Do You Know What I Want? I Want A Game Where You Play The Forces Of Overgrowing Nature, Where You Systematically

do you know what I want? I want a game where you play the forces of overgrowing nature, where you systematically destroy the mansion in the GardenScapes game I keep seeing ads for.

like. let me grow grass up through those perfect tiled patios and algae in the fountain and vines up through those marble statues and pillars cracking them in half. let me plant wildflowers and berries and lure birds and butterflies into the yard.

let me grow trees up through the roofs and on top of those perfect stone walls and crack them and break them down

I will DESTROY IT. WITH NATURE.

no microtransactions, no timed building.

you plant seeds and wait for them to grow, then train them over the top of the walls and wrap around the statues

attract birds and squirrels with water and nesting areas and they’ll bring you seeds

the goal of the game is to get it so quiet and wild that you can support entire ecosystems in what used to be a super colonial classist mansion

the hardest thing in the and is to lure and be able to support a cougar, because it requires the entire property to be FOREST with deer and berry bushes and a stream

there’s also a hidden plot about the rest of the world

it’s the end of oil and the entire world has actually managed to switch over to clean energy, everyone lives in gorgeous green cities and close-knit small towns with super efficient greenhouse agriculture with solar and wind power

all the suburbs and manor-house things have been abandoned because they’re too far away from population centres and there aren’t any cars

there are electric public rail systems in all the cities and between population centres and most people bike and use hover-board drones for transportation

full-on solarpunk

you find this out because there’s a subplot of finding and repairing an iPhone with bits of tech you find in the rubble of the manor house, which you can then access a couple news sites on

but that’s kinda the hidden ending

there are a couple more things like that as well, hidden, like the story of the family who lived in the manor (they were all dicks and economically terrible people which adds even more catharsis to the destruction), some campers that come through if you fit a requirement for scenery, that kind of thing)

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How to make your own low-tech vertical farm

The Belgian professor Willem Van Cotthem seems to have designed a do-it-yourself vertical kitchen garden system that truly deserves the low-tech label. On his blog, “Container gardening”, he explains how to transform normal plastic bottles into efficient containers (and a container rack) for growing all kinds of plants, even young trees (to be transplanted when reaching sufficient height). The beauty is that the water supply can be automated without the use of electricity

7 reasons why solarpunk is the most important speculative fiction movement in the last 20 years

It’s hopeful. Solarpunk doesn’t require an apocalypse. It’s a world in which humans haven’t destroyed ourselves and our environment, where we’ve pulled back just in time to stop the slow destruction of our planet. We’ve learned to use science wisely, for the betterment of ourselves and our planet. We’re no longer overlords. We’re caretakers. We’re gardeners.

Scientists are heroes again. And not just physicists and astronomers. Knowledge of biology and earth sciences matter, they’re the building blocks for a future on Earth. Scientific literacy isn’t just for academics – it’s part of daily life. People know how the things they use work, and if they don’t, they can access that information.

It’s diverse. Solarpunk is rooted in using the environment, so it looks different in different places. Alternative energy is best when specific to place (I imagine geothermal, wind, tidal, and hydroelectric energy sources are still used in certain places) so no overarching government system is needed. Communities can organize themselves, taking their own location and needs and history into account. Brazilian, Inuit, Egyptian, Pacific Northwest, and New Zealand solarpunk can all look very different, but be unified in resourceful, intentional, low impact living.

Individuality still matters. In a post-scarcity society, ingenuity and self-expression are not sacrificed on the altar of survival. With solar power there’s no reason not to go off grid, if that’s what you want to do. Communities can self-organize. You can find a community that suits you, or go live by yourself if that floats your boat.

There’s room for spirituality and science to coexist. Solarpunk is rooted in a deep understanding and reverence for natural processes. There’s room for spirituality there, be it pagan, Buddhist, Sufi, Transcendentalism – anything. There’s so much to explore, from nature worship to organized monotheistic religions, and how they interact with solarpunk.

It’s beautiful. The most common solarpunk aesthetic is art nouveau, but again there’s room for diversity, incorporating art styles from multiple cultures in respectful, non-appropriative ways. The most important aspect of solarpunk aesthetic is the melding of art and utility. The idea of intentional living is strong in art nouveau, but it’s not the only art movement with that philosophy.

We can make it happen. Now. Earthships. Permaculture. Aquaponics. Algae lighting. Compostable products that turn into fields of flowers. Buy Nothing organizations. Tiny, beautiful, efficient homes. Solar power cells you can see through. That’s all happening now. Solarpunk is within our grasp, at least on a personal level. I’m not saying there aren’t still big, ugly infrastructures devoted to unethical consumption, but we can start to tear them down. We can build a solarpunk world with stories and small changes. And small changes lead to big changes. That’s the real beauty of solarpunk. It’s not a post-apocalyptic power fantasy. It’s not a wistful daydream, or an elite future only for physicists. It’s something we can work towards right now. It’s tangible.

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