Because unless you play video/pc games for a living, then playing video/pc games is merely a hobby. And I wouldn't want any of my hobbies to define who I am. That's why I have never appreciated that title for myself, and anyone who ever asked if I was a gamer has been told that I am not a gamer, but I do play video games. A lot of video games.
The shame surrounding this word reminds me of the early 00's when every geek with a pretentious bone in their body was still trying to call their comic books "graphic novels" so as to distance themselves from all the trash that spawned out of the 90s. I'm not a cheetos-eating, mountain dew-gulping "gamer", I'm a fan of interactive experiences! Don't label me bro.
It's pretty funny. Yeah most gamers are shit, so are most consumers of anything. Whatever.
Like someone has said a hobby should never define you. You should never be proud to call yourself a gamer, others can but you should not defining yourself through a hobby because hobbies reflect a very small part of who you are.
A person is a sum of more than just their hobbies.
Because unless you play video/pc games for a living, then playing video/pc games is merely a hobby. And I wouldn't want any of my hobbies to define who I am. That's why I have never appreciated that title for myself, and anyone who ever asked if I was a gamer has been told that I am not a gamer, but I do play video games. A lot of video games.
I really can not wrap my mind around this concept that a word that says what hobby you are interested in defines you. When I say that someone is a runner, I am talking about a single aspect of that person. There is never a moment where I think that person is just a runner, that the word runner sums up an entire life at person.
Like someone has said a hobby should never define you. You should never be proud to call yourself a gamer, others can but you should not defining yourself through a hobby because hobbies reflect a very small part of who you are.
A person is a sum of more than just their hobbies.
Again who said when someone calls someone a gamer, or themselves a gamer that they are saying that is all they are? Words that associate you with a hobby or activity are not meant to be one to one. I am baffled by this odd way of looking at simple labels.
I really can not wrap my mind around this concept that a word that says what hobby you are interested in defines you. When I say that someone is a runner, I am talking about a single aspect of that person. There is never a moment where I think that person is just a runner, that the word runner sums up an entire life at person.
Exactly. For the most part there are never single words that describe people. You could describe me in a vast amount of ways including by my race, ethnicity, country, religion, hobbies, degree, etc. In the end I'm all of them and more. I'm not defined by them. But they absolutely do describe me. And I most certainly am a gamer.
Because unless you play video/pc games for a living, then playing video/pc games is merely a hobby. And I wouldn't want any of my hobbies to define who I am. That's why I have never appreciated that title for myself, and anyone who ever asked if I was a gamer has been told that I am not a gamer, but I do play video games. A lot of video games.
The term is not is is not too bad, but sometimes it can become a problem when insufferable fanboys use it for look down on others,ex: "You are not part of/are an embarrassment to the gamming community"
That's why I have never appreciated that title for myself, and anyone who ever asked if I was a gamer has been told that I am not a gamer, but I do play video games. A lot of video games.
People so adamantly opposed to the word "gamer" seem like they're exposing their own insecurities more than anything else. I don't call myself a gamer, but I don't object to being called one, either. Gaming is something I do. It's a lot of what I do. I don't have a better word for it. It doesn't lump me in with the more unsavory elements any more than being white lumps me in with the Westboro Baptist Church.
It's just a shorthand term, don't know why people hate it. I'm not gonna say I'm a "gaming enthusiast" or "someone who games" when there's a perfectly acceptable term for my gaming hobby.
In general: "Gamer" just sounds weird to me versus "I play / enjoy / am passionate about games." The latter seems like I'm describing something about myself while the former feels like it suggests that I consider myself a member of an official group or something. I think I'm just weird with labels like that in general, though. I also wouldn't call myself a "movie buff," I'd just say that I fucking love movies.
Lately: Internet jagoffs are making the term "gamer" sound more and more exclusive. Like "Well, I'm a gamer, that person is just someone who plays Candy Crush" as if they somehow lessen the concept of gaming.
It's like in Parks and Rec when Brandi Maxxxx(pornstar) would talk like "me and leslie are basically the same we're strong blonde women with careers" but leslie is like "i dont like this comparison"
It's a homogenizing term for what is actually a very broad demographic. You get the news and stuff saying "gamers are violent", and "gamers are sexist", etc, when there are gamers who only play puzzles games, which are largely non-violent or sexist. This can be damaging in social situations when you say you like videogames.
