THIS IS NOT A GAME

Filipp Kovalevich

Games and rituals may seem similar at first glance. Both involve rules, repeated actions, and, most importantly, participants. However, if we look more closely, there is an important difference between them, connected to purpose, freedom, and the participant’s attitude toward what is happening.

Let us start with the idea that a game is mainly a space of freedom. You usually enter a game voluntarily because you want interest and/or excitement. A game can be serious or funny, long or short, but it always includes an element of choice. A player knows that what is happening is not real, and at any moment they can simply stop. Losing a game rarely has serious consequences, and the rules can sometimes be changed or even broken for the sake of fun. The main feature of a game is the process itself.

On the other hand, there is the ritual. Unlike a game, a ritual is based more on meaning than on entertainment. Rituals exist in religion, culture, traditions, and even everyday life. You may be used to thinking that rituals are dark, demonic ceremonies with dim candlelight performed by figures in robes in the middle of the night, but this is not true at all. A ritual can also be something as ordinary as brushing your teeth every morning, doing exercises, having a wedding or a funeral, greeting a student who has returned to school, or celebrating the New Year — all of these are rituals.
They are performed not for pleasure, but to maintain order, preserve a connection with the past, or express values that are important to people and/or to a culture. In a ritual, unlike in a game, there is much less freedom. Actions usually have to be done “correctly,” following certain rules or laws; otherwise, the ritual loses its meaning and stops being a ritual at all.

In addition, a ritual is often connected to the past — as a tradition or an action that people, or an individual, are used to performing, repeating day after day, year after year, and sometimes even from generation to generation — and it is associated with stability. A game may be somewhat similar to a ritual: people may have repeated it from
generation to generation, or they may have started repeating it quite recently, but it does not have such a strict order.

A game is not tied to specific time frames. You do not need to wait for a special moment to play tag or for a certain time of day to play “Red Light, Green Light” — people make their own choices freely. One could say that a game is a more free and experimental ritual, but like a ritual, it is repeated by many people across generations and, like a ritual, gives people a sense of stability, even if they often do not notice it.

Thus, games and rituals differ in their essence. A game brings joy and freedom, while a ritual brings order and meaning and helps reconnect people with culture and traditions. However, both are still important for humans: games help make life easier and more enjoyable, while rituals help people understand their place in the world and their connection to it.

Tommy Trotsenko

What is more important in life: a game or a ritual?

In my opinion, the most important one in life is a game. But…

What is a game? A game is an activity people do for fun and enjoyment. For example: playing outside with friends, playing a board game, gaming on a computer, or even petting your dog. But it still has to be a game. And…

What is a ritual? A ritual is a set of actions that people do in the same way again and again, often because of tradition or belief. For example: brushing your teeth every morning or evening, coming to class and taking your materials out of your bag, or even watching a specific film for New Year with your family. It doesn’t always have to be going to church or praying. No, it can be anything.

But they can’t exist without one another. They are connected because rituals were once games. Through time, they slowly transformed from a game into a ritual.

One of the people who said this was a philosopher named Johan Huizinga. Johan Huizinga was born in 1872 and died in 1945, right after the Second World War (WWII). I agree with Johan Huizinga. He was a smart man, and his words show a lot of sense.

To conclude, I think games are more important than rituals because they make life more interesting and enjoyable.

Polina Krasilnikova

Why do people need games and rituals

Games and rituals are not just entertainment or habits. In my opinion, they are two of the most important aspects of our lives that help us remain human. Both create their own special world with its own rules, where everything becomes clearer and more meaningful than in everyday life.

A game is a territory of freedom and experimentation. Here we can safely try something new, take on different roles, learn how to interact with others, win and lose. Games develop imagination, help relieve stress, and teach us flexibility.

A ritual is a territory of order and stability. These are repeated actions — from a morning ritual of brushing one’s teeth to major events such as weddings. Rituals make life predictable and give it meaning and structure. They unite people (families, friends, nations), helping them feel part of a whole. Rituals are especially important during turning points (birth, death), as they provide support and reduce anxiety.

Interesting facts:

Elephants, when they fi nd the bones or body of a deceased member of their group, stay nearby for a long time. They gently sniff and touch the remains with their trunks and may scatter leaves and branches over them. This behavior goes far beyond simple curiosity. It looks like a ritual of farewell and remembrance that strengthens social bonds within the herd and may help them cope with loss.

Crows and magpies love sliding down icy or snowy roofs. They deliberately climb up a slope, lie on their bellies, and slide down, doing it again and again, taking turns, clearly for fun. Sometimes they even use small sticks or pieces of bark as “sleds” while sliding.

I think that together games and rituals form the foundation of human culture.
● Games give us development, creativity, and the ability to change.
● Rituals give us stability, connection with others, and a sense of belonging.

I assume that, answering the question of why we need games and rituals, we can say this: games and rituals are essential tools through which we learn, survive, and unite.

