Gaming prowess, gamers, and maturity.

[Ruenis]

Among some folks who get a little too elated over their prowess at video games, there are those who would needlessly boast, or goad others into trying to "amount to their level of skill." It's a silly thing that can be dismissed with a chuckle and a drink over a nice movie or comfortable session in your favorite game(s), but I wanted to talk about the notion of just wanting to be good at something.

It's natural to want to not suck at things - a commonality among disparaged males, lol, but really, among anyone. As weird as it could be, overcoming/creating arbitrary hurdles and records can be really fun. Challenging yourself is fun, but you eventually reach an age where this stuff is simply a passing thing you'd do out of boredom, or if you just had a dropoff of free time, and wanted to experiment with something. Like, you could literally own some old junk that means very little in the grand scheme, yet want to prove to yourself that you can whoop a video game under grueling conditions set for yourself without modern amenities that casualize the experience, just because you want to be some old boomer who's trying to childishly reconnect with their past self all in one moment, or because you wanted to bond with a family member. However more or less odd, it's what you choose, and it has meaning because you give it meaning.

Steam is GREAT for giving games meaning to literally anyone who wants to prioritize almost any specific avenue of focus on a game's specifics. In most cases, it's the usual: Overcoming challenges. It could simply be exploring the game's modding potential, which branches out into all sorts of realms of subject matter. In the modern era, there's a vast multitude of reasons to call oneself a quote/unquote "hardcore" gamer, in spite of how awkward that sounds. One grouping will deem another "casual" when that group is verily engaged in another facet of gaming not heavily focused on by their group, which essentially makes the other group "hardcore" in an entirely different and unique sense. You don't have to die 3087 times in a "hard" video game while persevering greatly at trying to complete it to qualify as a "hardcore gamer."

I'm particularly "up there" in age, and an avid gamer, so I know what it is to play good games, bad games, strange games, tough games, the kinds of games everybody tells you you "need," popular games, fan games, little known project games, and everything in between. The notion of "strictly following rules or you're a p*ssy," or "Ha ha scrub, hope you get out of the tutorial soon," or "If you have even a THOUGHT against [X Game], you're an idiot" are ridiculously hilarious notions that are both foreign to me, and something I can only imagine someone in their 20s and below, or someone who thinks like someone who's in their 20s and below, would bother inflating their ego over before others as if to promote themself as "Number 1" or "The life of the party" or the "Head honcho," etc, and carrying on. It's very funny, and I'm only giving my attention to it in such lengthy detail because I bore witness to it most recently on a specific Steam forum I'm not going to reference.

There's a point where young people are essentially just saying "I could beat up an old man," and a sad reality of life is that in select places in the world, this is actually a reality of circumstance, crime wise. There are people younger than these """gigachads""" (cringe) who have nothing to prove to them, which makes them even more hilarious.

~

Have fun challenging yourselves at video games, folks. Soulslikes aren't "cancer" just because they're grueling, Baldur's Gate 3 isn't trash just because its gameplay can be "stunting," and Skyrim/Starfield isn't slop just because you can't remember the last time you got flayed by that fire mage/space dude. Gaming is for us all. People really took offence to Phil Spencer's stance on gaming, but their angst was more about crying about a lack of catering to worthless ideals, and less about a man's words accommodating people of all walks of life enjoying a hobby meant to entertain people from all corners of the world in any such way they would see fit.

[astroskiffle]

Just as someone's like for pineapple on pizza should be acknowledged and accepted, the same principle applies to those who may not share your enthusiasm for Baldur's Gate 3, Skyrim or Soulslikes. A diverse range of perspectives in reviews helps me paint a more comprehensive picture, enabling me to make better-informed decisions about what games I might like or dislike to play. It's not about who is right or wrong.

My primary focus on this platform is to enjoy and engage with games, rather than seeking approval or affirmation from others. Maybe that's just a Gen-X thing with me. While this mindset might be perceived as uncaring, it doesn't necessarily imply any negative anti-social or psychopathic tendencies.

My reviews on here are primarily a means for me to hone my writing skills, serving as personal exercises rather than expecting a significant audience or response. It's akin to shouting into the void—an act of catharsis or self-expression with no anticipation of external validation.

