What makes you a Gamer?

[svenjl]

I think the idea of gaming as a serious hobby is roughly what defines a "gamer". Playing Angry Birds on the way to and from work doesn't really qualify, so to speak (or if it even matters!). Some of my friends would be surprised at how much I read in relation to games, on top of playing. I wouldn't be insulted to be considered a gamer. I spend money and time to play games, read about them, wear them on T-shirts, review them etc. As long as the term isn't used in an insulting or condescending way, or to completely define one's person then like most labels it's harmless.

 

[OpticalJunction]

If you play games you're a gamer, it's as simple as that. Having an interest in gaming but not actually playing, though, does NOT make you a gamer, just a potential one. Hardcore gamers I'd define as people playing upwards of 5+ hours a day, replaying often, joining forums, making fan works, buying DLC's, pre-ordering new games and so on.

 

[Leole]

I tend to lean on the "If I box one time, that doesn't make me a boxer" POV. A gamer is, yes, someone who plays video games, but that also goes out of his/her way to learn more about other genres, or games, or developers, or whatever your heart desires.

I have this friend of mine, that has probably played 4 games, (HL2, both Portals and Wind Waker) and he consider himself a gamer. Not to diminish him, but playing just those games alone, shouldn't make you an expert on... anything, really. (Not to say he has to play the games I'VE played to be considered one, it's just that he doesn't play anything else)

 

[Esotera]

Playing games? That was pretty easy. Everything else aside - the games you play, your opinions about the industry, playing the games themselves matters most.

 

[azukar]

I use my leisure time to play games.

And games are a medium, just not one as well-defined or accepted as, say, music.

 

[JordanXlord]

to me games are a Great Medium and i spend nearly all my Free time playing Games

 

[goldendriger]

Can i go all Teh_Masterer on you guys?
Its not the games you play, but HOW you play them that define weather or not you are..."1337"

 

[James Crook]

What makes me a gamer is that I play games, and respect them as a form of entertainment in the same way as movies. That's all.

 

[Vault101]

It's the fact that I not only play games (and have been doing so for about 20 years), but view it as my primary hobby and invest considerable time in the medium and most things surrounding it; heck, recently I even wrote my BA thesis (in part) on the subject. In essence, I'm fascinated by the medium and immerse myself in it, stay up-to-date on current events related to it and try to expand my horizons (including those outside of gaming) through it.

do you think you'll ever get sick of it? (some people seem to)

I mean I supose gaming changes more rapidly than other medioums due to being tied directly to technology, so I dont really see it "stagnating" so to speak

I mean unless it takes a direction that you dont like...

 

[BangSmashBoom]

I would love to call myself a Gamer and wear it like a metal of honor, but from what I know is that to be a Gamer you musn't limit yourself to one game or one game franchise, so I'm doing a review series I call BEJoG (Bang's Epic Journey of Gaming) that has a diffrent game review theme ever month and hopfully I can one day call myself a Gamer guilt free... GAME ON AND BANG OUT!

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/9.304741-Bangs-Epic-Journey-of-Gaming-JRPGs-1#12227094

 

[teebeeohh]

owning and frequently using a platform that has the main purpose of running video games.

 

[caselj01]

Being a gamer is not simply about whether you play games, or even what games you play or how much time you spend playing them. I think the defining characteristic of a true "gamer" is that they CARE about games.

For a long time I played games but I wasnt a gamer, because I simply didnt care about games. I didnt know the difference between an rts and an rpg, I didnt know the difference between a developer and a publisher. I didnt know these things because I didnt care about them.

Now that I am a gamer, I know that there is a fan petition to bring Xenoblade Chronicles to the US, I know this even though Iv never played that game and I dont live in the US. I know about it because I care about games and the games industry. Thats what makes a true gamer.

 

[Floppertje]

does it matter? you just play games because you enjoy it. who cares what you call it? why do you want to label yourselves anyway?

 

[Random berk]

I'm a gamer because I play games. Emphasis on games in the plural though. Anyone who likes Call of Duty, so they maintain that it is the best game ever made and will not even give anything else a fair try, shouldn't really be called gamers.

 

[The Lugz]

Seriously, I have been pondering on this for a while.

Is it the games you play?
Taking gaming seriously as a media?

