Gamer identity: what is a "gamer"?

[ron1n]

As a few others have already said, a gamer is a videogame enthusiast. It's the videogame equivalent of a car nut or a cinephile/movie buff. Many people drive cars and most people watch movies, but there is a very obvious extra level of interest and dedication in the enthusiasts just as you see in gamers regarding games. This is the definition I have used for a long time, and big wigs at The Escapist have stated that they agree with it as well.

See that's the bit that is completely subjective and a grey area. While I can accept people using these throwaway lines in passing, in reality, when you get down to it, they hold no distinct meaning.

Movie buff gets tossed around in all kinds of circles. I've seen people call themselves movie buffs because they own like 30 DVDs. Are they therefore the equivalent of someone who identifies as a movie buff such as say Movie Bob who has a critical mindset and more experience? Even Moviebob probably isn't fluent in every film genre so is it still fair to use the term?

In this case, where do you draw the magic invisible line that separates 'enthusiast' and regular 'gamer' or 'casual'?

You simply cannot. Too many variables and nuances.

 

[shrekfan246]

Well now that I know that's not the case from people here, what is the gaming equivalent for "Film Buff", "Metalhead" and "Football Fanatic"?

Don't you think that maybe that's why the term is antiquated in the first place? By its very use people are excluding those who don't play or enjoy games in the exact particular way that they do. "Metalhead" is actually a pretty relevant comparison term; tell somebody they can't be a metalhead because they mostly listen to things like Dream Theater or Tool instead of Pantera and Black Sabbath.

 

[Saltyk]

Someone who plays and enjoys video games. It doesn't really have any other requirements. Just like an artist is someone who makes some form of art or a hunter enjoys hunting animals, it only requires you to partake in the activity. I would struggle to describe someone who only plays casual or mobile games as a gamer, but if they self identify as such, who am I to judge?

Gamers come in many different flavors or sex, race, politics, status, ability, and otherwise. That is irrelevant to one's status as a gamer. Some you may like. Others you may hate. Some may even partake in bullying tactics while others try to get along with everyone.

 

[Saltyk]

Well now that I know that's not the case from people here, what is the gaming equivalent for "Film Buff", "Metalhead" and "Football Fanatic"?

Don't you think that maybe that's why the term is antiquated in the first place? By its very use people are excluding those who don't play or enjoy games in the exact particular way that they do. "Metalhead" is actually a pretty relevant comparison term; tell somebody they can't be a metalhead because they mostly listen to things like Dream Theater or Tool instead of Pantera and Black Sabbath.

Which is why I have always ignored those types of people. I happen to enjoy plenty of things without checking out everything that can be described as such. I like anime, but have never seen plenty of anime. Does that make me a lesser anime fan? No. If you judge me for that, it makes you a toxic element of the fandom, though.

I pretty much avoid FPS games on the whole, does that make me a lesser gamer? I haven't played any RTS games, does that make me lesser? I haven't played on a Nintendo console in years, am I lesser? I don't really play on PC, either, am I lesser?

Of course not. Anyone who says otherwise is the problem, not me. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to decide if I'm gonna go to the grocery store, play Destiny on PS4 or Brave Frontier on my cell phone.

 

[Mahemium]

Well now that I know that's not the case from people here, what is the gaming equivalent for "Film Buff", "Metalhead" and "Football Fanatic"?

Don't you think that maybe that's why the term is antiquated in the first place? By its very use people are excluding those who don't play or enjoy games in the exact particular way that they do. "Metalhead" is actually a pretty relevant comparison term; tell somebody they can't be a metalhead because they mostly listen to things like Dream Theater or Tool instead of Pantera and Black Sabbath.

I don't think it's antiquated or exclusionary, no. Degrees of fandom will exist regardless, labels just gives those already existing degrees a name.

I don't believe labeling such degrees automatically render a hostile, exclusionary environment. As far as I'm aware, people who do exclude or deride others for not enjoying a hobby in the exact particular way that they do are often berated and negatively labelled by those communities at large; Elitist, Snob etc.

