We all know that one of the best things about MMORPGs is finding the right kind of community and the human connections that can be established, whether that’s a circle of friends or a guild that you jive with. The impact of that digital connection and how it reaches beyond a game world is explored in the documentary The Remarkable Life of Ibelin, which examines how the passing of a World of Warcraft player touched lives and showed his grieving parents how many friends he made.
“For Mats Steen, a Norwegian gamer who suffered from a degenerative muscular disease, his time spent playing World of Warcraft gave him a powerful way to connect with a community of like-minded people. He was able to form deep friendships across vast distances despite his physical disability because of a passion and pastime that he kept hidden from his family. Steen passed away at the age of 25, and his parents thought his disease had kept him isolated — but in reality, he’d been an integral and beloved part of a digital community that loudly mourned his passing.”
The documentary from filmmaker Benjamin Ree promises a deep look into Steen’s life in the MMO, including interviews with friends and looks into his own archives, all paired with digitally animated recreations of his adventures and his connections. The film has received rave reviews from critics and earned awards at the Sundance Film Festival, and soon it will be more widely available when it premieres on Netflix on October 25th. We’re not crying; you’re crying.
