Avatar

Yes, THAT Avatar. I am by no means a film critic, so I'll leave that up to more qualified persons. I just have some things I want to say.

First, I really did enjoy the movie. I had mild interest after seeing the trailers, but it was the Metacritic score that finally convinced me to go. The film took me by surprise; it exceeded my expectations. And yet, I didn't feel blown-away like some viewers (some that I know and some that I've read). And yet (again), I felt like I should have been blown away. It was a disturbing conundrum. Why wasn't my reaction as strong as it should have been? Why didn't the thrilling 3-D visuals leave me breathless? Why did this incredibly foreign, incredibly immersive world feel altogether too...familiar?

I blame World of Warcraft (WoW). Or more specifically, I blame massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs) in general. WoW is just the most recent game of my MMORPG career (including UO, EQ, DAoC, NWN, and more). For the benefit of my readers who are not familiar with these types of games, they provide a fully-immersive, detailed, persistent world for the gamer, complete with social interaction, progression, and economic systems. Click here for a more detailed explanation.

I want to be clear that I'm not simply making a visual comparison between Avatar and World of Warcraft, although that's striking as well. But the experience of MMORPGS is more impactful than the visuals. It's the experience (the immersion, the parallels to real life, etc.) that make the games so addictive and fun. All of Avatar's best aspects (the visuals, the otherworldliness, a captivating story, senses of progression and accomplishment, sexy natives) are present in World of Warcraft with one critical, pivotal difference: it's wholly interactive.

**SPOILER ALERT**
So instead of simply watching Jake fly his dragon-bird around the floating moutains, YOU can fly YOUR dragon bird around the floating mountains of Nagrand. Instead of watching one army fight another, you can participate in the battle. Instead of marvelling for nearly three hours at exotic flora and fauna, you can spend unlimited time trapsing through the jungles of Stranglethorn, the swamps of Zangarmarsh, or the mountains of the Storm Peaks. You can fish, bake, tinker, eat, drink, sleep, swim, run, fly, tame and ride animals, and so much more. And many, like Jake, have taken the ultimate step and decided to stay in MMORPGs forever, costing them jobs, family, and sometimes (Google "World of Wacraft suicide") even their lives.
**END OF SPOILERS**

To me, Avatar was a three-hour commercial for WoW. It was like a cinematic cut-scene before a new expansion. I admit that in the weeks since I saw the movie, my desire to reactivate my WoW account has grown substantially, but I'm managed to hold off so far. And it's not easy. So if you loved Avatar and want more, I recommend trying out an MMORPG. But if you value your time and family, well...maybe you should just watch more movies.

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If you thought this post was going to be about the message and politics of Avatar, please read this interesting article by David Brooks instead.