Does (Can) What You Play Define You As A Person?

Hagan

Hagan

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Hi Gamers,

I've been doing some thinking.

We all love gaming (or so I would assume given the name of this forum), but can what you play define you?

I'm sure many of us are multi-genre gamers. We play games that we like and enjoy playing, however, we do gravitate towards one or two specific genres more. As an example, my favourite genre is FPS, followed in second by RPGs and Racing in third, but I find that I play FPSs a lot more than any other. I prefer FPSs a lot more than any other, hell, I play FPSs a lot more than any other genre.

Now, FPSs are not known for their in-depth story lines or tactical means of play (usually not); more often than not it's a case of "run-and-gun" which does not take much brain power to accomplish.

My question is:

Does the kind of game you prefer to play mostly define you as a person? I have clocked at least 700+ hours of Battlefield 3 MP, whereas other people have clocked that AND MORE in games requiring a greater thought process and a more skillful and tactical means of approach (MMO, RTS etc).

I ask you guys this because I feel one-track minded, as though I'm incapable of playing games or preferring to play something that forces me to think less. Maybe, I just prefer hours of mindless, repetitive killing over something which may seem to be more significant.

Thanks for your input.
:)
 
Maybe you are you onto something, I prefer something with a story and lots of puzzles above all else. In my daily life I solve problems all day long for clients and I enjoy it.

I wouldn't say it defines me but it does have an impact on the type of game I prefer to play.
 
I prefer games with a deep story and varying gameplay tropes (puzzles, combat, platforming etc). Not a big fan of the FPS genre as most of them feel extremely repetitive to me and I like the feeling of moving forward to something more than better rankings etc. I wouldn't generalise and say it defines us all though, but my brother in law plays a lot of COD and I definitely feel it's because he's a bit of an idiot and just can't 'get into' games like The Last of Us, which in and of itself is the biggest travesty to befall a gamer imo [emoji14].
 
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I mostly play FPS games, and the odd RPG/MMORPG. Does not make me a killer or anything like that at all!
My wife was actually watching a TV show last night, I think it was SVU (Special Victims Unit) or some show like that. Where there were teenagers who became so engulfed into the FPS game that they were playing, that they could not differentiate between real life and the game.

I think if you have psychosis and very unstable it can be possible. Otherwise it's a bunch of Bull Twang!
 
I don't think it's a questions of the game influencing you as a person, but rather your type of personality defining your gaming needs. For me, I have strong management tendencies in my life. I've had that all my life, and I can see the type of games I like are those where I can live out that management aspect in some way. I do like to occasional dumb fun game, but I always go back to games like Kerbal Space Program, Banished, or other RTS games. I love these so much. Transport Tycoon Deluxe is a game I first played 15 years ago, and to this day I still enjoy going back and playing it. In fact, I'd rather play something like that than Battlefield any day. That's just the type of person I am.

It's all about what you are trying to get out of your gaming experience. Do you want to experience team play, competitive game play? Do you want a story you can lose yourself into. Do you want managing stuff? In the end we all are looking for something from our gaming experiences.
 
I find that playing competitive type games like CSGO, LoL etc. generally makes me go to bed all pissed off more often than not compared to RPG games, playing an hour or two of D3 before bed, or maybe even a good single player RPG relaxes me... I tend to start avoiding competitive games lately, maybe I'm just getting old haha
 
DieGrootHammer said:
I don't think it's a questions of the game influencing you as a person, but rather your type of personality defining your gaming needs. For me, I have strong management tendencies in my life. I've had that all my life, and I can see the type of games I like are those where I can live out that management aspect in some way. I do like to occasional dumb fun game, but I always go back to games like Kerbal Space Program, Banished, or other RTS games. I love these so much. Transport Tycoon Deluxe is a game I first played 15 years ago, and to this day I still enjoy going back and playing it. In fact, I'd rather play something like that than Battlefield any day. That's just the type of person I am.

It's all about what you are trying to get out of your gaming experience. Do you want to experience team play, competitive game play? Do you want a story you can lose yourself into. Do you want managing stuff? In the end we all are looking for something from our gaming experiences.
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Agree 100% !
 
I also think that your personality defines what games you like, rather than the games you play defining your personality. It's also what you want to get out of a game, eg I spend a lot of my time solving problems, fiddling with numbers and fine tuning stuff (I'm a programmer), and although I enjoy an RPG every now and then, and I do like games with puzzle solving elements, most of the time, what I want from a game is a chance to relax and unwind, either playing some run-and-gun, or enjoying a good story. Spending hours working on stats for RPG's is just too much like work for me.

Also, I don't have really have much interest in sports, so sports games don't really interest me either. Racing games are fun in small doses, especially with friends, but I can never get into them enough to actually play them through.
 
I am similar to some of you. I only touch racing games if it is with friends (I like Mario kart), but for the most part I enjoy immersive, puzzle platformers with a good story, I enjoy fun couch multiplayer games (mario party, bomberman, smash bros etc) I also consume some RPGS and SRPGS. I agree DotA is enjoyable with the right people but most of the time it is toxic and leaves a bitter taste in my mouth. The only sports game I enjoy so far is Fight Night and MMA with a friend because of the fun factor.
FPS's I'll play for an immersive and good story experience but multiplayer is too harsh for me.
 
Not necessarily. Some people play video games as a form of escapism, and play games to get away from the drudgery of every-day life. Think of examples like Manhunt. Playing a game where the goal is to gratuitously murder people doesn't make you a closet serial killer, but it's interesting to delve into things that are normally taboo or verboten, and get away with things that would have dire consequences in real life (GTA, Saints Row et al). Personally, I've never played Manhunt, and it doesn't appeal to me in a general sense because I don't like violence, but given the opportunity, I'd certainly give it a go, simply because it's... well, different, and variety is the spice of life, no?

I think what you play may say something about you, and who you are may have an impact on what you play to some extent, but it's certainly not the be-all-and-end-all.

If you've pigeon-holed yourself into thinking you only like X or Y game, try branching out a little sometime (when feasible), you might be surprised to learn that you're open to more than you previously thought.
 
DieGrootHammer said:
I don't think it's a questions of the game influencing you as a person, but rather your type of personality defining your gaming needs. For me, I have strong management tendencies in my life. I've had that all my life, and I can see the type of games I like are those where I can live out that management aspect in some way. I do like to occasional dumb fun game, but I always go back to games like Kerbal Space Program, Banished, or other RTS games. I love these so much. Transport Tycoon Deluxe is a game I first played 15 years ago, and to this day I still enjoy going back and playing it. In fact, I'd rather play something like that than Battlefield any day. That's just the type of person I am.

It's all about what you are trying to get out of your gaming experience. Do you want to experience team play, competitive game play? Do you want a story you can lose yourself into. Do you want managing stuff? In the end we all are looking for something from our gaming experiences.
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SO WHAT U SAYING FPS PLAYERS ARE DUMB!

Just kidding ;-)

I love management style games as well, especially the type of games u spend hours setting up everything and then stepping away and watch all ur work in action.

So anything that has management or automation in it, catches my eye every time!
 
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