How has The Escapist enriched your life?

[PatrickXD]

I have never been involved in the community aspect of The Escapist - honestly I don't know how I have as many posts as I do because the forums are certainly not a frequent haunt of mine. What the Escapist has done for me is introduce me to - and I appreciate how pretentious this can sound - the higher level of thinking about videogames. Themes and messages that games may have, how to express why you enjoy a particular mechanic, even talk surrounding the industry itself. The Escapist has armed me with the knowledge to feel confident in talking about videogames with my friends and sometimes even strangers. Despite the fact that I don't take part in the community much at all, I still feel that the videogame community is one which I belong to and The Escapist has made that a thing .

Captcha (or Solve media, whatever) : Beautiful Friendship.

 

[Phlakes]

Story time-

On 9/30/2010 this [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/103923-8-Bit-Parody-of-Cee-Los-F-k-You-Has-Got-Soul] was posted. I like chiptunes but I figured a song called Fuck You by a guy named Cee Lo Green was probably some kind of hip-hop that I had no interest in listening to. Eventually I heard the real one on the radio and realized it was actually not that bad, and remembering that news post I found it again and listened to it. Reaffirming my liking of chiptunes I Googled the artist (Inverse Phase [http://inversephase.bandcamp.com/], for convenience), and listened to some more things and it was pretty cool and stuff.

But something on that page (which isn't there any more) caught my eye- a cartoony picture of a guy riding a robot dog, under the Recommendations section. Being in an adventurous mood and trusting the taste of this Inverse Phase guy I checked it out, and it happened to be this business [http://brentalfloss.bandcamp.com/album/what-if-this-cd-had-lyrics]. Now the story gets really fuzzy and abstract but some time later after watching pretty much everything Brentalfloss had on Youtube, and along with some other things I was doing off the internet, I realized that entertainment was the thing I had always wanted to do but had never seriously considered and ended up gaining a massive confidence boost, a much more optimistic outlook, a haircut, friends, a tangible career path in video production, and something less tangible and less of a career in doing dumb things on Youtube.

So thanks, Greg.

And there's more, this site was my first internet home outside of a small forum I frequented for a few years before, so most of what I was introduced to stemmed out from here.

Also games and shit.

 

[knight steel]

Without being too dramatic: It stopped me making a very bad decision once.

I've made tons of friends here, I doubt I could get through the week without them.

AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW I wuv you too Sky come here you:

Awwwwh, thank's bud! Hug returned!

Must.......resist posting more cute hugging happy gifs.......must resist......
[sub]must[/sub].........
[sub][sub]reist[/sub][/sub]
GWAAHHHHHHHHHHAAAA I can't do it I have to much love for you guys

Spoiler: me

 

[Ljs1121]

Gave me a place to see actually insightful comments on video games besides the massive string of "LOL graphics" I normally hear in real life. Plus, the occasional spam thread never fails to cheer me up on a bad day.

Also, a bit personal, but a few arguments I'd read on the R&P board helped shape my religious and political beliefs.

 

[piinyouri]

It's showed me I'm nowhere near as cynical and jaded as I think/thought I am.

 

[Sarah Kerrigan]

Really met new great friends, (if James is reading this, which I'm sure he is, HEY NUGGET <3) And also my look on games and movies have changed. I've met people that like the same obscure titles I do, and i love being able to discuss <3

 

[V da Mighty Taco]

Ponies. Yes, those ponies.

 

[IllumInaTIma]

Reading all the features, watching all the videos, listening to all the podcasts, and talking to all you lovely people really improved my understanding of video games and reinforced my wish to become part of the industry. It's just really fun here and I'm finally able to talk about Front Mission and Persona with someone. Also, Escapist community is such a relief after horrible Russian game forums.

 

[Rip Van Rabbit]

Oh gosh, what have I created? This thread is full of happiness and good times.

Just...*sniff* just something in my eye here...It's so adorable.

[small]Can I get in on one of these free hugs? ;_;[/small]

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Can I just add one more thing that has enriched my Escapist experience:

You lovely guys and gals that have made my day!

