People who don't like video games

I used to think it was a totally normal opinion, but I'm having a hard time differentiating it from people say they don't read books or watch movies. I judge the shit out of people who don't read. Not including people who are too old to have had games around in their formative years, anyone who says he has an active stance against games is immediately a weirdo.

Some of the best creative minds of your generation are making games of almost every variety conceivable. Same with books. Anyone else have this change in opinion?

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Games have a barrier to entry that doesn't exist in movies. Controlling a character is difficult for someone not accustomed to it, but anyone able to see and hear can enjoy a movie as intended. Books have a barrier to entry in that you need to be able to read to enjoy a novel, but for most people in first world countries this is a nonissue.

I think that touchscreen gaming such as on the DS or a phone go a long way to make games more approachable, but as long as games require the player to memorize a controller layout its going to be more niche a medium than books or movies.

Listen, I barely play video games these days and I read 60-70 books a year. My best friend spends every spare minute he has playing video games and hasn't read a book since high school, and that's only because he had to. He cringes when I bring up Shakespeare. We're still best friends, and I still respect the shit out of him and think he's one of the smartest people I know. Maybe don't be so judgmental about how other people spend their free time? Saying you judge the shit out of people who don't read makes you sound like a total asshole, and I say that as someone who loves literature and hopes to be a published author someday. Divorce yourself of that attitude asap.

I'd say movies are far and away the most unusual of the three, because they're a totally passive activity. Games and books are both active forms of entertainment that take large amounts of energy, focus, and time which some people just don't have to spare. I know plenty of people that either don't read or don't play video games, or don't do either, but I don't know a single person that just straight up doesn't watch movies.

Now, if somebody is giving you shit and belittling you because you like playing games, well that's an entirely different conversation, but there's nothing weird about someone who just personally isn't interested in playing video games or reading, that's absurd.

That's a very low expectation to have. Most people's excuse for not reading is time...bullshit. Movies might have a lower barrier to entry than games, but that's almost arguable if you assume you're paying for everything. 60 hours of movies(even assuming you watch them a couple of times each) is probably more expensive on average than 60 of video games. Consoles aside, people own computers usually by default. The control argument shouldn't apply if we're talking about people under a certain age.

Mobile stuff does help, but I find people who only play those kinds of games sometimes still have an anti-videogame attitude. I know where you're coming from but it's weird for me to accept that other normal people have the manual dexterity of a gorilla.

but you're right.

@abetorias: Some people have far more money than they have time, first of all. Second, most people I know don't only see new movies in the theater, they watch older ones on Netflix or borrow blurays from friends, so the cost argument is bullshit. Games absolutely cost more. As far as time, a movie takes two hours, zero focus, and you can watch it with a friend or significant other. I recently got around to watching Deadpool with my girlfriend, her brother and his girlfriend, and a couple other people, for instance. Socializing is a lot more valuable to some people than fictional stories. In contrast, a typical 400-ish page adult novel takes 13 hours for someone that reads at the average adult reading rate of 300 words per minute, or 6-ish hours for me. Way more commitment than a movie.

You have some very weird ways of thinking about the world and other people. Here's a shocking revelation. Some people work a lot, and have families. Maybe when they do get a moment to themselves they like to go to a concert or a bar. Maybe they never read, never play games, and only see a small handful of movies a year. In case you hadn't guessed, I'm describing an actual person I know. You need to get over yourself. People are under no obligation to consume entertainment just because you think it's "important" or whatever.

@cale: Actually I think that's a brilliant comparison. Perfectly describes my girlfriend. She would play more games if she didn't struggle with the controls, and she only struggles because she didn't learn the language we all did when we were young and impressionable because she had a younger brother that hoarded all the games from her. It took her months to beat Twilight Princess, and she can't play shooters at all. I tried to get her to play Dark Souls and the concept of lock-on management was too much for her to grasp. Give her something 2D though and she'll kick your ass because that's a language she knows.

Attacking people for not reading or being into videogames is a great way to put them off checking out either.

I'm not going to say that I straight up don't watch movies - occasionally I will - but there have been long stretches of time where I just never watched a full movie. Sometimes months at a time.

