Defining a Gamer…

Cover art for E.T the Extra-Terrestrial for the Atari 2600 (My first console game-*shudder*)

**Note: This blog has been posted with loving permission from my daughter who admits that she was owned on the video game list, but who will still will not admit that I’m a gamer.

This week has been an enlightening one for me in the world of gaming and youth culture. Turns out, I’m old. I’m an old gamer, or maybe I’m not—a gamer that is—depending on whom you ask. We always have the most interesting and fun conversations at dinner, and according to my Gen-Z daughter, turns out, that I’m not a gamer, because I don’t play Overwatch. 

I do admit that youth are the ones who define culture, but this seems like a very slim definition, considering that the latest number by the ESA approximates that 164 million adults play video games and that tally doesn’t include the children. I’m going to go out on a limb here and assume that they aren’t all playing Overwatch.

However, our conversation did turn somewhat humorous as she proclaimed, “Mom isn’t even a gamer, she’s only ever played Guild Wars 2 her entire life!” To which I replied, “You mean, I’ve played Guild Wars 2 your entire life.  But I’ve also played all the Dragon Age games. I play the Mario titles with you guys on game night and other PC games. I’m not going to list them all…”

At this point my son and husband, who also game, are just watching this conversation unfold. Her response, “Those don’t count. Those are all RPGs. I could name more games than you.”

My husband chuckles. “I doubt that.”

My son facepalms.

I tilt my head and smile. “Okay, then. Where should I start?  “Pong… Asteroids… Centipede… Dig Dug… Pac Man… E.T…. Frogger…”

I’ll stop there for brevity’s sake.

Of course, none of those count either, even if I had worked my way up to current day. Presumably, her definition includes some form of elitism surrounding esports and, interestingly enough, she doesn’t play Overwatch either, but her friends do. The games I play aren’t hardcore enough to make me a gamer according to this very narrow definition.

Yet, if we expand this definition of “gamer” to someone who enjoys playing games and plays them on a regular basis with some form of dedication, this expands the title not only to other genres of video games but other forms of gaming as well. Tabletop gaming, card games, mobile games, and social networking games. What about physical games? Can grandma and her dedicated group of bingo friends be gamers? What about traditional athletes? Are they gamers?

If I have spent 8 years and countless hours dedicated to a game like Guild Wars 2, earning numerous achievements and rewards, haven’t I earned that title? If I have done the same in other games like it for a lifetime haven’t I, and others like me who play those same genres of games, earned that title?

Should the word “gamer” undergo a semantic shift that narrowly defines it leaving out such a large portion of the gaming population? Should it include all video games or other forms of gaming as well?

Just food for thought…