I've met all sorts of people who are gamers from a man who has a very high rank police job, to a chavvy lesbian with no gcses. They enjoy the same sorts of games and play them a lot. No reason not to consider it alongside watching films or even reading in the cases of rpgs and games with a lot of depth. Having said that people call you nerdy but it's becoming less usual in my opinion and as long as you have a social life and don't play games all the time and never see anyone in the real world then there's no reason not to be proud of being a gamer.
The face of computer gaming.
- Thread starter Teki187
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Truly never gave it at thought. Even thinking about it now it makes little sense to me why I would care what other people think about it or what they would ever care in the first place.
I think it's more of a generational thing anyway.
Those completely "pre-games" generation.
I know a lot of people of all different ages that play video games.
In fact, from my experience, I would go as far as to say that it's somewhat of a social norm if people don't play video games.
They're seen as a completely relevant and valid form of entertainment in today's society.
Realistically, they're just a modern extension to the likes of board games such as monopoly.
Look at the wii, how and why it's so popular.
It's got a very "board game" type ethos about it, pick up and play and very easy for people to get in to.
I think that makes the transition to more "serious" games much easier and more natural.
Those completely "pre-games" generation.
I know a lot of people of all different ages that play video games.
In fact, from my experience, I would go as far as to say that it's somewhat of a social norm if people don't play video games.
They're seen as a completely relevant and valid form of entertainment in today's society.
Realistically, they're just a modern extension to the likes of board games such as monopoly.
Look at the wii, how and why it's so popular.
It's got a very "board game" type ethos about it, pick up and play and very easy for people to get in to.
I think that makes the transition to more "serious" games much easier and more natural.
I have yet to find a game, even some of the best RPGs, that has the depth of even a decent novel or well scripted film. The industry as a whole is only now starting to take the "writer" role seriously and has some serious catching up to do. Take Dragon Age as an example, a far too cliched plot with some absolutely terrible dialogue in parts and it is one of the better written games on the market currently!
Caporegime
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A lot of the best games are designed with adults in mind. And just because the have an 18 label doesn't mean that should stop your enjoyment of the game even if you were 48. Everyone has the right to enjoy themselves and video games are a great way to take yourself away from the real world for a few hours, to just detach yourself and be able to do all the things you want but without the real world repercussions.
That's why I love games like GTA4, you have so much freedom to do whatever you want to and it has no impact on your real life at all.
That's why I love games like GTA4, you have so much freedom to do whatever you want to and it has no impact on your real life at all.
To answer your question I think it probably is more accepted now than it was a few years ago simply because a greater proportion of the populace now do it courtesy of consoles etc. Having said that I don't think the 'stigma' as its been described has gone totally because some people do still consider it a geeky childish thing to do...
i dont believe this. when i was a kid you where always cool if you had games or the latest consoles.
Man of Honour
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I've gamed on most consoles and on computers since they hit the 8bit mainstream era spectrum, amstrad, etc so at 37 im not about to give up, cool or not I pay no attention, I just game.
Soldato
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truth. the games industry suffers in this respect as it is not the norm to hire professional script writers.
To everyone getting all defensive and going "Why should I care what people think?" The question wasn't "do you care what people think about you playing games?", it was (more or less) "From a social perspective, is it becoming acceptable to admit to frequently playing computer games?"
The skills are pretty transferable, the problem is that the games industry has only recently decided that professional writers would actually be a good idea.
I wasn't really getting defensive, I honestly couldn't care less what others think are acceptable or unacceptable hobbies. Most of mine fall into the "Not exactly mainstream" category. Is it however becoming more socially acceptable? Yes because more people are growing up as gamers and more people are admiting to being gamers. Give it another 10/20 years and no one will care.
I find JRPGs to have just as much depth as a well written novel or movie.
I even found fallout 3 to be extremely immersive.
Final Fantasy 9 is one of my all time favourite immersive games as well, the story grabs me quite strongly.
Though, rather than me thinking you're wrong, I would say that it's just something that's highly subjective and differs between you and I. Kinda goes without saying.
I don't think that's true. There is a huge difference between somebody who will happily play through Modern Warfare 2 and play on-line or with friends occasionally compared with somebody who racks up 200 hours on Oblivion by themselves. One is perfectly common, the other, not so much and I can't see the general public perception of this changing.
With the latter example, I think it's pretty odd that somebody can be bothered to invest such a large amount of time in something so isolated and unproductive. Granted, I spend a huge amount of time on OCUK, but since I'm interacting with others I feel that it is a more productive use of my time than watching TV or playing video games. However, I also appreciate that it's pretty hard to distinguish between my oblivion example and reading a book.
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I would suggest broadening your reading habits then.
Cliched plot and poor dialogue galore.
The industry as a whole really needs to get better in that area, it really does.
I am not sure that the general public perception of this knows enough to know the difference to be honest.
At the end of the day huge chunks of the population spend just as much time watching TV or reading or doing a hundred other "unproductive" things. I really don't see doing something you enjoy to be time spent being unproductive.
I don't disagree as a general rule that most games have terribly written story lines and are totally predictable from the start but not every game does. There are some significant examples of excellent story telling but the majority are from the previous generations - the likes of Baldurs' Gate and Planescape Torment are brilliantly written games. It's a shame that Dragon Age didn't receive the same attention story wise as these older games. If it had it could have been something truly special rather than just being very good.I would suggest broadening your reading habits then.
Cliched plot and poor dialogue galore.
The industry as a whole really needs to get better in that area, it really does.
I would suggest broadening your reading habits then.
Cliched plot and poor dialogue galore.
The industry as a whole really needs to get better in that area, it really does.
As I said though, it's entirely subjective.
I love reading and watching movies, but the interactive aspect of games is what gets me most, plus for me they offer far more entertainment hours than a good book or movie ever will.
I think it has to do with the amount of effort involved, just like learning the rules of a table top game like Warhammer.
I installed Knights of the Old Republic 2 a few months ago. I was so bored so quickly I could barely finish the 'create a character screen' - assigning all of the attributes, with dozens of options, just numbed my mind. I can't really fathom how people sit through such chores, but horses for courses.