Ben is the emotional anchor and tireless romantic of Simulation – 1988. His personality is defined by his unwavering devotion to his wife, Ella, which transforms the deterministic horror of the glitch into a relentless, almost spiritual quest for connection.
Ben’s identity is defined by his struggle against the nihilism that pervades the simulation.
The Devoted Romantic: Ben’s primary, all consuming motivation is finding and spending every possible day with Ella. He views her as “everything to me” and is driven by the hope of seeing her again each day. He is grateful for the times they do meet, considering the immense logistical challenges.
The Hopeful Survivor: He has been in the glitch since he was 38 years old. Despite the endless loop, he clings to optimism and actively resists the temptation to give up or “take a day off”. He sees the glitch as an event that, in a “weird way,” ultimately made his love for Ella stronger, as it stripped away their pre-glitch “difficult times”.
Spiritual and Anti-Nihilist: Ben holds firm to a belief in God, arguing that the proven design of the simulation, whether they are programmed or people connected to computers, suggests a creator. He adamantly rejects the idea that they are “only a program,” assuring others: “You definitely matter”.
Caring and Nurturing: He displays a strong sense of empathy and responsibility for others. He makes a point to care for babies who transition to adult bodies in the simulation, stating it now “takes a village”. He offers companionship and a cooked meal to the younger, isolated inhabitant, Rosie.
Ben’s determination is constantly tested by the mechanics and threats of the glitch world.
Temporal and Physical Dislocation: Every morning, Ben must quickly determine his new location to figure out if he can reach one of the agreed upon meeting spots with Ella. He must cope with being shuffled into widely varied bodies and lamenting the loss of modern navigation tools like GPS and the internet.
The Emotional Grind: He acknowledges the futility of waiting when Ella doesn’t show up, and admits he hates “the glitch and all it has taken” from him. The emotional energy required to maintain his mission is immense.
Existential Threats: He is fully aware of Keith, the “angel of death,” and the danger he poses by randomly killing bodies just before the reset. Ben also actively resists the cultish man promoting the group known as The Glitchers, refusing to be drawn into their “ludicrous ideas” of control.
Ben’s resourcefulness and methods of connection are highly adapted to the broken reality of the Simulation.
Resourceful Survivor: He quickly and efficiently performs the routine tasks of survival: breaking into houses to acquire food, a bathroom, and transportation. He embraces this as the “way of the glitch world”.
The Eyes as Identity: Ben maintains his connection with Ella by recognizing her consciousness solely through her eyes, regardless of the body she inhabits, even after long separations. This shared ability transcends the daily body shuffling.
Creating Tradition: Ben and Ella use a specific repertoire of meeting places (e.g., Rockport, a bakery in Little Tokyo, the Corn Palace in South Dakota) based on locations they knew from their lives before the glitch. He also finds ways to express love through acts, such as once cooking his “ass off” at a restaurant in Rockport for Ella, even though she never arrived.
