How Gaming Changed from Nerdy to Trending
Gaming is the whole nine cultural yards today — from collective action to slang, even food.
You guys, we’ve come so far.
Before gaming first became popular, it was so obscure that parents everywhere worried about the violence in GTA ruining their kids. It was a niche interest, and best suited to the more technologically inclined among us.
The image of a typical gamer was either a nerdy 13 year-old hitting his PS controller or a loner in his mom’s basement. But with the rising popularity of internet and alternative forms of entertainment, gaming transformed.
It’s no longer just tolerated — it’s embraced, even idolised.
If You Could See Us Now
If we know that gamers then were people prone to escapism, who are gamers today?
For starters, the average age is 35, and there are games for everyone. From multiplayers to story-driven narratives, everyone and their mothers are playing. Heck, we might even get an eSports category in the next Olympics.
There’s a scandal or two and we might not always play nice, but we play. Some gamers are more casual, grabbing a controller to unwind after a stressful day, while others focus on high scores and chase achievements, but we all participate in a community based on our shared interests.
Gaming is the whole nine cultural yards now — from collective action to slang, even food. Literally no one eats broccoli while playing but chips is traditional at this point.
Leetspeak as a form of slang has gone from practical (AFK is easier than typing out ‘away from keyboard’) to popular, thanks to online gaming. There are shows like Pure Pwnage and The Guild where gaming is part of the plot, and crossovers from games to movies and vice versa are common.
We also communicate with game developers, something we couldn’t have foreseen thirty years ago. Video games used to be like movies — we consumed them and had fun. Today, we take active part in the way they are made.
And if we, as a subculture, have rituals in the form of playing and collective action whenever EA does something, we also need to communicate.
2 Billion Gamers, and All You Need Is One
In the past, when we played together it was because we already had friends who wanted to play the same games. These days we’re not so patient — we want to play first and make friends later. But we definitely want to make them.
Choosing games is no different to choosing music. In any case, it’s a new interest that has the potential to turn into an obsession.
My name’s Lana, I listen to rock and my game of choice is Tomb Raider. But where’s my fandom? Where’s someone who’s going to understand my rants about weapon choices in that particular game?
You’d think it would be easier finding like-minded people with social media and a growing gaming community of 2 billion gamers, but it’s a matter of luck finding meaningful friendships.
We have all the games and very little means to make friends.
Changes and Challenges
When gaming took off, it surprised us. We weren’t ready for it to become so popular — couldn’t have foreseen tournaments watched by 226 million people and paid for by sponsors, conventions and games that we actually want to discuss.
In many ways, gaming is still just an activity. We don’t have to get involved in more than actual playing, but we kinda want to. There’s so much to have fun with, so many things to talk about (even if it’s just food).
So if gaming is what we all love, how do we connect?
Making friends that match you perfectly is a challenge, but so was gaming acceptance in the past. We found a way then — we’ll find a way now.
