RIB 9 & 10
Being social in a big city can be very difficult. So why not make a game out of it? The game Comfort of Strangers seemingly makes the players interact with each other, whether that be electronically or verbally. A two team based game of Lovers vs. Dancers pins the sides against each other to “eliminate” the other team by smoky walking by them and taking a life. Your unknown teammates may also supply you with extra lives as well. The very thought of playing with strangers is normal to most indoor gamers, however, in an AR setting it is done in real life. Games like this require a somewhat social aspect to them, so introverts (like me) probably wouldn’t find this too enticing. On the other hand, in the grand scheme of things this could help people learn to trust utter strangers in an attempt to win.
In the following chapter we are encouraged to “hack” our lives and make then happier, more fun, etc. Doing things such as dancing, being nice to others, and apparently thinking about death (probably the most counterintuitive thing I’ve ever heard) can make our lives a little brighter. This can also be left up to personal preference. In our current day to day lives we all go to class, study, do homework, and inevitably stress over something. In order to counter act such feelings we must “hack” our lives and stray from the day to day. Whether that means going to a party, working out, hanging with friends, playing video games, or anything that makes you happy, you’ve successfully hacked yourself. Hack more, stress less.
I thought the idea of Happiness Hacking that was discussed in Chapter 10 was very interesting. I agree with the idea that we need some variety in our lives and ways to make it brighter. Implementing games can help eliminate some stress that we have and fulfill the happiness that we seek.