 

[shrekfan246]

Well now that I know that's not the case from people here, what is the gaming equivalent for "Film Buff", "Metalhead" and "Football Fanatic"?

Don't you think that maybe that's why the term is antiquated in the first place? By its very use people are excluding those who don't play or enjoy games in the exact particular way that they do. "Metalhead" is actually a pretty relevant comparison term; tell somebody they can't be a metalhead because they mostly listen to things like Dream Theater or Tool instead of Pantera and Black Sabbath.

I don't think it's antiquated or exclusionary, no. Degrees of fandom will exist regardless, labels just gives those already existing degrees a name.

Yes, but "gamer" as a label says nothing by itself. "Metalhead" describes a particular type of music a person enjoys; "gamer" says nothing about their game preferences. It says nothing about their console preferences, company preferences, genre preferences, any of that. It's absolutely worthless as anything more than "person who plays games", even in the sense of "person who enthusiastically plays games". If the person who gets really hyped up about the next new Super Smash Bros. game is every bit as much of a "gamer" as the person who gets really hyped up about the next Dragon Age game despite neither person enjoying the same games as the other, why is someone who only plays Call of Duty and Halo and sports games a "dudebro" instead? Why are they all "more" "gamer" than somebody who only plays casually on their phone?

I realize that not everybody will make those types of generalizations and I'm certainly not saying that you do, but it's a general sentiment I see from many people who tend to self-identify as "gamers". It makes it comes across as a very insular term.

 

[Mahemium]

Well now that I know that's not the case from people here, what is the gaming equivalent for "Film Buff", "Metalhead" and "Football Fanatic"?

Don't you think that maybe that's why the term is antiquated in the first place? By its very use people are excluding those who don't play or enjoy games in the exact particular way that they do. "Metalhead" is actually a pretty relevant comparison term; tell somebody they can't be a metalhead because they mostly listen to things like Dream Theater or Tool instead of Pantera and Black Sabbath.

I don't think it's antiquated or exclusionary, no. Degrees of fandom will exist regardless, labels just gives those already existing degrees a name.

Yes, but "gamer" as a label says nothing by itself. "Metalhead" describes a particular type of music a person enjoys; "gamer" says nothing about their game preferences. It says nothing about their console preferences, company preferences, genre preferences, any of that. It's absolutely worthless as anything more than "person who plays games", even in the sense of "person who enthusiastically plays games". If the person who gets really hyped up about the next new Super Smash Bros. game is every bit as much of a "gamer" as the person who gets really hyped up about the next Dragon Age game despite neither person enjoying the same games as the other, why is someone who only plays Call of Duty and Halo and sports games a "dudebro" instead? Why are they all "more" "gamer" than somebody who only plays casually on their phone?

I realize that not everybody will make those types of generalizations and I'm certainly not saying that you do, but it's a general sentiment I see from many people who tend to self-identify as "gamers". It makes it comes across as a very insular term.

Gaming is my biggest hobby, gaming is my greatest passion. I've never been good at much else. There are others like me who feel the same way. What's wrong with a simple name for people like me. I'm disabled, I can't go outside, will probably never have a family and I'm not religious. What's wrong with a feeling of belonging even if it's to something as inane and trivial as being overtly passionate about games?

I'm not alone. I'm not a unique snowflake. There's not a wide range of socially apt people who frequent gaming forums multiple times a day. When we really get down to it, you'd be surprised at how many self identified "gamers" come and go from gaming forums just for the conversation and the feeling of actually belonging to something.

What's wrong with a feeling of belonging even if it's something as inane and trivial as being overtly passionate about games?

I'll let you in on something, that most would be too proud to say. At the end of the day, though there's merit behind the ethical concerns in GamerGate, at it's core, the driving force; we are the embarrassing, socially inept weirdo's featured in "Gamers are Dead" articles. These sites had profited from our commitment to one of our only passions and communities in life for years, but now? We're embarrassing. We're not the audience. And the only thing that makes us feel like we belong, is dead.

 

[Thorn14]

A gamer is someone who is enthusiastic about gaming and cares about gaming.

