Chapter Nine

CAOD and Faith in Humanity, Among Other Things

For the first - though I don't know if it'll be the last - time, I'd like to extrapolate my way out of EVE, and into that mystical realm of the metagame.

In short, I just finished reading the progression of the War Analysis series, the three entries of which can be found here, here and here. They are authored by the anonymous "WhatIsItGoodFor," sole member of the entirely too suitable corporation Absolutely Nothin [HUNH]. Take a moment to read them now, and then come back, where - in true metagamer fashion - we'll make a nice cup of tea, settle back into the enveloping armature of a plush chair, and theorize profusely.

As I read through each part, I realized first this was one of my favorite essays I'd ever read. Despite the eccentric architecture - in my mostly uninformed opinion, it would need a bit more thetical exposition and substantial restructuring to constitute a full-body text - the striated parts and vaguely chronological progression serve it well. At first I thought perhaps it was simply because it dealt intellectually with the complexity of something near and dear to me, but then I realized I was not enjoying this writing because of its insights or theories; rather, it appealed to me because it made all the situations, theory, speculation, and supporting evidence seem so [i]real[/i]. I felt connected to the war that influences - perhaps to the point of domination - so many aspects of the game we all play, regardless of how directly involved we are with the war itself.

I was brought face to face with the game about the game I had so often turned a blind eye to. This was the metagame. This essay I was reading was the metagame. What I am writing now is metagaming. It is part of the game, with strategies and personalities all its own.

This brought me to a thought. What if, as the essay implies, the RSF and the GBC are the hardiest congolmerations to ever form? What if, in addition to this, both are content with their current tit-for-tat approach to territorial warfare? Moreover, what if both are content with waging less than total war - working instead through proxies.

What if this war perpetuates? What if it never ends?

Only in a virtual context could I say I would be happy.