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Giggly

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I should probably correct myself and say that I have played before (except RPGs, never played those) and I didnt have strong feelings about them one way or the other. I think maybe I was missing something which is why I ask. I think I have.
 

Fluffywolf

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My history of gaming. Too long didn't read conclusion below. :p

If I didn't have a pretty busy work life, I would probably regularly hang out at lan parties, play many games, and find myself to be completely lost in the mmo's of these days.

My history of gaming goes way back, when I was very little I played on systems like the atari, but I only vaguely remember that, but soon enough my father had bought a PC, a 286 with 5Mhz and a turbo booster to 10Mhz, 600Kb of memory and a 4MB hard disk. This PC marks the beginning of my love for PC's and gaming in general. I particularly liked playing those really early RPG's back in those days. Games were black and white, like paratrooper, and I also remember this depth bomber game and such.

But one game in particular I really liked was named Hotel and it was command based, like "Go east" "Look floor" etc, and it would just output text of what you saw etc. I was very young, dutch, and despite that seemed to pick up the english language really fast. I could find my way through those games by trial and error and finish them no problem. I loved the intruigue of finding something and solving puzzles.

Ofcourse, pretty soon games started to hit off and turn CGA, and even EGA and they became more visual, for a while I indulged myself more in arcade like games like Airborne, Street Rod, NBA 1on1, Prince of Persia, Grand Prix, etc, etc. Which were mainly about setting and beating highscores.

Then I was introduced to sierra's adventure games, such as Space Quest, Kings quest, Leisure suit larry (lol yes, 6 year old playing lsl, ftw!) this marked another big moment of me indulging myself in the English language and although these games were much more visual then Hotel, it was still command based and great to hone my skill in English.

By the time I actually got english in the 6th grade of elementary (bare in mind, that the grade system is different here then in the US, I don't know which grade it would be in the US, but I was 10 years old at the time) I could already read english books pretty well with good understanding.

Anyway, gaming turned into becoming more of a guru on all things computer, I started programming in qbasic and batch files and made simple games or handy programs myself, also the inner workings of the PC interested me and before I knew it I was building PC's from parts before I was 12 and it continue'd on until I was 16 and I started playing one game in particular which was groundbreaking in terms of online multiplayer, before this, all multiplayer I did play was based on lan, or inhouse. Me vs my brother playing some RTS game and the likes. Or split screen on the same keyboard, that sort of stuff, but then when Action Quake 2 became a hype, I started playing with many friends from school, and we were just fragging around. I was still on a dial up modem at the time, much to my parents distress since those connections were expensive to maintain. :p

Anyways, I played that game regularly for over two years which was alot more time then I ever spent before on one single game.

However, the hype died down, people went on to counterstrike was was the new hype, and despite counterstrike being a fairly decent multiplayer game, the playstyle and speed never matched up to action quake 2 so I never really gotten into that myself, and turned again on more RPG element games, like diablo and arcanum. The latter of which I used my programming skills to patch all the bugs for the community, since the game was released before it was really ready, the code was full of holes and mistakes. I probably spend a good part of a year on playing, and replaying it quite some times as well as fixing all the bugs.

Until WoW was released, and everything grew dark after that. I was already working fulltime at this time, but nonetheless I spent every evening playing that game, first taking my time messing about and very slowly leveling in the world, to eventually getting into one of the more elite endgame raiding guilds, after which I spend like 7 months just raiding, raiding and raiding some more with 39 other people. Experienced many fun moments, many not so fun moments, but ultimately it just had to stop, work was becoming a problem to keep up with the guild and irl friends I didn't have anymore by this time. Or well, I had, but I didn't see them anymore. :p

After I quite WoW, I spend a good part of the year on casually roaming about the internet looking for tv shows I'd find fun watching and single player games I keep just stop and continue again a week or two later without falling behind like in an MMO such as WoW. Eventually though I picked WoW up again, but now not to do any endgame raiding, but to roleplay with other people. Which was quite a lot less stressful, I could just roam about and create stories with other people and have fun, and log off again for a few days or whatever and not feel like I'm missing out on so-called dragon kill points or loot that would be important if one would be raiding.

I also grew bored by that however, and for the last few years I've played through a few single player RPG games and played a few multiplayer games that, unlike MMO's, don't force you to keep playing, like heroes of newerth for example. Meanwhile, my job has become much more encompassing the past two years, I travel alot nowadays and find myself in different parts of europe almost every week, sometimes having to make up to two or three trips a week.

Next to that, I also enjoy keeping up with a few of my favorite television shows as well as watching the occasional anime.

But as for programming, I haven't done much of that at all for several years now. I just don't have the time to commit myself to any long term projects anymore.


