01-31-2017, 07:05 AM
I get you and agree with you up to a point, but there's a lot of strong edge cases that pop up because of the broad definitions of emulation and 'impossible in real life'. What you're classifying as pivotal for games is a matter of fine degrees. A ton of games are devoted to reproducing the most mundane aspects of life as realistically as possible, and besides that, the borders between emulation via game and emulation via other mediums are very thin. Playing as Geralt and reading the witcher share a bunch of similarities. In both cases you're supposed to be identifying with him and experiencing his story and world, including their impossibilities. What I'm arguing is that the way that interaction is framed through mechanics carries more significance than the mere fact you're emulating a universe with different rules.