Article: Confessions of a 30-Year-Old Gamer

[Tek7]

But there was something else about it, something I really didn't want to admit. I asked Paul Sams, the Blizzard COO, why people played WoW and his answer was simple, if a bit depressing: "How often in your everyday world do you get to feel heroic?" he said. "How often do you get to step into a world and do something big and meaningful? People need an escape from ordinary life. It's just something people need."

What's implicit in that, however, is a sense of defeat, an admission that for the denizens of Azeroth, our normal lives just aren't good enough. This is why most adults who play WoW are ashamed, and, on a scale of morals, rate their hobby only slightly above porn. We ourselves razz those who are ultra-accomplished in WoW, asserting that they are either kids with no responsibilities, or more likely, dudes who can't get laid. This unspoken envy only conceals a potentially darker truth—that we've all come to accept that WoW is fundamentally better than our real lives.

What I came to understand was that WoW was not necessarily an escape, but a surrogate for a community that is harder and harder to find in the real world. I lived further from my parents and siblings than my parents had. I wasn't raised in the church. In my 20s, I built a shocking amount of community around illicit substances and bars. But with age and a child, that was no longer as attractive or even possible. Into that void, I brought WoW, which instantly connected me with the world—not just mine, but others I could never have imagined or found on my own.

Source: TIME, Confessions of a 30-Year-Old Gamer

 

[Ember]

edit: link fixed

 

[tjguitarz]

Those are very interesting words coming from a sad person. I represent Christ -- therefore I am a hero.

 

[Corpfox]

Those are very interesting words coming from a sad person. I represent Christ -- therefore I am a hero.

Unfortunately, not everyone is "representing" Christ.

People who are addicts to games are like the 30-year-old-gamer.

The only difference between that person and you, is what tjguitarz said.

"Brothers and Sisters of Christ"

However, I'm a similar path to that gamer. I actually hope to become a gamer to my late 70's. I do enjoy games, though, I'm not a true addict, I just happen to play computer/video games 8-12 Hours in most days.

Luckily, I am not a fan of most RPG's and MMORPG's.

 

[Tek7]

linky no worky

Link fixed.

The article, especially the two passages quoted above, really resonated with me. I had planned to write my response to the article and post it later that night (when I first posted this thread), but I had the good sense to keep my response confined to OneNote (a program that simulates an electronic notebook).

 

[MaidMirawyn]

I think we all have a need to feel we're part of a great adventure, something really important. I'm a gamer, and I have no problem admitting it. It's fun, it's recreation. But it's just a game, for me.

I play Guild Wars for fun. I play it more often that I did the first eight months I had the game because now I'm part of a community. I have a whole network of friends with whom I can connect in a virtual world.

But I love my real life. I don't need Guild Wars and my /rank emote to feel that I matter; my husband, my family, and my God do that for me way better than any game ever could.

My character has better clothes and weapons than I do, though.

 

[kraniac]

I play WoW because it is the only video game that my real life friends will play. I really don't like it very much. If I could get them into UT or Quake I would, but for whatever reason, people assume that you are either magically good at shooters or you aren't, and nobody who isn't any good should play. It's a weird and erroneous belief but I can't seem to change it.

And when you're in college, the only things there are to do late at night are eat fast food, drink alcohol, or play video games. And the first two are pretty self-limiting (AND more expensive than WoW).