Too long didn't read:
I have learned the english language through gaming. And have repeatedly honed and perfected that skill throughout my gaming history. It has also been a great stimulater for my brain that loves to solve puzzles and advance storylines. It allowed me to show my creative side particularly in terms of programming and creating new software and has fulfilled a lot of my needs over the years.

Downsides however are there too. The need to compete, especially in an MMO environment where this need requires a constant stream of attention and devotion, has resulted in a lot of sacrifices in terms of my social life. One could argue that an online community is also a social life, and I would be inclined to agree to a certain height, but it is insufficient to completely take it over. An internet community is a fleeting one, and you might go from forum to forum, server to server and community to community, but they rarily stick or be lasting. And therefor also not as rewarding as a real life social life. A good balance should probably be maintained at all times. Also, a gamer's life doesn't fit well with a job that isn't 9-5, much to my regret!

How often do I game nowadays? Anything ranging from 0 to 10 hours a week, it's all I can spare. :(

How much do I used to game? Probably ~20 hours a week in during my childhood, peaking at ~40-50 a week when playing WoW in a raiding guild, next to a ~40 hour fulltime job. Nowadays I work about 60-80 hours a week, so I guess my work/gaming ration hasn't changed much at least. xD

Have I learned a great deal? Yes. Can everything that 'should' be learned, learned in gaming environments? No.

As for RPG games. Most are just pretty bad, but there are a few RPG's that were to me like reading good books while being interactive with them. It's great! Plus, I really like fantasy settings and such. And ofcourse there's much that can be learned through them, but most of the time a lot of it is quite simplified. Political and economical structures in fantasy worls etc, rarily match up to the real thing. Are often full of loopholes and such. Sure people can learn from them though, but there are more effecient ways to gain knowledge. First and foremost, games are a source of entertainment. The rest is extra. :p
 

Giggly

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tl;dr

Jk I'm reading now.
 

Fluffywolf

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Conclusion:
Don't game much anymore, enjoy RPG games the most, have learned english while gaming as well as plenty of other things, but socially it's not fulfilling, even when the gaming is socially based.

You are not as important to me as a real life friend should be. It is highly unlikely we'll still be conversing together 5 years from now. Sure I've already been here a while, but eventually I'll probably move on to other places. That's the internet social problem in a nutshell.
 

Giggly

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I was jk! lol honestly, when it comes to this topic I prefer the tl;dr. Thanks for giving me your thoughts.
 

Fluffywolf

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I was jk! lol honestly, when it comes to this topic I prefer the tl;dr. Thanks for giving me your thoughts.

And I went easy on you as well. I could easily write a 1000 page book about my gaming history. xD
 

Randomnity

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Aside from entertainment reasons, what things (physical, mental, social etc) do you learn from gaming?
The main purpose is definitely entertainment/relaxation/distraction, but I guess the strategy is mentally stimulating (I prefer turn-based or failing that, real-time strategy games) and for some games there is a social aspect (online). I don't currently play any MMO type games and don't really see myself picking it up again, if I can help it, but those have some very minor social interaction I guess. This forum way more socially interactive though. And the "social" part is really very very minor, I get plenty of real social interaction during the day - way more value from that than from a few lines of chatting in a game.

Also there are a few games I play with a roommate or two (mainly diablo 2 these days) via lan so that counts as social time, more than watching a movie or something.
Also, what kind of games do you enjoy playing the most and WHY?
I really prefer the older games (90s-00s mostly), I guess the bad graphics don't bother me too much and I haven't had much luck finding newer games I enjoy. It seems like most decent newer releases are all FPS or other shooting-type games which I have less than zero interest in.
Which games I play depends on my mood but the ones I keep rotating between include:

-diablo2 - mostly just the multiplayer with roommate(s). Singleplayer is kinda boring.
-heroes of might and magic III - only really play the campaigns. I've played through all of the expansion campaigns at least once and several 2-3 times, which is a fairly ridiculous amount of time.
-pharaoh/cleopatra
-masters of orion II

I'm sure I've logged >100 hours on each of these over the years, if not way more. Most of these I've been playing since high school. They jsut have great replay value for me.

occasionally play:

-warcraft 3
-age of empires
-civilization 4
-sims (not really anymore)
-want try simcity again since I found the CD! I used to love that game in high school
-starcraft2 - played through the campaign on a borrowed computer, was pretty fun. haven't played online since my laptop can't run it without lagging pretty badly, so I haven't bought the game. Planning to get a desktop up and running soon though so I may give it a shot. real-time isn't really my favourite, though.
-I think that's about it that I can think of

How many hours per week do you estimate you spend playing?
Really really depends. How busy I am (work/sports/other), my mood, the weather, etc. Sometimes I won't play at all for 2-3 weeks, other weeks I might play allllllll weekend, maybe 20+ hours. I guess if I had to average it I'd say I play for about 10 hours (usually all at once or over a single weekend), every week or two.

