Fan=Fanboy?

[Supernovajake]

Hello everyone, I'd like your opinion on something.
Where does being a fan end and being a fanboy begin? Are they even the same thing perhaps?
The term fanboy gets thrown around a lot on forums, to the point of it being a sort of forum slang for fan.
If I like something then I would call myself a fan, but someone who disagrees with that opinion could call me a fanboy, so is fanboy just an insult for flamers to use?

Your views please.

 

[Lt. Sera]

A Fanboy is someone who refuses to see the flaws of the product/company he is so devoted to. He will go to great lengths to disprove any faults and consistently back his object of fanboyism. Throw in childish behavious when discussing and you have yourself a fanboy.

A fan is merely someone who likes the product, despite it's flaws, he won't deny said flaws, he just accepts them.

 

[Shamtee]

How I see things really is that if your a fan, you like something a lot. In arguments against it you'll stand up for it but also yoy accept its faults (its not perfect) and other games are better.

Fanboys are the obsessives. They will defende with their lifes, see no faults and nothing will ever be better. Normaly this happenes when a game is a serise and only pick one they like (for example Zelda: ocorina of time or final fantasy 7)

Then you have the extreme fanboy. The best example of this is the sonic the hedgehog fan comunity. People that hate sonic the hedgehog are nothing comparied to these fan groups. They Rip games to pieces hating everything about them and looking back into the past at maybe the first 1/2 games and preching how great it was. They'll stick buy on release most time the new games only to complain again about them.

Then you have fan girls (fan girls is just another version of fan boys as everything is unisex at the end of the day). Fangirl-ism are the fan artist and fan writers, not just the normal fan artists, these people can be disurbing at times. They make charaters that go into the storys and most time become main charater and have relationships with the charaters. also they the ones that make charater turn gay and.... well you most likely know the rest.

 

[Reaperman Wompa]

Fan= enjoyes a game series.

Fanboi= goes around blasting anyone with godzilla style nuclear breath on anyone who disagrees.

That.


A "fan" will say why they enjoy a game if prompted, or will join in discussions about the game enthusiastically.

A "Fanboy" (or Boi, they aren't intelligent enough to spell) will force the topic, constantly discussing their chosen game. Never admitting any faults with the game and constantly abusing anyone who disagrees with them. You cannot change their minds, no matter how intelligent your arguement or terrible their game.

There is also a new breed, who silently spreads the knowledge of their game, worshiping it without drawing attention, they are a disease slowly spreading the love of their game. These are to be feared, they act normally but are constantly thinking of ways to make you join the cult that is their chosen games following.

 

[one-shot-finch]

Fans like a series
Fanboys wont stop until anything in competition is destroyed

 

[k3v1n]

(for me)

fan= really likes series/game/whatever and thinks it's the best but respects other people's opinion and (more or less) accepts criticism

fanboy= same, but it doesn't accept criticism or even respects people¡s opinion

 

[mark_n_b]

A Fanboy is someone who refuses to see the flaws of the product/company he is so devoted to. He will go to great lengths to disprove any faults and consistently back his object of fanboyism. Throw in childish behavious when discussing and you have yourself a fanboy.

I will add that a fanboy will not acknowledge the other point of view, He thinks Final Fantasy is awesome and anyone who doesn't really like Final Fantasy is therefore either uninformed and racist against the Japanese, doesn't appreciate good story, just a hater, etc. The thought that a perfectly reasonable human being could maybe just not share his opinion does not even occur to the fanboy.

A fan, not really an issue. Unless put up against an actual hater / fanboy then it can get hard to tell, nobody likes to be made to feel like their opinions are stupid.

In my Opinion:
fan != fanboy

 

[Xvito]

I think pretty much what everyone else thinks.

 

[Strafe Mcgee]

Fan = Someone that loves a game and loves talking about it, particularly discussing what makes their chosen game so great and why they love it so.

Fanboy = Same as above but with a big ole dollop of crazy.

 

[Jaythulhu]

Ehh, I don't know if I'd agree with ya there, Strafe. I'll happily admit to being a star wars fan, but I'm more than happy to rip holes through it. Like the awful dialogue and terrible plot "twists". I'd never consider spending a minute defending or discussing what makes it great. (Especially in the star wars stakes. It's fun, but not great.) A fan is more someone who just enjoys something. Take a music genre fan, or movie fan who enjoys everything put to celluloid.

A fanboy, I've found, is one of those douchebags who can't accept any criticism of the object of their fanatical devotion, to the point of feeling rage if someone disputes or disagrees with their belief.

From observation, I think there's very little difference between a fanboy, a religious zealot, and some severe mental illnesses, especially the people with a form of ocd.

 

[Supernovajake]

Thanks for replying guys. I can see the line dividing fans from fanboys a lot clearer now.

 

[Jaythulhu]

The internet... educational, entertaining and occasionally a little disturbing.

 

[cleverlymadeup]

Then you have the extreme fanboy. The best example of this is the sonic the hedgehog fan comunity.

i agree with your assessment, however i'll say the Star Wars fanboys and their hate of George Lucas is a way better example of extreme fanboyisms

 

[Johnn Johnston]

A fan is someone that enjoys playing on their chosen system, or on a series or game.

A fanboy is basically a fan that is unwilling to accept or realise that there are faults with their chosen system, series or game, or that there are better alternatives.

 

[Cinder Block of Oppression]

Console Fanboys are usually just fans who can't afford more then one system, so they'll do anything to look like they made the right choice.

 

[Jaythulhu]

How would ya define football hooligans, or the rugby league fools who paint their faces and are willing to start brawls over "their team"? Fanboy? Or rabid fanboy?

 

[xitel]

A fan is someone who enjoys a game/console/etc..., while a fanboy is someone who hates people who doesn't like the thing he likes or will buy everything to do with the thing regardless of whether or not the related thing is any good (all those things make sense if you think for a second).

 

[Captin Planet]

I would tend to think a fanboy is a person compelled to defend a #insert item here# even if they have no real argument to present. Also taking criticism personally has alot to do with it as well i believe.