According to World Population Review, the best states for going native and living off the land are in the south, including Alabama, Tennessee, Texas, Louisiana, Georgia, and Arkansas. This is due to their potential for natural power generation, low costs of living, and overall water access. Why is that important? Americans are increasingly attracted to this kind of lifestyle, despite the potential inconveniences it can involve.
Of course, most people interested in living more sustainably prefer to stay somewhere between the extremes of desert dweller and suburban soccer mom. This usually means going camping on vacation instead of taking flights or installing a few solar panels to avoid damaging fossil fuels. The obvious question that needs answering is, can gaming co-exist with this way of living?
The good news is that survival kits geared towards technology do include devices to keep electronic devices running. These are usually designed for short-term holdouts so they’re not created with gaming in mind. However, the fact that power banks, cables, batteries, and universal adapters are a recommended part of these “go bags” means that it is possible to take your gaming off the grid.
The ideal survival kit described by software company ExpressVPN highlights the importance of a portable WiFi hotspot for tethering with a mobile phone. This allows the owner to play mobile games at the bare minimum, provided that the owner also includes the pre-paid SIM card from the same set of instructions. Of course, not all mobile apps require an internet connection, like Monument Valley and Civilization VI.
Offline Games
Unfortunately, offline games aren’t as popular with developers as online ones, for a number of reasons. While it’s easier on the developers’ purse, an app with no connectivity is likely to earn much less money than a server-based title. This is largely why offline games tend to be ports of major titles, such as Minecraft, Stardew Valley, Limbo, and Streets of Rage 4, as the publisher can charge up-front.
The internet isn’t a universal thing on earth, either, yet the mobile phone can be found just about anywhere. The University of Colorado writes that even tribespeople in Africa make use of phones, often relying on wrong numbers to make new connections. However, the UN, via SciDevNet, notes that almost 3bn people in the world have never used the internet, which makes for quite a stark gulf in the use of mobiles versus the web.
Of course, living off the grid in the United States is a little different from the existence of the Maasai, as, in the former case, there’s bound to still be some attachment or another to society. It’s reassuring to know that the technology exists to keep electronic entertainment going even when no outlets are available or the broadband is suffering an outage.
The best preparation for this kind of scenario is to keep some batteries handy for an older handheld or download some wilderness-ready apps like Asphalt Nitro, Crossy Road, and Alto’s Odyssey. It might be a good idea to keep a pack of cards handy too, just in case.
Also, check out our list of the Top 5 Best Rated MOBA Mobile Games Of 2022
