Switches, Karts, Birthdays, Capitalist Realism, Work-Life Balance and being a bit (a month or two) late with this calibration.
Last game you played? Mario Kart: World. Is it just another Mario Kart? Yes. Is it a revolutionary Mario Kart where you can race with 24 players and through an open world with stellar new courses and smooth graphics? Most certainly, yes!
What activity that most others see as a task or chore, is something that you actually enjoy? In my household? Walking the dog!
Quote from a reading you’d recommend? “It’s easier to imagine the end of the world than the
end of capitalism.” It’s not so much this overused quote that I would recommend as the actual reading of Capitalist Realism by Mark Fisher. I was quite late to the party myself with reading this book and it is, let’s call it, interesting how even in the dire situation that Fisher describes we manage to have wurmed ourselves even deeper in this mess. It’s not just that we are stuck in capitalism, but that it gets us stuck in all sorts of other nasty ways of the past.
What’s something you’ve done, written, or helped create that you’re proud of? This is still such a good question, because it can take you to places of gratitude. At the end of another increasingly demanding academic year for everyone, I am quite proud of managing to keep a healthy-ish work-rest of life balance.
What game has some stellar/your favourite voice-acting Disco Elysium. Tough to say it is my favorite, because there are so many absolute stars working in voice-acting, but every performance of every voice by this smallish group of actors is delightful.
What gadget would you like to try or already have and can recommend? The Switch 2, still! With this I mean a gadget in the narrow sense of the word: it is something you definetely do not need in your life, even if you do need games and even games consoles in your life. Then again it is still something that will not disappoint when you bring it into your home. While less magical than the original Switch, Wii or original gray box, it is bringing a lot of improvements and keeping the spirit of the original Nintendo seal of quality high.
What is the best thing about spring? All the birthdays, including my own!
What’s something you used to be good at but can’t do now? Just while the day away. Mind you I would still be an ace at it, I think, but it is so rare I get to do that now that even the whiling away feels like it is its own thing.
What question should be swapped out for another?
Whoops, I didn’t get to answer this as I was a bit late with this post (see work-life balance and birthday answers above for explanations.)
From ancient boardgames to the hopeful future of fun, Angus Mol has been blending past and play since at least 10,000 BCE. A completely healthy childhood fervour for Nintendo and, later, PlayStation and PC gaming was discontinued in favour of a career in Caribbean archaeology, a decision that still left plenty of need for game-based escapism. Some entanglement studies at Stanford and a stint at the Prince Claus Fund for development and culture later, Angus has found his way to play as a co-founder of the VALUE foundation, director of the LUCDH, and as the Principal Investigator of PlayTime where he combines heritage and game studies with Digital Humanities tools — talk about lucking out in the long game.
