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Gaming at the Geritol Age
An anonymous reader writes "There's an interesting opinion editorial over on GameDaily.com about all the recent reports regarding the age of gamers, and what it all might mean - if anything - to the hobby." From the article: "When I tell someone that I write about video games, I typically get a pretty enthusiastic response. The few who have looked down on me for having such a job 'at my age' aren't so much numerically older than I am as they're older in mind and spirit. Take for instance my neighbor. I honestly think he considers me less of an adult for playing videogames 'at my age.' That's fine. I think he's odd in general, so we're even. I've been playing video games in one form or another since 1977. That's the majority of my life now. But I'm not alone though. Things are changing in the world of video games. I guess the best way to put it is: it's growing up. I'm not talking about the industry itself, but rather those who actually play the games."
(loosely paraphrased from an issue of Nintendo Power)
Age 7: You play your first game of Equinox.
Age 15: You're failing school, but you can pass the skeletons now without trouble
Age 19: Missed your high school graduation, but at last you've conquered the third dungeon
Age 35: No job, no friends, never kissed a girl, but you can now get to the fifth dungeon with ease
Age 52: Heart's giving you trouble, but at least you can beat those green blobs in the sixth dungeon
Age 71: Can't feel the controller, can't see the screen, can't hear the sound. Feeling the breath of the evil empress on your neck, you bequeath the joystick to your grandson.
Age 7: Has to miss grandpa's funeral, but you finally defeated the evil empress. He would have wanted it that way.
How am I just finding out about this now?!
I knew I shoulda got a SNES instead of that Sega crap!
The best part is when your kids are old enough to play against you competitively! Early on, kickin their butts is just too cruel. And once they are old enough, then you whip out the ol' wireless, programmable controller baby!
To the making of books there is no end, so let's get started
Improve your credibility next time by encheferizing your text first.
"Made up/misattributed quote that makes me look smart. I am on
Gaming isn't a "hobby," it's your life.
And embiggen the font while you're at it!
Gamers from the age of the author down to about mid-twenties are part of the first-ever generation to grow up with videogames as part of their world. Sociologically, they're just one of the many recent indecipherable blips. Television, motion pictures, radio, cars, and so many more things take a couple of generations to really settle into what most of the population regards as average daily life.
I imagine old Grampa Ugg the caveman turned his nose up at little Grogg and his young pals' hunting with sharpened stones rather than blunt clubs.
Slashdot Burying Stories About Slashdot Media Owned
Slashdot, the only place where intellectuals can act like idiots... and still sound intellectual.
Bork Bork Bork BORK?
I don't think it's working...
ad logicam Claiming a proposition is false because it was presented as the conclusion of a fallacious argument.
An interesting thing I read a while back (and noticed in my own life) is that children are not playing videogames much anymore; the reason for this is that videogames (and controllers) are becoming too complicated for a small child to use. If you think back to when we were children, the games we played were break-out or Pack-Man or Space Invaders; games that required 1D or 2D motion and 1 button (at most); modern games require 3D motion a long with multiple buttons (and possibly button combinations).
The fact is that Adults playing 'more hours' than kids or teenagers shouldn't be a surprise. Many children and teenagers are giving up gaming after they're too old for 'Spong Bob' games because the learning curve is too frustrating.
Video games started out mostly for kids. There weren't too many adults that played video games when they were first catching on. Now the "kids" that were playing video games in its infancy are adults and many haven't stopped playing video games.
However, the video game industry hasn't seemed to figure this out for the most part. Sure, there are "mature" games out now, but most of them appeal to the "barely legal" adult demographic. There are many gamers pushing 30 or older and probably wouldn't enjoy GTA:Ultra Hooters! too much.
Instead, the gaming industry seems to still be focusing on teenage gamers.
There are some valid reasons for this, and I'm not arguing those. However, as years go by and more and more people over 30 have grown up with video games, the industry really can't afford to continue to ignore this demographic.
Not to beat a dead horse, but Star Wars Galaxies is a great example. The game started out very in-depth with plenty of options for just about anyone to find something they liked. Now, it has been dumbed down to a VERY BAD wannabe FPS action game with nothing to do except "kill, loot treasure, repeat." They chucked out a game that should have been perfect for what should have been their target market (Most serious SW fans are 25+) in favor of a game to try (badly) to appeal to the younger "instant-gratification" crowd.
