[Today’s posting is a rant. I just have to get it off my chest]
I have two gaming T-shirts that I wear quite a bit.
One of them has the images of four game controllers (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC mouse and Wii-mote) accompanied with the words: “Contrary to popular opinion, these do not make me a killer (Well maybe the Wii-mote, that thing is dangerous)”
It’s my “I like to play video games T-shirt, get used to it” T-shirt and nine times out of 10 when I wear it someone will give me a strange look. In fact, a week or so ago when we were staying at a remote location in the Marlborough Sounds I wore it into the camp shop/diary to get milk and a paper. The woman behind the counter sort of looked strange when she saw it.
I mention my T-shirt because if there’s one thing really grinds my gears it’s people who criticise people who play video games. That’s why I like wearing that T-shirt (it came from Insert Coin clothing in the UK): it makes it known to people that I play video games and, contrary to what they believe, years of playing games haven’t made me a killer. I don’t go out at night, like Dexter Morgan in the TV show Dexter does, prowling for evil doers.
I’m raising this topic because today someone who has hardly played video games at all criticised why I played video games. I don’t understand why people do that: why criticise someone just because it’s something you don’t like?
Sorry, but I just don’t understand it. I think it’s because they don’t understand video games or the technology behind them. That’s the only answer I can give. Seriously. Or they’ve watched a mainstream news story about “video game nasties” and based their opinion on that.
I’m not making people who don’t like video games play them so why do they criticise them? “Oh, why do you waste your time playing that when you could be outside, in the sun, riding a bike, or doing something with nature?” is a common comment I get on another blog from people who have no understanding of the industry or video games. I don’t like hunting but it would be like me visiting a hunting forum then telling hunters to give it a rest and start taking up crochet or something.
What these people who tell me to “go outside in the sun instead of playing video games” don’t seem to realise is that I actually am able to play video games and go outside and spent time with Mother Nature, on my bike and with my family. It’s called a balanced lifestyle and I have one. I ride my bike, I spend time with my family, I go out in the boat, I go fishing. I also play video games.
Anyway, sorry for the rant. Sometimes small things get my back up, especially when people slag off something that I enjoy just because they don’t understand it. Let us play video games: we’re not hurting anyone.
Promise I won’t moan again in future. Much.
Nothing wrong with ranting, it helps, this type of behaviour annoys me also, I get it more since I’ve moved to the UK, people asking me why I am playing games instead of travelling, it’s like they don’t understand that I do travel (I’m in Estonia at the moment), but I can’t travel 24/7 and it’s during the times I’m not travelling, especially weeknights that I still find time to play.
Anyway that’s all from me except this: that t-shirt is awesome!
Fair enough rant Gerard… Gaming is an essential part of any balanced lifestyle if you ask me! If someone is going to criticise gamers as lazy and indoorsy, well, most of those comments are equally aimed at those who read books… or enjoy cooking… or a ton of other things enjoyed by many!
Yep, I hear ya, Gerard.
What gets to me is that other, similar recreational pastimes get the all-clear from folks who look down on people who play video games. To me, gaming is now a medium that’s quite similar to film in many respects, and yet obsessive film buffs tend to get a free pass (comparatively). Someone who watches a lot of films doesn’t seem to encounter the same disdain as someone who plays a lot of games. I’ve known people in the past who’ve spent all weekend watching DVDs, and yet they’ll criticise gamers for extended gaming sessions. Go figure.
There’s just this historical stigma that gaming enthusiasts don’t do anything else, and I’m afraid we have an uphill battle trying to convince laypersons otherwise.
Thanks for the comments everyone – glad to hear it’s a problem other gamers run into.
Chris, I know people who watch TV from morning to night on the weekends, and that seems to be OK to them, but if I play a game for two hours on a Saturday afternoon I’m some sort of anti-social person who has no life. I don’t understand it.