Do friends or family make fun of you gaming.

[mjs warlord]

I am 66 years old and have been a die hard gamer since 1982 so as you can imagine i have seen a lot of changes in gaming over the years ..... too many to list here.
The one thing that really rattles me is the word PLAY as in i play games , people look at you as if you are a child that has never grown up.

I bought a primative games console that you could only play tennis and squash on ( i was in my late teens ) , the first time my dad saw me using it he went balmy and banned me from using it as he was convinced it would break the television.

I left home age 22 and in 1982 i got a spectrum games machine , i was now 27 , a lot of my friends and workmates made fun of me playing games , the very same people who were shop lifting or fighting at football matches.

Fast forward to 2002 when i got my first pc , i was now 47 and was married , but the scenario was the same , new friends and the wife's relatives could not understand an ADULT playing games.

In recent years gaming has become really big business and their are a lot of games out their that are aimed at the adult market with age limit stickers on them and i also noticed that it was now acceptable for a group of adults to sit round a table talking about games.

The classic put down usually goes something like this ..... a none gamer jumps about in front of you shouting rat a tat tat ... bang pop your dead I'm not...... then they say is that what you do ?

 

[Pifanjr]

The only person I can remember saying something like that is the mother of one of my friends and she changed her mind after we explained why games aren't just for kids.

 

[ZedClampet]

I mostly don't tell people I play video games anymore. Had too many people who I could tell were surprised and disapproving, but I do know a lot of adults who game, so it is being accepted more and more.

Funny thing is, Americans watch. on average, over 4 hours of television a day. I watch 0 hours a day. I play games instead. How is watching television, which is not interactive and generally of low quality, any better than playing games? I honestly think gaming is good for your brain, solving puzzles and such. That's far better than watching the latest insipid crime drama.

 

[Alm]

I'm 38. I'm lucky that all my friends and siblings play games too so I don't get any stick about it. Maybe if my social circle expands it will come up but so far so good.

 

[mainer]

It's strange how perceptions change. Around 15-20 years ago when I was in my late 40's & early 50's (I'm 67 now), I would occasionally get snarky comments on the fact that my main hobby was playing "kids" games. Those comments were obviously from non-gamer friends, but even then, they didn't really ridicule me, they just didn't understand. I've found that trying to explain, or show, non-gamer friends about gaming was usually just met with blank stares; if a friend or relative doesn't enjoy PC gaming, there's very little that can be done to make them understand.

Fast forward to 2021, and I find that the friends I have now, many of them co-workers from where I used to work before I retired, are much more open minded about some "old guy" playing games. Many of them, or their spouses are also avid gamers, and we often openly talk about a game, or gaming in general; and I find that really refreshing. It's not something I try to hide anymore. I also think there's a growing population of us older gamers, those of us, like yourself, who have been gaming since the early 1980s.

Funny thing is, Americans watch. on average, over 4 hours of television a day. I watch 0 hours a day. I play games instead. How is watching television, which is not interactive and generally of low quality, any better than playing games? I honestly think gaming is good for your brain, solving puzzles and such. That's far better than watching the latest insipid crime drama.

I donated my last TV to the Salvation Army store about 25-30 years ago, I don't remember exactly when. I hate television, I just think it's a huge waste of my time, staring blankly at a non-interactive screen. I love movies, and if I want to watch one, I'll just stream one. But with movies, there isn't that incessant barrage of mindless advertisements. I have this latent conspiracy theory about evil corporations mind washing the general population. Sorry, that's just the distrustful part of my mind over working, ignore it.

 

[Johnway]

mercifully, no. my entire family play video games. My mum, uncles, cousins, nieces all took to gaming as well. So nothing from them. i do get the occasional complaint from my dad when i was younger that i should do something more with my life, but i was out of uni and couldn't find work after graduating (had to go into training for proper IT qualifications and relevant skills).

But then this was my dad, if he saw you gaming, it meant you were free and he would interrupt you asking me to do something for him. Annoying as that was, its not as bad him waking you up at night when you're sleeping just to ask you to do something that could wait till the morning. he's gotten better as in he asks and leaves you to do it after you finish or allows you to stop.

other then that? nope. i work in IT and they all did gaming so nothing from them either. if i saw a retired/elderly person get into gaming as far as i'm concerned he has (gaming) street cred and respect. its not often you see the older generation take to gaming and those that do with enthusiasm have my respect.

 

[Brian Boru]

I'm a GG too—Geezer Generation, 67 in a month—but I don't recall ever getting any put downs about gaming. I had family & friends who gamed, and those who didn't. The subject just didn't arise with the non-gamers—they probably knew there'd be a counter put-down right back at them if they tried anything

But if such was to happen…

I'd answer that no, that's not what happens. What happens is I explore the game world to discover the best places to establish my Civilization, then survey the local resources and determine the kind of economy to develop, then do deals with neighboring Civs for diplomatic and trade alliances, all the while deciding the best scientific path to follow.

That should shut a few of 'em up, shouldn't it?

Or I might answer that it could be a lot worse. Did they know there are people who chase a ball around on grass? Yes really. And what's worse, other people turn up to watch them do it—and here's the kicker, they actually pay money to do so! Now you won't believe this, but there is another whole tranche of people who will watch all this on TV! No, I'm not kidding!!

Usually the knockers will be ball fans, and starting to feel sorry they raised the subject

If anyone was to ask why I don't read a good book or watch a good movie, I'd tell them simply that it's far more enjoyable and educational to create my own story, a different one each time I play—or more stimulating to tackle and solve clever puzzles. Etc etc.

I remember the same narrow-minded reactions when ebooks started out, people claiming they weren't 'real' books—as if the traditional packaging somehow lent extra legitimacy to the content.

The thing to remember is: such criticisms as you've mentioned reveals the criticizer, it doesn't reflect on you. Just smile & nod and let them off—water off a duck's back

 

[Zloth]

Or I might answer that it could be a lot worse. Did they know there are people who chase a ball around on grass? Yes really. And what's worse, other people turn up to watch them do it—and here's the kicker, they actually pay money to do so! Now you won't believe this, but there is another whole tranche of people who will watch all this on TV! No, I'm not kidding!!

There's one where they kick the ball themselves (but aren't allowed to use their hands for... reasons?) and one where they use a club to do it. Which one are you talking about? Oh, and if it's the latter, is it the one where they walk to the ball or ride a horse? Because apparently, these are all "totally" different things and you'll get looks of disapproval if you get them confused.

 

[Colif]

its a generational thing, as more people who have always played games all their lives grow up, the "its for kids" attitude might finally disappear, but it will take a few more generations and us old people may never see it.
I been playing games since... mid 70's maybe? I don't recall that long back when we got 1st TV game. Got a TRS80 Color Computer early 80's, only sort of slowed down playing in last few years.

It still gets clicks, so it will still be a weapon to bludgeon others with and tell them to grow up, when really they aren't hurting anyone playing whatever games. Just leave us alone.