A Betrayal of Pride: Why this game?

I have played better games of NP, more fun, more betrayal, more fighting. For example during one game I befriended another player who was falling quickly behind. I helped them expand and become a potential threat to the other players and together we agreed we would go for a joint victory, with me winning and her coming second. It came down to the wire with us co-ordinating our attacks so that she had just enough systems to steal second place. Our opposition were fantastic, sticking it out to the very end, even though it was obvious I was going to win! They fought us every step of the way, and eventually just outwitted us. My ally missed out on second place by one hour. Our opponent had recognised what we were trying to do and sneakily sent a counter attack at my rear systems, timing it just right. It was a fantastic game and one of the best I have played.

The future really is Orange...

So why did I choose to talk about this game instead? Well… for a few reasons.

Firstly it was the game I took screenshots of and the one I spent recording what had happened throughout the course of the game (I just picked a random game to write about and hoped it was good). However, even if I had had the foresight to have written about a few Neptune’s Pride games just in case, I still would have chosen this one to write about. It really did make me feel a strong sense of guilt and I genuinely lost sleep over some of my actions.

As a gamer I have killed thousands in countless wars, laid waste to whole planets with merciless invasions, raised entire cities with a couple of clicks. Never have I felt this kind of guilt before in any game. I thought maybe it was because a real person was reading my duplicitous messages and falling victim to my scheming. But I have played games of Civ online where I have betrayed allies and felt no remorse at all. I think the reason it is so powerful is the amount of time you invest into each game of Neptune’s Pride. They last weeks and it all moves very slowly, yet you still find yourself logging on every hour to see what is happening. You become so invested that you set your alarm to wake you when the galactic cycle ends and you receive your income. It really grips your life, or at least it did for me, and that makes it powerfully emotive. When I was betrayed in a game I played in the original it was devastating to be attacked by someone I trusted implicitly (based on nothing more than a few hastily typed messages). Thinking about that previous game made me unable to carry through my own betrayal. It reminded me of how bad I felt when I logged onto the game to find five of my systems had been attacked.

Having said all that, I love feeling this way. It is why I read so extensively. I want these experiences, more than just a soulless gallery shoot with little meaning. And Neptune’s Pride is definitely an experience.

Thank you for reading this series, I hope you enjoyed it!

Play Neptune's Pride 2 at: http://triton.ironhelmet.com