But, yeah, if you're going to hold this sort of attitude towards people who don't read or play video games, then don't get mad when someone thinks of you as lazy, anti-social, and unintelligent because you play video games. Best to just drop the whole thing and accept that different people are into different things.

I barely read even one book a year and could count the number of times I sat down to watch a movie or TV series that wasn't anime in the last year on one hand. I think it's fine to not read, watch movies/TV or play video games. Some people just aren't interested and forcing or judging them will just push them further away from the medium and give them a bad impression of those enthusiastic about it.

I fucking hate reading books. Books are incredibly boring

People are gonna do what they wanna do. Don't judge.

What @davidh219 said. Unless someone close to you turns out being someone who thinks you're childish and wasting your time playing video games or whatever, you really shouldn't bother caring about it. Especially if your judging is the type where you tell someone out loud that they're crazy for not reading/playing/watching stuff, because like said, that probably only increases their dislike for all that.

I find it weird these days when people have an active distaste for video games, especially if they spend a lot of time consuming other forms of entertainment - but I don't expect everyone to play games. I barely watch movies or TV stuff these days. I enjoy them when I do, but if I'm going to commit 90+ minutes to a thing I'd almost always rather pick something I'm more actively involved in. So if someone doesn't play games, that's not weird to me. But if they reject the medium like it's a waste of everyone involved's time then I'd think that rather odd (at least amongst the younger generations).

Why is that? And what is your argument for it?

My advice is to stop judging the shit out of people just because of a misalignment in interests.

Most if not all forms of entertainment are here to either enhance or provide a brief respite from reality. We're not so different you and I.

lol at judging people who don't read. In today's society of 40-60hr work weeks+family or whatnot, ain't nobody got time to spent 8 hours reading the larger Harry Potter books instead of 2 hours watching the movie, which they can also watch with their friends/family.

Also consider the amount of reading required during schooling, and you'll see why most people prefer to leave reading as an academic interest rather than a hobby.

Regarding video games, except for phone games, they are considered a childish form of entertainment for a reason. Just look at how ubiquitous Call of Duty is with 12 year olds screaming "I fucked yo mom". That's the image typical people get when you say "I play video games", and that isn't going to change anytime soon.

Games are not that great. Nothing is, really. It's the hype which comes from external sources or even ourselves that give them life. We give things meaning, that's what we do, it's what makes us human. There is no universal truth.

Check this YouTube video out which shows clear examples of external hype (fraudulent marketing):

I am personally taking a temporary break from playing video games, but I'm staying interested. I sold my console but I'm still visiting Giant Bomb.

I try reading fiction but it feels like I'm wasting my time. I wouldn't mind some kind of digital library or netflix service for nonfiction (non-biography) and Murakami-esque fiction. I don't like touching books that other people have touched. I like them fresh. If I go to the bookstore the books are all expensive and you can only buy thrillers, fantasy, and TV/radio/athlete douchebag biographies.

Very occasionally I write my own novels which I find immeasurably more enjoyable than reading. Think of all the things we consume. Making things is another way to enjoy things. Whether it is cooking, writing, painting, business, parenting or communicating we are making things. Just like with what we consume you will be judged on what you make, and you will judge others on what they make or choose to make. That is life.

You shouldn't be so judgemental, but you can be if you want to. As you know we all have our own personal preferences which can manifest in us being judged or judging. People judge solo activities more negatively than activities where you share with or serve others, but whether or not you let that change your own behaviour is up to you. I just have on favour to ask of you OP; please enjoy what you do.

Reading is great. My favourite thing about not being able to drive is that sitting on buses & trains to go anywhere is an awesome chance to read. And the great thing about playing slower strategy games (as opposed to actiony RTS's), like turn-based & Paradox Grand Strategy things is that in the down time while waiting for things to happen, I can read.

No idea how people are able to go to sleep without 15-30 minutes lying in bed reading just to wind down. And it doesn't have to be high literature. Non-fiction, genre trash, it's all good.

"Reading in school put me off" is a pretty sad excuse. Sure, school put me off ever wanting to read or watch Shakespeare but it didn't hamper my ability to enjoy Dostoyevsky & other classics, or crime books, sci-fi, fantasy, books on history, books on science, books on sports, hell, even the occasional book about video games! Schools are doing something super fucked up if they've totally demolished someone's ability to enjoy Philip K. Dick.

