Games traditionally offer safe practice in areas that do have practical value; they are rehearsals for life.
I found this sentence very interesting! Games often have a life lesson behind them even if it is not obvious, for example monopoly can teach kids about the value of money without having to actually buy anything. This allows for growth/learning while still having fun.
As we navigate its tangled, anxiety-laden paths, enclosed within its shape-fitting borders, we are both the exasperated parent longing for closure and separation and the enthralled child, lingering forever in an unfolding process that is deeply comforting because it can never end. (16)
I found the metaphor of the child and the parent a very interesting way to get the idea that complex narratives can force someone to feel both like the parent and the child at the same time. You can feel both stuck wanting for something to end and wanting something to go one forever.