Why are you people so negative?

[Yopaz]

I'm depressed because of the horrible generalizing in this post.

Seriously though, I'm quite happy with my life despite the fact that most of it is spent studying and *I only get a few breaks to rest and fewer to have fun.

 

[OmniscientOstrich]

I don't know about that, I think I see an equal number of people smugly pontificating on how anyone with a pessimistic or cynical disposition is just going through some kind of phase, postulating that their attitudes are immature delusions that they will grow out of. Dispensing erroneous platitudes about it being just adolescent angst, or following a trend, acting supercilious and ostentatiously acerbic as a means of getting attention or to appear 'egdy' (no really, fuck anyone who uses the word edgy in this regard), or basing their misanthropy on petty inconveniences in their personal lives. I'm not saying pessimists of such myopic reasoning don't exist, just that the people deriding them come off as being equally as far up their own arse and subsequently talk an equal amount of shit.

 

[Casual Shinji]

I might ***** about things on a regular turn, but it's actually quite astounding how positive my outlook on life is given my current situation.

And I might take a wild guess here, but I assume most members of the Escapist are in their teens; what else do you expect?

 

[Doclector]

Well, I'm negative because it seems smarter to be.

Positivity, occasionally having the thing you expected to happen to happen. Devastating disappointment abound when things inevitably turn to s***.

Negativity, often having the Thing you expected to happen to happen, but being negative, you were prepared to deal with this posibility. When good things happen, it's a surprise, and good things rarely have to be acted upon, (or at least not planned for) you just kind of go with it.

I don't see the advantage in Positivity. To be positive in such a downright brutal world (and you can't lie here, no matter how positive you are, this is not a nice world) seems to verge on naivity of an almost dangerous magnitude.

 

[ZiggyE]

Is it really that much of a surprise that people on here have a negative outlook on life when the place is called The Escapist?

 

[yuval152]

This is the internet,there's no much that we can do about it.

 

[Nigh Invulnerable]

Didn't you hear? Misanthropy is cool these days. And bow-ties. Bow-ties are cool.

 

[NotSoLoneWanderer]

I'm usually a pessimist but I'm not a jerk about it well in real life. But then again I can be incredibly optimistic. Depends on my mood or or the situation.

 

[Galletea]

There are a number of reasons for the vast amount of negativity to which you refer.

1) In the gaming world particularly people are often disappointed with games, and this is not due to bad design but constraints put upon developers by publishers. It's frustrating to know that something bad could have been something great with a few more weeks work.
2)It's much easier to vent annoyance than to heap praises upon something. You get trolled on less if you're hating.
3)People think it's cool to be cynical. It isn't big or clever, but people think they look better by being angsty.

 

[Silenttalker22]

Scroll down to the comments on any political news article on yahoo. The vast divide in sophistication, between here and the "lay-forums" is instantly visible. Honestly, the Escapist is the most sensible forum I've been on.
As for the negativity, people are inclined to voice when they don't like something. If you're content, there's no drive to stand up and shout how placated you are (very funny image though), unless you consciously feel like sharing positive feelings.

 

[Tharwen]

-snip-

No, what the Escapist has isn't a surplus of misanthropes. What we have is a surplus of people who THINK they are misanthropes, brought in by lure of Yahtzee and his weekly dumps on the world. And then they stay when they find the forums, a sufficiently validating dumping ground for their grievances with the world, their regrets in life, and their general angst.

But no, most of them aren't misanthropes through and through. They've just diluted themselves into thinking so, because the community here is accepting to those types. It becomes their alter-ego, in a sense. They can be as negative as they want to be without the consequences and demands of social norms that functioning real society offers.

...and it's much easier to say that you are on the internet than to actually carry out that behaviour towards real, visible people. No-one actually takes it seriously.

In other words, I agree.

 

[Vanguard_Ex]

I'm having trouble understanding why so many of the people on the site are so pessimistic. Every other comment is "That greedy (insert company name here) is making money! RAAAAAGGGEE." I'm just happy that the company isn't going bankrupt and firing thousands of it's employees. or when you say "humanity has no value" or some bullcrap about how half of humanity should die off.

