I understand we have talked about this before; but i wanted to refresh the idea because simply put: why haven't we achieved something like this? i think we have the resources and if we collaborated well enough i believe this could be a very real thing.

I talked about this idea in the chat with Cosmictaylor and whomever else was listening. I understand that the nexus isn't for selling products; but if you give me a moment to describe why i think this is actually a good idea i think you'll see that it could work. at the same time; i'm very very open to criticism and debate as well as any input from any member

I have always wanted to be a video game designer. throughout childhood i would think and fantasize about designing a creative project like video games. i would dream of being the lead designer who would ensure everything is organized and that i would have an influential process in the scheme of video game design. i dreamed of working for companies like Blizzard, Bethesda, Double Fine, or even making my own company.

and i realize that you really don't need a big-scale company to create something like a videogame. many people are doing indie video games completely on their own! but instead; my vision for the nexus's first video game would be a very informational video game on drug experiences.

this would mostly require accurately portraying what a drug's effects are like; meaning alot of research would be involved. we also need to make it realistic too; but i wonder what creative things we could implement to make it feel or at least portray what your Character is going through while using a certain drug.

i was thinking we could involve psychedelics, phenethylamines, Opiates, and stimulants. it could involve accurate experiences of these drugs; such as an accurate portrayal of addiction and such.

we would also have to virtually make it like the sims in some ways; because drug use also involves daily activities. we would also have to make communicating with NPC's very complex and make it feel like you're talking to a real person. we would need to program personalities, psychologies, and various factors.

http://ocw.mit.edu/cours...all-2013/audio-lectures/

if you just lack the information and want to get into this project for raising money for nexus, Erowid, Bluelight, and MAPS (my idea for where the funding will go!) then you can follow this link and do some research on how to create videogames.

i was thinking we should take our time in designing this game; because drug use is a complex concept that takes alot of understanding and by no means do i believe the nexus would promote misinformation.

i hope that this idea is considered; i think it would make a break through for funding and educate the public through a more interactive medium on drug use.

thoughts, insights, Constructive Criticism, etc?

I think that the general public isn't ready for something like that. I think it would inevitably end up in the wrong hands, with mom's and dad's screaming their child knows how to take drugs, manufacture drugs, sell drugs etc, in return bringing negative attention to the nexus and setting us back several years in promoting entheogenic use.

Now if it was only something that stayed on the nexus then I wouldn't see any harm in it. Interesting concept though. Just my opinion.

I don't play video games so what do I know.

Doesn't look like it went any further than talk

Nope. Something I predicted early-on when they were discussing the idea. Sounds great and all but the time and effort involved in a project like this is tremendous. Complex video games don't just spring into existence -- it takes time (a TON of it) and money.

hmmm... what if we got help from bluelight? they have a section devoted to sports and gaming and maybe there's some people willing to help.

also i was thinking this wouldn't be a kids game what so ever. but my vision of it would be that the storyline would deal with harm reduction and responsible use. the aim of the game would be to explore different drugs which simulations of their effects would be based off of trip reports and personal experience.

set and setting should heavily influence the simulation of the drug experience.

on the money thing; i can see that as a major road block. but i wouldn't say that there aren't people who wouldn't invest a good deal of hours into this creation. so i think that raising funds would be the best way to create a tripping themed game.

also i might just post in the community project when i get promoted to full membership and gain access to other parts of the site.

Would you play a videogame of watching the sunrise? What about discovering/listening to beautiful music? Walking through the woods with no purpose? Having sex?

For me, psychedelics (and drugs in general) are beautiful because they are directly encountered subjective experiences that encompass, transcend, and inspire so much of the mental/emotional facets of what it is to be human. Personally, I don't find the facsimile appealing precisely because it can't (with present technological limits) actually replicate the experience.

As far as education, harm reduction, and funding; there are so many other routes that would go so much further on a fraction of the budget. If that's really your aim with this, why not explore some avenues that lend themselves more directly to that? For example, you could print and distribute the Open Hyperspace Traveler. I bet most people you encounter have never seen anything like it and all it would take is access to printing (and binding, if you wanted to make it "fancy") facilities and some cash. The amount of easily-referenced and comprehensive information in there likely exceeds anything that a game could provide, especially when indexing/referencing is taken into account

And finally, from what I can gather from your post, you don't actually make games/write code, do you? If I'm misunderstanding, my sincere apologies. I bring this up because, having worked on a number of collaborative projects, I feel confident in stating that you have to be more than an "idea man" to make something like this happen. People with the skill-sets that you are looking for are likely busy with their own projects/interests and what you are proposing takes time and money. If you aren't capable of shouldering much of the load (for at least the initial leg of this, and quite possibly beyond) and demonstrating skills/capabilities to prospective teammates, you will likely have a hard time getting something like this off the ground.

actually i think you do make a good point... but i just want to collaborate with someone and make something for fun to be honest; and if i can profit from it then maybe i can simply use those profits to benefit something like erowid or maps or something.

honestly it's more about the hard work of creating a good video game that i crave and that was why i posted about it. i think it would be a cool community project if people would participate and such.

also i think i will when i go to college; i'll need paper and ink and a printer lol but i'll get those when i can get money. but i want to do that and some of maps manuals as well; pass them out at parties, raves, and to random strangers.

Everything Snozz just said plus one additional point:

If I had a few dollars to toss at a project (and a video game will cost much more than a few thousand) it would be to support something like the Zendo Project, the eZine, or the DMT-Nexus hosting and maintenance costs. To me a video game would be nothing more than a money pit with a very little cost/benefit ratio. Of course if someone takes this upon themselves the Nexus could help with art and ideas and such, but to me monies could be directed toward much more useful and beneficial projects.

i think it would actually be a cool idea to make something just for the nexus.