I'm also not judging my mum for not having ever played video games, sorry.

I listen to audio books at work and rarely ever read, so judge the shit out of me. I don't really watch movies either, though I've been trying to force myself to, since once I sit down and do watch one I enjoy my time usually, I just never feel compelled to. Too many things to play and watch online, also I like sleeping, eating, hanging out and working out. Time is truly a mother fucker.

I'lll never understand why people have such strong opinions about other people's free time.

Read a book! Read a book! Read a muh'fuckin book!

Wasn't really what I meant. Moreso that people in literature classes will likely be assigned fiction for ultimate educational purposes, or nonfiction assigned in pretty much any class (textbooks included I guess). Not only do they enjoy the book (unless it sucks, but even if it does, it can be educational), but they feel more accomplished reading it since it's for a greater purpose (for their class, which can lead to whatever educational goals they have)

While reading as a pure hobby appeals to some, I'm just saying that there's less time-consuming ways of consuming the book, such as a social activity like movies.

The world's changing, and while books won't go anywhere anytime soon, they are in competition with audiobooks which can be enjoyed while multitasking, and movies which save time.

Even videogames are in a race to the bottom of "time-requirements". AAA boxed titles are going for short cinematic experiences similar to movies, whereas free-to-play mobile games are targeting productive "5-10 minute play sessions".

I like all. I prefer videogames over books. Although, I still do read LOTS of comics...every week.

People can spend their time however they want. If they like to read and watch movies? Great. If they like to play games and listen to music? Fantastic. If they want to go to the pub and watch sports? Brilliant. If they like to go train spotting and collect serial numbers from manhole covers? Excellent. As long as what they're doing doesn't negatively effect me, people can do what they want. You shouldn't be judgemental of how people chose to spend their free time. At that point, it's no different to people who judge others for playing video games and think they're a waste of time. As a society, we should be better than that.

Maybe don't do that.

@dudeglove: I also think there's a distinct possibility that some people simply lack the patience for it for various reasons. I remember us being able to pick books from the library to read if we didn't want any of the suggested ones when I was younger, the teacher just needed to approve it. But even with that freedom I've always found it hard to motivate myself to read as a form of entertainment. There are some authors that are the exception to the rule. But I can't tell you how many books I've stopped reading at page 36 out of boredom.

@pezen: That's basically how I am with games. I feel your pain. Seems like almost nobody is making the very specific kind of games I want, so I dip my toes into this or that for an hour or two, never finish anything, and maybe once or twice a year land on something I love like The Witness.

@rejizzle: This is a good point. Books and movies have little to no barrier to entry.

Games ask a lot of the uninitiated. Simply moving a character with one analog stick, and manipulating the camera/reticle with the other is very difficult for some "new" gamers to figure out. This requires repetition and practice, something the other mediums don't ask of the consumer. That would be considered going above and beyond for books and movies, but it's a base requirement for videogames.

No, I just don't have the patience to sit in one place reading for more than a few minutes. The problem isn't the books themselves its my shitty attention span.

It's medium born out of children's entertainment, takes a lonnnng time and perhaps whole generation to expire to change that.

@dudeglove: Funny you should say that, it's more or less exactly how I was told to think when I had a hard time falling asleep as a kid.

@davidh219:I am getting to that point with games for various reasons as well. But I haven't figured out if it's me buying too many games and the economy of my time is off or if it is a matter of games in some aspects are exploring ideas (or visuals) that don't appeal to me.

@afrofools: People who think that's fraud haven't even the slightest clue how videogames are made. It's not done on purpose. Furthermore, the only thing close to fraud is the user. He claims to have captured the games at max settings, which he hasn't. Otherwise it would be odd if mine looked better than his.

@mems1224 I hate that argument. I really do. It's so untruthful and made up by people who can't comprehend someone wouldn't like books. My attention span is pretty fucking amazing when I'm learning something I want to learn. Learning from a person. Learning from an instructional video. Learning by doing. Books are just a slog. Written text just isn't a good way to tell someone something. It is lacking all sorts of things, the most important of which is emotion.

I also hate text messaging. The only thing close to written text I enjoy is forums, for some reason. I do read the occasional scientific magazine, but wanting to absorb it also helps with that.

