First of all, the implied message of Matt's article was, in my view, that videogame playing needs some sort of "legitimacy" in order to justify playing them. Perhaps we, as "mature gamers," still feel the stigma that games are childish, since we are "first generation gamers." Many in our age group, or the older generations, might not perceive gaming as legitimate pastimes, or "hobbies," for mature people, as the article professes. Thus, the sort of defensive position that videogame playing is justifiable from an intellectual or cultural perspective arises.
From my point of view, it is a bit of a stretch to label videogame playing as a legitimate hobby, rather than a pastime. Other hobbies, such as quilting, crafts, playing a musical instrument, or collecting rare-or-interesting items can have a tangible effect or product outside of the game world. For example, if I learned how to sew a quilt, that would be a skill that I can retain for the rest of my life. The same with musicianship: if I learn to play the guitar, that skill will still be impressive 50 years from now. And Bill's videogame collection will seem even more impressive in those years!
But if I work my way to a level 80+ character in WoW, no one is going to care 10 years from now, or perhaps even five years from now, when WoW's day in the sun has faded. The "skills" and "accomplishments" are generally non-transferable outside the WoW game. Even if the next big MMO has similar rules to WoW, you'll still probably have to start all over from the beginning of character development.
From this perspective, WoW might seem, years from now, to be a waste of time, since nothing tangible was produced in the long term, as opposed to the other "hobbies" listed above. So, in my view, gaming would be more correctly considered to be a pastime, rather than a hobby. Hobbies tend to result in some form of creative product.
That being said, what's wrong with gaming as a pastime? Everyone has a pastime, be it watching TV, betting on sports, hanging out in bars, doing crossword puzzles, reading fiction, and so forth. Unless done to excess, pastimes do not have to be "legitimized;" people just do them and enjoy them, end of story.
Pastimes can lead to other rewarding facets of life, such as friendships, other inspired interests, or even endeavors related to the pastime. A great example is "Armchair Arcade," where we have these interesting discussions, which lead to book deals and movie deals!
I contend that, as a pastime, videogaming is at least as legitimate as other pastimes, if not more so. It promotes computer literacy, mental stimulation, and relaxing escapism. If someone looks down on my "videogaming" pastime, well, I'm not so impressed with their "getting-drunk-in-bars-watching-the-game" pastime either, but to each their own.
So, from my view, game PROGRAMMING is (or can be) a hobby, but game playing is a pastime.
Pastimes are like mini-vacations away from the general stresses of life. I don't think there's anything wrong with that, and I think they are a necessary part of the human condition. But I don't think it's necessary to classify "videogames" as a hobby to justify their importance.
Videogames are fun, and we enjoy them. You can take that to the bank. :-)
First of all, the implied message of Matt's article was, in my view, that videogame playing needs some sort of "legitimacy" in order to justify playing them. Perhaps we, as "mature gamers," still feel the stigma that games are childish, since we are "first generation gamers." Many in our age group, or the older generations, might not perceive gaming as legitimate pastimes, or "hobbies," for mature people, as the article professes. Thus, the sort of defensive position that videogame playing is justifiable from an intellectual or cultural perspective arises.
From my point of view, it is a bit of a stretch to label videogame playing as a legitimate hobby, rather than a pastime. Other hobbies, such as quilting, crafts, playing a musical instrument, or collecting rare-or-interesting items can have a tangible effect or product outside of the game world. For example, if I learned how to sew a quilt, that would be a skill that I can retain for the rest of my life. The same with musicianship: if I learn to play the guitar, that skill will still be impressive 50 years from now. And Bill's videogame collection will seem even more impressive in those years!
But if I work my way to a level 80+ character in WoW, no one is going to care 10 years from now, or perhaps even five years from now, when WoW's day in the sun has faded. The "skills" and "accomplishments" are generally non-transferable outside the WoW game. Even if the next big MMO has similar rules to WoW, you'll still probably have to start all over from the beginning of character development.
From this perspective, WoW might seem, years from now, to be a waste of time, since nothing tangible was produced in the long term, as opposed to the other "hobbies" listed above. So, in my view, gaming would be more correctly considered to be a pastime, rather than a hobby. Hobbies tend to result in some form of creative product.
That being said, what's wrong with gaming as a pastime? Everyone has a pastime, be it watching TV, betting on sports, hanging out in bars, doing crossword puzzles, reading fiction, and so forth. Unless done to excess, pastimes do not have to be "legitimized;" people just do them and enjoy them, end of story.
Pastimes can lead to other rewarding facets of life, such as friendships, other inspired interests, or even endeavors related to the pastime. A great example is "Armchair Arcade," where we have these interesting discussions, which lead to book deals and movie deals!
I contend that, as a pastime, videogaming is at least as legitimate as other pastimes, if not more so. It promotes computer literacy, mental stimulation, and relaxing escapism. If someone looks down on my "videogaming" pastime, well, I'm not so impressed with their "getting-drunk-in-bars-watching-the-game" pastime either, but to each their own.
So, from my view, game PROGRAMMING is (or can be) a hobby, but game playing is a pastime.
Pastimes are like mini-vacations away from the general stresses of life. I don't think there's anything wrong with that, and I think they are a necessary part of the human condition. But I don't think it's necessary to classify "videogames" as a hobby to justify their importance.
Videogames are fun, and we enjoy them. You can take that to the bank. :-)
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