I've never had to answer the question. It never came up. I came to the conclusion on my own. Yet, I'm asking... well... just about everyone else, when? I only ask because frankly, I just haven't seen it yet. Parents, friends, girlfriends, politicians, teachers... gaming is an adolescent activity, end of story. Yet, I can't necessarily blame them. After all, we didn't all grow up with video games. Some of us simply due to the fact that they didn't exist, and others due to circumstance. So, for those who didn't grow up in the warming glow of an SNES, they have made their deduction about games by observation. Again, I can't blame them for having a less than stellar opinion. Video games have gotten a bit of a bad rap in the media for quite some time. Violence and addiction seem to be hot button issues, but beyond that I seem to hear an endless stories of neglectful boyfriends who would rather play Xbox than watch America's next top model. If this is your experience, I'm sorry about that and this article is a hand reaching out to you.
However, there is another set of people that this article speaks to, but with a critical hand. The gamer who sees gaming as an immature phase. I don't remember who said this to me, but the quote was, "someday I'll grow up and get rid of my Xbox." A case of self pity masked with the veil of self improvement. Why? For this fellow and the individual mentioned above, is gaming really the immature vice it is portrayed to be? Obviously, I would say no.
Perhaps my biggest problem with the entire situation is that people are so quick to give the benefit of the doubt to television, movies, magazines, and books. The common view is that video games, in some way, are intrinsically lesser in value than our other forms of media. I will admit that the video game industry puts out its share of crap. However, in no way is that an exclusive component of video games. I think the twentieth season of survivor and "Hot Tub Time Machine," are evidence enough of that.
I would also argue that gaming rivals its competitors at the other end of the spectrum as well. I don't claim that video games have a rival to "Macbeth," (the industry is only 30 years old) but some games easily compete with Oscar nominees in a number of ways. For example, I'd like to bring up Mass Effect, a game I finished recently. In terms of quality (the plot, character development, setting), I can comfortably say that it is a large step above the new Star Wars trilogy (that isn't saying much I know) and is pushing its way into Lord of the Rings' territory (that is saying something). Nothing is taken for granted in the story. Every character has motivation that you may or may not be aware of. For me, I found out about one of my character's key motivations way too late, which ended up with him dieing. Not by my hand, but another member of my group. The experience rivaled most movie dramatic moments (maybe more so... I started that part over about six times trying to figure out how I could stop it). Maybe more so because it was my fault.
Ultimately, my point is that video games are in no way a lesser medium than television, movies, or print. Games are capable of addressing the same issues and provoking the same emotions as the contemporary forms of media. I have no doubt about that. So my advice is to put down your issue of Cosmo, turn off your Avatar, and start taking them seriously.
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