The last time I read a book was also the only time for years before that point (besides textbooks). I read it because I was out on a seasonal job in the wilderness. When I read the book, I finally realized what advantage fictional books could offer better than video games and movies: insight into the thoughts of characters. Not really sure why this never clicked with me before this point, but It changed the way I absorbed a story. Have a read a book since then? No. Do I respect books more after reading a well-written one? Yes. Conveying of emotion and thoughts is now one of the top things I look for specific video game to deliver to me. The ones that can do everything video games should do well plus what a book does well, are something to be impressed by.

Books are 100% a good way of conveying emotion. Reading The Great Terror by Robert Conquest had me on the verge of tears on numerous occasions. Goods have made me laugh, made me cry, made me feel angry, made me feel relief. Video games certainly have never had the broad emotional impact on me that books have. Now I won't argue that they aren't a slog for you, that you don't struggle to get emotion from them, but the blanket statement that books can't convey emotion? Can't buy that, sorry.

It is good that audiobooks exist. They aren't for me because I find it far too easy for my brain to wonder and just completely miss what I'm listening to (oddly I don't have that issue with podcasts really), but for other people, especially people who drive for their commute, or want something to listen to in the gym, etc, audiobooks are good. The more ways people can enjoy books the better, far as I'm concerned. I don't really agree they are in competition with books though, they are companions really.

Audiobooks are just someone reading a book to you. It doesn't really matter to me how you consume books, if you have hundreds of books on your shelves, or just read on your phones Kindle app, or listen to a book, it all works out the same, you are engaging in books. I don't think there's anything superior in reading exactly, though it's my preferred way of consuming literature. I just find it easier to retain the info if I take it in with my eyes as opposed to my ears.

Maybe I'm just old but in this age of constant stimulation, social media always updating, I really enjoy being able to turn it all off, taking half an hour to myself with some headphones plugged in, listening to some chillout tunes and just reading. It's pretty much my ideal way to unwind. I mean it's either that or watching whatever CSI/NCIS repeat is on TV, and that's just brain rot.

@zevvion: Many of those games don't look or play as well as advertised on max settings. But if you can't tell the difference then it doesn't matter.

@dudeglove: Steinbeck is good, Fitzgerald is not. Heart of Darkness seems to be common in Curriculums and is the best novella period, though challenging for novice readers. Also Shakespeare. As far as fiction goes the curriculums tend to not only be varied (and allow for some choice on the part of the teacher) but also be pretty good books on average. Non fiction/books written by professors are what tend to be garbage, unless they're things that are part of the public consciousness like A Crucible of Power or Shirer's Rise and Fall.

The kind of fiction that is trash (e.g. any popular teen novel) typically isn't read in schools, and while I suppose Game of Thrones is going to start being read it's not that horrible.

With regards to the OP's original question: Games are a much better method of telling a story than Movies, but the people that make games are almost all terrible writers and story makers and the people that make good Movies are some of the best living. As far as books it really depends on the individual, but while a game is unlikely to have an insidious hidden message in there somewhere that kind of thing is very easy to place into a book innocuously and corrupt whomever you desire so forth. So in that sense books are more dangerous, though if read by a person with imagination something like Othello or the aforementioned Heart of Darkness has yet to be surpassed by any other form of media, that doesn't mean that they couldn't be however.

With the emergence of the Walking Simulator those auteurs that are pretty good at making stories and terrible at making games can flourish and also appeal to the masses, though they're not really using the interesting parts of the Video Game medium to their advantage thus their product tends to be quite limited.

Don't care what anybody likes or dislikes. However the douche who works at my Gamestop hates video game. He really should find another job. He always says " thank god I have other vices instead of games, what a waste of money". Yeah right as I'm paying for my purchase. Go back to your mommy's basement and go watch your porn loser. true story

Because a lot of people think video games are toys. Also, they might not like video games.