Someone who just plays candy crush while in line or whatever is not a gamer. They're just playing a game.

For me, to be a gamer, one simply has to enjoy the genre of video gaming itself and to have some sort of interest in gaming as a whole.

Are you interested in the next game being made by your favorite developer? Do you talk to your friends about the games you play? Do you actually spend your time looking up news or discussion about games online? Then you're a gamer.

 

[shrekfan246]

Well now that I know that's not the case from people here, what is the gaming equivalent for "Film Buff", "Metalhead" and "Football Fanatic"?

Don't you think that maybe that's why the term is antiquated in the first place? By its very use people are excluding those who don't play or enjoy games in the exact particular way that they do. "Metalhead" is actually a pretty relevant comparison term; tell somebody they can't be a metalhead because they mostly listen to things like Dream Theater or Tool instead of Pantera and Black Sabbath.

I don't think it's antiquated or exclusionary, no. Degrees of fandom will exist regardless, labels just gives those already existing degrees a name.

Yes, but "gamer" as a label says nothing by itself. "Metalhead" describes a particular type of music a person enjoys; "gamer" says nothing about their game preferences. It says nothing about their console preferences, company preferences, genre preferences, any of that. It's absolutely worthless as anything more than "person who plays games", even in the sense of "person who enthusiastically plays games". If the person who gets really hyped up about the next new Super Smash Bros. game is every bit as much of a "gamer" as the person who gets really hyped up about the next Dragon Age game despite neither person enjoying the same games as the other, why is someone who only plays Call of Duty and Halo and sports games a "dudebro" instead? Why are they all "more" "gamer" than somebody who only plays casually on their phone?

I realize that not everybody will make those types of generalizations and I'm certainly not saying that you do, but it's a general sentiment I see from many people who tend to self-identify as "gamers". It makes it comes across as a very insular term.

Gaming is my biggest hobby, gaming is my greatest passion. I've never been good at much else. There are others like me who feel the same way. What's wrong with a simple name for people like me. I'm disabled, I can't go outside, will probably never have a family and I'm not religious. What's wrong with a feeling of belonging even if it's to something as inane and trivial as being overtly passionate about games?

I'm not alone. I'm not a unique snowflake. There's not a wide range of socially apt people who frequent gaming forums multiple times a day. When we really get down to it, you'd be surprised at how many self identified "gamers" come and go from gaming forums just for the conversation and the feeling of actually belonging to something.

What's wrong with a feeling of belonging even if it's something as inane and trivial as being overtly passionate about games?

There's nothing wrong with that, but that's not really what I'm talking about.

The way I see it, "gamer" should inherently be an inclusive term. It should encompass anyone who gets excited about games, whether they play on a single console, spend most of their time on video game websites, or don't even play video games but just enjoy tabletop gaming. As soon as you start using it to refer to a specific group of people, you're excluding others.

To counter your own anecdote, my best friend grew up with video games just as I did. However, the only video game website he ever really follows is IGN and he's never posted on an internet forum in his life. He's not less of a gamer than I am because of that, and I find that use of the term to be dismissive to people like him. Or, hey, I have another friend who only really plays Team Fortress 2, but she's logged over 1200 hours in the game.

For the sake of clarity, regardless of any arguments they might inflame between demographics I find terms like "PC gamer" or "console gamer" to at least be somewhat relevant. They at least say something (even if they're still far too simplistic because a lot of people will play on both). "Gamer" shouldn't be a term used to justify the persecution complexes of socially awkward people. It shouldn't be a term used to disregard people who don't intently follow gaming news. It shouldn't be a term used to weaken the relevance of people who don't enjoy games the same way you or I do. As you said, we're not unique, special snowflakes. You shouldn't need the term "gamer" to feel like you belong in a community of people who are just as passionate about video games as you are.

 

[omega 616]

Personally, gamer = anybody and everybody who plays games BUUUT under that there are sub categories.

Like a person who likes trains, he could train watch, collect models, just keep up to date with train news or just be like "I think trains are pretty cool" and that is the extent of it.

