TruthTellah

He is so handsome! I can't wait to make social links with him.

Yall enjoy the Bravely Default world map?

@rongalaxy: It's only being called a Sony Computer Entertainment Japan Press Conference 2014. I can't find any reference to it being their TGS press conference. I would guess they will have one now and then a more substantial one then.

This could just be something to build up hype for TGS. I'm currently not expecting much, but eh, after Nintendo's recent big announcement about the new 3DS, just about anything could be coming.

I am torn regarding the term "gamer", in part because of how many people, including some here, have used it in a misguided and destructive way. It is not a matter of how some gaming news writers have criticized it, but how companies and many fans of videogames have abused it over the years.

I, for one, think there is still value in a "gamer" concept. Obviously, there is the textbook definition which is rather broad and amorphous. Playing videogames doesn't inherently say anything about you besides that you play videogames. What you play and how you play may say something, but all kinds of people play videogames to varying degrees.

Unfortunately, many people have for a long time now used "gamer" as a distinction for a subsection of people who play games. Instead of being the inclusive term it inherently is, it has been abused to mean a kind of person within a sort of club. People identify with "our hobby" to the exclusion of those who play games but don't fit their mold. We've seen enduring derision toward "casual gamers" and even "girl gamers". The term "gamer" has been misused for years to really mean "male gamer" in practice, and women have been pushed to conform to "male gamer" norms to even be considered a "real gamer".

In the last few years, many have also pushed to limit the topics the gamer community can talk about. People are criticized as not "enough of a gamer" to have a valid opinion, and many have claimed that their gamer communities don't need discussion of social issues or any topic surrounding gaming they disapprove of. People "just want gaming to be fun", and in turn, fellow gamers can only do or say things that protect their personal sense of fun. So, when others express problems they see that hinder their own fun, they're treated as spoil sports who aren't acting "as a gamer should". "Ugh, can't we talk about anything else?" or "this isn't gaming related" at every turn. Thread after thread, article after article. This claim of ownership of "our hobby" as gamers continues to be used as a means to limit who is allowed in and what can be discussed.

Ultimately, I believe the term "gamer" has value now as a potential avenue for standing up to such intolerance amongst a subsection of gaming fans. Gamer is an inherently inclusive term, dealing with a broad range of people who play and enjoy videogames. And people should strongly use it in that way.

I am a gamer, and I have as much a right as anyone else to impact gaming. Male, female, gay, straight, black, white, whatever you are, if you play games, you can be part of this gaming community, and you should be able to have fun in it. Gaming is a source of joy, empowerment, and community for a wide range of people, and we cannot allow some vocal fans still stubbornly clinging to an exclusive club mentality to keep this community from being a safe and fun place for the diverse crowd that loves games.

heh. I'm just making a joke, but I must say I'm not used to someone updating their title with countdown numbers. It's not bad; just different.

Your thread title countdown is stressing me out.

Reach out to the truth, Sony.

Dallas has expressed incredulity in the comments a number of times regarding the absurd allegations that many have made about women and "games journalism" as of late, including on Giant Bomb, and I imagine this is an expression of his frustration with just how ridiculous many sound, thus making references to classic conspiratorial language and youtube videos.

In other words, it's a sensational parody which I understand but don't find helpful. I'm sure this will just make some feel even more cornered and mocked, entrenching them further. I know many, myself included, have been angered by over the top alarmists and jerks, but we only play into their vicious cycle if we let them get to us.

@dallas_raines: I understand your frustration with some recent absurd comments, but this isn't really the best way to address them. They'll only be emboldened by your mockery of how ridiculous and unfounded their claims are.

Giant Bomb should be an unwelcome place for delusional and hateful people like this, but that's achieved through policy and criticism, not through derision or pettiness. Clearly our primary standard here remains "Don't be a jerk" regardless of how narrowly it is applied at times, and we are better served standing up for such a policy than betraying it in our anger.

I get what you're intending, but this likely makes things more difficult to deal with than easier.