Last week, I wrote about how my dear kittens were curious about the world outside after our move and likened it to taking the first steps in an epic and mysterious new video game world. This week, I’m going to talk about the first steps of said adventure.
So we decided on Friday evening that it was time to give them a little freedom, and let them explore a little bit while the neighborhood had quietened down from the slow bustle of the day. Their first steps were cautious, and we took them back inside before long.
On Sunday, we gave them a bit more of a free reign. It was hot, so we wanted to just chill on the couch with all the doors open. They were well behaved for the most part, occasionally getting a little too curious about wandering out into the street but nothing unmanageable.
Today was a little different. They were much more confident, and before long the more athletic of them was perched atop the neighbors wall. The smaller yet more inquisitive one needed to jump on one of the cars to get up there, but followed nonetheless. Naturally, they were curious about what lay beyond the wall and by the time I got close enough to try coax them down, they were over the wall in the neighbors garden.
There are a few problems here. One is that I don’t know those neighbors yet, and they may not particularly want these fluffy little devils exploring their property. Secondly, distracted by all the new things to smell and play with they weren’t particularly interested in coming back right away. Finally, the little follower cat has the unfortunate combination of being far more inquisitive and less athletically gifted than her brother, and was more interested in exploring than anything else so even after the little boy finally came back over, she continued to stray further and further into the neighbors yard.
She eventually found her way back onto the wall, but wasn’t exactly willing to come down so I scooped her up. As I was about to take her into the house, a loud sound spooked her and I ended up with a few deep scratches, at least one of which will probably be a scar at some point. She’s sleeping next to me right now, so I think that was enough excitement for one day.
This whole experience reminds me of those times in video games where as a new player, you start gaining confidence and pushing some boundaries only to, say, have your ass handed to you by a giant in Skyrim. I am using this example specifically because I distinctly remember doing this and being ragdolled up into the sky with one hit from a giant, it was hilarious but also I didn’t try it again for a few levels.
Another good example of this is from League of Legends. I mostly played solo queue casually and had gotten quite decent using Kindred as both a jungler and a midlaner, but when it came to competitive play the meta just was not in my favor and I was countered hard each time I tried this.
Sometimes you’ll even become overconfident in your abilities like I did with Kindred and take on a boss that you just aren’t strong enough and/or skilled enough to best. I’ve done this more times than I can count! That said, sometimes with beginner’s luck you might somehow
Video games are at their best when that sense of wonder turns from cautious into curious. Unlike in the case of my cats, the only real risk here is maybe losing some progress.
With that, I will segue into this week’s questions –
- Tell me about a time you were overconfident?
- A time your overconfidence paid off?
- What are you playing this week?
- As always, feel free to Talk Amongst Yourselves!
Get involved!
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