Greetings, friends in notgaming

[MichielvT]

Hi people, and welcome to my introduction.

I have been soulsearching a long time, and eventually found that notgames may be the thing I will spend my time on.
Not sure if I would call it notgames, but it doesn't matter how you name it, I reckon.

My name is Michiel van Tienhoven, born in 1989 in the Netherlands, in a hospital in Utrecht.
When I was 8 I already knew I wanted to do something with games, and like most people to be "the idea guy".

When I admitted at the HKU to study Game Art I first got rejected. I actually agreed with it as I wasn't ready yet.
The time after that I did get in, but not for Game Art. Instead they allowed me to do Gamedesign and Development.
After studying half a year I figured Game Art would still suit me better and they agreed to let me study Game Art after all.
I'm going to my second year now.

The whole thing about me is that I'm floating in the vague space between Art and Design.
That's why I try to avoid the word "Game". I consider myself to be a Experience Artist/Designer instead.
I'm interested in making people feel things, experience things and get closer to their emotions.
This is so very necessary in our Western society as we get detached from our feelings, emotions and our soul.
My goal is to make things that will help people grow self-esteem, chisel away fears and mental barriers so people can get closer to the person they should be. A free and autonomous individual.
As such I don't care much for labels like games or notgames, it's all about the idea and how to reach people succesfully, to pierce right through their world of illusions, and hit the core of their real selves.

I'm not yet certain how I will obtain these goals, but I believe I'm currently carrying out the right experiments to get closer.

[Michaël Samyn]

Welcome to the forum!

I'm not sure if I agree that people are detached from their emotions. I think Westerners have never been more emotional (or free). And it leads to stupidity and barbarism. An interesting lesson, for sure!

[MichielvT]

My personal view on this:
I think Westerners are not as free as they think they are. It's all because we are "civilized" which in my eyes means we oblige to many rules, social codes and more invisible chains. We think we have it better because we have more food, more money and more "comforts". However how free we are in our mind is not determined by these material factors, I'd rather say it made us believe more in our illusions, because we have it better, we must be right, right?
However Western society is one of excess, you have to look great, you have to make money, you have to got courage. If you don't fit in that picture, people will automatically start judging. Especially when it comes to the self. People are extremely hard on themselves, and they give in on their fears. They actually believe that they have to look great, make money, etc. to be a good person, otherwise they get depressed.
I found great inner peace by letting go these fears (for as much possible). And that's something I want to give to other people as well.