Don't Use the Word "Gamer"

[stonethered]

That description of the sign Girl Gamers would be wearing; It should be manifested as an actual shirt.



Alright Mr. Croshaw, I accept your proposition. No longer shall I refer to myself as a gamer.

Should I apply this to the other labels I apply to myself, like Nerd and Geek? Or is it good enough to just not be self-labeled a gamer?

 

[Rosenquartz]

First I'd like to point out that MovieBob already did a blog post about this over on Game Overthinker, and did it better in my opinion. Secondly If you don't want the stereotypes to be true don't let them be, be your self.

 

[ALPHATT]

A thousand times yes, that's what i thought back when i first came in contact with gaming media around 05ish when i got my internet.

 

[TheDandyHighwayman]

I find all generalised groups like "gamer" to be nonsense anyway. I'm an "Englishman" too. Do I play Cricket first or do I go straight for Dragon Age again? see.. silliness

 

[JUMBO PALACE]

While some people do retain that stereotype of a gamer, I myself find that many have abandoned that idea. So many people play games now that the majority of people have accepted it as a normal activity. I don't find anything wrong with the term "gamer" and I don't think anyone else should either.

 

[erto101]

I can't see why most people seem to dislike the term gamer. I mean playing video games will make you a gamer the same way as, say skateing will make you a skater.
The fear of not being part of society makes people deny personal traits that are not mainstream: No one seems to like being called emo or goth. I see only one solution to that problem. Leave the culture!
If you do not like being called Goth/emo/skater/hooligan/biker/gamer/I-think-you-get-the-point, then stop doing whatever chastises said label. Stand by what you are because you like it or fuck off. People who enjoy games for a hobby are gamers the same way bikers are bikers or skaters are skaters. The pride thing is ofc stupid. Saying "look at me! I have a hobby and I'm proud of it!." is .. well.. dumb.
Labels are given by outsiders (remember a recently thread with a decent example; fat, stupid Americans! Being from the States doesn't automatically make you fat, being a gamer doesn't make you a social outcast, but there is a slightly higher risk of it being true and therefor: STEREOTYPES) you can fight, bring hard evidence proving it is nowhere near the truth, or you can accept it. It makes no difference whatsoever

 

[DoctorObviously]

One day, I'll get to that bar of yours, Yahtzee, although living in Belgium might be the only thing blocking me xD But I will visit once! With my copy of Mogworld! ... for a signature!

 

[RTR]

This is what Moviebob was getting at when he said that a gamer is not a lifestyle or a way of being.

 

[MrGamer]

I mostly agree with Yahtzee.
I admit to using Gamer,
However, I think I will define my Hobbies as Gaming and being a gamer(Like someone saying they are a hunter), and
define myself as a plethora of other things instead of using just gamer.

 

[Speakercone]

I agree, I'd be proud to call myself a gamer if it didn't have as much baggage as it does.

I tend to say that gaming features prominently among my passions. Or words to that effect.

 

[Lineoutt]

It points to probably the biggest problem with the label "gamer" and other labels as well. It insinuates that this is the only dimension to you, belying the fact that people are complex, difficult, unintuitive things.

This would all hold more weight from me if I wasn't already avoiding the term to self-identify out of an inexplicable shame I have for being one.

I agree. Playing video games as much as I do (which, mind you, is often but not all) has earned me the title of "gamer". This sucks because when thinking about doing something interesting (say going to a street fair or something) people just skim past me because they think I would be uninterested in doing anything other than playing video games.

I also totally agree with Yahtzee's spiel about "gamer girls" Its a horrible title that I avoid with my life. It proclaims to the world "Hello world! I am a girl who plays games! I play because guys don't give me enough attention! But now that I am one of few you must like me! Pay attention to me boyzz!!"

Also yes, I am a girl and yes, I like attention as much as the next female. Denying that girls like attention is like denying that bacon comes from pigs. But I am not desperate for it so that I have to title and flaunt myself to get that attention.

 

[heamrh]

thank you yahtzee, but being a "gamer" used to be something to be proud of, we used to be "l33t" (lol), but now every tom, douche and dick head can play and took what used to make us friends and nerds and gamers. now it's just what people do on their day off.
well i say fuck it, i no longer consider myself a gamer, video games will become what "everyone does" so much it will become as normal as the movies they play at the cinema, watered down and meaningless

 

[DRSH1989]

So instead of saying "gamer" I should say that "I'm a sophisticated machine from the future sent back in time to play present video games to preserve the future of game developer money making schemes". Ok, I got it. Ty.

 

[UkuleleSlayer]

I agree man. I play the guitar (Real one, not the hero kind), I love music, books, and I have tons of friends who probably only two play video games (Probably only rock band), so why is it that just because I play video games occasionally on weekends while trying to waste some time, I am immediately considered a gamer nerd who plays WoW for days and spends all of his time in a basement with chips and soda? Years ago I just decided that I would never mention video games UNLESS someone asked me if I played them. I'm not going to lie, but I'm not going to bring it up and let people make outrages assumptions about my life. Life has worked out great since then. If society ever hopes to end prejudice and warfare, we need to stop creating labels for people! Maybe people stopping the use of the word Gamer will lead to other things like the stop racial slurs and such. Who knows what lies in the future, but at least we all know that somewhere there is a awesome person on vacation. Woot.

 

[TitsMcGee1804]

Hope you are enjoying/have enjoyed/looking forward to enjoying your hols!