Anton Itskov-Vinnik

Ritual: a waste of time OR an IMPORTANT part of life

For me, a ritual is like preserving culture or tradition, and not everyone understands this term in the same way, but each side has its own rituals. For example, Maslenitsa is a Slavic tradition, and Christmas is a Christian ritual.

There are 3 types of rituals.

First: an occult ritual, where some kind of magic is present, for example sacrifices or summoning spirits.

The second type of ritual is a religious ritual. It is connected with worship, prayers, and ceremonial actions performed to communicate with higher powers or gods. An example of a religious ritual is Christian baptism or Muslim prayer (namaz).

The third type of ritual is a social ritual. These are ceremonies and traditions that support social connections, strengthen collective consciousness, and give people a sense of belonging to a culture or community. For example, a wedding, a birthday, or the celebration of national holidays are social rituals.

And now a few questions:
Why do people perform religious rituals?
How do you understand the word “ritual”?
How are occult rituals different from religious ones?
Why is it important to preserve cultural traditions?
What is more important to you: family traditions or new customs?
Which ritual from another culture seems interesting to you?
But to understand ritual, we need to understand its relationship with play.

Ritual and play have common features: both follow certain rules and structure, creating repeated actions. Symbolism is important in both ritual and play — objects or actions carry a specific meaning. Both can be collective and help unite people, whether through joint celebrations or team games. In ritual, just like in play, transformation can occur, for example a change in a person’s state or role. Despite differences in seriousness, both phenomena can evoke strong emotions and give participants a sense of belonging and importance. In the end, ritual and play play a similar role in the life of society.

Gleb Likhodievski

Games and rituals have accompanied humanity throughout history. They exist in different cultures and take various forms, but their significance remains unchanged. Games and rituals are important not only for entertainment or maintaining traditions, but also for personal development, communication, and the preservation of cultural identity.

Games help people learn and grow. From an early age, individuals explore the world through play, learn how to interact with others, understand rules, and make decisions. Games are also important for adults: they help reduce stress and develop thinking, imagination, and teamwork skills. Through games, people can safely experience emotions, try out new roles, and fi nd solutions to diffi cult life situations. In addition, games bring people together by creating a space for communication and cooperation.

Rituals, in turn, give life structure and meaning. They help people feel stability and a connection to the past. Rituals can be religious, family-based, or personal. For example, holidays, coming-of-age ceremonies, or daily habits create a sense of order and confi dence. Through rituals, people express important feelings such as gratitude, respect, remembrance, and love. Rituals help individuals go through signifi cant life moments—birth, growing up, loss, and the beginning of a new stage.

Games and rituals also serve an important social function. They strengthen a sense of community and pass values and norms of behavior from one generation to the next. In a world of rapid change, they help people maintain inner balance and a sense of belonging.

Thus, games and rituals are essential for harmonious personal development, emotional well-being, and maintaining a connection with society and culture.

Zoia Arakelian

Can life be interesting without games and rituals?

I think the answer is no, because such a life would be like a gray day without any color. Moreover, both rituals and games are very important in our lives.

Games make life lively and joyful. When children play, they learn how to make friends, negotiate, and dream. Even adults play games. There are many types of games: sports games, board games, and intellectual games. Through games, we learn and explore the world. Without games, life would lose joy and the opportunity to unite with others based on shared interests, make new friends, and overcome fears. Games also help develop everyday skills, quick thinking, and vocabulary.

Rituals are also very important. A ritual is a repeated action that helps bring order into life. For example, getting ready for school in the morning, celebrating a birthday, or following family traditions. I enjoy New Year’s Eve and preparing for it, because it makes waiting for the holiday less exhausting. In addition, rituals help form useful habits, such as brushing your teeth or cleaning your home. Often, these habits fi rst develop through play. Thanks to rituals, we know what will happen next and feel more confident.

If both games and rituals were removed, life would become boring and chaotic. It would be full of meaningless actions.

That is why both games and rituals are necessary for everyone. Together, they make life truly interesting.

David Arakelian

What’s the Difference Between a Game and a Ritual?

An interesting question, though not a particularly difficult one. The question of which came first—the game or the ritual—is similar to the classic question of which came first, the chicken or the egg. It does not really matter, because they are very closely related.

The diff erence between them is both signifi cant and subtle. Rituals can take many forms: routines, traditions, or even sacrifi ces. One major distinction is that a game does not involve killing or the repetition of banal, meaningless actions.

Unfortunately, after the age of twenty, there tend to be fewer games and more routines and rituals in life.

I believe that the diff erence between a ritual and a game exists mostly on paper; in reality, they are quite similar. Without games, rituals would not exist, which means they are deeply connected. Let me give an example: a ritual is the repetition of certain actions at a specifi c time, such as watching The Irony of Fate on New Year’s Eve. A ritual has specifi c and unchangeable rules. A game, on the other hand, is entertaining, and its rules can be invented or changed at any time—this is one of its most distinguishing features. By its very nature, a game exists primarily for fun. Many rituals lack fun or meaning, though some of them do have both.

