I think our definitions of purpose are different in this instance. What I take from the original post is not a purpose for the character but a conveyance of that purpose to the player. Destiny is not the game it was hyped up to be, that is true. I do not believe, however, that purpose is something that a purpose is something that can be given to someone from digital media. Regardless if the game where what it was marketed to be or not. Maybe I am taking the poster out of context, but re reading the post I don't think I am.

Also, if the game is done well, there is no difference between purpose for the character and purpose for the player. When I play Zelda I am not not playing as Link, I AM Link, and I am saving Hyrule from Gannon. When the world is saved, Link didn't do it, I did. That's the power of gaming, and why we are gamers at all.

I suppose we will have to agree to disagree at this point. I have played games since I was pounding away on the Atari and although I love them and enjoy every minute I get to play, they do not give my life purpose in any way. A purpose is determined by deep rooted values and belief systems that drive an individual towards an ultimate goal that is beneficial for their psyche and their prosperity. If I fail at a game and die it might annoy me or anger me but my reality has not been shattered or effected. I believe when we start confusing the word "purpose" and its implications we fall into the trap of those who would strive to vilify our gaming experience and cite examples of those who confuse the "fantasy with the reality". If an individual truly derives his or her life's purpose on fighting the darkness within the fantasy world of a video game... I would suggest that individual super are himself from those games immediately as that is not a healthy psychological reaction to the media.

But when you fight to save the world, even in a game, aren't you mirroring those same "deep-rooted" values through your choices in-game? I understand what you are saying about games not being reality and I agree with you. But in my opinion that is all the more reason they should be epic. If I want repetitive grinding I have a job IRL for that exact experience. When I sit down to play I should be left with a feeling that I have taken part in a unique experience. Now you can argue that the experience doesn't mean much to you because it's just media, and that's ok. I, however, still remember the first time my raid took down Ragnaros after weeks of failed attempts in Molten Core in WoW. Ventrillo exploded as 40 people were simultaneously cheering from all over the country. It was exciting and rewarding and I was running around my house high-5ing people! It had stopped being just media at that point. That's what we want more of. Nights like that..

I completely get that sense of achievement and euphoria surrounding accomplishing something difficult that you have worked hard for. I get that same feeling quite often playing games as well. I agree that our games should make us want to jump up and down, pumping out fists in victory when we deliver the final blow to our enemy and save the kingdom or what have you. There is nothing wrong with that and that experience can be developed and engineered through game design. Reading this very eloquent individuals letter, I believe his longing for completion dips further than those experiences, and even if I have him pegged incorrectly there are people out there that hang their very existence on striving to find a "purpose". You can manufacture an experience as you have stated and "empathize" and identify with a character but when you are striving to find something to cling to in your real world life... Finding a "purpose" in video games is not a healthy option. Surely you would agree with that?

It can be provided from digital media and it is happening all the time through games and movies and other creative outlets. Go watch Interstellar in theaters and try to tell me you feel nothing. The OP wants to feel something when he plays. Of course we want our media to provide this. Life is boring and repetitive; our games shouldn't be.

My point is that an individual looking for a purpose in life is not going to find it in a video game or for that matter a movie. Emotional connection and reaction to media is not a purpose it is a chemical reaction in the brain. A purpose if felt much deeper. While the purpose of link is to rescue the princess and save Hyrule, that is not the purpose of the player in his or her own life. Struggling to find purpose through a video game will get you nowhere. If life is so boring a repetitive that they have to seek out this purpose in some sort of digital media then, again, I don't believe the problem lies within the game.

Honestly, I can't believe that you were so concerned about my psychological well-being that you wrote more words in your replies than I did in my actual post. I appreciate it, but dude...relax. Of course I was embellishing to some extent to get my point across. Of course I'm not looking for an actual purpose to my own existence in the universe through a video game. I'm a pretty healthy individual. I teach college English classes and find a great sense of reward in my work now and again, when I encounter a student who truly invests in bettering themselves. I'm also writing a novel, and have received extremely positive responses to my work from successful individuals in the creative writing field. I'm simply very interested in humanity as a species, and spend a lot of time thinking about our place and our species' purpose in the universe, and therefore was drawn to a game like Destiny, which I thought would trigger further contemplation regarding this "human question", and was disappointed when it did not. As another poster said, it's the same feelings like-minded people seek when watching a film like "Interstellar", and I think it's a pretty pervasive one across mankind. Am I looking for purpose in my own life, on a micro level? No. I have a loving woman by my side, a steady paycheck, I create art, and have the honor of teaching young minds how to think critically and communicate. The purpose I seek is a purpose for our species, for humanity itself. And seeing how brutally Congress has slashed NASA's budget, seeking that feeling of purpose is best done through media, at least for this moment in history. Don't worry about me, man. I'm gonna be okay. You're gonna be okay. We're all gonna be okay.

I think your original post said it best. There is a sense of loneliness in the world they created. It makes me wonder if it was intentional. I was surprised to learn through the app that you can create and join groups. There is no link to this in-game and there are very few social interactions between characters at all. I can't figure out if this was a clever design decision against a vast and quiet space setting, or just a tragic mistake in what was supposed to be an MMOFPS. I want to believe the former, but it's more likely the latter unfortunately.

To be completely honest, your original post makes it sound as if you are on the verge of some existential crisis, simply because the game is not as fun or immersive as you thought it should be. Very rarely do you see such heartfelt and philosophical postings regarding purpose and meaning over something as trivial as a video game. I am glad to hear that you are well adjusted, well balanced and successful. Your embellishments on the issue of the video game "Destiny" and the upswell of importance you put on its ability to convey purpose was very confusing to me outside of the context of just getting your point across.

Sorry, man. I sniped you a bit in my reply. Didn't sleep real great last night. I can totally see how it would seem that way. I simply wanted to overstate my sentiments to make the posting more impactful, and overall, 2300ish replies, most of them positive, is more than I hoped for. I just hope Bungie takes notice and considers implementing some of the ideas I discussed. I truly believe the game would be better as a result.