marchutan:

killyouranxiety:

The Endless Forest is a game-like computer program in which you are a deer, and you chill with other deer. from their website:

The Endless Forest is a multiplayer online game and social screensaver, a virtual place where you can play with your friends. When your computer goes to sleep you appear as a deer in this magical place. There are no goals to achieve or rules to follow. Just run through the forest and see what happens. 

using it as a screensaver is optional. all you have to do is run around the pretty, peaceful forest and, if you want, play or hang out with the other deer. since verbal communication isn’t possible there’s no pressure to talk to the other players. this is particularly nice for people with social anxiety, who sometimes crave company but find talking to other people really stressful. 

During GDC I went to a wrap-up-room talk and the creator of Endless Forest was actually one of the fellow attendees. The topic somehow became about griefing in multiplayer games. She told us about how when it was in beta testing, the devs made it a point to challenge the players to grief one another. The players tried so damn hard but it was impossible because the most they could do was prance around each other in an unintentional deer dance party