Growth of a Gamer

                Upon reading S. Craig Watkins’s “We Play”, I found many similarities between this reading and others presented in class.  For instance, one of the interviews operated by the Nielson Media Research resulted in a twenty-year-old college student describing games as “more than just sitting in front of a screen just having stuff thrown at you.  You are interacting with a story.”  In addition, much of the chapter stresses the social value in video games, particularly the Nintendo Wii.  However, I found the segment about Chase’s development as a gamer and his change in recent years, going from a primarily single-player experience to a multiplayer experience intriguing.  According to the Active Gamer Benchmark Study, released in 2006, “nineteen- to twenty-six-year –olds is that their media behaviors change in some striking ways.”  I believe that this is a common case with most avid gamers.  When players first begin to play video games, they typically play alone.  In addition, when young children usually play games, they see it as a method to kill time.  As gamers grow up and become involved with more responsibilities, they don’t necessarily have much idle time on their hands.  Much of the motivation to play games is to spend time with friends.  According to Chase, “Games provide a community aspect and a way to connect to people.”  Through online multiplayer matches, one can not only nourish previously established friendships, but also bounce from one group to the next and discover new acquaintances.

                Have you experienced a similar cycle in your gaming habits?  At first, did you play alone and as a way to kill time, but now play to harvest social value because of a lack of time?