Why Do People Look Down on Gamers?

[MrCollins]

Games are still equated to toys, and as most of us are late teenagers and adults, it is looked down upon that she should waste our time playing games.
Whenever my, dad accused me of playing games too much because they are a waste of time, I would ask him what he would be doing this evening : "Watching the football!"

 

[Dogstile]

Because some gamers are assholes?

I know gamers who spoil the plot points of every game they know I'm getting if they can contact me.

 

[MercurySteam]

Remember when Yahtzee said: "Whenever I hear someone say 'oh games are for children' I'm kinda glad because it's usually old people and old people tend to die, and it's just such an outdated opinion."

Those are true works of wisdom.

Lets say Julia Gillard our Prime Minister, said that she plays Call Of Duty would you take her less seriously as a Prime Minister?

It's hard to take her seriously because her forced Australian makes her sound like a bogan. Just cause she's Welsh doesn't me she needs to hide her accent.

 

[Zeraki]

Well the obvious answer is, as everyone else said, is that society as a whole still looks at video games as a child's plaything. A month ago there was a radio station that was talking about how modern men have lost their "masculinity", and one woman used an example of a grown man buying a game while she was getting one for her kid as evidence. -rolls eyes-

Someone in this thread used the Mass Effect fiasco as an example, which was stupid to begin with. The sex scene in the first Mass Effect was tamer than most of the stuff you'd see on FOX, oh the irony. And like all subcultures, we do have our share of assholes who are willing to foam at the mouth, and attack anything they don't like as if they were 10 years old.

 

[blue heartless]

It is because we are lounging about in our bean bag chairs silly.

 

[DustyDrB]

I've never felt looked down on because I play video games. I've got just one friend whom I'd call a gamer, the others just don't care that I like games. I can see how people might think it's strange if gaming is the only thing you do in your spare time.

 

[Proton Packmule]

Because a lot of us ARE the stereotype. I know some gamers who are as lovely and fun as the day is long, and working in a games shop for 4 years has given me the chance to meet hundreds of them.

I've met hundreds more, though, of outspoken 'IM SO LEET LAWRL' doofheaded gamers, who stink of a lack of any concept of hygiene, buy masses of junkfood and Monster and spank money on new games they very probably didn't earn through their own means. This obnoxious component sours a lot of people towards us.

That said, they have a right to be just as the rest of us do, it's just their eschewing of social norms and so-called 'respectable behviour' that does us all poorly. The more articulate of us aren't as noticeable.

 

[instantbenz]

gamer is too ubiquitous of a term to just cover video game players. it also covers role playing gamers and thus the genres under that are covered as well. it's likely that when someone hears gamer, they go to the worst of any category or genre under it.

To those who don't understand video gamers or role players:
gamers=larpers=roleplayers=mtn dw-chugging, long unkempt hair-growing, in their parents basements-living, infinitely procrastinating, will never become an acceptable part of society, overweight cheeto eater ... nerdy ... person ... AND they probably have tattoos of satan on them

at least that's what I gather they think of us I could be wrong

 

[Valksy]

People look down on gamers because they assume them to be stupid kids.

Sadly, when you hang around with a big enough group of gamers, you start to agree with them.

 

[Vern5]

Because we don't do anything useful with our time? Useful actions are overrated.

 

[Mallefunction]

Because they haven't played games themselves. They don't understand games or the people who play them so they cling to the easiest stereotype they can find to come up with the explanation for them.

 

[Cheesus333]

WAITWAITWAITWAIT I KNOW THIS.

Ahem.

*MovieBob voice*

VIDEOGAMES. ARE. WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE-IIIIIIIRD.

[sub]Please tell me no-one else thought of that.[/sub]

Anyway, yes, gaming hasn't come far enough yet that it's accepted as a reasonable way to spend one's free time in ordinary, conventional, boring society. But you don't care what they think. Because I'm telling you you don't.

Now get back to gaming, if you want. And don't if you don't. My point being, don't let other people tell you what you want to do.

[sub]Except for me. Do what I say, minion![/sub]

 

[Ghaleon640]

I think that people just don't really understand video games. Just like when I talk to people about anime, sometimes all they appear to know is hentai, and thus don't give me a fair shot. They just assume that it is how we spend ALL of our time. And they probably don't know anything besides a few genres, maybe not realizing the variety that games have to offer.

And heck, if it isn't there hobby, it isn't their hobby. I have a hard time talking to one of my friends about sports. I try as hard as I can, but with such a weak understading of it, the conversation doesnt go on very long.

