What is it that makes someone a gamer? Would you classify yourself a gamer if you played one game on one console?


If you played  WoW and that was the only thing you ever played would you fall into the gamer category?

I think some of us have different opinions on what makes someone a gamer or a 'true gamer' if you will. I know some people at work who actually try to HIDE the fact that they are gamers or like certain shows and are therefore geeks. Kinda cracks me up, kinda annoys me. The world needs to get with the times! It's not WEIRD to like going onto the internet or enjoy playing games. On the news the other day some 30 something yr old guy was saying how embarrassed he was because he enjoyed playing GTA4. (I'll omit my opinion on that game ) 

Someone at my BF's work claimed to be a gamer. He played one game on the PC. Alex was like PSH! That's not a gamer! He doesn't know mario, metroid etc etc etc... (alex can talk for a while.. so enter every famous series in this etc portion).

Anyway, what are your thoughts on the topic?

It depends on who I'm around.  Not that I try to hide that I'm a gamer....but I know that most who AREN'T gamers are irritated by those who talk about ONLY games all the time, so you could say I'm trying to not be intrusive, forcing on them what they don't even like.  Even then, for those who DO talk about games all the time, I can only stand to be around them iRL for a few minutes.  Online, I appreciate knowing gamers because most of the people I'm around iRL aren't 'gamers' or aren't into it much.

But on the other side of things, I get the feeling that the only ones who care about who is or isn't a 'true gamer' are thinking about it a little too much.  I think it'd be easier to just enjoy the games as they are, rather than try to create an image based around an imaginary activity that doesn't even exist in the real world.  THAT is what people look down on when they do....if the power goes out or the batteries run down, they more or less don't even exist, and any reputation you might think you have goes with them.  That's the main reason most people look down on it, because they see it as a waste of time doing nothing...and a lot of these 'true gamers' sometimes only help out that reputation, which bugs me.  I'm not a casual gamer exactly, but I'd rather be casual about gaming than as adamant as I see some people about it.


And I don't feel that way entirely...I know that games can help relax(as well as frustrate), and I know that some can actually help in some other areas(some more obvious than others, like Brain Age and Wii Fit, but to some extent, even Tetris or other puzzlers), but I guess it's all sort of ruined by my 'peers' who just take it too far, and build up a reputation of "gamers = losers-with-too-much-time-on-their-hands".  Maybe if they hadn't done that, and had been more balanced about gaming and how often they talked about it, I wouldn't have to worry about how much I talk/think about it.

Anyone who has every played a video game is a "gamer". Then we start getting more specific. Someone who plays only WoW probably falls into their own special category of "WoW Gamer". Someone who is like most of us fall into a "hardcore gamer" category.

As for hiding you're a gamer, that's not something I do. Like Magnus, I know that it annoys people if that's all you talk about, so I try to find other things to talk about when I'm not around other gamers. However, if the topic comes up I make it no secret that I know more about games than you will ever know.

That's pretty much it right there.  Using exclusive terminology to classify someone as not being a gamer is doing nothing but harm to the industry.  Especially in the viewpoints of those people towards it.

Oh Roman, how I loves yous and your obsessions. XD


This pretty much sums how it should be up quite nicely, however we the consumers of the games industry (Best way I can think of to define all of us) are suffering from both the community and companies in the game industry wanting to separate us into one of two groups; Casual and Hardcore. I don't worry about the community so much since it'll always be near impossable to define casual and hardcore since everyone thinks they're hardcore for doing something. (For example; I've been called Hardcore for getting all the achievements in Call of Duty 4, including one called "The Mile High Club" which drives a lot of people bonkers, but in multiplayer I have a rather low rank that can make me look casual to the hardcore multiplayer fans.)

The problem I have is with big game developers believing a large majority of gamers are casual, and thus everything must be tailor made to suit them and hardcore is a dieing breed. They create a ever growing fault between the two groups with the popularity of casual games these days. Now granted, I'm no fool. I understand that every sale of "The Movie: The Game" is more cash for the company to put towards "Majorly Awesome and innovative game we all love", however when you have companies like Nintendo putting all there cash focus behind things like Wiifit while games like Metroid Prime 3 seem like nothing but a blurp, or Ubisoft unleashing wave after wave of DogZ, PetZ, and Imagine Tween games, people not into that stuff can't help but feel left out.

And you know what, I probably took this topic in a different direction then it originally was intended, so I'll stop there.

I play what looks fun to me. Any series works, as long as I enjoy it.


Doesn't that make me a gamer?

^ Heidi, gettin' all Yoda on us.

Wow....I didn't see that part of the post actually until now.  He came up to Alex out of the blue and claimed himself a gamer?  That just makes him an idiot.....gaming isn't exactly a LIFE, and if it is, you need to reevaluate yourself.  Once the power's off and the batteries are dead, just where does your life go?

I think there definately needs to be a balance.  It's really easy to see moms and such as non-gamers because they don't get 'pulled in' so to speak.  They might 'get into it' as they're playing, but afterward they're not exactly still hanging on it.  Even my older brother might qualify as a non-gamer these days....he doesn't keep up on what new games are coming out, he isn't interested in ANY of the now-current-gen systems(portable included), and the most he plays is quick little sessions of whatever's available(that I know of anyway).  Which is good really, that fits his into his life/schedule better, and it keeps him from being obsessive or wasting money on things rather than trying to keep up on payments.

On the other side of things, I think those who try to 'live the life' and go out of their way to prove themselves a gamer...are in fact NOT gamers themselves.  This is kind of cheating, but I'd say instead of a gamer, they're just OBSESSED, and for that matter, they're creating a very bad image that makes other people disgusted with 'gamers'.  I mean if that's what a gamer was, I'd quit gaming here and now....that's not what I want to be.  I just want to sit down with a game and have fun with it, and be able to choose if I'm in the mood for a quick sit-n-play game, or if I want a deeper game I can spend a few hours diving into.  I may not be casual, but I'm too sick of this obessively-hardcore to get any deeper than I am(and as much I don't want to spend too much money on something that'll be obsolete in a few years anyway).