Phantom Productivity

I first played Minecraft when it was in alpha, around 2009. I was quickly hooked — the allure of pure creation was inescapable.

I was also self-aware enough to realize how dangerous that was. I quickly deleted it and I haven't played since.

It wasn't that I didn't enjoy it, quite the opposite. I was so immersed that hours went by before I realized what happened. And for what? A hit of dopamine and a small digital world. It feels like I produced something, but it isn't tangible or useful. Just a way to spend (waste) some time.

The same thing happens when I play Factorio. I get neck deep in it before I realize how much time it's sucking away. I would fall asleep thinking about my factory, where the bottlenecks were, how to expand red circuit production (it's always red circuit production, isn't it?), what I wanted to tackle next.

I watch videos on YouTube about how to construct more space/energy/resource efficient factories, different techniques, different blueprints. Learning how to Factorio better became a hobby unto itself.

But aside from the dopamine and a couple of megabytes on my computer... what do I get out of it? Spent time? It feels productive, but is it really? What do I get out of it? Is the opportunity cost worth it?

I mean, I'm not going to knock anybody's hobbies. If you want to productivitymax, be my guest — I won't stop you. That's just... not for me. I'm okay with (albeit not good at) being a little less productive, a little more intentional, a little less go-go-go, a little more thoughtful.

Maybe someday, when my kids are old enough, we'll work on a Factorio factory together. I think that will be fun. But until then, I'll stick with building things — slowly — that actually mean something to me.