Try to avoid playing during the week since I tend to lose track of time, and my weeknights are usually pretty busy anyway, but occasionally I'll play on a weeknight for a couple hours or so.

What are you hoping to learn from this information? Just curious?
 

Giggly

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And I went easy on you as well. I could easily write a 1000 page book about my gaming history. xD

Actually, it was really interesting, probably because the experience is foreign to me.
question-- If you travel or move a lot, wouldn't the social life you participate in gaming be easier or at least the same? Do they have local...uhh... gaming groups? (lol is there a name for that?)


What are you hoping to learn from this information? Just curious?

Wanting to learn what others see in it, how different the experience is from player to player, and what the appeal is that I missed (through hearing about what you learn and feel while you are playing).
 

Fluffywolf

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I would also like to add that any and all achievements made in games do not hold real value.

I have been ranked first in the world out of a half a million player database while playing action quake 2.

In WoW, I have devised boss strategy tactics that became the standard world wide and played my own class beyond the limits of what was considered possible, topping damage done charts and the likes no one had seen and taking on roles that weren't the standard, and I've ranked top ten in a player vs player arena season in the 5vs5 bracket while playing four of the five characters simultaniously myself.

In each respective gaming environment, these feets were held in high regard, and whilest achieving them I felt genuinly good about them. But I can tell you this stuff and you're like. So what, lol, it's just a game.

And that's just the truth. You can't 'achieve' anything in games, and when you think you do, they don't actually hold any real value other than a memory and an added thought that mentions how much freaking time you've put into getting them, yikes :D !

(Unless you are very lucky and find sponsors and can actually earn a living playing games maybe. But that's not something you can just go and get. :p)

Actually, it was really interesting, probably because the experience is foreign to me.
question-- If you travel or move a lot, wouldn't the social life you participate in gaming be easier or at least the same? Do they have local...uhh... gaming groups? (lol is there a name for that?)

Probably, if I wouldn't be so pinned down whilest traveling due to my job, I could use it to my advantage and meet other people from inside of my gaming circle. And I have met quite a few people I knew from the internet before as well. But truth be told, my social life is on an all time low at the moment. I'm just grateful introverted little me isn't too bothered about that. But unlike the old days when I was still very active in the gaming world, I'm hardly in contact with anyone online anymore, let alone in real life. Other than family/co-workers that is.
 

Asterion

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I would also like to add that any and all achievements made in games do not hold real value.

I have been ranked first in the world out of a half a million player database while playing action quake 2.

In WoW, I have devised boss strategy tactics that became the standard world wide and played my own class beyond the limits of what was considered possible, topping damage done charts and the likes no one had seen and taking on roles that weren't the standard, and I've ranked top ten in a player vs player arena season in the 5vs5 bracket while playing four of the five characters simultaniously myself.

In each respective gaming environment, these feets were held in high regard, and whilest achieving them I felt genuinly good about them. But I can tell you this stuff and you're like. So what, lol, it's just a game.

And that's just the truth. You can't 'achieve' anything in games, and when you think you do, they don't actually hold any real value other than a memory and an added thought that mentions how much freaking time you've put into getting them, yikes :D !

(Unless you are very lucky and find sponsors and can actually earn a living playing games maybe. But that's not something you can just go and get. :p)

achievement is subjective.
 

Fluffywolf

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achievement is subjective.

What I mean to say is that, now that I am no longer part of those communities, the achievements I made inside of them are meaningless. Unlike achievements in life that stick with you until you die. The achievements in the gaming world are fleeting.
 

Giggly

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I haven't had much luck finding newer games I enjoy. It seems like most decent newer releases are all FPS or other shooting-type games which I have less than zero interest in.

Why don't you like shooting-type games? I'm pretty sure I'd like shooting-type games but only if they were shooting something other than people. lol I know I sound lame but I'm being honest.

I would also like to add that any and all achievements made in games do not hold real value.

I have been ranked first in the world out of a half a million player database while playing action quake 2.

In WoW, I have devised boss strategy tactics that became the standard world wide and played my own class beyond the limits of what was considered possible, topping damage done charts and the likes no one had seen and taking on roles that weren't the standard, and I've ranked top ten in a player vs player arena season in the 5vs5 bracket while playing four of the five characters simultaniously myself.

In each respective gaming environment, these feets were held in high regard, and whilest achieving them I felt genuinly good about them. But I can tell you this stuff and you're like. So what, lol, it's just a game.

And that's just the truth. You can't 'achieve' anything in games, and when you think you do, they don't actually hold any real value other than a memory and an added thought that mentions how much freaking time you've put into getting them, yikes :D !