Plus gammers aren't exactly the most worst off group of people. We can afford a current gen console or a used ps2 if we're short on cash. In fact, some of us can afford crazy powerful gamming PCs.

My brain hurts just trying to make sense of you soulless depressed group of people.

Hahaha...dude, there's a fair leap between negativity, and 'soulless depressed people'. Stop being so dramatic ;P

Yeah some of the people here are highly pessimistic but they're the same cynical shut-ins who condemn the world because that girl made fun of his glasses.

 

[Alexlion]

My brain hurts just trying to make sense of you soulless depressed group of people.

So you see us as soulless and we are the negative one's lol wow pot calling the kettle black there. So occasionally people have a moan about games, your having a moan about us right now ...... oh ur a troll touche.

 

[MartialArc]

-snip-

No, what the Escapist has isn't a surplus of misanthropes. What we have is a surplus of people who THINK they are misanthropes, brought in by lure of Yahtzee and his weekly dumps on the world. And then they stay when they find the forums, a sufficiently validating dumping ground for their grievances with the world, their regrets in life, and their general angst.

But no, most of them aren't misanthropes through and through. They've just diluted themselves into thinking so, because the community here is accepting to those types. It becomes their alter-ego, in a sense. They can be as negative as they want to be without the consequences and demands of social norms that functioning real society offers.

Aye. It is kinda funny how someone will be spouting off about this or that, then you realize they're basically espousing one of yahtzees opinions. I've also noticed that folks tend to pick up this hipster mentality from EC, at least used to anyway. Then the two collide, and you get some guy raging about AAA games holding back the medium, or the weekly post about consoles destroying the planet hand in hand with farmville, or what-have-you.

People here are negative?
Go to 4chan, you'll learn what negativity means.

This is true. Escapist is miraculously well-moderated, and therefor trolls and flamers tend to get shut up early on.

The best vidya discussion I've ever had have been with random people on /v/. This community can get pretentious at times, and it seems to think it's the anti-thesis of /v/.

People seem to equate /b/ with 4chan. While its true /b/ is a subset of 4chan, and the most popular board, its not the entire site. I help folks with math on /sci/ somewhat regularly, lurk /b/ for the odd funny thread, and some other boards occasionally.

 

[Silenttalker22]

To be positive in such a downright brutal world (and you can't lie here, no matter how positive you are, this is not a nice world) seems to verge on naivity of an almost dangerous magnitude.

I'm not an optimist, to be certain, but "lie" implies that there is a truth, and there is only perspective. I spent the better part of my 20's as a pessimist, deluding myself, as many I see do, into seeing it as superior perspective and calling myself a realist.

I know there are unfortunate things in this world that I can't control, but the world itself is only terrible if you set it to a standard of your making, and putting it bluntly; (not just doc here, but everyone) Who are you to judge the standard that things must meet to be good?

Chances are you don't see the positives, because good doesn't upset you. Be guarded, of course. But I find I can't call myself any of those three. I see things, and judge them based on experiences. Things just are what they are.

Life is too short to be negative.

 

[gabe12301]

Ironic how OP assumes the worst of the site from having seen a few posts, and then in his own negativity, makes a thread about it.

your right I should have had more confetti. maybe thrown in some rainbows.

 

[gabe12301]

My brain hurts just trying to make sense of you soulless depressed group of people.

So you see us as soulless and we are the negative one's lol wow pot calling the kettle black there. So occasionally people have a moan about games, your having a moan about us right now ...... oh ur a troll touche.

You mad bro? ok but seriously. Am I supposed to call you depressing bunch optimistic and full of energy? or should I have made the text alternate between all the colors of the rainbow?

 

[Mcupobob]

I think its mostly a teen/tween angst thing. As for the surplus of misanthropes? Well they do seem to be out numbering the sane people on this forum lately. Though I'm not really one to talk much I've caught myself being bitter and loathing a good number of times too.