A Game Designer’s Analysis Of QAnon
Playing with reality
I gotta insert my gratuitous Derren Brown example, of course.
In this episode of Trick or Treat, he explains in detail and clearly demonstrates just how easily and often we humans take whatever random events, objects, or ideas from our environment, create a meaningful connection, and then cling to that connection and look for further evidence of it, all because it was suggested to us first that there might be a meaningful connection there. (Watch the vid! It's awesome. Even if you're familiar with the subject, it will deepen your understanding while entertaining you.)
Much like a cold reading "psychic" drops the guesses that are not working and moves quickly to something else, and the person being read, if not a skeptic, also drops the mis-guess, eager to find the meaningful connections. Only with QAnon, they're all essentially doing this to each other. What doesn't work falls away and no one cares that it didn't work, while the stuff that works goes on to become and element of the conspiracy narrative and the movement evolves.
"You don't need to believe me. You are too skeptical and smart for that. You're no blind follower! Do your own research and see the evidence for [conclusion] for yourself."
Individuals within the network are in fact doing stuff to influence the game and feed the story, but no one is doing it on purpose on the level of a conscious game master aware that it's all bullshit. Even the "game masters" who do most of the feeding are not likely outside of the game with a meta awareness that they are orchestrating people disingenuously. Those types do exist, but with a movement like QAnon, that meta aware master is not required. The players do it themselves.
Everyone involved in QAnon is collectively creating QAnon. I would even say that we who are not involved help play the game whenever we talk about QAnon, especially when we ridicule or contradict the beliefs. That's another form of "proof" that QAnon is "on the right track," etc. Everything that drives the game is just what people do, at least, what people do when critical thinking skills are not in play but suggestibility, fear, etc., are very much in play. It's entirely reactionary and illusory, even hallucinogenic in a way.
Very interesting analysis! These quotes don't do it justice. Read the whole thing.
Playing with reality
I gotta insert my gratuitous Derren Brown example, of course.
In this episode of Trick or Treat, he explains in detail and clearly demonstrates just how easily and often we humans take whatever random events, objects, or ideas from our environment, create a meaningful connection, and then cling to that connection and look for further evidence of it, all because it was suggested to us first that there might be a meaningful connection there. (Watch the vid! It's awesome. Even if you're familiar with the subject, it will deepen your understanding while entertaining you.)Much like a cold reading "psychic" drops the guesses that are not working and moves quickly to something else, and the person being read, if not a skeptic, also drops the mis-guess, eager to find the meaningful connections. Only with QAnon, they're all essentially doing this to each other. What doesn't work falls away and no one cares that it didn't work, while the stuff that works goes on to become and element of the conspiracy narrative and the movement evolves.
"You don't need to believe me. You are too skeptical and smart for that. You're no blind follower! Do your own research and see the evidence for [conclusion] for yourself."
Individuals within the network are in fact doing stuff to influence the game and feed the story, but no one is doing it on purpose on the level of a conscious game master aware that it's all bullshit. Even the "game masters" who do most of the feeding are not likely outside of the game with a meta awareness that they are orchestrating people disingenuously. Those types do exist, but with a movement like QAnon, that meta aware master is not required. The players do it themselves.
Everyone involved in QAnon is collectively creating QAnon. I would even say that we who are not involved help play the game whenever we talk about QAnon, especially when we ridicule or contradict the beliefs. That's another form of "proof" that QAnon is "on the right track," etc. Everything that drives the game is just what people do, at least, what people do when critical thinking skills are not in play but suggestibility, fear, etc., are very much in play. It's entirely reactionary and illusory, even hallucinogenic in a way.
Very interesting analysis! These quotes don't do it justice. Read the whole thing.