Casual gamers are your "I only play candy crush/farmville", hardcore is "I just play COD/LOL/DOTA/CS/Starcraft/street fighter an insane amount" and then serious gamers are the ones always on forums, keeping up with gaming news as a whole (not just patch notes on A game), plays a lot (if not all) genres of games.

I'm probably the only person who breaks it down like that but I think it's the best way (of course I would, it's the way I think)

 

[Mahemium]

Well now that I know that's not the case from people here, what is the gaming equivalent for "Film Buff", "Metalhead" and "Football Fanatic"?

Don't you think that maybe that's why the term is antiquated in the first place? By its very use people are excluding those who don't play or enjoy games in the exact particular way that they do. "Metalhead" is actually a pretty relevant comparison term; tell somebody they can't be a metalhead because they mostly listen to things like Dream Theater or Tool instead of Pantera and Black Sabbath.

I don't think it's antiquated or exclusionary, no. Degrees of fandom will exist regardless, labels just gives those already existing degrees a name.

Yes, but "gamer" as a label says nothing by itself. "Metalhead" describes a particular type of music a person enjoys; "gamer" says nothing about their game preferences. It says nothing about their console preferences, company preferences, genre preferences, any of that. It's absolutely worthless as anything more than "person who plays games", even in the sense of "person who enthusiastically plays games". If the person who gets really hyped up about the next new Super Smash Bros. game is every bit as much of a "gamer" as the person who gets really hyped up about the next Dragon Age game despite neither person enjoying the same games as the other, why is someone who only plays Call of Duty and Halo and sports games a "dudebro" instead? Why are they all "more" "gamer" than somebody who only plays casually on their phone?

I realize that not everybody will make those types of generalizations and I'm certainly not saying that you do, but it's a general sentiment I see from many people who tend to self-identify as "gamers". It makes it comes across as a very insular term.

Gaming is my biggest hobby, gaming is my greatest passion. I've never been good at much else. There are others like me who feel the same way. What's wrong with a simple name for people like me. I'm disabled, I can't go outside, will probably never have a family and I'm not religious. What's wrong with a feeling of belonging even if it's to something as inane and trivial as being overtly passionate about games?

I'm not alone. I'm not a unique snowflake. There's not a wide range of socially apt people who frequent gaming forums multiple times a day. When we really get down to it, you'd be surprised at how many self identified "gamers" come and go from gaming forums just for the conversation and the feeling of actually belonging to something.

What's wrong with a feeling of belonging even if it's something as inane and trivial as being overtly passionate about games?

There's nothing wrong with that, but that's not really what I'm talking about.

The way I see it, "gamer" should inherently be an inclusive term. It should encompass anyone who gets excited about games, whether they play on a single console, spend most of their time on video game websites, or don't even play video games but just enjoy tabletop gaming. As soon as you start using it to refer to a specific group of people, you're excluding others.

To counter your own anecdote, my best friend grew up with video games just as I did. However, the only video game website he ever really follows is IGN and he's never posted on an internet forum in his life. He's not less of a gamer than I am because of that, and I find that use of the term to be dismissive to people like him. Or, hey, I have another friend who only really plays Team Fortress 2, but she's logged over 1200 hours in the game.

For the sake of clarity, regardless of any arguments they might inflame between demographics I find terms like "PC gamer" or "console gamer" to at least be somewhat relevant. They at least say something (even if they're still far too simplistic because a lot of people will play on both). "Gamer" shouldn't be a term used to justify the persecution complexes of socially awkward people. It shouldn't be a term used to disregard people who don't intently follow gaming news. It shouldn't be a term used to weaken the relevance of people who don't enjoy games the same way you or I do. As you said, we're not unique, special snowflakes. You shouldn't need the term "gamer" to feel like you belong in a community of people who are just as passionate about video games as you are.

Nah, GamerGators will probably be the new label now. Or maybe something different, it doesn't matter. When a new site or two inevitably come to supply the demand of GG, like minded individuals from the Escapist, 8Chan, Reddit, IGN, Gamespot, GameFAQ's etc will naturally gravitate there. Ultimately solidifying the fractured community of .

