Gaming has been one of the biggest forms of entertainment in our generation. The gaming community has been growing and growing, and i’d bet that most people have played at least some kind of game at least once in their life. But what makes it so popular? Why are so many attracted to spending their time in a virtual world where nothing in the game is physical or able to benefit us in a real way?
For me, gaming has been one of the most important forms of relaxation in my life. Whenever I had a rough day, or I needed something to get my mind off the stress of the real world, I would rely on games like Animal Crossing or Zelda to take me away for a few hours. Nowadays, the gaming world is a daily part of my life. I watch commentators play games when I do homework, I play Minecraft or Pokemon to take up my time, and even right now I am writing for a website that gives others a link into the things going on in the gaming world.
To many who aren’t interested in gaming, or to the parents of some gamers, they feel that gaming is a waste of time. ?Time lost in a pointless, stupid world that doesnt exist. There aren’t many gamers that would agree, however, and thats because we all know the truth: games are exactly that- a world. Every game, from shooters to sandbox games to RPGs, are their own worlds, with their own rules, enviroments, and characters. Games let us visit places we could never in a million years see in real life. Games let us do things, amazing and dangerous and wacky and sometimes even horrible things, that we couldnt do in real life. If we want to steal cars, run over people, and whack gangsters with giant floppy dildoes, there’s Saints Row. If we want to wage war, and become the best soldier (or camper) on the battlefield, there’s a skew of shooters to choose from. If we want to create epic castles, fight hordes of monsters and have entire worlds to call our own, we have minecraft. Every single game is a window into a world that lets us be whatever we want, do whatever we want, and see whatever we want, without consequences or fear of being hurt.
I would argue that games aren’t very different than what everybody used to do to pass the time. People read books, and still do, in order to immerse themselves in a world not their own, to escape into a place free of taxes, homework, or nagging spouses. The only difference between books and games is that games not only let us visit these worlds, but also interact with them, and be a part of them. Every one of us gamers know at some level why we do what we do. Whether it’s to be the best, to have fun, or just to get away, the reason any of us play games at all, and care so much for the games and their communities, is because we want something more, both out of ourselves and our reality. And for that reason, gaming will always be a real and thriving part of the world.