Links: Chore Wars

Anyone who's ever played a MMORPG like "World of Warcraft" will be familiar with "The Grind." In order to keep people from advancing too quickly and to limit the amount of fresh content that must be produced, companies force gamers to complete repetitive, tedious tasks that have insidious Pavlovian feedback mechanisms attached to them (mostly related to your character getting stronger). For the obsessive-compulsive, the results can literally be deadly.

Now, though, someone had the bright idea of translating the level treadmill into domestic life with "Chore Wars." A group signs in and competes to see who can complete the most chores (almost like quests). As chores are finished in the real world, they add to your virtual character's experience points. Why fight with your siblings, significant other, or coworkers over who has to do the chores when you can outlevel them instead?

It's an idea that's either brilliantly stupid or stupidly brilliant; I haven't decided.