I think I'm starting to ramble so I'll stop now...
themes like this were cautionary tales? Perky Pat, anyone? I get older, I get more tolerant of the changes I see (not going to make much of a grumpy old fart, sigh), but still remember how creepy the worlds I read about then felt.
As always, all IMO. Insert "I think" everywhere grammatically possible.
There's obviously nothing about video or computer games that makes them inherently part of youth culture. The problem is that anyone say over 45 only saw kids playing them when they came out, so they just assumed it was a kids thing. None of these people have friends that play video games (since I'd bet most of them don't have friends under 38 or so), and the only people THEY see playing them is their kids.) They of course assume that videogames are a kids thing, even though that's obviously incorrect. Any person they hear of that plays videogames must be some kind of weirdo, since in their mind videogames are like playing with childrens toys.
Many people live rather sheltered lives outside the things they personally experience. As an example: recently I was talking about taking off my front bike tire to mount it on my car rack, and my 66 year old mother looked like I was from another planet. They didn't have quick release when she was a kid, and she hasn't ridden a bike for probbably 30 years. Even though quick release has been popular for at least 20 years, and you see people using it fairly often it was alien technology to her.
AccountKiller
Okay, I'll improve my credibility. Here goes...
Assume that I am TripMaster Monkey. A few days ago, I posted here, emphasis on point #1 in this case. Now, I'm going around posting the Open Letter to Zonk, trying to make myself an editor. This does not make sense.
As you can see, I could not possibly be TMM. I am yet another AC troll bent on disrupting discussion and wasting mod points. Good day to you, sir.
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Trolling all trolls since 2001.
it's growing up. I'm not talking about the industry itself, but rather those who actually play the games
You, Sir, have never played Counter-Strike on a public server or followed a fully grown, 3-way free-for-all flame war between Playstation, XBox and Nintendo fanboys. Or did he refer to the Pacman generation?
The grass is always greener on the other side of the light cone.
It's ok for older people to play cards, board games, or slots?
But not ok to play video games because it is a different medium?
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Far too many gamers fall victim to the red herring of game realism, when they are really complaining about lack of consistency.
Like the author I'm also 39. The first video game I put my hands on was the "Computer Space" arcade game at a Target in Oklahoma in 1972. It was in this big fiberglass case and no one knew what it is so they all just walked by. I probably just stood there for 15 minutes watching the attract mode.
We got "Super" Pong for our 8 inch B&W Sony portable around 1976 and from that point on always had some kind of computer system in the house.
My father (68) is a Half Life 2 junky. Just yesterday he emailed a deathmatch screenshot to my brother and I to show how he came out with the top score. I introduced him to Doom and Duke Nukem 3D and he's been playing FPS online ever since.
Sometimes I feel a little pathetic for still being interested in video games but I grew up with them being a source of entertainment and don't see why I should pretend they don't exist. Playing video games has nothing to do with one's level of maturity or social skills, unless you choose to spend all your time doing it.
I still enjoy playing FPS and sim games at 55. I'm not good ... but good enough to enjoy myself. I'd like to think that continued practice at realtime decision making is good mental exercise.. and I know for sure that it's a lot more fun than teaching myself French (which I also suck at).
I don't know if any of my peers also play.. I don't mention it, and assume they wouldn't either.
Excuse me.. Call of Duty 2 is beckoning...
I'm 14 and I consider myself kind of 'stupid' for playing EnemyTerritory now, though I had played Freeciv and Doom3(rarely though) a year before... I pretty much quit playing games since last september... but saw that ET was ported on Linux so I tried it...
Most of my friends do play computer games now, but I still consider it 'not so good' to spend much time playing games...
*(NaeRey hides from the angry-looking crowd)*
http://naerey.switch-case.org
...I can guarantee you they'll be making videogame controllers for arthritics. At least, that's what I always tell people who give me grief over playing games at my age. I'm only 23 btw.
After that, I usually go into a long-winded rant about videogames as an emerging entertainment/artistic medium and then trail off into comic books.
My 88 year old grandfather plays card games on his PC daily. What's the point of the article or the posting to slashdot? No he's not playing MMORPG's or first-person shooters, but he's on his PC playing a game, every day. Big deal.
+++OK ATH