts to choose the materials for the roof. Clearly, she does not want to make any mistakes, so her decisions are deliberate but quick at the same time. It is notable that the girl uses all of her gaming time to design the house. She walks around the building to reflect on how to implement her ideas and decides to add several candles to the walls. Moments later, the player builds a swimming pool on top of the house. The pool is decorated with blue building blocks the girl has carefully chosen before. Soon, the child changes her mind and destroys the roof of the building to improve its design. It looks like she has a clear vision of her goal and is trying to implement some elements of it while creating the house but is not sure how to do it better. She decides to build higher walls; the construction starts to look like a small castle.
It is notable that the player tries to involve the elements of creativity in the building process, using blue construction blocks for the wall along with the yellow ones. The girl’s movements are precise; she seems to have advance knowledge of her future steps. She tries to choose the best-looking colours and, clearly, is determined to create a neat and functional house. It is notable that the child barely talks to herself; she seems to have her full attention on the game. The girl spends much time choosing colours and textures for the swimming pool she is still planning to create on top of the house. Then she builds a space for it and fills it up with water. Notably, the player assures herself that all of the water blocks look the same to create a natural-looking flow.
Suddenly, the child digs a hole in the roof and falls into it. Her motivation for doing so is unclear; she cancels this step moments later. The girl walks outside of the house to choose some items for the building. She decides to add more doors inside the house. The girl thoroughly reflects on her actions before taking them. She creates a small hallway in the house and decorates it with torches. Then the player talks to her family and leaves the game.
I believe that the player’s purpose in the game is to create something that is meaningful to her. It is notable how determined the girl is in designing a beautiful house. I think that the game can help her see how her ideas can be implemented in real life in the future. All of the girl’s actions have a purpose; it is impossible to say that the child loses her time while playing. Interestingly, the player seems to be a perfectionist as she destroys the elements of the building to create a better version of them. The girl does not show any irritation or boredom; she is enjoying the game. I believe that to this player, Minecraft is not the way to escape the reality; it is rather a tool to make her dreams come true. The child closes the game as soon as her family talks to her, which means that she is not addicted to it. The video reveals that the player uses the game as a way to develop her ideas and visions, and create the projects based on them.