You guys tell me.

having 3 different colour xbox game pads for my pc for different games, because i can

having completely redundant hardware, things that are beyond human perception because you #NEEED# those 3 extra points in zeit.

having spent over a year of real time in a single computer game
( 2.5 in wow, probably mine-craft too by now seeing as i built a glass bridge ( legit ) to the end of the world. )

being top dog at something, in one of your favourite games
( i had Wr on a dirt 2 track for a couple weeks, plus i had several realm first feats of strength in wow )

being so deeply immersed into a genre or specific mythology that you can quote large sections of it word for word and make jokes based on it all the time
- ie, getti'n your geek on
( don't really do this myself so much but i've made plenty of wow related jokes, and general pc / game related ones )

any or all of those qualifies you as a gamer, in my opinion

 

[Zyntoxic]

When I went to the swedish equivalent of high school one has to choose some kind of direction for one's studies, and you choose a program and a school with this program.

My program was called "Gamer" which in actually was a rather falsely named program, it was a program where you studied programming, graphics and over all game design and development, along with some more common and basic classes such as Math, history and languages, but I think you can see how this program just by merit of it's name attracted "gamer"-people.

Most of us had previously been rather lonely about our passion and all had our own idea of what a "Gamer" was, but when there were so many of us with a rather, figuratively speaking, big sign saying "I AM A GAMER!" the definition of "Gamer" had to be redesigned and this caused many of us to actually discuss the question of "what is a gamer?".

So there are abou 60 "gamer"-students and all of them very different from each other, some had pretty much only played WoW and considered that as more than enough if you took it seriously. We had some that pretty much had dedicated their lives to a game so that they actually made profit form their gaming, they were hardcore and pro sure, but did the "gamer" title really require that much?

We had girls, we had boys, we had black and white, homos and hetros and even a transvestite.
We had FPS-fans, J-fans, console-fans, PC-fans and a schizophrenic.
Even though all the differences, all of these people were in one way or another dedicate to Games, so first we thought "Dedication! That must be it!"
So with that conclusion we started hating upon everyone who didn't seem dedicated enough. But then some of us realized that it was a rather silly definition, because who am I to measure someone elses love and dedication for their games, so back at square one, back to pondering this definition we all thought applied to ourselves, yet didn't really know how.

To make a long story short(er), for it took several years to come to any conclusion, but gamer is a very self adressed "title" if it can even be called as such, a "Gamer" games and has enough love for it to consider themselves "Gamers", just as there are fantasts and terms for those in many areas of media and entertainment.

Btw, the time I spent with these peolpe was glorious! I feel happy with my choice of program just because of all the wonderful "gamers" I got to know there =P

 

[krazykidd]

I play games, therefore I'm a gamer. Anyone can be a gamer if they want to be. Any other definition, like basing it off the games you play is just elitism

Oh snap then my mom is a gamer because she plays bejeweled all the time ! Quick i gotta tell her!
Actually i don't think this is true , because i can play the piano doesn't make me an pianist , because someone can draw doesn't make them an artist , because i take a picture doesn't make me a photographer. So then why if i play a game am i a gamer?


OT: If gaming is your hobbie , and you invest time and money into it , take it somewhat seriously, if you reasearch , learn , practice , play , enjoy gaming more than the average person , then you are a gamer imo.

 

[yoshiru]

I'm a gamer because I play games.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THNPmhBl-8I

 

[Stall]

I don't give a care about being a "gamer" or what it means or "games as a serious artistic medium" or anything like that. I just play games. If that makes me a gamer, then wonderful. If it doesn't, then I honestly couldn't care less. If you like games, then play them: it's a waste of energy to concern yourself with a silly title.

If someone else plays nothing but games on their iPad and they want to call themselves a gamer (nothing against iOS games), then more power to 'em. If they've only played Portal just to say "THE CAKE IS A LIE ^-^;" then more power to 'em. I can't say I really care.

 

[pyrokleptic]

Sad as it is to say I know what makes me a gamer. I guess by definition I fall between a Mid-core and Hardcore gamer. Currently with nothing better to do I spend roughly 15+ hours a day gaming. I have all the current consoles except for the 3DS (which I will be getting in a few months) and I readily switch between them whenever one console gets boring. On top of that I am a Semi-Admin on a Minecraft server so that takes up a few hours a day (typically 8+) at least.