Can I suck at games and still be a "Serious Gamer"?
- Thread starter Dargocitfer
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I dunno, sometimes people who embark on weight loss go crazy for the first few weeks or months and then tone it down when the results start showing. Maybe not the best policy for the people in question, but hey, it's their life.Panayjon said:
Anyways, sorry about that, I don't know what it is, but I'm feeling a strange impulse to excessively talk about little things that are only barely related to the topic at hand.
I respectfully, but wholeheartedly disagree.Panayjon said:
I consider myself to be a serious gamer. One of the boys in my crew I run with also considers himself a serious gamer. He is 31, has a real job, knows a truck load of information about the gaming industry, and I have yet to see a player with poorer skills in almost any contextual gaming environment. He is always dead, or screaming for help, or got lost, or was chasing a butterfly around. (All depending on the game we are playing) Practice does not always make perfect.
The way I see it, it really depends on what you mean by "serious gamer" to determine if you are one or not. If you enjoy playing games, put passion into your play, and try to better yourself when you play, then you are a serious gamer to me. However, there are people who consider being a serious gamer to be synonymous with someone who competes in tournaments or makes a living out of playing video games, like those people you see that play Starcraft professionally and things like that.
So you are a serious gamer, but not a competitive/professional gamer.
So you are a serious gamer, but not a competitive/professional gamer.
You'll find there are "hardcore gamers" that aren't all that fantastic at a lot of games.
Due to working from home I do spend a hell of a lot of time on games and consider my self pretty serious about it however the only genres i'm any good at are RPG's, fighting and action games.
I used to be good at FPS games but the last one I played competitively was UT in the late 90's. I'm a bit out of practice.
Sports games I absolutely suck giant hairy monkey balls at. The only games with regards to sports I am good at are the Premiership Manager games.
Racing games i'm shockingly bad at. Was only any good at Gran Turismo 3.
I do enjoy a dabble with the odd RTS but i'm crap at them. I can get through campaigns but get slaughtered in multiplayer. I like to turtle and build up, it never works.
No one i've met is good at everything. Most people have a couple of genres they are decent at.
But to answer your question, you don't have to be good at games to enjoy them or consider yourself a "serious gamer".
As long as you are having fun is all that matters.
Due to working from home I do spend a hell of a lot of time on games and consider my self pretty serious about it however the only genres i'm any good at are RPG's, fighting and action games.
I used to be good at FPS games but the last one I played competitively was UT in the late 90's. I'm a bit out of practice.
Sports games I absolutely suck giant hairy monkey balls at. The only games with regards to sports I am good at are the Premiership Manager games.
Racing games i'm shockingly bad at. Was only any good at Gran Turismo 3.
I do enjoy a dabble with the odd RTS but i'm crap at them. I can get through campaigns but get slaughtered in multiplayer. I like to turtle and build up, it never works.
No one i've met is good at everything. Most people have a couple of genres they are decent at.
But to answer your question, you don't have to be good at games to enjoy them or consider yourself a "serious gamer".
As long as you are having fun is all that matters.
No. Just as long as you pull a serious face when gaming, all is good.Dargocitfer said:
Seriously, I dont think being `bad` at games makes you an unserious gamer. Me and FPS's have never been best buddy-pals, and I used to suuuuck at them- but thats what made me more serious about them and I did eventually get better at them.
As for multiplayer, people will tell you that you suck for all kinds of reasons (You made a mistake, they are having a bad day, the day ends with a Y), it doesnt mean that you suck as much as screamy 14 year olds say you do.
I'm great at FPS games, mostly because I have what I term "battle sense". Essentially I can use tactics and cover to come out on top in most fights, whether it be a knife fight, sniper battle, or dogfight. Combined with decent reflexes, I usually end up on the top of the leaderboard in games such as BF3. And in singleplayer, playing on anything except the hardest difficulty is a no-go.
In RTS and strategy games, I can hold my own, although I tend to "turtle" too much.
I also love racing games or flying games, any kind of vehicle is great by me.
However, when it comes to sports games and games like super smash bros, I get schooled. To me, those games are just button-mashers. My weakness is games like these and my friends know this and frequently take advantage of it to get even with me for beating them in shooters or racers.
Bottom line is, everyone has games they're good and bad at, just because you suck doesn't mean you can't enjoy a hobby, and this isn't just regarding gaming. Also, you can always get better. I used to suck at FPS games a few years ago, now I'm pretty decent. Practice makes perfect.
EDIT: Oh, and if you listen to people while gaming multiplayer you need to reconsider. Even if they are over the age of 13, they are still likely to call you a "fag" or "gay" no matter what you do, win or lose. I can't count how many times I've been called a hacking fag, or a vehicle whore.
In RTS and strategy games, I can hold my own, although I tend to "turtle" too much.
I also love racing games or flying games, any kind of vehicle is great by me.
