My slow, satisfying descent into console gaming, and why I believe gaming cannot evolve further

I've just upgraded my dusty PS3 to the fancier PS4, complete with aftermarket expanded hard drive. It'll never break, and I'm convinced the 2 terabytes will cover all my storage needs until I sell it or die. My faith is strong.

I also upgraded my controller to the new Atlas C40. Having the ability to move my D-pad at the behest of my slightest whim was too enticing, so I caved. It's not a miraculous revelation, but I wouldn't really have any way of knowing that either. But I like it. It's cool. It feels good. It'll cover any unknowable perks that will give me an extra, if as yet unforeseen, edge over the competition. My faith is strong.

Went ahead and grabbed 4 games to cover all my entertainment needs. Started with Dark Souls remastered. Then migrated over to Overwatch (for the fps itch). Then I got Injustice 2 for the quick skirmish and the online tournaments. Finally I gave No Man's Sky a go. The latter will be what the majority of this post is about.

For starters, all of the games are gorgeous on my modest 40" Vizio LED display. Injustice probably most of all. Overwatch has that slick quality to it as well. Dark Souls is simply stunning, mesmerizing, although not a small portion of that is due to the games atmospherics (the world is oppressively thick with atmospheric character), and the updated visuals only help to amplify that. No Man's Sky is probably the least impressive visually, but it has consumed me.

I haven't played a game more avidly since I was a kid. Hours are absorbed to my joy and equally but less importantly my detriment. The games greatest achievement is the pace and tempo that creates this time warp phenomenon. It is very similar to Minecraft, but with more polish and an emphasis on sensory immersion in its universe. Performing simple tasks to complete larger projects quickly add up and time dissolves while you're mining and crafting and exploring for that next upgrade or improvement. It's an endless feedback loop of work and reward, and the work is sumptuous, savory stuff.

Admittedly this game will not appeal to everyone. It's very solitary even with the online multiplayer. Occupying a literal universe, even if every person alive on Earth today were an active player, it would still be virtually impossible to randomly encounter others. There are ways to coordinate and plan encounters, but it has to be intentional. I find that to add to the experience and beauty of the game, but I am one kind.

Underneath the simply defined physical realism of the universe are a few tried and true, more simple gameplay mechanics that I've already mentioned. It's an interstellar exoskeleton built on a fluid system of logic that operates in every aspect of every life: the reward system.

No Man's Sky appeals to the human reward system in the most essential and pure way a videogame can. It does this more effectively by scaling the progression perfectly as it relates to something as ludicrous as an entire universe on a computer program. As you play, your domain expands and so does your reach. The longer you play, the bigger and more powerful you become.

While the developers could not have been conscious of this effect, the setting amplifies it. So by mere coincidence, a sci-fi game slightly lifts the veil of the human experience and all of its interrelated drives, but not profoundly enough for it to be a statement about it either positive or negative. It's a laboratory for it. That's what any interactive fantasy seeks to create, and No Man's Sky is the best I've experienced.

I don't consider it modest, but my new set up is incredibly satisfying. My headphones should be delivered today, completing my outfit for total immersion in this other world within a world. I'm quite empowered by the notion of it. There's a sense of lasting tranquillity with an absence of any threats to that peace.

My purpose here is to say that I'm settling down, literally in an infinite number of ways. Life is but a game, and the game is life. Both games. All of the games. Everything. My journey has come to a close now, because it has begun. In this evermore constant world of conquest and appetite, I have become the peaceful player. My victory is secured by the fact that I will not sacrifice more than is necessary of my peace in this process. It is all that I have and all that I have ever truly desired.

I don't know if you should pick up the sticks. I can't exactly recommend to anyone any game other than the one that currently commands your attention. But I can say this: If you go, you will eventually arrive, but if you stay, you will get there just as fast.

Find some happiness today my friends. My heart goes out to you. One way or another, you can find me in the sky.