When I saw the Ocarina of Time TAS Beta Showcase live, it changed me, it awakened something in me that has been buried deep for what seems like ages. It’s not just because this game and series has meant so much to me and my childhood, or just because of nostalgia. It made me go back and imagine what we would have thought if we asked to see the future, if we had seen where we are now, 23 years ago. And it made me realize that we might be able to see that there is something hopeful for us there. There is so much evil in the world right now, so much that it has become overbearing for so many of us. With it has come depression, anxiety, trauma, a numbness as we try to shield ourselves from it, and a sense of profound hopelessness as we struggle with the realization that we can do very little to stop it. But, through all of that fog, there is still good in the world, something to be proud of, something that shows we haven’t lost our humanity. Ask to see the future, and you will see all these people together, united by a powerful bond of kindness and generosity. Thousands of people coming together to celebrate their shared love for gaming and turning it into something helpful by raising money for Doctors Without Borders and other charities, which are needed now more than ever. Ask to see the future, and you will see there are so many people that are still kind, selfless, empathetic. You will see we haven’t failed because we haven’t stopped caring about each other. You will see something beautiful, and just maybe you will think it’s a place you’d like to live, despite its problems. The next time I feel like the world has been ruined, that there’s no hope for us, that we can’t make it, I’ll watch this and remember that we came together and we did a good thing just because we care. And we did it here together. #heretogether
|