FT 4/7: The Gaming Identity Rediscovery Project

[Lýfelíëk Heroblãde]

As most of you know, I had my ankle "scoped" on the 20th of March. Weeks prior to that date, I was busy borrowing, buying, sequencing, and rearranging my gaming itinerary for the six weeks to follow. That list made it's debut in this thread. What I didn't bargain for(and it happened in the first few weeks) was how I was going to inadvertently rediscover what kind of gamer I am and how I've changed as said gamer. Here's the list I came up with:

• I care more about achievements that I had previously thought.
  
• I still have a good part of the "completionist gamer" in me.
  
• Fallout 3 helped to "un-sour" me on console shooters.
  
• I am still a realist, therefore there will be Platinum Trophies that I will NOT obtain.
  
• The value of cooperative far outweighs competitive multiplay.
  
• I generally find myself taking control in co-op situations.
  
• I will spend hours assisting others achieve things I've already accomplished.
  
• I have become a "human strategy guide" for Resident Evil 5.
  
• I still have the skill to overcome programming or control scheme deficiencies.
  
• I haven't yet succumbed to fanboyism. Well, mostly. 8)
  
• I could REALLY get used to playing games all day while someone cooks for me and dumps my piss(as long as I'm able to shower).
  

I'm not exactly sure how to sum all of this up, but I do know that it caught me by surprise. I expected to have an experience, I just didn't realize how much I would experience of myself. Come to think of it, the summation really doesn't matter. The important thing, methinks, is that these thoughts were realized. I am aware of what kind of gamer I am. So, I must ask- have any of you had a similar experience? If not, will this short article cause you to stop and ponder the subject?

[tangram]

ya know after listening to the podcast i got to thinking about myself as a gamer. and i came to realize i crave two things really.

1. people. i cant find a huge lvl of replay in something when i do it by myself. hence why i seek out online games. i need the human interaction and what not. which brings me to

2. co operative learning. i LOVE wow cause of the fact that i raid. but even the 5 man content is great for me. i like having a role and learning to bring out the most i can with in it. if I'm dps i want to maximize that for both my personal best and for the sake of the group. i love being here on my raid nights learning how to perform new strats for the current content. just like i enjoyed the s rank runs back in pso.

as good as those are, being a gamer pointed out some of my inherited character flaws too. I'm not proud of them per say but i wouldn't be me with out them. i think i can see how zemus feels/ felt back then too.

1. I'm a ghost. one second I'm there and the next i'm not. there is no real good reason but its how i operate and apparently i can thank my dad for this. my last face to face with someone i consider one of if not my closest friend was over a year ago. if its not my gaming addiction that separates me from the real ppl in my life its work or distance. i guess work is and isn't an issue now that I'm fired but then again so is gas. and this leads into....

2. i crave addictions.,ever lasting addictions. think about it. who had the crap ton of hrs on pso? how about nwn and friggen soulforge? and now i have out done myself with 3+ YEARS on wow. i cant live without these constants. i need them otherwise i might get depressed or some shit. i also give it up for achievements. ever since wow came out with theres its something i work on..... not fervently but its certainly something i work on to show at least myself what kind of progress i have. people factor into the addiction too cause in reality, id never meet some of these cool as shit ppl i know now. in reality i wouldn't be here either. i need alot from a game and yet so little too. i need content. if i cant sink my teeth into it its not worth my time. i used to have fun with games i could beat in 48 hrs but there was always the underlying disappointment too. it cant be short or i might get like that one guy on the gamefly commercial who is tearing down his bookshelf screaming like hes in IU8 or some shit and lord knows we cant have that.

so in short I'm an addictive personality that seeks out seemingly never ending games that don't suck with cool people to share the experience with. i defiantly learned some things. and some are about myself as a person too.