美國文化脫口秀 第581期:《紐約時報》筆下的旅行青蛙

大家有沒有玩過最近很火的游戲旅行青蛙?連《紐約時報》都報道了這款游戲在中國的盛況。今天Jenny和Adam要和大家一起來讀一讀旅行青蛙的報道。

A few short weeks after its release, a Japanese mobile game featuring a traveling frog has become a hit in China.

僅僅發(fā)布幾周，一款關于"一只旅行的青蛙"的日本手機游戲在中國成為爆款。

Why, exactly, is a bit hard to explain.

究竟為什么，其實很難解釋。

The game is Travel Frog. It was created by the Japanese game studio Hit-Point.

這款游戲叫旅行的青蛙，是一家叫Hit-Point的日本的游戲公司開發(fā)的。

It is played like this:

游戲基本上是這么玩的：

A frog sits in its stone hut, eating and reading, while you collect clover from the front yard. The clover is used to buy food, amulets or tools which the frog takes on a journey.

一只青蛙坐在它的石頭小屋里，邊吃邊閱讀。與此同時，你需要采集院子里的三葉草，用來購買青蛙的食物以及它旅行時需要的護身符或工具。

Once the frog leaves on a trip, it's unclear how long it will be gone. Sometimes it travels for hours or even days. When it returns, it provides snapshots and souvenirs of its journey.

一旦青蛙離開你去旅行了，就不知道它什么時候會再回來。它可能只離開幾小時，但也可能是幾天。當它回來的時候，它會給你一些它在旅途中拍的照片和紀念品。

《紐約時報》筆下的旅行青蛙

For whatever reason, this seems to be a concept that Chinese mobile gamers have been waiting for.

不知道究竟是什么原因，這個游戲的概念似乎是很多中國游戲玩家一直等待的。

"You don't need to do a lot of things, you don't even need to think about anything," said one gamer. "It's not a competitive game. It's very relaxing."

一些玩家說："玩這款游戲的時候你不必做很多事情，甚至不用作任何思考。這不是一款對抗性強、競爭激烈的游戲，因此讓人感到很放松。"

Many gamers say that they love Travel Frog because of its slow and restful pace.

許多玩家說他們喜歡旅行青蛙的原因是它舒緩的節(jié)奏。

The game successfully tapped the trend among younger generations in China to search out 'Zen-like' activities and "Buddha-style gameplay."

這款游戲找準了中國新一代年輕人對于"佛系"概念追隨的潮流。

The game also has a strong connection to child rearing. Before the frog leaves on a trip, you have to pack its lunch.

另外，這款游戲也滿足了玩家對于照顧孩子的心理。例如在青蛙旅行前，你需要為它準備午餐。

Many gamers call their frogs their ‘frog sons'. Many compare raising the frog to being a parent, at least partly.

許多玩家把他們的青蛙稱作"蛙兒子"，他們覺得養(yǎng)青蛙的過程從一定程度上就好像當家長養(yǎng)小孩的過程。

教你一個高級用法：

Feeling Zen 佛系

最近網上流行"佛系"，用英語說就是Zen(禪)。

怎么用：

I'm totally Zen about it. 我很平靜、什么都打擾不了我。

I'm a Zen mom: 我是個佛系媽媽。