A week from today marks the day I first played Sky.
My brother told me a new TGC game had released a while ago and, since I didn’t have a compatible device, I wasn’t able to play until I got a new phone. My birthday rolled around, and I finally got a phone. Sky is the first and only game I got. My brother and I loved Journey, Abzü (not TGC but you still get it), and other TGC games… so it was a big deal for the both of us. We weren’t too big on the idea of it being mobile at the time, of course this was before it released on the switch, but I had pretty good first impressions of the game.
Initially, I wasn’t too sure about the expanded online features. I was expecting something more solo, but as I got to talk to someone for the first time, I realized I would probably be playing this game for a while. Everything was just magical; krill terrified me, I loved the Season of Enchantment, and my first favorite area was the Valley of Triumph.
I met a few people. All of whom I haven’t seen since I first played the game. One of my friends that I played a lot with began to be off with his other friends that he met, we didn’t get to talk much… then one day, he was gone. He wasn’t online anymore, and I haven’t seen him since. It’s like he deleted the game. But here’s the point of this post. Throughout this game, and the time I’ve been playing it, I’ve met a lot of people who are important to me. Sure, candle runs get old and seasons aren’t quite what they used to be, but friendships are what keep me from quitting. Some have quit, or just stopped playing for a while, and I hope to see them again, but they had a big impact on my life.
I’ve been… fighting severe depression lately. When depression is brought up, one might think of someone who has lost it and is in a state of quarrel with their own mind. While this may be the case for some, my experience was variable. It was “on and off”. It’s always been like that for me, especially around this time of year. I think it could be like that for a lot of people. But now, it’s worse than it’s ever been and that “on and off” aspect is gone… now it’s constant dread.
It’s my first year of high school (my first job I might add), and even though I’m doing well enough to make my parents happy, it feels like I need to please everyone. At other times, I feel people around me are smarter than I am. I just can’t seem to enjoy the things I used to. Sure, it will go away, and since it’s school related, I’ll know when, but every day it just gets worse and worse, and the busy months seem to overflow with projects and assignments. I’m not learning anymore, it’s just all vacant noise that makes a student in 2022 lose his or her mind.
But Sky… well, it’s pretty much always been there for me.
You see, recently I’ve been talking to more people than ever before. To be honest I’ve never really been that popular in sky. A lot of people that started later than me seem to be in these large friendship groups with group chats. And yes, I’ve been in friendship groups before, but finally there is a plethora of people who I get excited to see every day. I guess this game is my way to escape. And to meet people that aren’t weirded out by my problems- it feels amazing. Yes, I have been lonely and bored with this game, but it truly is a blessing to have such familiarity with people across the world. I cannot put into words how much this online game has been keeping me sane this whole time. The developers have created the kindest fanbase I’ve ever seen. Never fail TGC!
I hope everyone is holding up. For those of you who have seasonal depression like me, hang in there, no matter how bad it may seem, it won’t last forever. The biggest “Thank You” to TGC for leading me to meet people in the best way possible, and for creating this beautiful game. Let’s hope I don’t lose my mind with everything that’s being thrown at me! Here’s to many more years of Sky!
