At the end of October, the Pokemon Company released a new mobile game called Pokemon TCG Pocket. For fellow nerds such as myself, this game is very fun to play since it incorporates the collecting and battling portions of the TCG (trading card game), but in a more condensed and fast paced version. My favorite part of the game is battling because I love the thrill of trying to predict and counter my opponent, so for my analog experiment I chose to play a full game of the TCG with a few of my friends. 

Almost immediately after making the plan, I got hit with obstacles. First, a real TCG deck consists of 60 cards while a deck in the mobile game consists of 20. Although I have a lot of physical cards, it was very difficult to build a cohesive deck. For example, I knew I wanted to build a deck around Charizard (my favorite Pokemon), but I didn’t have enough copies of Charmander or Charmeleon to fit the mold of a deck. In the mobile game, I could have easily traded in some “pack points” for the cards I needed, but in the real world, I would have had to buy the cards as singles online. The second big issue I had was that I didn’t know the rules for a full-length battle (and neither did my friends). In the game, battles are designed so that they are between 5-10 minutes on average. If you have a question about what is happening or what you can do during your turn, the game will let you know. When we were battling with physical cards, we had to constantly open Google to figure out certain rules and technicalities. 

Although it was a pain to set up and actually play, it was far more enjoyable than the mobile game for two big reasons. The first one being that I could actually put a face to my opponent and interact with him. Any actions or reactions during a turn were not confined to the limitations of my thoughts, but could be expressed with words and actions. For example, my friend “paralyzed” my Pokemon for 3 consecutive turns so I cursed him out. Obviously, it wasn’t a personal or aggressive remark, but simply a reaction that we could laugh over as friends. If I were to have a similar reaction while playing the mobile game, people would think that I’m out of my mind. 

The second reason the game was more enjoyable to play physically was because I could have a conversation with the people/person I’m hanging out with. Since we only used our phones to check the rules, the only way we could distract ourselves and lower the tension of the battle was by having a conversation. There was no pressure from the in-game timer or voices in my head debating what my next move to be. These things were instead replaced by nostalgia and laughter. The flow of the battle was natural, and I think the personalities of each of us were apparent in our method of playing. I was more defensive and analytical, my friend (Michael) was more focused on playing the offensive, while my other friend (Kevin) was just playing for the vibe. The first match we played was between Michael and I, and it lasted 47 minutes with the final score being 6 – 4, where I had 6. The second battle was between Kevin and I, and it lasted 23 minutes with the final score being 6 – 2, where I had 6. The third battle was between Kevin and Michael, and it ended after 52 minutes of gameplay with the final score being 6 -5 in favor of Michael. The final battle was between Michael and I, and it lasted 72 minutes with the final score being 6 – 4 (again) in my favor.

Conducting this experiment was definitely enjoyable and had its pros and cons. However, I learned and realized a few things while playing. The first is my reliance on digital technology. Although a mobile battle is different from a physical battle, there is a lot of overlap. Despite the mobile game being the app I currently use the most, I could only remember a thing or two about the rules of battle. I realized that the only reason I know how to play the game is because the game corrects me if I’m wrong. While writing this blog, I noticed a similar trend. Although I know how to spell and write sentences, I rely heavily on autocorrect and the red/blue squiggle to pick up my slack. Another thing I noticed is I get easily distracted when I do anything on a screen. When I play the mobile game, I tend to hop in and out of different apps (such as Instagram) in between battles. While doing work on my laptop, I have the habit of Googling any random thought that comes to my mind. During the analog battle, there was no temptation to get up and do something else. Rather, my senses/mind were too busy processing and responding to what was happening in real time. 

In class, we discussed how objects can become an extension of our minds. Throughout this experiment, I realized that digital technology has become an extension of me. I personally like to be in complete control of everything that I can control, so this realization spooked me out a bit, but then I realized that this extension is only ever useful if I make it useful. I find this thought interesting, and I plan on exploring it further.