Where Do You Go When the World Is Too Loud?
When the world gets too loud, like, shouting-through-a-megaphone-while-juggling-taxes-and-identity-crises loud, I log off. Literally.
I go to video game land.
Fortnite
It’s not real, and that’s exactly the point. It’s where Fortnite lives. Zero Build, thank you very much, because I’m not here to be Bob the Builder under gunfire. I’m here to run, hide in bushes, throw things, and occasionally third-party with wild success. Nobody questions it. Nobody wants anything from me but vibes.
Nostalgic
When I’m not dodging snipers and emoting after a win, I’m deep in the nostalgia zone. Crash Bandicoot spins like my anxiety but with better music. Spyro the Dragon? Pure escapism. He flies. He breathes fire. He doesn’t get bills in the mail.
Then there’s Streets of Rage, where I get to beat people up and no one calls HR. Sonic shows up too, sprinting through levels and collecting rings like my ADHD on a mission. Even South Park somehow makes the cut, crude, loud, messy, and strangely cathartic. Like therapy, if therapy was animated and extremely inappropriate.
Escapism? Disassociation?
In these places, the rules make sense: survive, level up, don’t get hit. Nobody’s trying to small talk you into a breakdown. Nobody misgenders you. And definitely nobody is asking for your five-year plan.
I leave my name at the login screen and go by something slightly ridiculous and highly specific. I’m not escaping. I’m just buffering. Rebooting the system.
And when I come back? I’m still me, just a little less crispy. A little more ready to face whatever fresh nonsense the world has in store.
So yeah. That’s where I go when the world is too loud.
Where do you go?
Say it. Don’t spray it.