 

[theklng]

Well i don't have acne but i do smell like wet dog on account of being caught out in the torrential rain a 15 minute walk away from my house (fucking non functional bus system....)


What else do we call "Someone who playes games a lot"? "An interactive media fan?" ? Just becuase 'gamer' has a bit of a bad image does not me we should abandon the word wholesale. If we stop using gamer ans start using, i don't know, "Gameist" or whatever the stereotype will just move over to that word and we will look like pretencious dick-bags in the meantime. Like so;

"Well im quite the fan of Games"

"So you're a gamer?"

"No. Im an interactive media fan!"

"...."

...

[sub]"dick"[/sub]

how about "game connoisseur"? or "elegant player of games"? how about just initiate the conversation like this instead: "i play video games..."? or if you're a bad enough conversationalist to get trapped in above argument, retort with, "no, i'm a player". people will congratulate you upon your wit. okay, probably not, but they will congratulate me for making you say that.

Aeris is a flaky bint. Hell, she was the most boring character in the game. I stand by that steadfast. I never understood the obsession with her.

why would you even bother playing that game then? it seems restricted to people who have an obsession about several universes not unlike japanese anime movies, but with the added "push a button to proceed" mechanic.

You know, I've put up with the self-important, narcissistic bullshit of a one Benjamin "Yahtzee" Croshaw for quite some time now. And though that is hardly a stretch for me, as I have been absorbing the anger and prejudice of the world's asshole population for a good three decades, I can no longer stand to have Yahtzee's own brand of verbal diarrhea being funneled into my ear canal any longer.

I put up with a lot of shit from people like Yahtzee over the years. But when you call Aerith Gainsborough a "flaky bint", you have stepped over the proverbial line. I have no more patience for you, Croshaw. Take your crybaby rants that you poorly disguise as legitimate reviews and stick them up your pasty, white tuchus. You really wanna know what the definition of the stereotypical asshole gamer that gives us all a bad name? Every morning you look at one in the mirror when you wake up. It's people like you that ruin this hobby for the rest of us.

And before you accuse me of the following. No, I do not own a body pillow or any other perverted anime crap. Though I'm sure you'll claim otherwise in next week's article.

AHAHHAHAHAHAHAHA, YES! YOU MADE MY DAY!

truly the feeling of self importance is strong in you, since you think that yathathzee (i can never spell his name right) actually cares. the same insults you use on him seem to be describing you very well. aside from that... ahahaha... ahahhaahhaahahhahahaah

 

[Neo Kojiro]

But the stereotype exists because it, for the most part, applies: people who consider themselves gamers are the greasy, socially-inept neckbeards that you very pointedly go out of the way to state you yourself are not. Hell, they wouldn't go to a bar to begin with, since they're, as previously stated, semi-shut-ins who prefer thier couch to anything else. Hell, your daily schedule paragraph points a major difference out right there: most gamers don't shower.

Incidently, i'm reminded of an american gameshow from half a decade back called 'Beat the Geeks', starring people who know thier stuff autisticly well. People like that are those who'd hold the title of gamer, with normal people being the contestants answering questions against them for hopes of money.

 

[Unesh52]

Sudenly I see a entire thread somewhere on the internet with thousands of
>implyications

First off, Gamers game, Players play, and Shooters shoot. It's just logical.

I enjoy recreational video games. I also uphold a very nice job.

The Stereotypical Vidya Nerd doesn't exist anymore. Everyone and their dog enjoys video games in the Modern Era.

Yeah, well haters gonna hate.

I hope no one else has done that yet. ...I still feel like a little bit of a tool for it anyway.

OT: I think labels can be useful, but that this one in particular has become obsolete. Who the hell doesn't play video games? Even my mom plays Guitar Hero.

 

[MajoraPersona]

Have a good vacation.

 

[romxxii]

I have to heartily disagree. Gamer, just like film buff and NERD, are the kind of labels that truly define you. Not your occupation, God sakes, for most of us that's just something we do for the money; no, what you are is what you really like to do, and if you really love to spend hours farming for x bear asses, well congratulations, that's who you are.

Spoiler

You know, I've put up with the self-important, narcissistic bullshit of a one Benjamin "Yahtzee" Croshaw for quite some time now. And though that is hardly a stretch for me, as I have been absorbing the anger and prejudice of the world's asshole population for a good three decades, I can no longer stand to have Yahtzee's own brand of verbal diarrhea being funneled into my ear canal any longer.

I put up with a lot of shit from people like Yahtzee over the years. But when you call Aerith Gainsborough a "flaky bint", you have stepped over the proverbial line. I have no more patience for you, Croshaw. Take your crybaby rants that you poorly disguise as legitimate reviews and stick them up your pasty, white tuchus. You really wanna know what the definition of the stereotypical asshole gamer that gives us all a bad name? Every morning you look at one in the mirror when you wake up. It's people like you that ruin this hobby for the rest of us.

And before you accuse me of the following. No, I do not own a body pillow or any other perverted anime crap. Though I'm sure you'll claim otherwise in next week's article.

Wow. Your nerdrage berserk button is for a Final Fantasy character that was meant to die? In a game where they had bloody Phoenix Downs? And you've been putting up with a man who hates JRPGs? And who probably doesn't know you exist and probably won't care either way?

Calm down, take a deep breath. He's entitled to his opinion. I think he's wrong, but don't be like those morons who sent him hate mail for ripping SSBB. Unless you want to make the rest of us laugh, that is.