What negative assumptions or misconceptions about gaming and gamers really grind your gears?

[FoolKiller]

You know what I find the most troubling misconception? People thinking that there's 100% nothing wrong with our hobby. It's even worst when we plug our ears, pretend it doesn't exist and hope it goes away.

There's always something wrong and its how we focus on doing something better.

Those two are not necessarily related. There is nothing wrong with our hobby, but certain aspects can be improved. And frankly, I don't think anything with the hobby is wrong. It's just that a lot of things tied to the hobby could be improved. The hobby itself is actually neutral. It's a hobby, and a harmless one at that. It's the individuals involved that have something wrong with them.

 

[takemeouttotheblack]

I've very occasionally come into contact with the stereotype that to be deeply interested in gaming excludes you from other hobbies and interests that aren't seemingly directly related to gaming/sci fi/fantasy/horror. It occasionally confuses people when they see my games collection sitting next to my seasons of the West Wing, my collection of English literature, my pull up bar and tennis racquet. That being said, I think gaming is far more normalised in the UK as a cultural thing due in no small part to the popularity of FIFA, and there's far less of a cultural identity bestowed onto gaming versus sports (with a few exceptions).

 

[Something Amyss]

This might surprise you but very few people actually care about your finely-tuned and practised rock-bashing technique.
They'll get the torches and pitchforks out no matter how handsome you looked doing it.

Really? Those monsters!

OT: Actually, lately the assumption that gamergate = gamers has actually annoyed me.

Is this really a thing? That sucks. I think I'm insulated because everyone within a 300 mile radius knows how I feel about Gamergate, and actions and allegations associated with them.

And mostly that I don't want to be associated with them.

 

[Evonisia]

I find most of the ideas and misconceptions quite funny. One I actually don't like is when one assumes that just because I own a... well let's the Xbox 360 for this example, I must be a fanboy of or are somewhat knowledgeable on something (fucked if I know) about it. I don't even think it's common, my family has just me and my Dad as gamers, and my friends and people I vaguely acknowledge don't play as many platforms as I do (which isn't even many).

Although it does make pulling the "Glorious Multi-Platform Master Race" card all the more satisfying.

 

[Skatologist]

OT: Actually, lately the assumption that gamergate = gamers has actually annoyed me.

Bingo! This, many opponents to GG or criticize it in media look at it as if there are no gamers not against it or at least, unsupportive of it.

 

[Mikeybb]

Basically everything that is claimed to be linked to gamers. Gamers are just people with gaming as a hobby, nothing more nothing less. Each gamer is an individual person.

Gamers aren't really anything. People are gamers. Gamers are...well gamers. Logic people. All dogs are mammals but not all mammals are dogs.

Instead of saying "gamers are ______." You might as well be saying "humans are ______." If you are going to be casting that wide of a net...might find Bigfoot in there as well. ....there I finally broke my silence, gamers are Bigfoot. Not going to let the Sasquatchanists try and silence or harass me any more with their Sasquatchism.

#Gamersarebigfoot

Yeah, I agree.
'Gamer' is a facet of the person.
As important to them and as much of them as they choose to make it, for whatever reason they make it so.
Of course, as it is with all people, there are many facets to their makeup.
Some of them may be good, some may be bad.
They are not exclusive to each other too.
I've met delightful people and assholes.
One in particular was a good sport and genuinely fun gamer to be around... who also happened to have a truly harrowing line in trashtalk.
Granted, they always save it up for people who start the trashtalking, but suffice to say I've walked in on some truly creative tirades on occasion.

As you say, generalizations are not a good thing.

Unless it's about sasquatches.
All that shedding.
Coming over here, buying all our odor eaters.
Bastards.

 

[Ihateregistering1]

That gamers (or really nerds in general) are all fat and/or out of shape, since we have to maintain the "jocks vs. nerds" dichotomy.

It always shocks people to discover that I play a lot of video games. I work out at least 5 times a week, bench 300+ lbs, and bike and run competitively, but since I'm a "gamer" I'm supposed to be some skinny toothpick or obese neckbeard.

What's doubly funny about this is that a lot of the guys I went to high school with who were jocks are now the most out of shape people I know.

 

[Dizchu]

The assumption that it is a "boy's club". The percentage of female friends I have that regularly play games is around the same as the percentage of my male friends that play games. That's just me of course but I wouldn't be surprised if the discrepancy between genders in my age group (late teens-early twenties) when it comes to gaming is less dramatic than is often characterised.

Also I know far more girls that like stuff like Bayonetta, Tomb Raider and Lollipop Chainsaw (and even films like Sucker Punch as much as I dislike it) than boys. What does THAT tell us? They even enthusiastically enjoy the ridiculous sexualisation because of how camp it is.

 

[Something Amyss]

The assumption that it is a "boy's club". The percentage of female friends I have that regularly play games is around the same as the percentage of my male friends that play games.

You do understand that personal anecdotes are not a strong form of evidence, right?

 

[Lilani]

I'm really bothered by the idea that playing games means I "don't have a life." I have a life, just as much as anyone else with a hobby has a life. Some people spend their evenings watching TV, or reading, or going out to bars or what have you. I happen to play video games. It's no different from any other hobby or leisure activity. Yes there's an element of escapism to it, but you could just as easily say the same of books or movies or TV shows.

 

[FuzzyRaccoon]

Video games are probably one of the worst hobbies to have next to television and browsing the internet. I find it funny when self proclaimed "nerds" think they come across as intelligent.

Do you by chance come to a largely game-related website for something other than videogame coverage or camaraderie with like-minded people?

I'm just trying to understand your waste of space post.


