Simulation theory has been thrown around the internet for years, stemming from the early days of computing. It has long been theorized that everything around us is the result of a computer generated simulation, a fake reality that is being fed through us and presented as real. The Matrix is the first popular reference of simulation theory, and made the idea not only more understood by the general public but more accepted as well.
Technology Acceleration
Moore’s Law dictates that technology develops at an exponential rate, as we use today’s breakthroughs to build tomorrow’s impossibilities. This creates a compounding effect that has already reached a concerning velocity. Five years ago, AI generated images were unrecognizable, blurry, confusing nonsense. Today, they are indistinguishable from reality. If we reached this “uncanny” threshold in half a decade, the next 50 years will allow us to spawn entire simulated universes of artificial agents directly from our phones.
This brings us back to our own universe. Who is to say that this has not already happened? As it stands, games such as Lifespans begin to push the boundaries of this hypothetical simulation into reality.
The Freedom of Fate
Lifespans is a text based life simulation RPG that lets you make decisions purely on your own. It originated from the feeling of Sonder, which is the profound realization that everyone around you has a life just as complex and intricate as your own. Every stranger that you see has their own challenges, accomplishments, regrets, and anxieties.
Each decision is your own, and each outcome is left up to the dice of fate. Just like real life you can start a business, go to college, get in the best shape of your life, or you can throw it all away and start a criminal enterprise. The freedom that Lifespans gives you in your own decisions mimics the reality that we are all stuck in.
Sonder On
Some months are mundane, routine, and honestly boring. And some months are so impactful the consequences can be felt for the rest of your life. Again, reaching back to the concept of sonder, you (the reader) and I (the writer) both have our own months in our lives that were deterministic of many more months to follow. Lifespans gives you the top down view into each of these months and lets you face the consequences of your choices.
This dice of fate in our world may be a computer algorithm, or maybe a deeper signal from the universe. Either way, the fact that games such as Lifespans can exist, is further proof that we may be living in a simulated reality, completely unaware of the “real” world that is outside of our grasp.
Play Lifespans today for free at lifespans.app, and create your own simulated world.
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