Realest Simulation Ever

November 3rd, 2156

Dear diary,

Handwriting and journaling are two of my favorites among all the archaic activities that I have seen humans practicing, since I landed on their planet in 2024.

It’s pretty cool and seems to calm them down, so I'm doing the same in this little notebook, made of real paper, that I found in random a desk drawer (although finding paper is a tricky thing these days, since paper no longer grows in trees here…)

The lack of paper not necessarily because they don't want to cut off their trees, but because there aren't that many trees left to cut.

You see, they kinda screwed the game up a little bit…

November 4th, 2156

Dear diary

On this planet, in order to go outside, I need heavy equipment and it takes a little while to put it all on. The quality of the air is hazardous and the weather is unbearable – my body was not made for this planet, but humans’ bodies were, and they can’t tolerate being outside without protection either.

I keep forgetting that a paper journal is not like the super computers we have back home; so it doesn’t already know everything about my life before I started writing on it… Let me tell you a Big Fact: I was sent here to test a new feature of the live game that we’ve all been dying to get on my planet; it’s called Realest Simulation Ever - Limited Edition.

No one has ever been able to interact with the game characters - let alone physically! It’s been interesting to say the least.

November 7th, 2156

Dear Diary,

I live just like them. And I pretend like I'm playing the game, just like them.

I have a job, a car and a TV. I buy groceries, which I store and then throw away - because I don't need to eat, I recharge by sunbathing. I live in a city in the United States called Austin, in the state of Texas, where sunlight is abundant.

Oh, I don’t age either. There are few humans who manage not to age either... What are their names? Jennifer Aniston and Avril Lavigne. They're still alive, someone is cheating the gaaame...

For visuals I look just like that guy, Howard, from one of those human shows: The Big Bang Theory. It’s convenient to go try and build rockets with them when I look like this. Yes, I wear the turtlenecks, too.

I have to keep telling people I have sensory issues, so they won't touch me. I understand they're biologically designed to touch each other. I don't understand why they like it. It's uncomfortable. Some of them do not smell good, some are sweaty, and some will never let go.

November 20th, 2157

Dear diary,

Oops! It’s been over a year since I have written here. There’s something about this atmosphere that makes me incapable of acquiring new habits! Back home I could just program a desirable habit on my computer and I was all set - unfortunately that computer doesn’t support this damn old wireless technology they’re using here.

Some more facts about the game: the simulation has billions of micro rules (which can be added by the characters as well) and possible interferences.

In order for the game to be playable, the characters must never be able to prove they’re in a game or simulation – some of them might know, but can never find evidence.

Our job as players is basically to let them go around doing their own thing, and keeping them from going too far. We have hundreds of ways to do that: but we can only use whatever they already know and have, nothing can come out of nowhere - one or several of them have to make it happen.

We, the players, need to help them get more and more abilities, so the game can evolve.

I know, it’s paradoxical: we have to make them smarter for the game to be interesting, but they must not cross the knowledge threshold of “reality” – that would break the game.

We also cannot interfere with their free will. They have this thing called a personality - which is like an algorithm that shapes their behavior - but it’s not very stable and accuracy of analysis is usually unreliable.

I have just been really busy trying to help these humans to find another planet to live on, that’s why I haven't written on here for a year. We’re building some rockets together! You know me, I can't quit a game, I’ll just bring it somewhere else.

November 24th, 2157

Dear diary,

If you ask me what I like the most about this game is how humans find reasons to be grateful, even in a shitshow like this, right now. The planet is falling apart, their resources are almost all gone and half of the population has been wiped off the map, and they were just sharing a meal and finding things they were thankful for. I never believed that was possible until I saw it with my own eyes.

The game’s current environment is quite inhospitable; which is why I’m trying to move it to a different set up. And still, one of them just said he was grateful he found his friends and now belongs to a new family - they don’t even know if they’ll make it out of here, since they no longer have as many resources to build newer and better technology... But that speech was really special to watch.

Oh, pardon! Here’s another important fact: they don’t know I’m not one of them. They call me an alien - as a joke, but just because they think I “speak funny” and behave oddly, but they love that about me, so the game will be fine.

December 24th, 2157

Dear diary,

It’s still surprising to me that humans still find reasons to celebrate and be together; even though they’re going through the worst of all times and are on the verge of collapsing, once and for all.

Some of them celebrate a holiday called Christmas, which comes from one of their longest lasting activities, called religion – which is extremely fascinating, if you ask me.

Other people, who don’t practice any religion, still get together and give each other gifts. Someone started crying after being gifted a gold heart-shaped locket with a tiny picture inside. She said something about a sister she lost. But she was crying so much, I didn't understand the whole story.

You see, back home we don’t have emotions, so even though we play the game a lot, we still don’t really know how they feel.

How come they looked at a picture, feel things inside their head and then leak through their eyeballs? It's odd. But this time, I started to feel a tingle on my nostrils. I think I was going to cry with the girl. Maybe emotions are contagious...

December 25th, 2157

Dear diary,

It’s my last week on Planet Earth. We’re launching a rocket with the first passengers to a great planet that we’ve found overnight!

You could say it was a Christmas miracle!

My time here is over, since I need to go home to report on this version of the game.

They also want me to bring back coordinates for the game’s new location, so other players can experiment with this new kind of simulation, which is exciting.

I found this abandoned warehouse the other day, loaded with paper notebooks, and I will probably come back for them soon. Journaling turned out to be fun, and back home I can actually create that habit…

I might or might not miss these weird creatures, who took me in for an adventure of another world!

What game should I play next?