Anyway, as for me, I hate it when people misuse studies related to videogames. They don't check to see if it's peer reviewed or if the statistics are even valid. They just found some vaguely sciencey sounding study that agrees with them on a subject and suddenly that makes them right? God I want to strangle people when they come around with that kind of evidence.

 

[Dizchu]

The assumption that it is a "boy's club". The percentage of female friends I have that regularly play games is around the same as the percentage of my male friends that play games.

You do understand that personal anecdotes are not a strong form of evidence, right?

You missed out my following sentence that explains that my personal experience isn't what I deem to be a universal fact and to take it with a grain of salt. Among my peer group the split is quite even but outside of my peer group I still think a very fair percentage of gamers are female. This isn't taking into account casual or mobile gaming, where the split actually is even.

But even then, this entire topic is about personal anecdotes. "What grinds YOUR gears?" I see a general misconception that is being widely spread. From personal experience it is untrue. Therefore it grinds my gears.

 

[Erttheking]

That it's under attack. By feminists/SJWs/the politically correct police/Anti-gg, whatever.

It. Isn't. Nothing that's been happening online has stopped me from enjoying my new copy of SMT: Strange Journey or love gaming any less. We are not under attack.

 

[Callate]

I guess at this point, it would be that after a good thirty-five-plus years in the public consciousness, that games and gamers can be simply pinned down as being any single thing.

You can say that gamers are anything- sexist, feminist, smart, stupid, racist, inclusive, socially awkward, socially outgoing- and you can find pockets that will confirm what you choose to believe. And then on a second look, find groups that completely contradict that expectation- if you can be bothered to take a look.

Gamers are millions of people around the world. And I won't claim there aren't issues among some groups of gamers that aren't worthy of being addressed, or at least discussed- but I've never found a single one that I would say applied to a majority of people who would so identify. Not without squinting, tilting the head sideways, and holding up a thumb to block out some outliers, anyway.

 

[Lilani]

That it's under attack. By feminists/SJWs/the politically correct police/Anti-gg, whatever.

It. Isn't. Nothing that's been happening online has stopped me from enjoying my new copy of SMT: Strange Journey or love gaming any less. We are not under attack.

Ah yes, also this. If I could just stay off Internet forums, I would have had a wonderful month playing Final Fantasy XIV and Professor Layton VS Phoenix Wright without being in any way aware of all these controversies. Because none of these controversies have affected these things in the slightest. And nor will they in the future, I imagine. Game devs and publishers are becoming aware of the problems with diversity in their games as quickly as one can reasonably expect, and gamergate is such a mess now that games journalism can safely stay on their course before it all broke out and be perfectly justified for not paying them any mind. Gamergate is big and loud, but it has no credibility or claim to legitimacy untainted by the bile of trolls, so eventually it will eventually fade and nothing will change one way or another.

As much as games have "changed" in the last 5 or 10 years or so, much has stayed the same, and the type of developments which have occurred were a long time coming and not solely brought into being by some activist group.

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

None. I'm a happy camper. Forum drama is forum drama.

 

[cleric of the order]

That we are dead.
Or neckbeards.
or all white teenage males.
That we have to have the discussion of sexism over the value of art in the medium.
That we are stuck yakking about gonads when there are new vistas and experiences to explore and craft.
Or that games lack diversity, I still have an N64, a ps2 and games for those systems, man I love them but diverse is some they are not something they lack.
AAA from the age of fps yeah that i can understand but whitewashing games because a genre best know fro jocks and 12-14 year old kids is dumb, I WANT ANOTHER PLANCESPACE TORMENT NOT GAMING'S CAPTAIN PLANET.
fly political correctness to the wind and make high bloody art.
I'm going to go hug my copy of Brave new world now.

That it's under attack. By feminists/SJWs/the politically correct police/Anti-gg, whatever.

It. Isn't. Nothing that's been happening online has stopped me from enjoying my new copy of SMT: Strange Journey or love gaming any less. We are not under attack.

I've had to deal with people that do view this and in my discussions with them I've learned a great deal and If I could provide insight.
I understand it does not make it annoying less but the people in question claim to have been driven out of their hobbies/groups because exactly that happened. Largely the atheists, they like to talk about atheism plus when they bring it up and from what I've heard of it it's...something.
Others talk about racefail and their exodus from the Science fiction writing community and i have no idea what that is but it sounds stupid from the snippets I've gathered.
Heck I've heard a reasonable explanation about why a couple people had such ruffled feathers over "fake comic book girls" and while I don't necessarily condone their view it is made to fit with their sensibilities.
On my front, I hail from Tradition Games and I've started to see people gab on about sex and sexism in the most humorous ways. some moron started talking about how red magic is sexist because females are displayed as emotional and there are red female cards. Of course we dumped the card image gallery on him with a metric butt ton of male characters and then it was sexist for having too few women. I laughed when it turned out they were serious.
I've also been near and in some arguments about the trans in 5e dnd and frankly I'm still waiting on my Autism traits and would like to see that first but that's for personal reasons.
So it's not as unlikely as some would think but it's still in that sweet spot where it could simply be paranoia on their part.
Even if it is true I still have a backlog of games that could last me a century if some how over night gaming turns into SJW land of shallow artistic depths and no fun to cater to everyone's preferences like some industiral Ouroboros (how did the holy buddhist city end in the data base but not Ouroboros?). Coincidentally that's how long it will take before that has reversed itself, as social movements are always undone in a couple generations. Or Kerwell finally delivers the singularity and all life becomes machine.

 

[Candidus]

I wouldn't say it "grinds my gears", but
- Games cause violent behaviour
- Games cause sexist behaviour
- Games are a brainless, wasteful children's exercise

Are the major eye-rollers.