Thursday, December 01, 2005

Man's Best Friend: Nintendogs puts existentialism in the palm of your hand

And that's the game's one shortcoming: The simulation is incomplete. Nintendogs never actually look dirty or snarl with anger. They don't crap in the house, and they never grow old. This imposes a ceiling on emotional identification. The fuzzy charm of a new puppy is no match for the abiding love of a dog, cheerful or grouchy, that you've raised yourself. ELIZA's success stemmed from the ongoing investment in the seeming therapeutic relationship.


What if our entire universe is someone else's Tamagotchi?

1 comment:

Gerald T said...

A broken Tomagotchi, one that was tossed out the car window by a crazy little girl and now lays semi broken and malfunctioning in the street.