but then , it’s easier to blame the games if your a politico,
rather than the run down urban areas of housing, the rampant rise of commersialism/materialism , lack of jobs, etc etc etc…..
that politicians are supposed to look after as polititians

what computer games mean to me… a (brief) history.

i’m a 40 year old male and a single dad , living in the UK.

i was born in 1968 before the advent of computer games , and my first experience of them was at aprox 7 years old when i first discovered “space invaders” in a holiday camp arcade ,
( it was in england on the south coast, and ofc it rained for most of the week we were there.)

and i was hooked , as where many kids of that day.

i kept my room clean for 3 solid months before my 8th or 9th birthday so i could have an Atari 2600 when it launched in the UK for my birthday.
and i was allowed to play when my chores and homework was done

i held down 2 paper-rounds and a 1 evening a week cleaning job ( with my uncle ray) at aprox 15 years old so i could buy myself a Sinclair 48K spectrum to play with.
to all intents and purposes it taught me one great lesson in life.

if you want something, get off your backside and work for it.
an ethic and ethos i carry with me to this day.

early “type in the directions/ actions” role playing games brought to me the love of all forms of role playing games, i still have my first edition “dungeons and dragons” books on my bookshelf.
so we used to role play in school, and it increased my circle of friends.

i used to play war games, and through that i developed and increased my love of military history, something i still study avidly to this day.

i used to work as a counter clerk for the post office, and during the “dole-office” strikes of the late 80′s when people were banging on the glass screen and screaming for their money at me all day long ( i was in the wembley P.O. and it was a run down inner city type of area in London)
and computer games would help me unwind after a rather stressed day at work.

i never fancied car racing games much, but konami ( i think) released a motorcycle racing game that i enjoyed immencely…whether this is responcible for me buying a motorbike / or if it was a responce to the “less than wonderfull” option of public transport is subjective, but in due course i became a voluntary motorcycle instructor for my local council for 2 nights a week for a couple of years (until i had my accident)

the love of history, and the love of roleplaying games gelled together when i met a bunch of role players from the slough area circa 1989, and they introduced me to the rather fun world of re-enactment, and i bacame a “dark age saxon”…(then a viking, as they had nicer kit) a hobby (and a lifestyle)
that would see me doing “school shows” – to help educate children – part of the key stage 3 in history sylabus, give me weekends away in nice places , and in the due course of time , some very nice AND FREE holidays all over Europe, to entertain and inform the public.
the ( for want of better words) melee combat training, brought me a much greater sence of self-disipline , and with it , a sence of self worth, (and again,a greatly expanded circle of friends)
it was these friends, training, and underlying belief in myself that was the only things that helped me to “keep it together” after the breakup with my ex-partner, when i thought i’d never see my kids again, without it i may very well have ended up as a suicide statistic. (my own dad passed away when i was 3 1/2 years old, and the thought of losing my kids and possibly never seeing them again drove me close to utter despair)

Then i went back to university at 28, games were both relaxation and a way to socialize with the other lads on my course,plus sometimes ideas come easier when your not actively thinking about them (kind of like when people decide to ” sleep ” on a decision
when 1/2 way though the course i had an 18 month court case to fight( i’m not willing to divulge information about this on an open forum) to regain custody of my children , gaming again became a major part of my ” need to de-stress” routine.
again , the friends, melee training and sence of self dignity , kept me on course , and stopped me from going off the rails, and in due course i gained full custody of my children

now-a-days , gaming is both
a reward for good behavior for my kids,
and also a great tool for bonding with them…
i never lose on purpose, but their hand/eye co-ordination and their fast thinking mean i still lose a fare amount of the time, who knows , maybe i’m getting old
a good social networking tool for me. I’ve been playing MMO’s (mass multiplayer online role playing games) since 2001
( i just missed “UO”) and back in the day when i had no money to socialize, no babysitter so i could go out, and a reduced circle of friends since i wa to an extent “cut off” from the average “lets go down the pub” social life, it kept me in contact with the outside world.

..it’s come, to an extent, full circle…..i now “reward” myself with “game time” for getting the washing , and washing up done, and doing all my house chores done.

surreally it’s like being 8 years old again, … only with greying hair , and a larger “beer belly”.

and my appologies to all for the length of this article and any typo’s it may contain, and for those who read it through , my thanks.

yours

steve.

I have written another article on this subject: http://www.bruceongames.com/2008/04/16/grand-theft-childhood-has-arrived/

A sorely needed one, I might add.

http://www.openeducation.net/2008/03/16/shoot-em-up-video-games-the-cause-of-greater-anti-social-behaviors-in-teens/

http://www.openeducation.net/2008/03/17/author-reveals-the-surprising-truth-about-violent-video-games/

http://www.openeducation.net/2008/03/18/experts-state-do-not-banish-instead-manage-violent-video-game-play/