[small]You really care enough to post in my lowly thread! And no, of course I don't take excessive joy in the litte things in my life.[/small]

 

[PsychicTaco115]

Hail to the Snip

*Tackle hugs the f**k out of you*

FEEL THE LOVE!

ONE OF US, ONE OF US!

 

[grey_space]

It's a great anti boredom device.
I am talking to interesting people. (which is rare as outside work I'm a bit of a loner).
It's helping me think in different ways.
It generally makes me laugh out loud at least once a day.

 

[Padwolf]

It's been a great way to pass the time, it's given me a lot of insight into some games, insight into the whole gaming world. It's helped me find new games to play that I would have passed up before. I like the people here, you are all lovely! It helps me think in other ways. I've found so much music here that I never would have found before, I've found a lot of gifs that make me laugh and pictures. Also ponies, I never would have known about them if not for this site. It has also been a place for me to go when life got me really down, just sitting and reading some articles on here, some threads, some videos really made my day. I don't post as often as I used to, but I still lurk. Another thing is the people I've gotten to know better on here, I love you! <3

 

[Rip Van Rabbit]

I like your avatar as well, Black Rock Shooter is it? Admittedly it's a rather uneducated guess on my part >.>.

Indeed it is! Something about Black Rock Shooter's (She needs a shorter name) design is intriguing, I can't quite put my finger on it. While the anime itself is flawed in its own right, I did end up falling in love with it due to my interpretation of BRS herself. She's almost a blank-slate, but to me, she represented unending determination and the ability to always get back on her feet and face her fears. Then again, she didn't face her fears (in my mind) she actively pursued them in order to destroy her weakness...While that may not be canon...Her character will always represent calm and calculated determination.

Nugget

You quite possibly have the most badass username I have encountered on the escapist. I may not be a fan of RTS games, but I do love me some starcraft (having grown up with it), I'll give you three guesses who my favourite character is?

(By the way, "Nugget" is an adorable nickname.)

Siren Bro-fist

Look at my 4th badge! *Phasebump*

Ponies!

Frankly, I find them ponies to be quite funny. So keep on posting you glorious creature!

Snippety-snip

Never had the opportunity, but since it's my thread and I'll do whatever I want, I just wanted to take this opportunity to say that I always find your posts to be very insightful whenever I encounter them in other threads. For what it's worth, from [small][sub]the lowly OP[/sub][/small], you're very much respected and appreciated!

I snipped a mod, please don't kill me!

Taking one look at your profile's motto had me in stitches In between that and the great taste in your avatar. You are now officially my favourite mod. The mod of mods, if you will...[small][sub]in the eye's of a lowly forum dweller.[/sub][/small]

You're an oasis!

EVA fans unite! We've already connected and bonded somewhat. Like hell am I going to miss the opportunity to mention your awesomeness again.

ONE OF US, ONE OF US!

And you! Them avatar's of yours (How many have you HAD!? I'm curious...), they never cease to entertain, along with your humour.

I'm loved! *glomp*

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Oh, all of you make me feel somewhat like this:

 

[sky14kemea]

I snipped a mod, please don't kill me!

Taking one look at your profile's motto had me in stitches In between that and the great taste in your avatar. You are now officially my favourite mod. The mod of mods, if you will...[small][sub]in the eye's of a lowly forum dweller.[/sub][/small]

Bwahahaha, the Spidermod's supporters grow ever stronger!

You're not a lowly forum dweller at all! All the Mods were forum users before they got the sparkly blue names. I'm on the same level as everyone else. =]

Y'know, just more spider-y.

 

[Fiz_The_Toaster]

Siren Bro-fist

Look at my 4th badge! *Phasebump*

Only cool people proudly carry such a badge.

I would reciprocate the phasebump, but I fear that would cause massive destruction and ruin the thread.

Millions would be dead! D:

 

[Headsprouter]

I like venting the feels, like I did in my last post (a bit off-topic, too), I used to RP (too many failures, I just couldn't be bothered trying because I became too pessimistic about the whole thing) and this site has a fair amount of Timesplitters fans. Speaking of which, sometimes it's just fun being referred to as my alias in conversation. People recognise me on YouTube in the comments every so often and compliment my avatar. It's nice...doesn't happen much, here because posts are more formal, but it's still nice to get referred to as your favourite character every so often. It's the little things that make me smile when in bed at night. Better than being angry about an argument the day before or dreading the next day, methinks.

