SSRScientific and Social Research2661-43322981-9946Bio-Byword Scientific Publishing Pty. Ltd.10.26689/ssr.v8i9.15766Article“Simulation as Means, Representation as End”: The Dialectical Mechanism of Affective Generation in To the Moonhttps://artdesignp.com/journal/SSR/8/9/10.26689/ssr.v8i9.15766HuSijing2026892026-10-21This essay examines the 2D game “To the Moon” (Freebird Game Studio, 2011) with three game theories: simulation, representation, and the dialectical relationship between them. The analysis concludes that simulation is the operational means while representation is the affective end, rather than opposing forces. “To the Moon” is an operable system that requires players to engage actively and ergodically.Simulation, Representation, Dialectics, Procedural rhetoric, Phenomenology, Ergodic literature, Cybertext

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