I found an article entitled "5 reasons it's still not cool to admit you're a gamer." I went into it expecting some mild chuckles followed by my saying 'well that's not entirely true...' However I was surprised to find an extremely well stated article on the current pitfalls of the gaming industry and subculture. Written by an avid "gamer" it is (in my oppinion) the perfect perspective for such a thing.
The full article is here... http://www.cracked.com/article_18571_5 -reasons-its-still-not-cool-to-admit-y oure-gamer.html however for those of you who don't feel like reading the full two pages (although I would suggest it, it's pretty good.) I'll sum it up real quick...
5: We can't escape the lonely virgin stereotype - Even though pretty much everyone plays games now there is still the lonely loser stereotype we have to put up with in the media, down to the point where there is a site where you play to game with women. This isn't really helped out by our actions as gamers and our interactions with the opposite sex, especially in our preferred medium, the realm of online games (which are often shrouded with shouts of "tits or gtfo" and other such demeaning slander)
4: The Industry Thinks We're All 17-Year-Old Douchebags - Basically the objectification of women argument, the fact that "Mature" in the industry basically means male fantasy superviolence or over hyped sex... not extactly the most "Mature" things to the rest of the world.
3: Video Game Storytelling is Still at the Level of B Movies - Yes there are games out there that have amazing stories and push the genre, however the most popular and abundant titles are themes and ideas that in other mediums would be considered "guilty pleasures" at best. Characters continue to be stereotypes and plots continue to be thin to non-existent, not very huge strides in storytelling for a medium that has been around for about 40 years.
2: We're Still Obsessed by Shiny Gadgets - When the film industry started out it was all about the 'holy shit I'm watching a movie!' spectacle, but it very quickly evolved into a much more in depth medium for storytelling and conveying ideas. Videogames don't have the same staying power as movies (people still pay money to see movies that were made 40 years ago, would anyone here pay money to play pong?) We are more obsessed with pixel counts, polygons and high def specs than with the things that make entertainment timeless (story and themes). The things that excite us most are still technologial novelties (motion control, updated graphics and 3D), and if something doesn't live up to current standards we as a community can throw a fit like no other, leading into...
1: We Have Some Serious Entitlement Issues - This part lightly touches on the piracty issue and the fact tha millions of us seem to think we are entitled to something people spent thousands of manhours on for cheap or free, but it focuses more on our ability to throw a serious tantrum when we don't like or disagree with something rather than talk about it in a mature manor.
So that's pretty much it. I honestly found the article somewhat enlightening in the sense that it put into words some concerns and thoughts I'd had for some time. I can't say I agree with everything as it applies to me (or really much of it) but the truth is that as a group, these things do seem to define us "gamers" to the rest of the world.
Basically I want to know your thoughts on the idea. Do you think we as gamers have a long way to go before we are taken seriously by the larger demographics? I'm not so much interested in knowing what games or actions people think rebutt the issues stated, or why they don't apply to you. I'm more interested in hearing thoughts about why as a populace we (gamers) are viewed as we are and what (if anything) could be done to improve our station in the world.
