Hiraeth – Loud by Design

Timestamp: 2019
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For a long time. A very, very long time, I’ve been hesitating, pondering. “Could I make a dent in the world of video game streaming / recorded video game clips?”

I am very much an introvert, and I never saw the use of me taking up streaming. I’m a decent gamer, but I’m not as they say ‘God-tier‘. I could not imagine it would be fun to watch someone like me fail 200 times, just to see them succeed but once.
This stems from my general distaste of watching ‘a stream’. If I have spare time I’d rather spend it playing video games myself, rather than watch someone else do so.

But I might be mistaken. People seem to flock to this sort of thing. For many this is a pass-time thing, something extra that happens on a second screen, much like doing homework whilst the TV is on (…which is also something I never did, I needed peace and quiet in order to focus)

Then, it just…hit me. With the release of the final episode of a game I have been wanting to play, but have yet to touch, I felt it was time I took my chance, and record me playing through it. Everyone deserves at least one chance, right? Time to take mine. After all: I like video games more than anything, so if I can entertain the masses whilst playing them, then that might be as close to ‘living the dream’ as I could possibly get.

I began thinking about my potential ‘brand’. I want a name and a logo to go with upcoming ‘me 2.0’.
After looking for inspiration I decided I would name myself the ‘Hiraeth Gamer’.
Hiraeth is a term used to describe a sense of homesickness. However, it is a feeling of homesickness for a home that one can no longer return to, or a home that never was in the first place.
As a gamer I’ve experienced incredible stories and visited the most fantastic worlds. I became engrossed in everything that was going on and I built a certain relationship with the in-game characters.

But then, when the game is over…I lose all that. At times it doesn’t bother me, other times I feel this miniature black hole in my gut and I have a last bittersweet savouring of the final moments before it will slowly fade from memory.
So often do I long to return to, or even live in, a certain video game world…but I can’t. I am stuck here.

The term Hiraeth is perfect for me, and as such I based my logo and banner on two things: a sense of longing, and video games.

‘Till next time.

– D.