[Ruenis]

引用自 astroskiffle：

My primary focus on this platform is to enjoy and engage with games, rather than seeking approval or affirmation from others. Maybe that's just a Gen-X thing with me. While this mindset might be perceived as uncaring, it doesn't necessarily imply any negative anti-social or psychopathic tendencies.

Same here. Gaming is so varied now that engaging it solely for one reason isn't likely for anyone in their 30s or 40s.

引用自 astroskiffle：

Just as someone's like for pineapple on pizza should be acknowledged and accepted, the same principle applies to those who may not share your enthusiasm for Baldur's Gate 3, Skyrim or Soulslikes. A diverse range of perspectives in reviews helps me paint a more comprehensive picture, enabling me to make better-informed decisions about what games I might like or dislike to play. It's not about who is right or wrong.

I just used those games as examples. I own them (except for Starfield), but it's less about enthusiasm than it is poking at what folks seem to be sticklers for.

[Rumpelcrutchskin]

引用自 astroskiffle：

Just as someone's like for pineapple on pizza should be acknowledged and accepted,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ubNqUyf0op0

[Crazy Tiger]

I've always said that gaming is for everyone. Doesn't matter what game, platform, device, difficulty setting, genre, etc.

I play games to enjoy myself. I've been doing so for over 35 years now. I'll continue doing so. A fun game on my phone? I'll get it. Dropping difficulty because the game has a tedious and boring boss, or because I'm simply getting older? No issue. Etc. I extend those same courtesies to others.

Completely agree with you, OP. Gaming is for us all.

[miakisfan]

If you are making this big a deal out of gaming you might need to step back a bit and take a deep breath. Video games aren't the beginning or the ending of the world.

I know there are people who like to blame gaming for the behavior of people out on the street committing crimes like beating up people but that is just an excuse for either how badly they were brought up or their own mental health situation. At the end of the day only you control how you act ... not any outside stimuli.

Look, I've been gaming ever since my dad brought home the original Pong to our house and let us try it. That was back in the mid 70's. I've played all kinds of games since (P+P, video games, board, etc.) and I haven't committed any crimes because I've played games ... or at all for that matter. I have a clean record. It is time for some people to stop blaming everything else but the person involved. It is the same crappy argument the gun control nuts use.

That is where maturity comes into the picture. Act like a mature adult and you don't have the problems people who don't act like that have. Yeah, yeah ... there are rare exceptions but that is the way the world works. It happens to everyone.

I agree that gaming may be for everyone BUT it is really for those who treat it with the respect it deserves. Take it for granted and see what you get. There is a reason over the years why I have become a bit jaded when it comes to how gaming has evolved and why.

It was and is a mistake for gaming to evolve to adjust for the behaviors of gamers. It is up to the gamer to either adjust to gaming or step away from it. As for Phil Spencer's view on gaming I'm pretty sure anyone who didn't see all that happening shouldn't be anywhere near money. The biggest problems with capitalism is that *there is no ceiling* and *greed*. Human behavior is bound to take over eventually.

I could care less how much better or worse someone is at gaming to me, too. I stopped playing MMOs because of the same behavior I talked about in the last paragraph. Fighting over drops got extremely tiring. Arguing after raid bosses about how certain people fared during it. That is for people who don't truly understand gaming.

I don't expect people to like the games I play nor should I be crapping on their gaming decisions. We vote with our wallet on what we like or not. I am happy leaving things like that. Gaming will either take care of itself or go the way of the dodo.

[matt]

引用自 LT. Thing：

My primary focus on this platform is to enjoy and engage with games, rather than seeking approval or affirmation from others.

Yeah, I honestly don't understand why people care what some random dumbass on the internet thinks. Millennials grew up with social media, achievements, and "like" buttons, though. They're probably brainwashed by this stuff to care what other people think.

[Volfogg]

Well, I don't care about others and their opinions, since I pretty much hate everyone equally for any reason. I prefer spending time with video games... SINGLE PLAYER video games. I won't accept these purely multiplayer abominations.

[Ruenis]

引用自 miakisfan：

If you are making this big a deal out of gaming you might need to step back a bit and take a deep breath. Video games aren't the beginning or the ending of the world.

