Gaming Cultures

 

Hi, my name is Kerris, and I have never played a game online… Nor do I go on MSN.

On the other hand, I can see why some people find multiplayer attractive. It allows you to play against friends from all over the country, gives you new experiences every time you log on. It seems a lot more competitive than casual gaming, more about honing your skills. I can imagine it could be quite a laugh. But I've never joined that culture, I've never had friends who game and in turn have never felt comfortable playing against strangers.

I miss the days when games came with offline multi-player with bots. Time splitters two? Fantastic. Recently though, if you want to play anything more than the campaigns, you need at least 2 x PS3 + 2 x online compatible game = expensive and boring.

I worry a little about the social consequences of dedicated online gamers. Playing online, with others you have probably never met, ebbs away at the healthy experience you gain by talking to people in real life. I find it tricky to understand people my age who find it easy as fudge to talk over Facebook, but in the real world avoid all eye contact and become nervous jittery wrecks at the first sign of socialising.

We need to find a healthy balance. I see no harm in the odd hour of game play, stuffed in our dark student rooms eyes locked on to the screen, but once in a while, we need to venture out, absorb some rays, talk to our Nan’s.