I won't use the term to describe myself, but I used to. Now it just seems sophomoric, and reminds me of frat boys more than the basement dweller that used to be associated with it hobby. I just tell people I play games when they ask, and when I'm able to talk intelligently about it at a later conversation and answer their questions, I just let them draw their own conclusions. I do use the term around my wife, who plays only a little. She understands it to mean someone who likes games how I like games, although not necessarily someone who follows the business side of things.
For me, it makes sense to have a term to describe people who are really into games. It isn't exclusionary any more than terms like "foodie," "bookworm," or "audiophile" are. I
It's a homogenizing term for what is actually a very broad demographic. You get the news and stuff saying "gamers are violent", and "gamers are sexist", etc, when there are gamers who only play puzzles games, which are largely non-violent or sexist. This can be damaging in social situations when you say you like videogames.
True. But surely you can see why people don't want to associate with a group that is labeled heretics, sexist, racist, and violent on a regular basis for simply enjoying some games can't you?
Nothing. It's just a word. You'd describe yourself as a reader if you read books, people who watch TV shows and movies are viewers (broad term so unlikely to be used to describe yourself), people who play sports are players (works doubly for footballers). Just as none of those terms are tarnished by a percentage that are dickheads, "gamer" shouldn't be either.
True. But surely you can see why people don't want to associate with a group that is labeled heretics, sexist, racist, and violent on a regular basis for simply enjoying some games can't you?
I don't really see a reason to avoid the label of gamer because of hasty generalizations made by some, no. Personally I am pretty confident in my ability to carry myself where I don't give the impression that I am a a sexist, racist and violent person, and people will not assume I am those things just because I am a gamer
I don't know whether to feel sorry for you for not having the empathy or wisdom to understand the focus on the term currently, or happy for you for not having to be around ignorant people on a regular basis.
I don't know whether to feel sorry for you for not having the empathy or wisdom to understand the focus on the term currently, or happy for you for not having to be around ignorant people on a regular basis.
It's a homogenizing term for what is actually a very broad demographic. You get the news and stuff saying "gamers are violent", and "gamers are sexist", etc, when there are gamers who only play puzzles games, which are largely non-violent or sexist. This can be damaging in social situations when you say you like videogames.
I think there are probably so few people out there that equate being a gamer to being sexist or violent or misogynist that this is a moot point.
The stereotypes that gamers have is the one they've had since like...forever; Basement dwellers that refuse to grow up and do "adult" things like...idk, ... whatever "adults" do?
You do realize that you are saying that you take issue with the way "insert self description here" present themselves and not the word itself. So if the obnoxious people you take issue with use a different word to describe themselves would it make everything better?
Simply because there is only one way to commute and the term drive implies a car (instead of ride, sail, or fly for example). When you say play, that could imply playing games, sports, instruments, emotions, with your food, and a few others. The term gamer narrows the focus on "what" you could be playing.
Nothing is wrong with it. It is what it is, just a label that describes a hobby of mine. It's not derogatory and it doesn't define solely who I am, only a part of me.
Movie enthusiast = Cinephile
Book enthusiast = bookworm/bibliophile
Car enthusiast = Gear Head/Grease Monkey
Lady Gaga enthusiast = Monster
Videogame enthusiast = Gamer
etc
There are also terms used for fans of specific sub catagories for each of these and more.There is nothing wrong it unless people allow there to be, every group of fans of various topics or subjects have nicknames.
Movie enthusiast = Cinephile
Book enthusiast = bookworm/bibliophile
Car enthusiast = Gear Head/Grease Monkey
Lady Gaga enthusiast = Monster
Videogame enthusiast = Gamer
etc
There are also terms used for fans of specific sub catagories for each of these and more.There is nothing wrong it unless people allow there to be, every group of fans of various topics or subjects have nicknames.
This. People are too butthurt about the term maybe because they cannot accept some games are deeper than others and harder too. A gamer is someone who plays those games because he/she is enthusiastic about the medium.
I couldn t give less of a damn if people consider it condescending or elitist, as of it was a bad thing.
I've called myself a gamer for 20 years. I called myself a gamer when it wasn't "cool" so I truly do not intend to change my identity because people assume prejudicial bullshit because of false stereotypes. That's old news. Been happening since the 70s.
The only change is gamers used to stick together, and now a fair amount of them seem to be more interested in bullying people to try and elevate themselves because they're massively insecure. Putting others down helps mask how much they doubt themselves.