I know there are people who like to blame gaming for the behavior of people out on the street committing crimes like beating up people but that is just an excuse for either how badly they were brought up or their own mental health situation. At the end of the day only you control how you act ... not any outside stimuli.

Oh my comment about folks saying they could "beat up an old person" had nothing to do with that age old and tired false boomer mentality behind blaming video games for violent acts. Rest easy man. No one here should be/is that dense.

The rest of what you said goes without saying.

[miakisfan]

引用自 Ruenis：

引用自 miakisfan：

If you are making this big a deal out of gaming you might need to step back a bit and take a deep breath. Video games aren't the beginning or the ending of the world.

I know there are people who like to blame gaming for the behavior of people out on the street committing crimes like beating up people but that is just an excuse for either how badly they were brought up or their own mental health situation. At the end of the day only you control how you act ... not any outside stimuli.

Oh my comment about folks saying they could "beat up an old person" had nothing to do with that age old and tired false boomer mentality behind blaming video games for violent acts. Rest easy man. No one here should be/is that dense.

The rest of what you said goes without saying.

You'd be surprised how dense some people can be. All you have to do is be on these forums long enough to see it ... depending on how you see it of course.

Being one of those boomers (I'm 58 right now) I can tell you I dealt personally with my Mom telling me that Rock music was the devil's music and Dungeon + Dragons (what we were playing at the time) was evil.

That said, I think if you take each situation individually you might find that the tired and false mentality behind that blaming video games for violent acts may actually have some truth in a few respects. That type of blaming likely had an incident or two that were true which sparked it becoming a larger issue whether true or not.

Even a lie usually contains a bit of truth no matter the size.

引用自 matt：

引用自 LT. Thing：

My primary focus on this platform is to enjoy and engage with games, rather than seeking approval or affirmation from others.

Yeah, I honestly don't understand why people care what some random dumbass on the internet thinks. Millennials grew up with social media, achievements, and "like" buttons, though. They're probably brainwashed by this stuff to care what other people think.

You guys wouldn't be here if it were true that you didn't care what others thought.

Just saying ...

[xBCxRangers]

I enjoy games just to immerse myself in a game. Gone are the days taking on these kids on these shooter games. And going back to the Souls stuff, i can't play anymore.

Games should be enjoyable and fun. The who's better than who thing i think is fading, being i think the gaming community as a whole, are aging, and don't have patience or time.

And the big games out today, are not the run and gun die respawn type games. But games where you actually, "live" which is much more fun than dying repeatedly, rinse repeat.

[Placenta Salad]

The problem with this sentiment is that a lot of people think that video games must be about them in order for them to find some entertainment value out of it. Not every video game actually does have to be about you in order for it to be fun, and if you can't find joy in the simple concept that is video gaming without needing to enforce your ideals, then just go away. I don't care if I come across as a gatekeeper. Gaming has evolved quite a bit between the naivete of gamers falling prey to predatory marketing schemes that started gaining prominence in around 2010, (see: loot boxes, day-one DLC, rehashed Call of Duty titles, EA & Activision, etc) and now the rampant activism that prevents us from using gaming as an outlet for escapism from all of that drama we experience in reality, just as two examples.

Gaming surely is for everybody in the sense that many video games are easy enough to just play, and even for those who are handicapped, they can generally still find something good. But we also don't need certain consultation companies extorting development studios for millions of dollars so that the company can come in and change a bunch of stuff to make it more 'inclusive' because there's some sort of false narrative that video games are NOT currently for everybody. While I think plenty would agree with your opinion, plenty also do not and they seemingly have a lot of power currently, and I find that a lot of potentially great video games of the last few years turned out to be rather lackluster because of this focus to make video games into something, well, not fun, because the priority was elsewhere.

People just need to play video games for fun, and if you don't think you're "represented" in a video game about Chinese mythology or Nordic mythology, for example . . . then find a different video game.

[Ruenis]

引用自 miakisfan：

引用自 Ruenis：

Oh my comment about folks saying they could "beat up an old person" had nothing to do with that age old and tired false boomer mentality behind blaming video games for violent acts. Rest easy man. No one here should be/is that dense.