 

[Cryfear101]

Because most people that Diss gamers were once wanting to be gamers in their younger days and because mummy and daddy didnt get them their NES or SNES or SEGA Master System 2, Thier genitals shrank and because of this they ended up turning on the very thing they wanted to be which is a...... gamer *ahem thankyou* .

However!!!!! Dun Dun Dun..... in the circomstances of this i like to pleasure on these sad buggers and think dam atleast i ent like you.

As Delboy says...... Bonjour!

 

[Feralbreed]

Because we're mostly an underage, immature bunch of idiots who can't write, listen or behave very well.

We take part in console wars, we argue about PC's versus consoles, we force our opinions on others and call people fags for liking a different game.

You might say that the basement-dwelling nerd is a ridiculous stereotype that's overused and untrue. But stereotypes don't just come from nowhere, I think most of us have been living like there's no tomorrow for too long.

 

[Worgen]

pretty much everyone likes to look down on someone, some people like to look down on furries, some on women, some on black people, etc etc

 

[NitoSpeak]

Beats drinking and doin drugs like most of my friends and co workers do on the weekends.. That shit will kill you and age your body so fast. Gaming is my one and only vice. Also sweet tea and tacos.

 

[Feralbreed]

I have never been looked down on for playing games. Not even tabletop dungeons and dragons. I have no experience relating to this topic.

Then you've been hanging with likeminded geeks too much. "normal" people still shun games. I don't care how much they act like it's ok, it's still not fine to play games by society's standards.
It's not accepted as a proper hobby and it's generally little weird if someone plays games like more than 2 hours a day.

And god forbid if someone plays something obscure, or anything else than Farmville or CoD. It's a stigma, gamers are still "freaks" and the media keeps depicting us as "violent" and "unpredictable" too.

Think about it; can you go approach any girl and tell her that you're good at videogames or you really like that one game? No.. she will not like it.

 

[Madman123456]

If someone looks down on you for being a gamer, that may be because he went online and experienced the friendly xbox community for himself. Some of the People there are rather friendly and sometimes listening to the People there sounds like a mental Asylum. There are some other "interesting" Communities to be found in PC games. Like in Counter Strike; try going in there as a newbie.

Many People know of some Places (online) where insanity seems to run free, but this kind of gamers seem to freely admit that they go there. I can think of some People who wouldn't freely admit that they wrote Fanfiction because some Fanfiction earned some bad reputation. With Reason, some Fanfiction makes you doubt in Humanity...

I need a term to describe this kind of gamer, if only to set it apart from everyone who ever enjoyed any electronic videogame device...

The "Triple A Gamer" (one who plays big Budget games formerly known as hardcore games) goes to places others would want to avoid in conversation. Those others may think that this Person may have some obsession with the hobby that allows him to switch off the "shame" reaction or maybe they think the "Triple A" Gamer is just too plain stupid to know why the "normals" try to avoid telling other People stuff they rather keep to themselves.

Online gaming is for some People like having cybersex, write fanfiction or something like that. And here you are blurting out the Fact that you have been playing online last Weekend.

That's disturbing; they know they find this pathetic for some Reason, they think they know that Reason but somewhere in the back of their mind they know that there are some decent People to be met online. This Gamers knows how to find them. They do not.


So next time you're asked what you did last weekend, tell them you bought some booze and got so drunk that you puked on your Cat.
With Videogames still being viewed as a childrens toy by some People, they'll be less condescending this time.

 

[Chiasm]

I personally have never gotten any type of mistreatment from being a, "gamer" nor seen any that wasn't directed at someone who wasn't 30 year old man child.

Most people I have talked to under 50 don't have a problem with, "gaming" I am a little surprised so many in this thread have been "repressed" for playing pac man and dig dug or halo or etc.. Video games in general have really taken off in the past 30 years thanks to games like dig dug and pac man; many of them are now parents with their own children playing and enjoying pac man and video games. It's like saying your, "repressed" because you enjoy movies that's how big gaming has become just in the past 15 years.

Honestly; the only way I can see people being looked down for being a gamer is if they fall under the,"30 year old man child" end of the spectrum where their family or loved are just worried they are too extreme about their hobby and wont accomplish anything in life.

Then you've been hanging with likeminded geeks too much. "normal" people still shun games. I don't care how much they act like it's ok, it's still not fine to play games by society's standards.
It's not accepted as a proper hobby and it's generally little weird if someone plays games like more than 2 hours a day.

I agree with with BlindTom on this issue, I have just never ever seen any hate on gaming maybe a few comments when I was younger about liking Mario more than Barbie from older relatives but that's it. As a quick side note after being part of the criminal justice system I find some of the most hardcore gamers I know are cops; which is for most people a respected career.

I just don't see the hate.