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I didn't realize how niche video games were until I got a job
- Thread starter HomokHarcos
- Start date
I've no doubt they play mobile or browser games, I've seen enough do it on the job lol.
Heck, my 70 year old dad plays Pokemon Go hours every day (before that he was multiboxing an MMO to play 4 characters at the same time...he decided that was taking up too much of his time)
It's rare to find people my age who are into video games here. I think it skews older, so it doesn't get talked about by the older people here.
I play games, but in casual conversation I just don't like to bring it up. It's sort of my "chill out" hobby that I do for myself, and generally it doesn't make for good conversation unless I know the other person is into it. I have many other things that I care about a lot more than games, and the few times I've started conversations with someone who's into it in a workplace environment, it quickly turned into the only thing that person would want to talk about, or that coworker would feel some sort of validation to start espousing gamergate-like opinions on me constantly because of my interests.
So yeah, I guess I'd say it's not the hobby that I'd like to paint myself with as a first step forward in any potential office friendship.
My last office was filled with people who were "PC Master Race" dudes, were really passive-aggressive toward anybody who owned an Apple product, and whined constantly about WoW. I did pretty much everything I could to not be associated with them because man, they just weren't fun to hang out with.
So yeah, I guess I'd say it's not the hobby that I'd like to paint myself with as a first step forward in any potential office friendship.
My last office was filled with people who were "PC Master Race" dudes, were really passive-aggressive toward anybody who owned an Apple product, and whined constantly about WoW. I did pretty much everything I could to not be associated with them because man, they just weren't fun to hang out with.
I frequently run into people in the elevators at my workplace talking about video games. Everything from the day's announcements, to Monster Hunter World trivia, to their latest Pokémon Go conquests, to game engines. It's a more pervasive hobby now than ever before, but working in tech definitely has an influence.
Depends where you work
When working at a web hosting company , practically everyone I knew played games of some kind whether it's nintendo, PlayStation, Xbox or PC.
My current job no one plays video games of any kind. To be honest it's kinda nice not being around them , lot of weirdos in my previous job , it was creepy how they acted, cosplaying and role playing....etc 😂
When working at a web hosting company , practically everyone I knew played games of some kind whether it's nintendo, PlayStation, Xbox or PC.
My current job no one plays video games of any kind. To be honest it's kinda nice not being around them , lot of weirdos in my previous job , it was creepy how they acted, cosplaying and role playing....etc 😂
I work in IT, so I think my department is naturally skewed to "nerds" so my coworkers have some game players.
However, outside the department it gets awkward. I have people always asking me what I did during said weekend or something, and I say I played games. Typically they follow up with "what game" and it's always kind of awkward when I have to rattle off a title of something they've never heard of before and don't care to learn about. Always makes me wonder why they continue to even ask.
However, outside the department it gets awkward. I have people always asking me what I did during said weekend or something, and I say I played games. Typically they follow up with "what game" and it's always kind of awkward when I have to rattle off a title of something they've never heard of before and don't care to learn about. Always makes me wonder why they continue to even ask.
It's cool that your dad is computer literate because, honestly, a lot of the nurses in my workplace aren't. When we switched from paper to computer documentation 3 years ago, we had swathes of nurses take retirement packages because learning the new system was just too difficult for them. It's a lot better now for them but I still occasionally need to help nurses with opening documents and ordering stuff on the system.
I think my colleagues are excellent nurses and manage alright with the work computers, but video games might be a little beyond some of them.
Agreed with OP.
When I got a job in the game industry, I was excited to finally be submersed with fellow hardcore game players. Only to be disappointed that STILL most people didn't really play games much... mainly I've been on the artist side of things, so most of those folks are more into making art than playing games, but I was still quite amazed.
However, when I worked QA 6-8 years back, there were much more avid game players in that line of work.
When I got a job in the game industry, I was excited to finally be submersed with fellow hardcore game players. Only to be disappointed that STILL most people didn't really play games much... mainly I've been on the artist side of things, so most of those folks are more into making art than playing games, but I was still quite amazed.
However, when I worked QA 6-8 years back, there were much more avid game players in that line of work.
My policy is basically don't speak about it unless you're spoken to because it is a safe statistical assumption that random person X (a) does not play games and (b) has substantial bias about people who do. I'm happy to engage with people about it when they do though.
Those people probably play games too, just don't talk about it in the Same way you do. Imo at this point when people don't play games its getting more and more strange to me. Not for everybody of course, but we're at a point where 3-4 generations have been raised with them. Again, not every hobby is for everybody of course.