The rest of what you said goes without saying.

You'd be surprised how dense some people can be. All you have to do is be on these forums long enough to see it ... depending on how you see it of course.

Being one of those boomers (I'm 58 right now) I can tell you I dealt personally with my Mom telling me that Rock music was the devil's music and Dungeon + Dragons (what we were playing at the time) was evil.

That said, I think if you take each situation individually you might find that the tired and false mentality behind that blaming video games for violent acts may actually have some truth in a few respects. That type of blaming likely had an incident or two that were true which sparked it becoming a larger issue whether true or not.

Even a lie usually contains a bit of truth no matter the size.

It's statistically improbable that a bad situation involving a relatively younger person, or however older a person, is going to go down, and either they themselves or someone else involved ISN'T going to drag video games into it. The "little bit of truth to games possibly causing violence" is there because one or more entities did so, but rest assured - I see where you're coming from. It's just a facet of developmental health that, coming up, your psyche may be negatively affected by things that, honestly, have zero bearing on reality whatsoever.

In the current day, and about a decade or more back, I thought "It's silly to let something of the realm of fantasy skew your judgement," but it needs to be more closely examined. For example, I own Condemned: Criminal Origins on Steam - a game of the Xbox lineup of games; original Xbox, I think. It's easy to dismiss it as just another 3rd-dimensional video game with allegedly spooky moments, but I noticed two things about it - one in particular, that went above expectations. The audio is binaural. Pair that with my second point, a facet of the game where in one section of it, it sounds like two, maybe more people, are having an incredibly violent argument in another room, as you traverse through a mess of darkly lit corridors that may give off a very depressive feeling, and if not mentally prepared - even more so if wearing headphones to hear all of this clear as day, one might become affected in ways that call back to personal experiences had in their own personal life.

I never played Condemned on the OG Xbox. Only Steam. The combat is very violent. Not your fantasy grade. More like your "Before the aftermath of the most horrible crime scene in real life" grade, except I think there are a few elements of fantasy to the game...

It's important to recognize that not everyone has an iron focus when approaching various forms of subject matter. I have the personal experiences to know what those kinds of people look like in person, and it's sad. The blame may rest with themselves in regards to willingly exposing themselves to something they ought not to, but if they're someone with known tendencies to do themselves harm in whatever ways, I'd say whomever is there watching over them is more responsible for letting their unstable kin, friend, or acquaintance get out of hand. Too often we pour all the blame on those who just aren't yet at a stage to wholly know better for themselves.

[Ruenis]

引用自 xBCxRangers：

I enjoy games just to immerse myself in a game. Gone are the days taking on these kids on these shooter games. And going back to the Souls stuff, i can't play anymore.

Games should be enjoyable and fun. The who's better than who thing i think is fading, being i think the gaming community as a whole, are aging, and don't have patience or time.

And the big games out today, are not the run and gun die respawn type games. But games where you actually, "live" which is much more fun than dying repeatedly, rinse repeat.

From a good look at my profile, anyone can see that I'm a big Skyrim nut, so I agree with your sentiment about game immersion, but in the distant past (the 80s and 90s lmao), I come from that mold where it was a blast to try, win a little, get really peeved at losing to the biggest BS (See: Any classic Angry Video Game nerd video for reference), and trying all over again out of perseverance. Yeah, you have to have the time - that blessed thing most kids don't fully realize they're swimming deep in and rolling in like the happiest hog alive, lol. Those old toughies, and middle generation ones of newer eras the same, are the biggest reason I'm currently saving for the original Ayn Odin 2 Max. Man, what a beast of a device.

[Heraclius Caesar]

引用自 xBCxRangers：

I enjoy games just to immerse myself in a game. Gone are the days taking on these kids on these shooter games. And going back to the Souls stuff, i can't play anymore.

Games should be enjoyable and fun. The who's better than who thing i think is fading, being i think the gaming community as a whole, are aging, and don't have patience or time.

And the big games out today, are not the run and gun die respawn type games. But games where you actually, "live" which is much more fun than dying repeatedly, rinse repeat.

Well said Rangers, couldn't agree more

[D. Flame]

Am I the best? Yes. Do I feel the need to brag about it? No.