You judge somebody for not reading books or playing video games? Holy fuck I don't know what to say.

media is different for different people. It would be irrelevant to compare other forms of media to each other because what they offer is so different across the board. It's perfectly fine of me to say that Grown Ups 2 is a bad movie compared to The Hangover, just as it is for someone to disagree (although they're wrong, but let them have that anyway, people are entitled to their opinions, fact based or otherwise, unless that opinion is super hurtful i.e. racist). But it would be an entirely different thing for someone to just wholly dismiss a media, as opposed to saying that that form of media isn't for them. It's the difference between saying, "All Boritos are shit. Fuck boritos.", Versus, "Boritos aren't for me. I don't like sauce they use or the meat or the tortilla. but it's fine if other people like them.". It's one thing to say that you as a person don't like games, It's a whole other can of worms to say that you don't like games, think they/re dumb, and anyone who enjoys games is also wrong and dumb. Not only is that stance really ignorant but at a point it's also hateful. This extends out towards any media, not just games. So for you, OP, just keep in mind that when someone says they don't like a thing you like, they don't necessarily mean they don't like the people who enjoy that thing. It's probably just the way they feel personally about a thing and they maybe have a hard time qualifying that opinion to someone. Unless they explicitly say that a thing is stupid and bad, and anyone who enjoys is stupid and bad, in which case you should just walk away from that asap.

In general I think we should try to disengage from saying that kinds of media are good or bad, on just an empirical level. We should add some personal commentary to keep the conversation more civil in general. Like if we were talking about Grown Ups 2 it would be wrong of me to say that, "Grown Ups 2 is just plain old bad". It would be much better for everyone if I qualified it as a personnal feeling rather than a universal one by saying, "Grown Ups 2 has issues, in my opinion, because of X, Y, and Z.". At that point we could have a conversation and come to an understanding but if I just expressed my opinion as a universal truth than the best we could ever do is have an argument about how wrong and dumb each other is. So keep liking what you like and don't be so judgmental, it's a waste of energy.

I don't like movies. I can't judge other people for not liking games, as long as it doesn't come from ignorance.

I personally think judging people based on what media they consume or don't is a terrible personality trait, but that's just me.

@forkboy:Why the 'sorry' at the end? You think I need you to buy into my opinion for it to be valid? I don't. It's been proven over and over again that written text is most often misinterpreted by a lack of many things that are present in real conversation, such as intonation. I'm not saying you can't get any emotion whatsoever from books, I'm saying the nuance thereof is not always as accurate.

@afrofools And... that's fraud? Maybe you should look up what fraud actually is. Being unable to live up to a projected estimate is not what fraud is. Your video claims to showcase the difference when playing on max settings, when he very clearly is not. I can do a comparison of his comparison shot and show you that he isn't. Not that it was the point, the point is it's not fraud no matter how gladly you want it to be.

You also sued Axe because the women didn't jump at you after you used their body spray? You used the word 'advertised' yourself. Game development does not work in a way where you can accurately portray how a game will look in 6-12 months in advance exactly. Everyone knows this.

Why? I know people who their entire job revolves around reading professional articles and writing up summaries, so reading for fun isn't appealing.

There is really no point in judging anyone for their choice in entertainment. What we should be doing is introducing, in kind ways, new things for them to try that may tickle their fancy.

I only read one series, that being the Dresden Files, and the only movies I see are the MCU movies, otherwise all I do is game and consume game media. It's the hobby I love and have loved, and the one I still enjoy pursuing I don't want to have a bunch of other hobbies that I wouldn't have the time or money to put towards, and would rather focus on just really enjoying and understanding my hobby of choice. With a family and two small kids, I only barely have enough time for my gaming hobby, so I'm gonna go deep into it and only it.

That being said, I 100% totally understand how people wouldn't be into games. Gaming is the only "media" hobby out there that can straight up punish you, and prohibit you from enjoying the next step. Bad at a game? Then you might very well never make it to the next level. If someone doesn't have much spare time I can easily see how gaming just doesn't fit, as it takes an effort to understand and become proficient at.

The overlap between playing games and traditional media is not as great as we sometimes make out. Movies and books contain stories and messages. They're a way to make you learn or feel or ponder. And while I would never be the one to say that games can't do any of those things, or that there aren't some games as effective at achieving those outcomes as any movie or book, how many people are experiencing them? Not to take anything away from Call of Duty or Overwatch, but those are activities that have more in common with sports (skill-based and competitive) than they do with media, and most mobile games barely activate your brain at all except in some primal pleasure-center way. When we talk about games, which of these examples do you think are closest to most people's stereotype?