Have you ever felt as if UC Berkeley is just like a massive, real-life role-playing game? It might as well be — we put on our personas as we step outside each day, complete a set of quests, and interact with other players. Oftentimes, we wish we could press pause and go back to those times in childhood when we could sit and play at our computers for 28 hours straight. Here are some actual computer games that can cater to both your early-2000s nostalgia and UC Berkeley-style quirks.
“The Sims”
While “The Sims” can be applicable to general life, it’s just strange that it fits UC Berkeley like a glove. Housing is chaotic and expensive, people always casually walk in when you’re “woohoo”-ing, and there’s always a pixelated censor sign when you step out of the shower! Don’t worry — we haven’t forgotten to include the incapacitating rage that occurs when you burn your mac and cheese during dead week.
“Silent Hill”
Sometimes it feels like UC Berkeley is straight out of a horror game. There’s often fog everywhere and there are run-down buildings that perfectly capture that spooky feel. The “Silent Hill” video game follows a man who needs to navigate around a cult in a town to find his daughter. It can be likened to UC Berkeley students navigating our maze of a campus, trying to avoid the cults on Sproul. Instead of finding their children, students search for that long-lost 4.0 GPA. Sound familiar?
“Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3”
This one’s for all you skaters and bike riders out there. The struggles of weaving through people as you zoom past Wheeler or Barrows halls while simultaneously trying to gain combo points by doing some sort of trick is precisely summed up in Tony Hawk’s game. And if you’re not a skater, you can always watch someone on Sproul attempting to pop a wheelie or do a flip on their skateboard. Spectator mode!
“FooPets”
This game is mostly relatable to those students who spend solid chunks of their days between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. making multiple stops at De-stress with Dogs. It also applies to students who own dogs at home or students who stop to pet a dog each time one passes them. In this game, you own a virtual pet and basically drop tons of dough to pamper it. Let’s just say it’s very time-consuming and extremely realistic.
“Campus Quest”
This Australian-made game isn’t old, but it’s literally a simulation of a college campus, so we put it in for a good time. You can do fun things such as play drinking games or go to lecture — you choose your own destiny, all with the tap of a button. You also have the option of interacting with characters on campus and clicking on different predetermined responses that cater to your mood at the moment, such as being kind and friendly, snarky, or dead inside. The game claims, however, that “having too much fun can make your studies suffer!” Brownie points to the developers for making their main gate look like Sather Gate.
Though we occasionally gain some money and experience points, UC Berkeley isn’t quite the game you’re looking for, or one at all — though it depends on whom you ask. If you want to take a break from the game of life, check out a few of these online games that’ll bring you right back to that rosy UC Berkeley life. Some have been discontinued, but there are still slivers of your childhood left!
