Riverton

Some games want to be extra realistic, even at the expense of enjoyment. I'm glad Riverton didn't take that route - it's such a sweet virtual place. Who could argue with the slightly pink cattle or the pies just lying about in the woods or the kitties ordering chocolate boba at the cafe? People with no sense of fun, that's who.

But my favorite piece of "who needs the boring parts of reality" in the whole game, is the fishing lake.

Catfish, salmon, pike, bass. All standard inland freshwater fish. Lobster, clam, shrimp, herring. Saltwater fish, but again, this is a sweet little virtual town that exists to be fun. The intricate physics of osmosis would interfere with the delightfulness of the place.

And then there's the betta.

Betta, or Siamese fighting fish, are highly prized for their beautiful color. Being a pet fish, they are very small - the ones I see in the pet stores are about three inches long, not counting their enormous tails.

To be quite clear, none of this is sarcasm or a complaint. The fast pace and higher stakes of realistic games kind of spoil the fun for me. I love Riverton's cuteness and its relaxed atmosphere and the ability to just go pet and brush the cow once a day and make it perfectly happy. I love everything about the place, in fact.

I'm just delighted by the hilarious concept of the betta being a game fish.