The Atariology Manifesto

From Atariology

The Atariology manifesto states the beliefs of the followers of Atariology. In October 2005, 200 manifestos were posted all around the city of Geneva Switzerland, as a nod to the Protestant movement in Europe in the middle ages.

The contents of the Manifesto change over the years, however, here are is the original version which was written in English and French.

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                                ATARIOLOGY MANIFESTO 

WE BELIEVE THAT ALL ASPECTS OF LIFE CAN BE COMPLETELY UNDERSTOOD IF ONE THINKS OF LIFE AS A VIDEO-GAME, OR A SIMULATION. THIS BELIEF HAS THE FOLLOWING IMPLICATIONS:

EXISTENTIAL IMPLICATIONS:

 1.  IF LIFE IS A GAME, THEN DEATH IS THE END OF THE CURRENT GAME. 
 2.  THE PURPOSE OF THE GAME IS TO TRY TO FIGURE OUT THE PURPOSE OF THE GAME. 
 3.  A PERFECT SIMULATION, OR VIDEO-GAME, OF LIFE COULD EXIST IN THE FUTURE. IN ORDER TO BE      
     CONSIDERED 'PERFECT', THE GAME OR SIMULATION MUST BE ABLE TO REPRODUCE THE SAME SENSORY 
     EXPERIENCE AS THIS LIFE. 

MORAL IMPLICATIONS:

 1.  THE DEFINITION OF GOOD AND EVIL IS DEPENDENT UPON THE VERSION OF THE GAME. 
 2.  SOME PEOPLE IN THE GAME ARE REAL PLAYERS, OTHERS ARE JUST CHARACTERS CREATED BY THE 
     SOFTWARE. IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO DISTINGUISH BETWEEN A REAL PLAYER AND A CHARACTER IN THE GAME. 

IMPLICATIONS FOR IMMORTALITY:

 1.  IF IT IS POSSIBLE TO CREATE A PERFECT SIMULATION, THEN IT WOULD BE POSSIBLE TO CREATE 
     ANOTHER PERFECT SIMULATION INSIDE THAT ONE. THEREFORE IT WOULD BE POSSIBLE TO CREATE AN 
     INFINITE HIERARCHY OF PERFECT SIMULATIONS. IN THEORY, A PERSON COULD ACHIEVE IMMORTALITY BY 
     STEPPING INTO PERFECT SIMULATIONS INDEFINITELY. 

CONSTRAINTS:

 1.  IT IS POSSIBLE FOR TWO PERFECT SIMULATIONS TO BE DIFFERENT. THE GAME CAN BE UPGRADED OR 
     MODIFIED DURING PLAY WITHOUT THE PLAYER REALIZING IT.

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The manifesto states the core beliefs of followers of Atariology as a philosophy. The Church of Atariology, however, has a subset of beliefs that might not necessarily be followed by all believers of Atariology. The Church of Atariology is primarily an organization created by JJ Walker who created the term Atariology.