Get some self-confidence. Call yourself whatever you want. No one has power over what you think of yourself unless you give them that power. Only an insecure person frets endlessly about negative stereotypes attached to "gamer;" trying frantically to mask their fragile real identity behind a semantics driven, politically correct lie.
"Maybe if you choose just the right word, people will think you're cool!" Pathetic.
I've never referred to myself as a gamer, but I have no problem telling other people I have an interest in games. I'm from Sweden though, not sure how wide-spread the term 'gamer' is here.
My biggest issue with the term "Gamer" is that it goes against pretty much all nomenclature that we use when identifying people that partake in an activity. All other terms are derived from the verb associated with the activity, but for video games we use the noun.
People who read books are readers, not bookers.
People who watch moviers are watchers, not moviers.
People who play football are players, not footballers.
But for some reason people who play games are gamers, not players.
It just sounds so fucking stupid. I know the term is not supposed to be the equivalent of "reader" or "watcher", but that's just what makes it so stupid, because it sounds like it is supposed to.
Also, gamer is to loose of a term that is used differently every single time someone says it, giving it no practial purposes whatsoever.
I personally define myself, among other terms, a gamer because it's convenient.
To me it just shows that I have a deep interest in the industry, the history, the games themselves, etc. I've been playing since the Amiga 500 and played countless games of every genre there is (from sports to strategy to FPSes, from casual to "hardcore" games played on hard). It's just my primary hobby.
I just use this word to specify that I don't have just a passing interest in video games.
I'm also into board games... and I'd call myself a "gamer" for the same reason.
At some point I jokingly called myself a "homo ludens" since I like everything related to the act of playing (video games, board games, toys, etc.).
Despite all of this, I don't fit the stereotype as I'm not into doritos (I don't believe we have them) nor mountain dew. I'm an amateur bodybuilder, I have 8 years of University under my belt and I've been living with someone for 4 years... but I am a bit of a social recluse despite me having perfectly working social skills.
I've never referred to myself as a gamer, but I have no problem telling other people I have an interest in games. I'm from Sweden though, not sure how wide-spread the term 'gamer' is here.
Exactly. In Italian or French I just say "I like video games" or "I play a lot of videogames"... I don't often say "I'm a player" or "I'm a gamer"... maybe because it could be misunderstood as someone who gambles...
Like someone has said a hobby should never define you. You should never be proud to call yourself a gamer, others can but you should not defining yourself through a hobby because hobbies reflect a very small part of who you are.
A person is a sum of more than just their hobbies.
This is a bit silly to me. There are many terms for hobbies -- fisher, movie buff, gamer, sports fan, etc.
None of those have to be used to completely define what a person is and/or does unless he/she actually says "this is what defines me".
And someone should never be proud to call themselves a gamer? Why? People shouldn't be proud if they greatly enjoy the way they spend some of their free time (as long as it's harmless)?
Anyway, I don't think there's anything wrong with the term due to the similar terms for other hobbies that I mentioned above. There is a whole lot of immaturity in the gaming community (tons of it) but that's them; what they do doesn't make me not want to be a "gamer".
There are athletes that do bad things often (as recent news events have shown) but does that mean that the term "athlete" should end and be replaced with something like "sports player"?
Overall, I feel that all of this is really silly TBH.
My biggest issue with the term "Gamer" is that it goes against pretty much all nomenclature that we use when identifying people that partake in an activity. All other terms are derived from the verb associated with the activity, but for video games we use the noun.
People who read books are readers, not bookers.
People who watch moviers are watchers, not moviers.
People who play football are players, not footballers.
But for some reason people who play games are gamers, not players.
It just sounds so fucking stupid. I know the term is not supposed to be the equivalent of "reader" or "watcher", but that's just what makes it so stupid, because it sounds like it is supposed to.
Also, gamer is to loose of a term that is used differently every single time someone says it, giving it no practial purposes whatsoever.
I see what you are saying but I see it similar to a few other terms for hobbies; like I said in my post above, people who like to fish are often called "fishers".
Sure, there are people within the culture that are...Well, that are just terrible people all around. But I think people will be dicks, and no matter where you are, or what subculture you are into you will run into these folk.
Interesting point! Why, if these people are in every subculture, are they more often associated with gamers? I'm guessing because recently gaming has become more social and with more people interacting online you have a better chance of running into them. Also gaming is inherently competitive so you're more apt to run into jerks that way too.
It's a shame that they have corrupted the word gamer, but still I'm personally not against being called that. I agree with the OP, that there's no better word, so we should just accept it.