 

[shrekfan246]

Nah, GamerGators will probably be the new label now. Or maybe something different, it doesn't matter. When a new site or two inevitably come to supply the demand of GG, like minded individuals from the Escapist, 8Chan, Reddit, IGN, Gamespot, GameFAQ's etc will naturally gravitate there. Ultimately solidifying the fractured community of .

...

I'm not entirely sure where that came from, but I can't really disagree with that. XD

Eh, I dunno, I'm pretty uncomfortable about categorizing things in general anyway. I can't really understand being extremely particular about distinguishing between "death metal" and "doom metal", for instance. I'm never above acknowledging that maybe I'm just the weird one.

 

[Captain Anon]

a gamer is someone that plays and enjoys video games, talks with other people about said games and possibly watches gaming conferences. we also don't like it when someone who's probably not trustworthy comes along and claims that we're racists, rapists, violent, misogynist or sexist.

 

[xPixelatedx]

Someone who is passionate about games, an enthusiast who always wants the best experience. Someone who devotes multiple hours to consuming and discussing gaming media. Someone with a genuine love for the hobby.

This is pretty much what I was going to type, word for word.

And no, "Gamer" as an identity is not exclusive, rather it's inclusive It says "Hey, if you're willing to play and talk about games and participate in the wider community, then you can call yourself a Gamer" the only people that excludes are people who don't want to participate, and forgive me for taking this unreasonable position but if anybody at all should be excluded it should be those who have no desire to participate.

That's fair, and you're right.

But about inclusion: we have had a few exclusionary people in our midst over the years, but unfortunately that's just how hobbies work once they get big. Thankfully they are far and in between and don't hold any actual power. Such people are not the gate keepers of video games; no one needs their permission to play or enjoy things.

 

[Little Gray]

It is a term that was created in order to exclude others.

 

[Something Amyss]

It is a term that was created in order to exclude others.

Bingo.

And honestly, I don't really care enough to police someone else's identity.

A gamer, as far as I'm concerned, is someone who considers themselves a gamer. And given how toxic the term has become to many, may God have mercy on their soul.

 

[Westonbirt]

I'm a gamer. I play games, it occupies a significant part of my time, thoughts and drains quite a bit of my money. I know quite a bit about games and enjoy talking about games with other people like me.

 

[Phasmal]

It is a term that was created in order to exclude others.

Bingo.

And honestly, I don't really care enough to police someone else's identity.

A gamer, as far as I'm concerned, is someone who considers themselves a gamer. And given how toxic the term has become to many, may God have mercy on their soul.

Yes, I have to second this. Or technically third it, you know what I mean.

I've been playing games since before I can remember and I've still had a laundry list of reasons posed to me as to why I'm `not a gamer` or `not a REAL gamer` (ranging from `you haven't played every game that I have played` to `You're a girl`).
Frankly, it's a little pathetic.

Still, I enjoy the term because I find it helpful to identify myself with, but I would never presume to tell someone else that they aren't one. That's just rude.

 

[Dizchu]

A gamer is a 15-25 year old straight white male, typically unhygienic, unattractive and involuntary celibate. They redirect their bitterness towards women, constantly harassing them at any opportunity they can.

Every game they play has scantily-clad damsels in distress and every player character is a completely RIPPED straight white guy with shades and a bad attitude. Every mission involves the subjugation of women in one way or another.

Their only friends are other straight white males and they actively exclude women, non-whites and LGBTs from any multiplayer games. The only occasions where they don't wear a fedora are when they go to bed or when they shower, though the latter isn't something that occurs often.

Every night they cry themselves to sleep because no girls like them. Eventually this rage will cause them to go on a killing spree.

tl;dr: A gamer is someone that is enthusiastic about games. Equivalent terms would be "movie buff" or "bibliophile".

 

[Canadamus Prime]

A "gamer" is someone who plays games either for fun or as a profession (ie tournaments etc.) and also self-identifies as a gamer. I'm sure the housewife that plays Bejeweled or Angry Birds on her iPad doesn't think of herself as a gamer.

It is a term that was created in order to exclude others.

That too.