By: Carmine Fusaro
Everyone is taking precautions by staying indoors because of COVID-19, and when it is necessary to leave the house we wear protective masks, unlike the avatars in Animal Crossing. What is everybody doing while being Quarantined? One of the few activities to pass time is to play games. One example is Animal Crossing, a huge success before COVID-19 came along and gamers can play freely and relieve stress of being in the house for more than 2 days. COVID-19 has everyone worried, but playing in a virtual world is good to take your mind off what’s happening in the real world.
While the virus is slowly decreasing, hours of gaming have not. An avid player, Nadia Jean-Felix, plays a game called Animal Crossing. It (Animal Crossing) takes her mind off being stressed out by staying in the house, and her online courses are not helping making this transition any easier because the classes aren’t suited for an online platform. But her avatar keeps her smiling with the happy background music to push forward. YouTube can help by providing music for students to work on homework and she’s excited to play the next horizon with all the villagers giving her confidence.
Social distancing is the best way to stay safe from the virus, but contacting via gaming has a loophole. If you can’t socialize in person, Animal Crossing has a multiplayer option to add other gamers, so they can socialize through their gaming systems and play with up to 8 players. That’s more than enough for those who wanted to talk with their friends without leaving their comfort zone. Hope and patience can conquer the virus, and washing hands is an absolute must. With more avatars taking place in the gaming world a safe space is being created where everyone can enjoy the outdoors and adventures with their (virtual) friends.
