Hi Jasmine first of all let me say i have no objection to you posting this elsewhere.
I am 66 years old and started my gaming in 1982 some 40 years ago , in my younger days it was my hobby and obviously it still is but over the last 10 years if you asked me why i still play games i would say i do it to escape all the bad stuff for a while that is happening in the real world. On a tablet game called World At Arms , i have made very good friends with players all over the world , players who i know i will never meet , over the last couple of years their moral support has helped me a lot by talking to them about family illness , obviously i do it in private chats and not main chat so that i avoid the trolls , i know who i can trust.
I can remember a time when people would make fun of you if you said you play games , they would invariably jump up and down in front of you making a noise like a machine gun and then say is that what you do. Then i noticed a period when gaming suddenly became more acceptable , maybe thats not the right word , i think it happened when the nintendo wee came out and families started gaming together and eventually individuals wanted more than the nintendo had to offer so went to x box type consoles or a pc. Their are certainly games around now that are not aimed at young children.
My gaming hates are.
1. Hackers who trash a game and cheat just because they can , especially when they trash a game you paid for.
2. Online abuse in some games chat rooms , so bad that if they could meet you in real life i am sure they would do you real harm or possibly run away as fast as they could.
3. For some strange reason i hate the word PLAY .... i take part in them !
The positives.
1. As previously said i got friends all over the world i will never meet.
2. A good game is when you sway in your chair or look behind the monitor for a better look at a sniper or almost throw yourself on the floor when you leap a gap on a cliff edge , your not just playing the game your in it.
My gaming genres are puzzle type , dungeons , mmo and animated style like blacksad.
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If space permits this is my gaming history
1. Banned from using grandstand console at home cos dad said it would damage the television.
2.Built the zx 80 and 81 complete with ram pack wobble.
3. Bought a zx spectrum and one way or another owned every spectrum game that ever came out.
4. Had a sega console but struggled with controller due to hand problems.
5. Bought my first pc in 2002.
Finally to everyone reading this , yes i know theirs a real world out their , i treat life as one big joke but am sensible when required.
From mjs.warlord aka keith norton in england