However, when it comes to sports games and games like super smash bros, I get schooled. To me, those games are just button-mashers. My weakness is games like these and my friends know this and frequently take advantage of it to get even with me for beating them in shooters or racers.
Bottom line is, everyone has games they're good and bad at, just because you suck doesn't mean you can't enjoy a hobby, and this isn't just regarding gaming. Also, you can always get better. I used to suck at FPS games a few years ago, now I'm pretty decent. Practice makes perfect.
EDIT: Oh, and if you listen to people while gaming multiplayer you need to reconsider. Even if they are over the age of 13, they are still likely to call you a "fag" or "gay" no matter what you do, win or lose. I can't count how many times I've been called a hacking fag, or a vehicle whore.
I'm not sure whether being a "serious" gamer matters. I think the most important thing is to be a gamer who has fun. 
I think if you are serious about playing games, even if you suck at them and want to get better, then you are a serious gamer.
Just as long as the ratio of time spent playing video games exceeds time spent doing anything else, of course you can consider yourself a serious gamer.
I play video games infrequently, but the depth and extent to which I enjoy them makes me a serious gamer. It's all about finding that balance.
A Console gamer who spends a significant amount of their life playing video games = Serious Gamer.
A PC Gamer who spends a significant amount of time modding, leveling, scipting, modeling, skinning, or roleplaying = Serious Gamer.
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A Console gamer who spends an hour or two playing a game after doing homework = Casual Gamer
A PC Gamer who plays games with a similar time frame, and simply enjoys the game without additional addons = Casual Gamer
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A Console gamer who owns a Wii = Casual Gamer
A PC Gamer who plays Peggle = Casual Gamer.
I play video games infrequently, but the depth and extent to which I enjoy them makes me a serious gamer. It's all about finding that balance.
A Console gamer who spends a significant amount of their life playing video games = Serious Gamer.
A PC Gamer who spends a significant amount of time modding, leveling, scipting, modeling, skinning, or roleplaying = Serious Gamer.
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A Console gamer who spends an hour or two playing a game after doing homework = Casual Gamer
A PC Gamer who plays games with a similar time frame, and simply enjoys the game without additional addons = Casual Gamer
--------
A Console gamer who owns a Wii = Casual Gamer
A PC Gamer who plays Peggle = Casual Gamer.
my feeling is it's based on time spent and love for games that make you a serious gamer. I consider myself a serious gamer even though I've never played a difficulty higher than 'easy' on most of the games I own.
Tell me about it dude, I used to love me some multiplayer FPSs, but these days I work like 45+ hours and take night classes - I just don't have the time, or TBH the desire, to practice enough to be any good. I play single player games pretty much exclusively now, If it's got a story or a cool atmosphere I'm in.
Well by these standards I'm definitely a casual gamer. Look, I love games but I don't want my gaming time to "exceed time spent doing anything else"... I have a job. And other interests. And a girlfriend.UnderCoverGuest said:
Heheh, well, I just took a look at society and decided those 'standards' from a personal perspective. Think about it--if you're serious about something, you are prioritizing that something as being of greater importance. So if you're a serious gamer, you're going to hold it as being of higher priority than other things (such as work, relationship, etcetera).majora13 said:
But if you simply enjoy video games, there's really no need to classify yourself as anything other than 'someone who enjoys video games'--but if you do want to compare it to what you spend the rest of your time focused on, you can use words like 'casual' or 'regular' or 'serious', etcetera.
Myself, I 'enjoy' video games, and play them 'seriously' (meaning when I play video games, I try not to let other things distract me), but I am very 'casual' (I don't spend an excessive amount of time playing them) about it. Whoop!
Hey if you want to play it that way why not.
But you are missing on a big chunk of entertainment by coasting through games, mastery of a game is incredibly satisfying and the only way to get there is by pushing your limits.
But you are missing on a big chunk of entertainment by coasting through games, mastery of a game is incredibly satisfying and the only way to get there is by pushing your limits.
Well i highly doubt that you suck at games . Everyone sucks at a certain type of game , surely you can't suck at them all. That being said , you are a serious gamer in the sense you are serious about the medium as a whole and thats the most important part , you don't have to be an elite sniper for example to be a serious gamer. However i wouldn't call you a Hardcore gamer unless you the kind of person that strive to be one of the top players or try to master a game , but this isn't important , the important thing is that you have fun. I personally find challenge fun, if a game isn't challenging , for me it isn't fun. Others don't care about challenge, and thays their right , as long as they are having fun and don't bash those that like challenge , as those that like challenge shouldn't bash those that don't.
All that to say , even if you aren't a pro at video games , as long as you are serious about the medium , you serious as a gamer... Unless all you play are casual games, but that's a different discussion.
All that to say , even if you aren't a pro at video games , as long as you are serious about the medium , you serious as a gamer... Unless all you play are casual games, but that's a different discussion.