I’ve been trying to word this post and have had 0 success in settling on a way to do it, so however I do it now shall remain that way.
Now, I have roughly 400 hours on Beestation over the span of a good few years now and I was wondering, has this game impacted the mental health or impacted the social skills of other players? In what way, a positive or negative way? I ask this because from my personal exprience, being somebody who is an awfully anxious extrovert (you know those people who go above and beyond just cos they scared, that’s me) being able to interact with other people via this server in a social way has shown me that there are far less consequences to interaction than my mind had previously thought so.
I’d love to hear if anybody else has any stories of how their time here has impacted their real life
I’m not sure about ss13 specifically, but I’ve noticed in general that playing specific games does fucking wonders for anyone with social anxiety. I highly recommend playing DnD for at least 5-10 sessions minimum if you’ve never played before. You’d be surprised how well the game can make you at opening up and not being anxious (but damn you will be anxious at the start). I’d be willing to say that SS13 does have the same effect on people, as it does create an environment similar to real life, but you type and can think out what you say instead of doing it on the fly, so it’s like… slightly not as good, but to the point it makes almost no difference.
Yes, substantially so: While this is an extreme simplification of things, I stepped down as headmin due to finding myself increasingly obsessed with the upkeep of the server to the point of prioritizing it over much more important things in my life.
Not directly applicable for me (yet at least), but contributing to Bee code is coding experience and can be shown to potential employers. Wondering if some of the folks this has helped would want to share their story.
I would say my mental health has gotten worse since I started playing this game, but I can say this about basically every multiplayer game I’ve ever played
This is a question I had. I’m not exactly in a field that would need much coding experience (Accounting with a minor in International Business), do I put my git on my CV or something?
How would one reasonably demonstrate the work they’ve done as a hobbyist, while remaining professional?
By not giving in to cum jokes and saying things like “I have a right to say gamer words”
I think it’s a question @Crossedfall would probably be the most qualified to answer. As far as I’m aware he’s the person with the most actual professional experience on the server by a considerable margin. I don’t recall whether or not he actually utilized his administration of Beestation on his resume or not though.
Personally though I would just show it like the actual work it is, while pointing out it’s something you’re so interested and invested in that you spend your spare time on it. I don’t think most employers will hold behaving casually in your hobby/off time against you unless you’re completely obscene, and if they do that’s probably not the best place to work for anyway.
SS13 has 100% done me some good. Not just with social interacts online which I used to find nearly as impossible as real life interactions but also with my typing skills.
Having dyslexia I definitely have seen an improvement in my spelling and grammer.
Before playing this game it would take me a while to just type a couple words since I would have to revise it over and over again, I would also have to search up the spelling of words all the time to ensure it’s correct, now I don’t need to nearly as much.
This was big deal for me, since writing has always been something I am passionate about.
There would naturally be some personal stuff that Bee helpped a lot during some very low points for me too.
My mental health always starts out with an incline, I’m meeting new people, things are great; then it rather sharply declines if something disillusions me from the haven I’ve created the server to be, and then proceeds to fly sideways and catch on fire, making me rage at stupid shit; the stubborn, egotistical people I would not have to deal with when I’m otherwise in a healthy state of mind make me angrier and angrier until we eventually get to what can be observed in my discord ban appeal. Then, I tend to hold grudges and view the people who I think have wronged me in a negative light, considering I genuinely get fucking confused about how my behavior is considered rude when it comes from me but otherwise fine when it seems to come from anyone else. Then my mental state returns to a chronic saudade as I try to find something to replace the haven I created in my mind and find myself isolated because I get angry over the dumbest things.
I haven’t been hired for any programming job yet so take what I do with a grain of salt, but I usually link to my projects on my website which is linked on my resume at the top, as well as a link to GitHub on my resume, which is always a good idea if you are applying for a programming job.
If something is significant enough I will actually write what type of stuff I did on my resume - resume babble like “supported x users” “developed software with x” under Projects or Work Experience if you were making money. I do actually mention my Minecraft mods (with resume babble of course) on my resume AND the commission work I’ve done.
I do, yes. A large part of why I got my current job was because of my listed BeeStation experience, actually. It was a great conversation topic during the interviews and it demonstrated key bits of knowledge and experience that they were looking for.
For a cv, you can treat your github profile like a standard portfolio. You can link and reference various projects you actively contribute to.
For a resume or something more focused, if you have room you can add an activities section to list out the most impressive projects you maintain/contribute towards. Specifically, limit this to projects you own/maintain or make significant contributions towards. I’d recommend only listing two at most in something that’s meant to be a lot more concise.
Finally, if you have gaps in your professional experience but you’re a major contributor for a given project (like an admin, project head, maintainer, etc.) you can add your role in the project as volunteer experience and get some extra brownie points while showcasing some form of experience/expertise that you might be lacking in your professional working history. It’s just important to denote that this experience is from a volunteer opportunity and not as part of your standard working history. This is because most hiring managers will treat them kind of differently.
If we’re going onto job seeking here then here are some tips:
Recruiters:
Always upload/update your CV on all the online sites you use in the evening before you go to bed. It makes it more prominent in recruit searches the next morning.
Be super picky with recruiters. Don’t let them talk you into anything you are not sure of. I have walked away from job offers because the recruiter was too pushy.
Interviews:
You aren’t the only one being interviewed, you should be asking questions too. Ask what a week is expected to be like to get a better idea of what they are actually hiring you for. Ask them about the work environment to find out if you feel you’ll “fit”
Big yourself before an interview. I like to repeatedly tell myself “They love, you already have the job, the interview is just a formality” I have always done well when I get in this mindset.
Not too long ago, I wouldn’t have much input with regards to this subject, however I’ve been able to become more socially active in my new enviroment of College.
I chat with my class mates on the regular and as far as I can tell, the only issue I have is my own maladjustments and dispositions from being a shut in and elementary/high school outcast.
I play Bee station or SS13 usually on the weekends or when I have alot of spare time. usually 2 to 3 rounds on a semi-regular basis.
This is to say, if you play bee station to relax in your free time yeah it’s ok, totally healthy. but if you’re sitting at your computer playing SS13 everyday then you may have a problem. remember the key to healthy use and enjoyment is moderation.