(Unless you are very lucky and find sponsors and can actually earn a living playing games maybe. But that's not something you can just go and get. :p)

Do sponsors for gaming exist?

It's true that I wouldn't know what any of those gaming achievements mean but that's only because i am not a gamer. There are lots of subjects I don't know anything about that I would not know what the high achievements in those subjects are. Also, isn't the gaming world huge and always growing? Maybe one day they'll start broadcasting gaming tournaments live to the general public like they do sporting events.
 

Fluffywolf

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Do sponsors for gaming exist?

It's true that I wouldn't know what any of those gaming achievements mean but that's only because i am not a gamer. There are lots of subjects I don't know anything about that I would not know what the high achievements in those subjects are. Also, isn't the gaming world huge and always growing? Maybe one day they're start broadcasting gaming tournaments live to the general public like they do sporting events.

Yup, it started with Starcraft I suppose, tournaments held with prize money and such, very big in asian countries too, nowadays there are quite a few games that sponsor players, but it requires full dedication to keep up with it, it requires a full understanding of a game's mechanics and the ability to use that knowledge combined with good reaction time and strategy to be the best of the best.

I suppose you can compare it to doing sports or trying to go for the olympics. If you want a gold medal in the olympics, you need to train and hone your body constantly and repetatively. You could also casually compete in those sports for fun ofcourse, but never be able to compete on a high level. Gaming and game sponsoring is the same. You become part of the game as the sportsman becomes part of their sport.

A few games I know that sponsor are Starcraft and Heroes of Newerth that house tournaments and such, but it's also done in WoW, but only on a very low top percentile. The best guild in the world kinda thing. :p

And these gamers don't make millions. There might be a few that can get by, but that's probably about it.

I know one player in Heroes of Newerth that was pretty smart though, being one of the best players in that community and known for it, he streams his playing online and makes quite a bit of money from the ads on his site and such from people watching his movie streams in order to hone their own skills. :p

Anyway, gamers that get sponsored don't make millions, but in some cases, they can earn a living and then devote that life completely to that one game. Getting their PC hardware and living expenses covered. But it won't make them rich. :p

And there are tournaments with prize money in the thousands of dollars they can participate in.
 

Asterion

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What I mean to say is that, now that I am no longer part of those communities, the achievements I made inside of them are meaningless. Unlike achievements in life that stick with you until you die. The achievements in the gaming world are fleeting.

Aren't achievements in life exactly the same? You do until you die and then it means nothing.
 

Giggly

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I'm guessing the reason it's not millions is because there are no stadiums to fill with spectators who pay for tickets and memorabilia like in sports.
 

Fluffywolf

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I'm guessing the reason it's not millions is because there are no stadiums to fill with spectators who pay for tickets and memorabilia like in sports.

Who knows, in 10 years or so, what the gaming industry might bring.

I know the tournaments I used to play back in the day didn't have much prize money, I once won a mousepad in an quake 2 tournament back in '98 xD . And in 10 years that has gone up into the thousands of dollars. As the market for people watching these tournaments grows for certain competative games, so might the money involved.
 

Andy

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Aside from entertainment reasons, what things (physical, mental, social etc) do you learn from gaming?


Also, what kind of games do you enjoy playing the most and WHY?

How many hours per week do you estimate you spend playing?


PS - when answering please keep in mind that I'm not a gamer.

Thank you.

Geography, from all those conqour the world type strategy games. Can't honestly say that I new where moldovia was before I played medieval total war.
 

Giggly

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Who knows, in 10 years or so, what the gaming industry might bring.

I know the tournaments I used to play back in the day didn't have much prize money, I once won a mousepad in an quake 2 tournament back in '98 xD . And in 10 years that has gone up into the thousands of dollars. As the market for people watching these tournaments grows for certain competative games, so might the money involved.

Exactly.

Do they make the games you like in Dutch?
 

Fluffywolf

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Exactly.

Do they make the games you like in Dutch?

Nah, games made to fit the language are usually educational games for schools and such. Not much quality there. And games that come out in both english as well as dutch languages are usually much better in english anyway. I don't like the dutch language myself. I even prefer to think in English. XD

There are some renowned dutch gaming developers but they make their games in english, to serve a larger audience. Which is quite natural. :D
 

Fluffywolf

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Geography, from all those conqour the world type strategy games. Can't honestly say that I new where moldovia was before I played medieval total war.

I learned that fact while playing Quest for Glory 4: Shadows of Darkness. :D

But I also learned that moldavia is very remote and once you get there it's a pain in the ass to leave. Hmm, *ponders*. But at least it's safe to sleep in the middle of the woods at Erana's beautiful garden! Stay out of the lake though. Beautiful naked babe is a trap!
 
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