Video Games Are Not For Nerds

First off, I am finally coming back to this blog because after a long time of hating a lot of things, I realized I miss it.  Burnout is a terrible thing for a creative person, and it has taken me some time to get back to where I am comfortable with doing this again.  After all, I am a geek.  A culture geek.  I belong here.

Speaking of geek culture, let's talk about video games.  They aren't for nerds any more.  They haven't been for a while.  As games have moved into the 21st century, game publishers always make sure that their biggest titles feature fun multiplayer action.  Because let's face it, even geeks like to get together with our friends.  Except instead of watching a game, we play it.  Video games have united people across the globe, people who under other circumstances may never have met each other.  And in the right situations, the outcome can be magical.

Face it: people you would never expect to be gamers are coming out of the closet so to speak.  And they aren't just playing the latest shooter game or Madden '09.  They're playing Massively Multiplayer Online games, or MMOs, those dirty, no-good games that according to many people are the cause of so many problems in the world.  That's a discussion for an entirely different conversation, so let's just leave it at this: despite the bad rap MMOs get, a lot of successful people are playing them.  From movie stars to families spread out across the world to soldiers and military wives separated by duty and service, these games offer a unique type of social interaction along with a long list of other great qualities.

Speaking of social interaction, MMOs aren't the only games to offer it.  I just mentioned how a game like World of Warcraft can bring people together.  But there are plenty of other games that offer the same thing.  Halo, Team Fortress 2, and Call of Duty are great first-person shooter games that have achievements, rankings, large team size, and fun gameplay.  The great thing is that they offer online play as well, so whether you have four people in your living room or you're playing against your old high school buddy that lives 1500 miles away, there is a palpable camaraderie that develops.

So here's the deal: it doesn't matter what kind of game you play.  Video games have evolved from simple one-player affairs into huge social networks.  And with the huge craze in social networking right now, no wonder they are so popular.  Just make sure that if you play, it's not the only thing you do.  Go out and goof around with friends or go hiking or snowboarding once in a while.  Everything in moderation.

Time to go.  I gotta go race cars... on a television screen.