A Competitive Gamer's Monologue: "A World Where You Enjoy Competitive Games Without Competing"

Competitive games basically have "competition" as their final destination. Well, the word "competition" is literally plastered right on the front of them, after all (lol).

That said, it's not like you absolutely "must compete" in competitive games. Personally, I think the secret to enjoying them for a long time is to approach them with the mindset that "competition is just one of many elements of enjoyment."

Admittedly, a significant portion of a game's structure is dedicated to "competition."

This time, rather than talking about how to approach competitive games, I'd like to touch upon "how everyone enjoys the content of competitive games?" from the perspective of an observer.

The subject is the familiar Cyber Troopers Virtual-On, but I believe similar things are happening with other works or even in other genres... or rather, they are happening (lol).

Since around 2000, when I was doing grassroots activities at arcades, I could frequently see people "enjoying competitive games without competing." Even I, who was essentially a competitive gamer myself (to the point of becoming arcade staff just to cultivate opponents), was enjoying "content other than competition" despite my position being somewhat diluted. For example, following the lore, enjoying the models, and things like that.

This time, I'd like to touch on that with some real-life examples. To do so, I've had a close sacrifice follower provide me with the details of their activities.

[Someone who enjoys single-player at their own pace]

(ﾟ∀ﾟ)o彡゜OMG! OMG!! OMG!!!

"Cyber Troopers Virtual-On"

My follower, Fumanyan, has been steadily playing the Sega Saturn version for over a year.

Seeing them overcome numerous setbacks on the way here without giving up, sometimes helped by predecessors (and occasionally mixed in with some mysterious, useless old man lol), and overcoming goals through daily accumulation is quite a growth story worth watching.

After all, they have been tweeting about it quite frequently for a year. The point worth noting is that they set their own challenges at each stage, and if they couldn't do it, they would solidify their footing; it's a story of one step forward, one step back, but they are steadily moving forward.

If you search for "One Virtual-On a Day" on Twitter, you'll find various things, so please take a look at their journey as they gradually get better.

Although some confusing things (lol) show up in searches, you can tell the difference between the genuine article and imitations by whether the '1' is full-width or half-width ( ˘ω˘) SO IT'S NOT A RIP-OFF!

[A person who is right in front of Bradtos (the mid-boss) but is fighting something else]

(ﾟ∀ﾟ)o彡゜ORATAN! ORATAN!! ORATAN!!!

Cyber Troopers Virtual-On Oratorio Tangram

This is a Bradtos challenge by my follower Tominosuke (a Bradtos specialist AI) (ﾟ∀ﾟ)

Also known as 'the person in the world most dedicated to not facing Bradtos'

再生ボタンを押そう・・・話はそれからだ！٩(ˊᗜˋ*)و”

If you've never played Virtual-On, you probably have no idea what's going on, right?
It's okay... even those of us who have played it don't really understand it either! (lol)

In short, it's a super-play-like feat ofascetic practicewhere you keep dodging the mid-boss's attacks without ever looking at the mid-boss.

What, you say it's too rough?
It would be presumptuous for someone like me to speak of the truth of the Bradtos challenge, so please ask the person himself about that (passing the buck).

Come to think of it, I actually received official recognition from the person himself... so I'll say it here.

'I raised Tominosuke!'

(You were acting like a mob character who takes a year to clear Oratan, weren't you?)

Come to think of it, the Tanita Cup is being held in 2024 too... are you ready for it? (pressure)

[Enjoying the 3D form... and letting it blend into daily life]

(ﾟ∀ﾟ)o彡゜FORTH! FORTH!! FORTH!!!

"Cyber Troopers Virtual-On Force"

This is the model-making path by Toranosuke-san, a follower and Oratan player.

He told me the link for the public one, but he heartlessly chose the natural one for the savage (ﾟ∀ﾟ)

But you know, the sense of relief when a model is finished and the sense of fulfillment that fills that void is irresistible. Even an outsider like me, just watching the production process, can empathize with it.

After this, he made something that wasn't Virtual-On but was the kind of thing you can't cut corners on, as usual ( ˘ω˘)

The model-making path goes perfectly with robot games, so I think it's a genre with a huge potential support base. It's fine even if it's just a snap-fit build! Let's all share the fun!! (ﾟ∀ﾟ)ノシ

(Come to think of it, an old acquaintance was also doing model-making streams, lol)

Besides that,

Everyone is exploring their own ways of enjoying it that I still can't finish writing down.

Actually, I thought about reaching out to everyone I'm connected with this time, but... I have a poor track record with article production, and the fear of 'asking for help only for the article to stall' was too much, so I decided to stop with the three people mentioned above.

That said, even with just three people, the level of passion is this high... Even though we're keeping it small, if I had reached out to everyone I'm connected with, it would have been the end of me (；´Д｀)

You can't compete, you don't want to, or it's too early—that's perfectly fine.
You can just do it when you feel like it, and if you find a way to engage with it that you think is more interesting, that's your entry point... or even your goal, and that's okay too.

Take Virtual-On, which I used as an example this time; it's already been 28 years since the series was born... Instead of worrying about the little things, it's much better for yourself, and for the community, to just enjoy it.

It's just a game, but it's also more than a game. If you find your own way to enjoy it, it's not fair to keep it all to yourself lol, so share it with everyone! ( ˘ω˘) Of course, enjoying it in secret is also fine.

To everyone I'm loosely connected with, not just my followers, I am grateful every day for you sharing such wonderful ways to enjoy the game.
m(_ _)m

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