Gaming In The Context of Our Own Humanity - ScheiGuy

Each day I game, I strive to be appreciative. I'm grateful that I have circumstances and time that allow me to game, and I'm grateful for the moments, memories, and relationships gaming has given me. Gaming is a special medium that allows us to share experiences, form/strengthen friendships, and learn a lot about ourselves. We're actively engaged. We're drawn in. We're emotionally invested. To a large extent, we create our experiences, which makes sharing them and discussing them special. We all put on masks and fronts at times, but eventually who you truly are is expressed in how you play games, and I think that's the key. We aren't just sharing interaction with manifested computer code on a screen. When we game, we share a part of ourselves. We share who we really are - not entirely, but enough to make the relationships formed meaningful. The beauty is we don't have to consciously express ourselves. The expression comes naturally while playing, making the anxieties that come with many social interactions disappear. Barriers crumble. Friendships flourish. 

When I reflect on any relationship/friendship affected by gaming, I'm flooded with positivity. Honestly, I can't think of a single instance where gaming had a negative effect. My father died nine years ago, and I reflect often on the positive effects gaming had on our relationship and the legacy it provides for me to pass on to my own wife and children. My dad lived a hard life, and he wasn't the most expressive guy you'd ever meet. However, we shared a lot of fun, laughs, and memories centered on games that really drew us close to each other. Solving problems together, hand-drawing maps together, competing against each other, and being awed at next-gen games together had us both so involved that we were effortlessly sharing real parts of our inner-selves with one another. I understand similar moments can be had outside of gaming, and I have several fond non-gaming memories of my dad. However, gaming created unique opportunities for us to create cherished memories that I wouldn't trade for anything. Now, I'm able to create these moments with my own children - something I hope I'm never foolish enough to take for granted. I jokingly say that Mario Kart is a way of life in our household, but there's truth behind my quip. My wife and I spent considerable time through our dating and marriage bonding over Mario Kart, and we love involving our children as we make new Kart (as well as other gaming) memories. Beyond my own family, gaming (and especially Nintendo-based gaming) was a catalyst to nearly all of my closest friendships through the years. I won't sit here and give you the play-by-play of it all, but I earnestly believe these beloved relationships and memories couldn't be equaled by bonding through another means.

I believe this interpersonal phenomenon generalizes intrapersonally for single-player games. We all have relationships with ourselves. We fight our inner-demons. We reflect and work hard on the kind of person we want to be. When we're immersed in gaming, we are open with ourselves and learn about ourselves. When we're tilted, we learn how we handle negative emotion. When we persevere, we speak volumes to how we can respond to life's hardships. When we cry, when our jaw drops, when we smile, when we laugh, when we stop and soak in a moment, when we're mesmerized by a song, when we jump up from the couch in triumph, when we squeeze the controller so hard it may snap in two, when we smile, when we try again - this time using the gamer lean (it just works... it's beyond science) - all of those moments are you. They are a part of you. They are manifestations of you. They play a role in molding who you will be today and the next. They unequivocally let you be you with no fear - fully vulnerable and uniquely you, manifested the same on the outside exactly as you are on the inside. Such moments are rare for a lot of us in real life. However, in gaming these moments are organic. They are spontaneous. They are real. They come from the full-immersion, wonderment, and joy that gaming provides, doing so with no true equal.

Gaming doesn't exist in a vacuum. Games are created and experienced through the medium of our own humanity, and that's the best part. In a world that's often cold and cruel, gaming provides revelatory and genuine moments for us to learn about ourselves and to connect meaningfully with others.