Celebrate gaming

[Tek7]

Being a gamer doesn't carry the social stigma it once did. The stereotype of the average gamer as a socially inept 12-year old boy has disappeared from all but the most embarrassing television schlock. Gaming is a much more common and widely celebrated hobby now than it was when I first picked up a controller 25 years ago and played Super Mario Bros. for the first time. We've come a long way, baby.

Nevertheless, incidents like Fox News' laughably inaccurate and sensationalist coverage of Mass Effect, cringe-worthy juvenile content in titles like Bulletstorm and Duke Nukem Forever, and downright evil and exploitative business practices by companies like Zynga and EA can make it hard to hold our heads high and tell those unfamiliar with our hobby and the industry that drives it that yes, we are proud to be gamers.

So this thread is dedicated to celebrate gaming. It is not my intention to lift up gaming as an idol. We are Christians first and foremost and gamers after. With that disclaimer in mind, I'd like to hear from the community and know what games, achievements, people, and companies make you proud to be a gamer.

 

[Grimbeorn]

One moment that made me quite proud to be a gamer was a few years ago when I shot skeet for the first time with my uncle, and he was shocked by how good I was at it even though I'd never done it before. Video game reflexes for the win!

I'm also always happy to be a gamer when I hit one of those streaks in TF2 where I can't seem to miss enemy heads while sniping. It may be a sign that I play too much, but I like to be consistently among the best when I'm playing well.

 

[Tek7]

When I think of projects that make me proud to be a gamer, the Humble Indie Bundle is the first that comes to mind. The Child's Play Charity is another great example.

 

[Odale]

I could go on and on about how Fox just sensationalizes everything... but I wont.

Anyway, not to turn this into a political thing... gaming is definitely more accepted now. I was surprised a few weeks ago when Jeremy Clarkson on Top Gear mentioned Call of Duty: Black Ops and didn't make a joke about it.

... I'm still slow to admit I play WoW, heh.

 

[Belemrys]

I had a woman tell me she could never marry someone who still played video games...I patiently explained it was not so different from her hobby of watching disney movies over and over again...she resisted...needless to say we are only friends now

 

[Skibabinz]

I had a woman tell me she could never marry someone who still played video games...I patiently explained it was not so different from her hobby of watching disney movies over and over again...she resisted...needless to say we are only friends now

Ha! My girlfriend always makes fun of how much I play WoW, yet I remind her of how much she plays frontierville on facebook and I get a sort of glare like "Oh...you went there >.>"

 

[Patriot]

Can't say I'm proud of my (past) gaming. . .There were enjoyable and memorable moments, but nothing that really makes me proud.

 

[Tek7]

I could go on and on about how Fox just sensationalizes everything... but I wont.

And we thank you for it.

... I'm still slow to admit I play WoW, heh.

Understandably, but for every WoW fanatic for whom gaming addiction is a very real problem, there are many more people who play the game in moderation and enjoy it with friends.

On a side note: During a job interview last year, I found it interesting that I based more of my answers on my leadership experience as President of Tribe of Judah, including my short time as Redeemed Guild Leader, than on my professional experience.

The concept of gamers as socially incapable people is, more often than not, based on myth rather than actual experience and, thankfully, starting to fade from prominence even in mainstream culture (i.e. schlock television shows).

I had a woman tell me she could never marry someone who still played video games...I patiently explained it was not so different from her hobby of watching disney movies over and over again...she resisted...needless to say we are only friends now

Refuses to marry a gamer and watches Disney movies over and over again? Sounds like you dodged a bullet, sir.

Now if she watched Pixar movies over and over again...

Ha! My girlfriend always makes fun of how much I play WoW, yet I remind her of how much she plays frontierville on facebook and I get a sort of glare like "Oh...you went there >.>"

That seems unfair...considering Frontierville and its ilk are, by most definitions of the word "game," not games:

So, do the games on Facebook meet these criteria?

Not entirely.

Many social games out there are more activities than games – that is, a set of tools but no problem. For instance, you plant crops and then harvest them to make more money so you can plant more crops. Your tools are: pick a crop, plant it somewhere, harvest a ripened crop. But what problem are you solving? There really isn’t one.

Source: Introducing Insomniac Click

WoW at least offers social interactions and problems to solve. Zynga "games," on the other hand, involve spamming Facebook friends' news feeds, repetitive clicking, sexual innuendos, and, to my knowledge, nothing else.

Put another way: Zynga doesn't create games. They make virtual Skinner Boxes.

 

[The Mighty Gerbil]

Sorry Tek for me to really celebrate gaming there would have to be something meaningful or poignant done with them and I haven't seen it. I fully believe it's possible I just haven't seen the equivalent of "Crime and Punishment" in a game form, no we get games like the Dante's Inferno junk XD . Now I don't think a game would ever work as well as a book to express certain things, nor do I think "Crime and Punishment" would work as a game, it's just games could be a fair sight more meaningful. It's not a mark against the medium rather it's a sign of the times we live in. I've seen things talking about how the games industry has "matured" as gamers have gotten older but their definition of mature is completely skewed to the Bulletstorm end and reflects, unfortunately, people nowadays. If current games are the direction the industry is heading I want to go back to the 80's when games were mostly harmless (not all), meaningless and fun.

Yes there is the charity stuff but just about any media form has that. I do remember of the story of the little girl with the degenerative disease playing the Wii. Yeah there may be a marketing factor but if a Wii can make a sick kid happy I guess games are worth something.

Sappy as it is the best thing that has come out of me playing games is meeting you guys . I do think games allow for a higher/different level of interaction with people than just instant messaging and e-mail so they have that at least. So I guess maybe multiplayer yay?

 

[RyanB]

Sappy as it is the best thing that has come out of me playing games is meeting you guys . I do think games allow for a higher/different level of interaction with people than just instant messaging and e-mail so they have that at least. So I guess maybe multiplayer yay?

This is kind of where I fall in, though I think this can be easily underrated. I don't feel I see a lot of direct gaming goodness, but indirect through the relationships formed therein. The same could be said for any hobby; maybe CGA could stand for "Christian Golfers Association".

When it comes down to it, I'm very happy that I can enjoy my hobbies while forming relationship with great folks that both challenge and encourage me in life.

PS: Zynga "games" all remind me of Progress Quest, just with social network spam built in.

 

[Echodelta]

Ha! My girlfriend always makes fun of how much I play WoW, ...

Well I'd make fun of you too for playing WoW ... j/k

Video games are more accepted these days. Though I stopped playing video games for almost 10 years, I'm playing them again with my age nearly at 40. I just don't play as much as I did in the 90s. I know several people over 50 who continue to play video games.