That doesn't equate to acceptability (even ignoring that games are more expensive and most of that is probably mobile games).
Those people sounds genuine and good none judgmental environment.
I find people who talk about games and share the fun are really honest genuine people.
The only industry I've worked in where I could talk to others about video games was the casino business (also referred to as gaming).
I work in healthcare now and I dare not talk about video games lest I be seen as a giant loser. (sorry everyone, that's just the perception)
I work in healthcare now and I dare not talk about video games lest I be seen as a giant loser. (sorry everyone, that's just the perception)
It all depends on where you are. Don't mistake the world for just what you've seen of it. Most likely a couple blocks away from where you work is a company where most everyone talks gaming.
Then there's people who do play video games but don't want to talk about them for fear of people's prejudice, especially at the workplace.
I'm a senior marketing leader at a Fortune 500 company that isn't in the video game business (far from it) and everyone knows I'm a gamer and collector. Be who you are and you will find people to connect with wherever you go. Gamers need to be vocal about the hobby — then the next gamer your company hires will find you.
I'm a senior marketing leader and Fortune 500 company that isn't in video game business (far from it) and everyone knows I'm a gamer and collector. Be who you are and you will find people to connect with wherever you go. Gamers need to be vocal about the hobby — then the next gamer your company hires will find you.
I was like this but honestly, my coworkers are mostly great. They know I am a gamer, ask about what I play and I try to give them high level generalized answers because half the stuff I play they probably don't hear about.
So Zelda, Mario, Civilization, Final Fantasy, gets mentioned. Even Final Fantasy is niche to them as RPGs were never in the mass conciousness the same way a Zelda or Mario game is. Civilizaiton I talk about because my bosses are nerds and they sort of like the idea of a game like that, but it's always a slightly awkward conversation with me explaining a lot of basis before I can even answer one of their basic question of what I played on the weekend.
On a few occasions people have intimated I should grow out of it, or they may make a joke I 'gamed late' when I mention I needed extra coffee, when infact, I was doing the most common thing people do, watch youtube before going to bed. So that does irritate me a bit that some people read a gaming subtext into things that may be quite natural, but hey, at least I am not being mocked. They are great people and accept my hobby. They just don't 'get' it.
We are talking hobbies, not entertainment. As a hobby, gaming is cheap. Stuff like photography, surfing, scuba diving, rock climbing, etc, can all easily cost way more. Gaming can be about as cheap as you want it to be.
Which are the wrong ones, the coworkers or the games they talk about? :P
I'm 42 and it has been maybe five years since I met anyone my age who was still into video games.
According to the source, 50% is mobile. This is still an enormous industry whether you count mobile or not. It's beyond the pale to call it "niche". Bug collecting is a niche hobby. Gaming is a mainstream hobby.
That's not how it works. Think about the investment and ease of access to each thing you listed.
yeah man gamers rise up amirite
I can see this perspective. The weed comparison works well enough.
I think you're slightly underselling games a little, though. For sure, a large amount of games (especially in the AAA space) are hollywood movie grade shlock, but there are definitely thoughtful and challenging experiences, especially indies.
Games like Outer Wilds or BOTW are all about a sense of wonder and contemplation.
Papers, Please or Cart Life have political messages.
Games like The Sims let you tell your own story, which is a level of creativity that other media can't offer.
Undertale works as a good meta-referential game that rewards cultural literacy, like any other medium.
So, yeah, I get that a lot of games are super consumable, but I still think there's a deeper segment in there that has real value.
My civillian job co workers are basically military shooters and 2k, i work security and a lot of navy whos bags i check coming on the site usually have a switch lol. Where i work my reserve unit is usually the current hot AAA title that was out during that specific month/year (God of War, Division,Fallout 4, Spider-Man PS4, Witcher III) though a lot of the younger guys recently joining have a switch.
Thinking back its funny that theres the whole "fake gamer gurl" culture of men when most military men ive met in my career are straight up wrong about video game facts or ESPECIALLY comic facts, also gotta clarify firstly that knowing nerdy facts doesnt makes you better than others. But for all the shit men give women about nerdy hobbies they spout so much BS themselves, Like i know a guy that swears there was a a marvel vs dc fighting game on ps2(and the MCU got dudes thinking theyre straight up comic experts).
Thinking back its funny that theres the whole "fake gamer gurl" culture of men when most military men ive met in my career are straight up wrong about video game facts or ESPECIALLY comic facts, also gotta clarify firstly that knowing nerdy facts doesnt makes you better than others. But for all the shit men give women about nerdy hobbies they spout so much BS themselves, Like i know a guy that swears there was a a marvel vs dc fighting game on ps2(and the MCU got dudes thinking theyre straight up comic experts).
