Runescape

Prerequisite: none

Yup, I played Runescape back in 2006. My account has a combat level 90, total level 1220, and some 10 mil. gp in the bank. That is a lot of time spent (no life, hurhur). And moving away from childhood, there is simply not enough time. My commitment lies elsewhere. It has been almost ten years since I started, and some six years since I stopped playing regularly.

Occasionally I would skim the updates, and if something looks interesting I might log in. Sadly, I am not a child anymore and it takes much more to amuse me.

It sounds like the game is receiving lots of bashing recently. I think it is only a matter of growing up. Players have grown and grown out of the game, as a child would grow out children's clothes. Some things were great in childhood, such as Harry Potter. Heck, Harry Potter used to be the best thing evaaar. As a kid there was so much to marvel at. Then the novelty dies out. Only the nostalgia remains.

Will I still play it? No.
Is Runescape a lame game? No.
Did the enchantment wear off? Pretty much. Ya.

Having sacrificed so much time exploring a virtual world, what have I gained? Were my efforts wasted? Was the game worth it? Although I am not known for gaming, I know for a fact that many things had stayed with me.

1) Vocabulary

I boosted my vocabulary terrifically through playing Runescape, being a foreign English speaker. I know the ores from copper to gold (as well as the fictional ores). I know the fish from crayfish to swordfish. I know the trees from oak to yew. I know the folk from barbarian to knight. I know the creatures from goblin to dragon. What is mithril? What is a pike? Where are willows found? What does the apothecary do? What is the difference between a ghost and a revenant (besides that one is mightily stronger than the other)?

How else should I know everything from dagger to longsword, rapier to maul, mace to battleaxe, boots to vambraces? What is the difference between a platebody and a chainbody? A coif and a cowl? What is so distinct about the scimitar? Oh, scimitars..

Most players probably do not bother with the "examine" function, but I examined everything. The thistles on the grass. The ducklings in the river. The mushroom by a rock. The rock itself. I know the difference between a stalagmite and a stalactite. A fern and a shrub. Wheat and grain. I could go on forever..

Ya, the kind of thing I do..

2) Technology

Never will I forget that Cu (copper) and Sn (tin) make bronze. Ever. Or that Fe (iron) and carbon (coal) make steel. Or that alloys with higher carbon (coal) content make sturdier metals. Or that impurities can exist in ores, and cause the iron bar you are smelting to fail. Imagine my delight when I came across these details in AP chemistry.

If you played Runescape, you know a thing or two about ore mining, bar smelting, spear fishing, gem cutting, leather tanning, flour milling, dairy churning, and possibly to your expense, scamming (not a technology, but ya).

3) Just.. things

What does it mean to "blow a raspberry"? What is a kebab? What are runes anyway? And of course there is plenty of nonsense logic as well.

And the things I may have encountered too soon for my age..

And the music. Although the MIDI is awful, the composition is very something. The modality really brings out the European medieval setting. It is nice to hear something else for a change that is not Ionian or Aeolian. I recognize some Lydian, Dorian, and Phrygian..

Just things.

I had gleaned all I could from the game. There is nothing more for me in that bubble. Headed back to reality ever since and called it an experience. 10,051,749 XP to be precise.

Really feeling this way (in real life) throughout high school life and towards university:

Maybe that is the most important thing I learned from Runescape. Got to embrace every waking moment. That XP is going to make a difference. So get out of that virtual world and get some real life XP.. and become some real life skill master. Unless you want to stay a noob.