I see Gamer as being synonymous with fan. This is much the same way sports fans identify themselves. Someone can occasionally watch a football game with friends or family but they don't really pay attention to all the stats, roosters, and match up details. Those people wouldn't really consider themselves fans it's just something they enjoy with others from time to time.
For a comparison to another media such as movies I don't think there is an appropriate term other than maybe Movie Aficionado. Where someone who goes nearly every week to see the latest films of the sheer enjoyment (as oppose to a critic who does it for work) vs someone who may only go every other month or so to see the few titles they are interested in. So for games I think Gamer is pretty much taken to mean Gaming Aficionado.
For those who many not know the term:
afi·cio·na·do
noun \ə-ˌfi-sh(ē-)ə-ˈnä-(ˌ
dō, -fē-, -sē-ə-\
: a person who likes, knows about, and appreciates a usually fervently pursued interest or activity : devotee
This I think is how many gamers see themselves and if you don't have the passion like a true aficionado then you are not a gamer. But that doesn't mean you can't enjoy a game now and then, just like you don't have to be a movie aficionado to enjoy a good movie from time to time.
And if you look at the use of the term it has pretty much always been focused around that core meaning. The negative stereotypes got added on as a way to denigrate the past time as it was viewed in a negative light by the main stream. And I even recall growing up some people who may like a game or two when they played it but they didn't identify as gamers because it was a casual thing they only did on occasion with friends and knew very little about the overall gaming culture.
But now that nerd culture has become cool a lot of people want to wear the badge of gamer to appear "cool" without actually learning about it and diving into it to understanding the culture. This is what turns off a lot of people as you would get a similar reaction from any fandom if you did that. Try saying your a huge fan of some sports team without knowing most of the players names or positions and then striking up a conversation with someone who does. Your fraud will be seen as such and it will speak volumes on your character which will put people off.
The problem in gaming culture though is you do have some sexist jerks and general assholes out there who like to spew their hate speech and the Media is all to happy to capitalize on these incidents to continue to perpetuate the negative stereotypes of the anti-social Gamer.
For a comparison to another media such as movies I don't think there is an appropriate term other than maybe Movie Aficionado. Where someone who goes nearly every week to see the latest films of the sheer enjoyment (as oppose to a critic who does it for work) vs someone who may only go every other month or so to see the few titles they are interested in. So for games I think Gamer is pretty much taken to mean Gaming Aficionado.
For those who many not know the term:
afi·cio·na·do
noun \ə-ˌfi-sh(ē-)ə-ˈnä-(ˌ
dō, -fē-, -sē-ə-\: a person who likes, knows about, and appreciates a usually fervently pursued interest or activity : devotee
This I think is how many gamers see themselves and if you don't have the passion like a true aficionado then you are not a gamer. But that doesn't mean you can't enjoy a game now and then, just like you don't have to be a movie aficionado to enjoy a good movie from time to time.
And if you look at the use of the term it has pretty much always been focused around that core meaning. The negative stereotypes got added on as a way to denigrate the past time as it was viewed in a negative light by the main stream. And I even recall growing up some people who may like a game or two when they played it but they didn't identify as gamers because it was a casual thing they only did on occasion with friends and knew very little about the overall gaming culture.
But now that nerd culture has become cool a lot of people want to wear the badge of gamer to appear "cool" without actually learning about it and diving into it to understanding the culture. This is what turns off a lot of people as you would get a similar reaction from any fandom if you did that. Try saying your a huge fan of some sports team without knowing most of the players names or positions and then striking up a conversation with someone who does. Your fraud will be seen as such and it will speak volumes on your character which will put people off.
The problem in gaming culture though is you do have some sexist jerks and general assholes out there who like to spew their hate speech and the Media is all to happy to capitalize on these incidents to continue to perpetuate the negative stereotypes of the anti-social Gamer.
