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So it's 2017. Why does gaming still have an "uncool" stereotype?

A

Aomber

Member
Edit: I'm gonna have to edit out the first paragraph. The story was just supposed to be a pivot for the thread but this is starting to get off topic, let's focus on the topic at hand.

Gaming is such a mainstream hobby at this point yet it still feels like there's many people still have a stuck idea of what kind of person a gamer is and what implications gaming has. In some cases those same people are playing cellphone games – which is gaming. Why do people hold these kind of judgements?

Interested to hear gaf discuss this kinda thing.
 
F

Fj0823

Member
Oh it's not uncool.

Just associated with Racism, Misogyny, Toxicity and Harrasment.

But it's cool now! Take that jocks!
 
D

danm999

Member
Many gamers and people representing them have done a fantastic job at transforming the image of the hobby from one of nerds to one of neo-Nazis.
 
M

mdubs

Banned
Gaming is associated with a whole host of toxic people. I cringe when people say they are proud of being "gamers".
 
J

Jeff Freecss

Member
I think the "you're a gamer" is just a convinient excuse to say no for a tinder date. There may be hundreds of reasons but maybe the gamer excuse is what she think is the most convenient one.

You don't unwant to fuck somebody just because he/she has strange entertainment hobbit.

Anyway, note to self: don't ever wear gaming headphone on tinder prefuck video call.
 
joecanada

joecanada

Member
Well it's kind of still viewed as a nerd thing deserved or not but think about all the hours you spent gaming and things other people might be doing at that time . Some people are into other things.

However I guarantee it wasn't just that she clearly wasn't that interested. People always want to find the reason for something but it's normally not that simple
 
A

Aomber

Member
Jeff Freecss said:
I think the "you're a gamer" is just a convinient excuse to say no for a tinder date. There may be hundreds of reasons but maybe the gamer excuse is what she think is the most convenient one.

You don't unwant to fuck somebody just because he/she has strange entertainment hobbit.

Anyway, note to self: don't ever wear gaming headphone on tinder prefuck video call.
Click to expand...
He was wearing Audio Technica headphones, not a gaming headset. I clarified that with him beforehand, I could see the confusion but just to clarify.
 
Z

Zukkoyaki

Member
These days you have a bunch of moronic streamers and YouTube personalities appearing in mainstream press for racism and bigotry. That certainly isn't helping.

It's a real bummer because I feel like gaming was well on its way to being widely accepted as nerd culture as a whole started to become cool.

And just closeminded people who think it's immature or childish.
 
Ultimadrago

Ultimadrago

Member
op is the friend.

That's a weird story though. Why would she see him with headphones, guess he's big on video games and stop talking to him from that alone? Did she explicitly say "I hate gamers."? Of course, there's shallow people on dating sites, but there's a number of reasons it could have happened.

Onto the question, I don't think gaming is uncool as some circles of gaming are.
 
S

Shaanyboi

Banned
Because look at our biggest mainstream representatives. Some white supremacist fuckwit who is beloved because he screams nonsense into a camera in-between bouts of casual racism. More racist so-called comedians coming out of the woodwork every day. And if it's not that, news of our community gets dominated by stories of misogyny and harassment.
 
J

JStein0222

Member
Gaming is a really attractive thing for people that may be socially anxious. There's enough of a "wall" in terms of interacting with other players, and many games can obviously be enjoyed solo. It also exists in a niche within close proximity to other "uncool" phenomena. Look at how comic-con and gaming are so strongly incorporated.

I say all this to mean that I think the gaming community pulls in people from other stereotypically uncool groups BETTER than other hobbies might. People notice that all these "uncool" people they know like games, then games are lame
 
V

Veelk

Banned
Because when gaming tries to expand it's audience, gamergate happens.

It's hard to convince anyone that the hobby isn't filled with stupid, immature manchildren when that is one of the most vocal parts of our demographic.
 
H

Hierophant

Banned
it doesn't? i mean just don't base your entire identity around it and be a well-rounded person, its just a hobby like any other hobby, treat it like one and nobody will hassle you for it
 
F

Feep

Banned
theWB27 said:
Why is this such a deal to people?
Click to expand...
Do people typically go around making something like "I enjoy movies" a core component of their identity? It's a hobby. Even if you love them, it's weird to associate yourself primarily with a label based on a thing you enjoy doing.
 
H

Hierophant

Banned
Feep said:
Do people typically go around making something like "I enjoy movies" a core component of their identity? It's a hobby. Even if you love them, it's weird to associate yourself primarily with a label based on a thing you enjoy doing.
Click to expand...

yeah like if somebody enjoyed gardening alot and would identify and start conversations with, "i'm a hardcore planter", you'd probably think they're an insane person
 
Demoskinos

Demoskinos

Member
I dunno but its kind of helpful actually. People like that girl you described in the OP would be exactly the kind of people I wouldn't want to bother wasting my time around. Them just outing themselves just saves both parties time tbh.

