Comments on: Videogame for pigs and people

By: travtastic

travtastic — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 22:41:00 +0000

Or some of us really just have no problem eating ethically raised animals.

You’re just proving my point here.

By: Tess

Tess — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 09:14:00 +0000

Or some of us really just have no problem eating ethically raised animals. It’s not a habit, it’s a conscious choice.

By: Andrew Turnbull

Andrew Turnbull — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 07:01:00 +0000

This is really a delightful little bit of creativity. The project page talks about how pigs quickly become bored and need stimulation. They’re often given balls but grow tired of them.

By: Dog Robinson

Dog Robinson — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 06:10:00 +0000

The pig is the edible treat

By: travtastic

travtastic — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 02:38:00 +0000

‘b)’ is a valid point.

But I imagine that the primary effect of ‘a)’ would be to prolong the whole situation. “Well, I mean they’re having fun now, right? Not so bad?”.

It would end up the same as ‘humane’ meat and ‘cage-free’ eggs. People (largely) know what’s going on, but they need an excuse to keep the system and their habits rolling along.

By: Jay Stephens

Jay Stephens — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 23:58:00 +0000

That’s basically the central point here.
I’m a strict vegetarian, but I don’t think meat eaters are monsters, and I don’t think most pople are gonna stop eating meat anytime soon. So… surely anything that a) makes the animals lives more fun before they’re slaughtered, and b) increases interaction between our 2 species has to be win/win?

By: sam1148

sam1148 — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 23:27:00 +0000

Murder? Murder you say….I didn’t know there were any witnesses, that was sloppy of me, I don’t like to be Sloppy.

By: travtastic

travtastic — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 23:20:00 +0000

Tough love, amirite!?!?

By: ocatagon

ocatagon — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 22:44:00 +0000

The human and the pig should get edible treats!

By: eyemyth

eyemyth — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 22:34:00 +0000

The creatures outside looked from pig to man, and from man to pig, and from pig to man again; but already it was impossible to say which was which.

By: Daemonworks

Daemonworks — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 22:32:00 +0000

mmm…. entertained bacon…

By: Joshua Bardwell

Joshua Bardwell — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 22:20:00 +0000

Right. Because people who raise animals for food don’t care at all about the animals’ welfare, except as it relates to the quality of the ultimate food product.

Did you catch the sarcasm?

By: Robert Cruickshank

Robert Cruickshank — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 22:04:00 +0000

When it’s ported to Nintendo, those little piggies can go Wii Wii Wii, all the way home.

By: Romeo Vitelli

Romeo Vitelli — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 21:29:00 +0000

Presumably, pigs taste better if they’re kept entertained while they’re waiting to be butchered.

By: destroy_all_humans

destroy_all_humans — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 20:55:00 +0000

get them addicted to video games so they never want to go outside.

By: millie fink

millie fink — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 20:46:00 +0000

Indeed. How about as the next step we stop murdering them?

By: xzzy

xzzy — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 20:45:00 +0000

I was hoping it’d cut to a scene of pigs actually using an iPad where they play a game of stealing eggs from birds.

By: Robbo

Robbo — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 20:35:00 +0000

And then we eat ‘em. Omnomnom.

By: John

John — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 20:34:00 +0000

Gives new meaning to playing with our food…

By: technogeekagain

technogeekagain — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 20:33:00 +0000

On the plus side: Environment enrichment is certainly a Good Thing for animals.

On the minus side: Environment enrichment can be done much less expensively…

By: Eric

Eric — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 20:26:00 +0000

“Next, we are planning to actually realize this system.” So it’s not built yet…
I wonder if the pigs really enjoy the “colorful display of fireworks” when a goal is achieved. Perhaps the human should get the fireworks, and the pig should get an edible treat.

By: Nathan Hornby

Nathan Hornby — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 20:22:00 +0000

This is really awesome. The idea alone warms my heart a little; genuinely, more of this please human race.

By: the lurch

the lurch — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 20:20:00 +0000

While I think this is likely possible in concept, this video shows only a simulation of a app. At least, it doesn’t look real to me…for one thing, the radiosity from the screen onto the pigs is all wrong.