Wednesday, February 22, 2012

EXP Podcast #160: By Any Other Name

Are you a "Gamer" and proud of it? Some actually shy away from the term or want to abandon it entirely. The name "gamer" evokes images of basement-dwellers and incredibly long sessions of World of Warcraft, at least for those outside the community. But can we salvage this form of gaming identification? Should we reclaim the word and shout "I am a gamer and proud of it" from the rooftop? This week on the EXP Podcast, inspired by an article from Jason Johnson, Scott and I discuss the gamer moniker, knitting circles, and more. As always, you can find the original article in the show notes below and we encourage you to leave your thoughts in the comments section below and while you're at, feel free to leave us a review on iTunes. Thanks for listening!

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Show notes:

- Run time: 34 min 27 sec
- "Will the Real Gamer Please Stand Up?", by Jason Johnson via Kill Screen Daily
- Music provided by Brad Sucks
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7 comments:

  1. William JacobsonFebruary 22, 2012 at 7:58 PM

    Man, I have to confess that its been some time since I listened to y'all's podcast. Super glad I did!

    I am super curious about your mention of "game shame." Do you know where I might find that article or post? Having not read it and knowing what that means, I encounter that sensation of "shame" at my school, and almost find myself avoiding the fact that I enjoy/love gaming, simply because of what that might say about me.

    I have to put forth the hypothesis that perhaps gamer has so much traction because of its ability to be more PC about speaking in a derogatory style about people of the Millennial generation. I think in a real sense, it's a synonym for slacker, the idea that a gamer is an irresponsible person, who lays around waiting for a raid to start, chugging the MD in near-darkness.

    I wish it were so that I could self-identify with being a gamer, but I dunno. Again with the negative sort of stereotype that clashes with at least, imho, the idea of being responsible.

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  2. Mads Darø KristensenFebruary 23, 2012 at 8:47 AM

    I am a gamer - and I guess I'm proud of it :-) For me the term gamer has gone through a similar transition as the term nerd. Ten years ago nobody would want to be called a nerd, but today it is far more acceptable (at least in my social circles). In the same way I am now comfortable telling people that I am a gamer.

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  3. Jorge AlborFebruary 23, 2012 at 10:40 AM

    Good to have you back then buddy! Here is Michael's final post of the series, which links back to the rest. It's from way back in 2008. Crazy. (http://www.brainygamer.com/the_brainy_gamer/2008/10/no-more-game-shame.html)

    I think you're right about the slacker synonym. Really I think we should be more offended than we are when we here the word "gamer" in a negative connotation.

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  4. Jorge AlborFebruary 23, 2012 at 10:41 AM

    Yes! Gamer pride! As you suggest, I think the term "gamer" will become even more acceptable as the years go by. Now what other disparaging word will critics bandy around?

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  5. Blain NewportFebruary 23, 2012 at 12:17 PM

    Critics? Don't you mean haters?

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  6. Scott JusterFebruary 23, 2012 at 9:29 PM

    Sometimes, things are best expressed in GIFs: http://pics.blameitonthevoices.com/052011/ducreux_haters_gonna_hate.gif

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  7. Blain NewportFebruary 24, 2012 at 10:38 AM

    Indeed, good sir. Indeed.

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