It’s not often that I can put the word communist in a blog without an instant link to a certain Second Life blog, but in this case the communists are all in Warcraft and the writer is from Wired (emphasis added):
“This is of the most-prodigious mysteries of the gamer soul….They let us cast off our mundane existence and become a colorful, empowered hero. And what do we do with this second life?
We behave like obedient workers in a Soviet collective outside Stalingrad, circa 1971. Comrade, your job is to collect potatoes. For seven years. We pay $20 a month for this privilege.”
The author in this case applauds the commie mentality and the joys of grinding:
Grinding is idiotic, but it will never go away, because it sustains us. When we’re exhausted by things we can’t understand, we take solace in things that are what they say they are. Our video games may be idiotic, but at least their idiocies are consistent.
It’s unclear whether he owes Prok royalties.
Communism is a great evil, yes.
The game companies have a conspiracy going. They are preparing all the young minds for communism with this kind of exploited, grinding labour and collectivism. Using addictive games, they are breaking down their individuality, and conditioning them, desensitizing them to the downside of the collective and Stakhanovite labour.
Next, following the theories of Ted Castronova, they will begin to apply this to real life. The Extropians will be at the forefront of this mass adaptation of the collectivist model, all under the guise of being innovative, new, and experimental.
You’ll see!