One mushy, wierdo-freak-stepping slowly away-tangent later, yeah. I stopped coming for a while, but for the most part being here gives me somewhere to vent when I most need it. It's like talking to someone, but indirectly so you don't bore them with your presence and don't feel awkward when you do it. Well, I still feel regret for what I post here, sometimes, but eh, people are right when I'm being dumb, and you gotta learn from those things.

Still, though, can't beat that "Somebody else knows Headsprouter!" feeling. Ahhh...vanity.

Yeah, and also, sometimes you get those great threads where you get to show that stuff you dabble in during your spare time. Sometimes I feel dumb even appearing on those threads but it's not as bad as trying to shove your "art" in people's faces in real life. If they want to see, they'll open the spoiler box and if they think it's good they'll tell you, and that's great, but sometimes...you just want to test to see if it's shitty or not. Sometimes it's better when somebody tells you the time of day, y'know? That's what I think. It's awful to lie to people, and sometimes the best way to get the truth is to visit a forum where people will give you an honest opinion. It's rare in real life, because people don't want to see the mess that might've made and want to avoid responsibility, but sometimes, it's better than having someone follow a lie.

Yeah, forums're handy.

 

[KingsGambit_v1legacy]

Best thing is having people with whom to discuss games.

Second best thing is is making me feel less weird compared to the numerous weirdos on the site. I'm an oddity among my friends and family but compared to many people here I'm practically normal.

 

[King of Asgaard]

I've laughed my ass off much more than I would have had I not joined, but I've also had the opportunity to speak my mind, and vent my feelings.
The Escapist's been kind of therapeutic for me, so thanks y'all.

EDIT: My new favourite .gif, courtesy of knight steel.

 

[EscapeGoat_v1legacy]

I don't know if I can properly explain how The Escapist has helped me. It's like a little oasis for me. I feel very comfortable hanging around the forums, and generally love the atmosphere and posters here though I don't talk much. It's always been nice to have a calm spot to retreat to when real life gets a little stressful (something that even moderating Gaming Discussion hasn't destroyed ). I've also discovered games and music through here that I otherwise wouldn't have, which I'm always thankful for, not to mention the hours of entertainment I've had from the articles and videos that the Staff and Contributors put up on here. If I have any regrets it's that I haven't posted more and made more friends on here, but that's my own fault, and there's plenty of time left yet for that. The point is, you guys are great

EDIT: Also, my favourite .gif I found through this site.

 

[NightmareExpress]

I can't really say whether or not it has with any degree of certainty.
But at least the discussion is civil most of the time and a good deal of the people have some applicable knowledge on things. It's somewhere that I lurk fairly frequently due to the interesting things that come around. I'm rarely introduced to new things (because I have sources and free time), but I get to take a gander at different/interesting viewpoints from people that aren't exactly the kind that you see on the Youtube comments section. In fact, I'd imagine the average person here is quite a number of leagues above those *ahem* plebes.

Anyway, I seem to be the kind of person you either agree with, disagree with or have a pointless debate with.
Though I pity the latter, because I don't argue for or against concrete things. It turns into a boxing match where the opposing party is a knowledgeable, but eristic individual and the discussion rarely goes anywhere because neither party is wrong. Thus, I dread each yellow quotation notification I get because I can just forsee my time being wasted formulating a response that will further contribute to the endless cycle. But...at least they have a decent vocabulary and a grasp on the English language, unlike the frequenters of other places on the net.

With that said, I wonder how many internet "friends" and "enemies" I've made in my relatively short time here...
Most of my typographical exchanges with other users seem to be a singular instance rather than a repeated constant.
In other words, it's somewhat rare for me to discuss with the same person more than once or twice.

This site has also inexplicably left me with more optimistic for some position in game making be it design, music, writing or, in failing that, journalism. Though why that is remains a mystery; some kind of subconscious re-affirmative hope that my works won't be a waste? Dunno favorite gif, lol