Sweet goodbyes

Day 5,291, 14:10 • Published in Netherlands Poland • by Gwom
My dear fellow eDutchmen,

It was the 14th of May 2012, a sunny (I presume, my memory is not that good) Monday in the east of The Netherlands. A young boy just returned home after a day of school and decided to check out this strange game his friend had told him about. It was like a digital country where a monkey was president and The Netherlands was occupied by Poland. Very strange indeed...
Serious stuff (background music)
After login in, and creating a digital alter-ego called Gwom (the first gibberish word that came to mind, I have no idea what it means. If you do, please tell me), he was amazed by the options offered. You could build your own economic empire, trade on the monetary market etc. or you could become a military hero, fighting for the liberty of your country against those pesky Poles. But most of all he was amazed by the sense of community he found. There were articles published about everything and nothing at all, there was a forum where people shared in-game tips and utter banter. There were political parties which function like small communities within communities. There was intrigue and betrayal, but also celebration and brotherhood.

I'm sad to say that these feelings have disappeared over the past 10 years. Whenever I login now it feels more like a chore. Work, train, fight, repeat. It is an endless loop of getting medals to get gold, to get weapons, food and packs, to get more medals, to get more gold etc. etc. Maybe the game has changed, maybe I have changed, probably a bit of both. The truth is that I simply do not enjoy playing anymore. I have been thinking about quitting for a while now, and I actually wanted to write this article at my 9th anniversary. But then our country got occupied, and for a time I had a reason to play again. Even though it sounds weird, this success as a country we had the past few months has only made the game more boring for me. So it is time for me to leave. It will be strange to leave the game that I have played for almost half of my conscious life (considering most people don't remember anything from before their 3rd life year), but as I said, login now feels more like a task I have to do, instead of something to enjoy. I will finish this term as Member of Congress and afterwards I'll stop loging in daily.

But before I go I want to share with you some of the high points during my eLife, and give thanks to the people that made this game worth to play.
Sentimental stuff (backgound music II)
It is actually kind of hard to pick one 'best moment' in all my time of playing. Whenever I think of it several things come to mind. Of course most recently the triumph against overwhelming enemy strength together with our allies was amazing! My 3 terms as CP also were a highlight. They actually thought me some useful skills of how to let people work together who really dislike each other (Weekstrom vs Odan). I also really enjoyed making contests and riddles for the Ministry of Education back in the day. Lastly, for the real eDutch veterans among us, the moment we foiled the coup Lord Jale planned also felt like something out of a movie (I might remember it more epic than it actually was of course).

I would like to thank all people who made this game fun to play. Of course every player contributes in part to this game, and the great joy it brought me in the past, but some players deserve a special mention:
- Zeeuwsmeisje for teaching me the basics, and taking me under her wing as State Secretary of Recruitment & Coaching all the way at the start.
- Kordak & Marnix Maximus for the great times we had in the DPP/UNP
- ElGorro & van Spijck for their legendary rivalry which shaped eDutch politics during my starting years
- William The Conqueror & Spir Tus for their friendship
- Shawtyl0w & NoTie112 for their undying loyalty to eNL and the endless energy they put into the community
- Feynmann for introducing me to some mighty fine music

and there are a ton of other people who certainly deserve a mention, but I cannot make an endless list of this article sadly... If you ever contributed to the eDutch community, you can feel addressed.
For a final time:

Kind regards,
Gwom