Hello, World!

I play games. Many people I know think I’m a fairly serious person and the thought of me playing any game would be a departure from what they expect. However, when they find out what KIND of games I play, they’re flabbergasted – no mahjong or bridge or diplomacy here. I play MMORPGs. Plural.

MMORPG stands for Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game. There are many of them out there, but they share certain defining characteristics. MMO means it’s played with other people, lots of other people, in real time through the medium of the internet. RPG means you get to be someone else for a little while, doing things you would likely never get to do in real life.

For years, I was reluctant to tell people how I spent several evenings a week. There is a stereotype out there in the real world that gamers are young, socially-awkward and quite possibly troubled people who play video games because they have nothing else to do, nowhere to go, no-one to see. The activity is often viewed as worthless or even detrimental. This view persists despite the fact that gamers are now represented in every age group, across genders, around the world, and regardless of IQ or socio-economic status. That dad at the playground focused on Candy Crush Saga? Gamer. The ex-marine who can’t get enough of League of Legends? Gamer. The girl-next-door who drives sports cars insanely fast around impossible locations on the streets of virtual Miami? Gamer. The student who is building a city and related economy and watching to see what happens in that controlled environment? Gamer. The actor who is known in certain circles more for her World of Warcraft history than her day job? Gamer.

Why do I play games? It’s complicated. I started playing them when my kids still lived at home and were spending their evenings playing World of Warcraft and Final Fantasy. I saw the enjoyment they got out of participating in something fun with others, and I wanted a little of that fun myself. Shortly after, when they left for college, I played because it was a way to keep in touch, a connection that we shared. Now I play because I have friends there – actual people with whom I share mutual experiences, common interests, and for whom I have developed a fondness over the years.  We’re Facebook friends; text each other regularly; chat for hours about nothing in particular; share stories about our kids, our pets, our jobs; help each other through sad times and celebrate the happy ones. The fact that they live in other parts of the country, and even the world, and that we talk in digital channels rather than face-to-face, doesn’t diminish their value to me.

So yes, I play games. Proudly.