Fair point, as same case here! But I'd think they outlives their usefulness on a personal level yet I still love them. Sometimes you just like what you like. That's living.
I just got married this past Friday and the photographer heard me and my groomsmen talking about video games and she was like "so you're a bunch of gamers, huh?" and the way she said it made me feel like a kid despite being a 30 year old man getting married.
It's weird, because there are SO many people that play video games, but the second you step outside of that demographic, it's like you're almost looked down on. I have a deep passion for drawing and painting, comic books, movies, reading and a bunch of other interests, yet the second my bosses and coworkers found out I like video games, I became "that gamer guy in the office".
I think what makes it so weird is that there's a disconnect between it being an INCREDIBLY common hobby, yet it's often times treated as Uber niche for some reason.
It's weird, because there are SO many people that play video games, but the second you step outside of that demographic, it's like you're almost looked down on. I have a deep passion for drawing and painting, comic books, movies, reading and a bunch of other interests, yet the second my bosses and coworkers found out I like video games, I became "that gamer guy in the office".
I think what makes it so weird is that there's a disconnect between it being an INCREDIBLY common hobby, yet it's often times treated as Uber niche for some reason.
Meanwhile, working at a tech company made me realize that I'm barely enough of a nerd to call myself a nerd in comparison to most people in my office lol
Gamers also have the hobby train angle.
It feel to me if you want to be known as a the gamer in a non gaming office, might as well go all the way and say you collect because people will slot you in as the uncle train hobbyist who spends way too much time working on his model trains.
To me the worst place to be is be seen as the bro gamer because most older People who had teenaged kids or young parents in the office have young kids tend to assoiciate it with call of duty , juvenile delinquency, and anti social teen behavior or if they don't have those negative stereotypes they will just assume you are childish and likes fortnite. Same as their pre teens
Ask them if they watch porn. They'll all lie and say they don't and we all know there is only two types of people... People who watch porn and people who lie about watching porn.
In general yeah. All of my jobs but 1 have been game related, but when I was interviewing and told them I'd worked on "X" game (one that has been popular for years in pop culture, even,) they would tell me they didn't know it and we'd move on to the next point. In my jobs though, many people are into games, but that's almost on purpose.
I agree 100%. The frustrating thing is that gaming /could be/ THE art form. The few games that are definite art are, to me, as valuable as every poem and cathedral in the world. Silent Hill 2? Edith Finch? Shadow of the Colossus? Those things are delightful artistic achievements.
But capitalism takes us all, and even the beautiful art medium for the new millennium is now focused on becoming a slot machine for children.
Indies and a few good AAA experiences haven't made me go out running to sell my pro and 50 games for quick cash. I still think it's worth it.
Just not that worth it.
At my work, most of the people my age (27) play video-games. some game even more than I do.
We are all software developers, but still.
Now that I think about, the vast majority of males my age openly talk about playing videogames.
There doesn't seem to be any sort of taboo around it anymore.
We are all software developers, but still.
Now that I think about, the vast majority of males my age openly talk about playing videogames.
There doesn't seem to be any sort of taboo around it anymore.
Here's my sad existence.
I'm 37 and have been gaming since forever. Aside from primary school I never had friends that were into gaming. People just grew out of it. In high school one of my best friends was into gaming but more into PC strategy games like Civilization so it wasn't something we'd play together. That whole time I was just expecting my friends to play games, rather than actually going out to find gamers. Maybe I just didn't know where to look?
Now I live in a small town, there are no gamers anywhere, and certainly no one that wants to play board games (which is what I'm into right now), so Im literally playing the actual board game in 2 p layer by myself or playing the digital version online. My wife doesn't want to play, and I'm just waiting for my kids to grow up so they can (and I'm not even sure they are going to like Euro games).
I'm 37 and have been gaming since forever. Aside from primary school I never had friends that were into gaming. People just grew out of it. In high school one of my best friends was into gaming but more into PC strategy games like Civilization so it wasn't something we'd play together. That whole time I was just expecting my friends to play games, rather than actually going out to find gamers. Maybe I just didn't know where to look?
Now I live in a small town, there are no gamers anywhere, and certainly no one that wants to play board games (which is what I'm into right now), so Im literally playing the actual board game in 2 p layer by myself or playing the digital version online. My wife doesn't want to play, and I'm just waiting for my kids to grow up so they can (and I'm not even sure they are going to like Euro games).
Just saw a company-wide email go out inviting everyone to an after work retro gaming event. (~800 people).