To the actual question I have no clue because quite a lot of mainstream entertainment these days is straight from the halls of geekery. Walking dead is a comic and Game of Thrones is a fantasy novel. Not to mention all of the movies based on comic book stuff.

I guess because somehow they feel like its still for "kids" who knows. People who try too hard to look like an adult just end up looking like a fool. The best part of being an adult is not giving a fuck what people think about the shit you're into.
 
Rentahamster

Rentahamster

Rodent Whores
Aomber said:
I have a buddy who was telling me how he matched with this girl on tinder, and she was the one doing the pursuing in this case. Eventually they exchanged numbers then exchanged selfies, and some how she guessed that he was a gamer because he was wearing headphones at his PC. Lo and behold she just flat out stopped replying after that.

Point and question of this thread: why does this still happen? Gaming is such a mainstream hobby at this point yet it still feels like there's many people still have a stuck idea of what kind of person a gamer is and what implications gaming has. In some cases those same people are playing cellphone games – which is gaming.

Anyway, interested to hear gaf discuss this kinda thing.
inb4 "op is the friend"
Click to expand...

That story doesn't mean she lost interest because she thought gaming was "uncool". There's a lot of stories of boyfriends ignoring their girlfriends because of videogames. Maybe she doesn't want to deal with that.

Alternatively, it could have been some other completely unrelated reason. Don't be so quick to jump to conclusions.
 
A

Aomber

Member
Rentahamster said:
That story doesn't mean she lost interest because she thought gaming was "uncool". There's a lot of stories of boyfriends ignoring their girlfriends because of videogames. Maybe she doesn't want to deal with that.

Alternatively, it could have been some other completely unrelated reason. Don't be so quick to jump to conclusions.
Click to expand...
I left out a lot of details because it's irrelevant to the topic for discussion sake. This is the gaming section of neogaf.
 
N

NippleViking

Banned
mdubs said:
Gaming is associated with a whole host of toxic people. I cringe when people say they are proud of being "gamers".
Click to expand...

Do people not keyed into gaming know about this side of the medium? I'm a gamer, but my girlfriend isn't. She has no idea about the toxic nature of online gaming, the racism and misogyny, or the entitlement of gamers - her only sleight against gaming is that it's a bit of a frivolous hobby, a stance taken by a lot of people.

OP, some people presume that having a frivolous hobby like gaming is a symptom of other undesirable characteristics. 'Ít's a waste of time/form of escapism, with no real benefit to the individual' isn't common, but is regularly heard sentiment. Personally I find that women in particular can't perceive that gaming fills a similar role to binging a TV series, or watching a film.
 
Jubenhimer

Jubenhimer

Member
My take is that it's probably for 2 reasons.

1.) Unlike fans of other mediums, gamers tend to be more spoiled and selfish. Sure people who watch movies might laugh at and criticize a bad film. But many gamers tend to call for a developer's head on a stick the moment they don't cater to their every whim.

2.) This kind of goes into one, but gamers tend to be very clingy to this medium. When someone outside the perceived "hardcore" gamer audience starts playing and enjoying Video games, or the moment a company starts catering to someone outside their little bubble, the gaming apocalypse is suddenly upon us. Look at how many people are still complaining about stuff like mobile gaming and motion controls. Old habits die hard I guess.

Video games have actually gotten a lot better in terms of perception these days, but they still have a long way to go if they every want to reach a the same acceptance of Film and TV. And I think us as gamers need to play a part in making this medium more acceptable to the masses.
 
B

BocoDragon

or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Realize This Assgrab is Delicious
I don't think a girl prone to blocking someone for being a gamer would understand any of the toxic, racist gamer culture stuff.

It's probably the old school "nerd with no life" stereotype.
 
B

Bahorel

Member
I am a girl who very much wants a guy to play games with. You just gotta find the right one for you, clearly that girl from the op story wasn't the right person for him
 
BigTnaples

BigTnaples

Todd Howard's Secret GAF Account
I mean, I'm play a lot of videogames, and have no troubles socially or with relationships and sex life. I also don't send selfies of me wearing my turtle beaches to some woman I'm trying to court.


I'd say it was the intensity of the photo more than the "stigma".
 
A

Aomber

Member
BocoDragon said:
I don't think a girl prone to blocking someone for being a gamer would understand any of the toxic, racist gamer culture stuff.

It's probably the old school "nerd with no life" stereotype.
Click to expand...
I was wondering the same thing, like, even with the media are these kinds of people even aware of the stories or the culture at all?
 
M

MoonFrog

Member
SgtCobra said:
"Gaming is for nerds who have no social life."

I guess that whole idea still exists with a big group of people.
Click to expand...

And accurately describes me. I associate with my family, and when I have them, colleagues :p.

Never really made a friend that survived a move; every friend I have made has been in an environment where we were trapped in close quarters (be it a class, a dorm, etc.).

But...I'd never be on tinder in the first place so...that is one less nerd people have to deal with :p. Although, tbh, people tend to like me in real life. I don't think they realize quite how reclusive I am though.
 
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