One could also put it this way: a ritual is usually not fun, while a game is; a ritual is essentially a routine, while a game is a form of entertainment. Examples like these could go on endlessly. Therefore, we can conclude that games and rituals are similar in many ways, yet they also diff er in important aspects. Personally, I do not see many strong diff erences between them, since one cannot exist without the other. This, for example, is my ritual: going to architecture school on Saturdays.

David Vysotskyi

What Is More Important in Life: Play or Ritual?

In real life, people constantly have to find a balance between freedom and order, and in this sense, play and ritual represent two important ways of living. Play is connected with fun, creativity, and the search for something new. While playing, a person feels free, is not afraid of making mistakes, and can experiment. Mistakes made during play are seen as a natural part of the process rather than a failure, which is why play has a strong influence on personal development.

It is interesting that people spend a significant part of their lives playing. According to researchers, if we take into account childhood games, sports, board games, and video games, the average person spends between 8 and 13 years of their life on play. Play is especially important in childhood: it is believed that children spend up to 40% of their active time playing, and it is through play that they learn communication skills and begin to understand the world around them.

I believe that ritual is also important in life because it gives meaning to ordinary actions, brings structure to daily life, and helps maintain discipline. However, play is more important to me personally, because through games I have met some of my closest friends.

If life consists only of rituals, a person may lose interest and motivation. Most rituals originally developed from play, which is why I believe that in real life, play is more important than ritual.

Yulianna Borisenko

What Is the Difference Between a Game and a Ritual?

There is a game, and there is a ritual — two completely different concepts. New games can be invented endlessly, just like rituals. But what is the difference between them?
When we hear the word “game,” what comes to mind first? Most likely, something fun — something people enjoy playing. When we go outside or walk in a park, we often see children playing.

And what about a ritual? Personally, I associate it with something dark and magical. However, rituals can take many different forms. We often do not even notice how some of our actions gradually take on a ritualistic nature. For example, going to school, university, or work can be considered a ritual. When we pray (for instance, I pray before an important test), that is also a ritual. Everyone knows the story of Aladdin: in the cartoon, he finds a lamp with a genie and rubs it — that, too, is a kind of ritual.

In general, a game is something in which (if we follow the rules, of course) we feel free. A game represents childhood, joy, and fun. A ritual, on the other hand, is something we do regularly, as part of our routine. It offers freedom, but not in every sense. It represents calmness, traditions, a part of religion, and the ability to have one’s own opinion while respecting the views and traditions of others.

If we approach this philosophically, there is also an explanation. A game is a form of free self-expression and a voluntary human activity. But a game is not just entertainment — it is a fundamental way of human existence and understanding the world, as seen, for example, in sports.

A ritual is a repetitive, symbolic, and meaningful action that emphasizes important values and the structure of society or the individual. In short, a game is entertainment, while a ritual is a ceremony. However, as I said at the beginning, although games and rituals are different concepts, they share one common idea: “Play grew out of ritual.” (John Zerzan)

Kira Zakhlestina

What Is the Difference Between a Game and a Ritual?

So, what is the difference between a game and a ritual? You may not know this, but ritual originates from play. This idea was expressed by the Dutch historian Johan Huizinga, and I agree with him.

No one knows exactly when the first games appeared, but it certainly happened a very, very long time ago. I assume that games were invented by children and animal off spring. While parents were busy gathering food, the young ones played simply because they had nothing else to do. Perhaps the first games were something like tag or hide-and-seek: the rules were very simple, required no explanation, and the games themselves were fun and active—perfect for young creatures. As animals evolved, humans appeared as well—modern Homo sapiens. Games evolved too: board games appeared, and later computer games. Today, both children and adults play games.

But what exactly is a ritual, and how does it grow out of play? Simply put, it is a set of actions that are repeated at a certain time or under specific conditions. If you type the word “ritual” into a search engine, you will often see things related to the church on websites and in images. For example, a religious procession is a ritual. However, rituals can also be associated with a particular culture, just as Maslenitsa is associated with Slavic culture.

Collectivity is very important in rituals: it is rare to see them performed alone. Although this does happen—brushing one’s teeth or doing morning exercises can also be considered a kind of personal ritual. And what rituals do you perform? The New Year is approaching: perhaps you will travel somewhere, decorate a Christmas tree, or watch old movies. Strictly speaking, these are traditions rather than rituals, but personally, they have become just as essential a part of the holiday for me as Baptism or a wedding ceremony is for Christians—that is, they have become rituals.

Emotions and feelings are very important in rituals, just as they are in games, though in a slightly different sense. In games, the feelings of the participants also matter, because when we play, it is important that everyone has fun. Another similarity is the same sense of collectivity that I mentioned earlier. Of course, there are many single-player games, but for some reason it seems to me that the very first games were designed for larger groups of people.
In conclusion, I would like to say that, in my opinion, ritual and play may seem different at first glance, but if you look more closely, you will fi nd many similarities.