Happy New Year’s, writers!  Today I’ll talk about Overwatch, but I’m going to weave in one of my most important lessons as well.

Hit the jump, and let’s end this year on a bang!🙂

The other day, I had the best night of Overwatch I have ever played.

I was working on a podcast with my friend, How’sItChris.   Normally, before we actually start speaking, there’s a lot of prep. 

Anyway. 

While I was prepping, I was on my computer so my friends knew that I “was ready to play Overwatch” even though that wasn’t the plan.

Eventually, I’m free to just do whatever.  Disclaimer here, sometimes I make myself play video games.  I know how crazy that sounds, but I literally spend moments sometimes telling myself “I WILL play Overwatch today…I WILL play Overwatch today…” because the reality is that sometimes I’m just working on one thing and another and then…it’s time to sleep.  (For all my friends that think I’m a gamer, sometimes I literally log onto Overwatch once out of the entire month.  Kind of crazy for someone who calls himself a gamer.)

My point is that I didn’t plan on playing Overwatch.  But I did see my good friend.  Then my other…then my other…and it came to a point where I “had to” play some Overwatch. 

So, writers.  I did.

And I proceeded to have the best night of Overwatch I’ve ever had.  My friends and I played together, and despite what some of my friends reading this would assume, we absolutely did not win all of our games. 

We lost some and we won some.  And you know what?  It was amazing.

One of my friends, “G,” gave me a great compliment a while back.  He said, “I would rather lose with you then play with other people.”  I didn’t quite understand what he meant, but after that night of gaming?  I completely understood.

We cared about each other.  We helped each other.  We encouraged each other.  These are all completely alien to the average Overwatch experience.  I try to bring that to the table, but I am only one man. 

That night?  It was all of us, and it was awesome.

Ending on a Win

Writers, I have this thing I live by.  I say to myself, “I have to end on a win.”

In Overwatch, what does that mean?  It means that I keep playing until I win.  Period.

I don’t care what time it is nor do I care if I’m tired.  I’m going to march on until I win.  (For the record, it never takes long to get a win in there.  A string of multiple wins, now that’s a different story.)

So of course, the night of the best Overwatch ever we ended on a win.  I wouldn’t have had it any other way.  The difference this time was that everyone stuck around until we won (instead of the more common thing where people play until we lose).

Let’s talk about the opposite of Ending on a Win.  I’ve seen people play Overwatch until they lose.  And then I ask myself, what does that do to them?  It can’t be positive.

Think about it, most people play video games into the night then go to sleep then go to work the next day.  What is roaming around in their heads before sleep?  Yes, the unpleasant experience of losing.  Then, what’s in their subconscious while they sleep?  The “L” from before they closed their eyes.

Clearly, I care more about this than most, but I believe it’s one of the reasons that I enjoy Overwatch still.  (Many have quit the game.)

Gamers not Gamers

Now I can hear some of you now, “Hey, AlohaAlvin, I don’t play video games.”

You know?  I get that.  I really do.

So I’ll reiterate that Ending on a Win transcends into my normal life as well.  For instance, I know someone who took a bad spill on a motorcycle.  The husband and wife, in the end, were okay.

Having said that, the wife didn’t want to ride anymore.

Meanwhile, the husband insisted that she will ride again.

The dude’s a jerk right?

Actually, no.  When I heard about it, I immediately thought, “Of course, she has to/they have to end on a win.”

If she wants to stop riding?  Hey, that’s fine.  But it has to be on her own terms and it can’t be because of the spill.

That demon can’t follow her around for the rest of her life.

On that note, I can say happily that she has since gotten back onto a motorcycle.

Writers, if you practice any kind of Ending on a Win then I definitely want to hear it.  Meanwhile,

Is there something that you could apply Ending on a Win to?

Sound off in the comments!

Aloha,
Alvin

P.S. Happy New Year!!