Video game culture

Video game culture is a worldwide new media subculture formed by video games. As computer and video games have exponentially increased in popularity over time, they have had a significant influence on popular culture. Video game culture has also evolved over time, hand in hand with internet culture and the increasing popularity of mobile games. Many people who play video games identify as gamers, which can mean anything from someone who enjoys games to someone who is passionate about it. As video games become more social with multiplayer and online capability, gamers find themselves in growing social networks. Gaming can both be entertainment as well as competition, as a new trend known as electronic sports is becoming more widely accepted. Today, video games can be seen in social media, politics, television, film, music and YouTube. Video game culture is a worldwide new media subculture formed by video games. As computer and video games have exponentially increased in popularity over time, they have had a significant influence on popular culture. Video game culture has also evolved over time, hand in hand with internet culture and the increasing popularity of mobile games. Many people who play video games identify as gamers, which can mean anything from someone who enjoys games to someone who is passionate about it. As video games become more social with multiplayer and online capability, gamers find themselves in growing social networks. Gaming can both be entertainment as well as competition, as a new trend known as electronic sports is becoming more widely accepted. Today, video games can be seen in social media, politics, television, film, music and YouTube. As of 2016, the average age for a video game player is 31, a number slowly increasing as people who were children playing the first arcade, console and home computer games continue playing now on current systems. The gender distribution of gamers is reaching equilibrium, according to a 2016 study showing that 59% of gamers are male and 41% female; however, research has also shown that women are less likely to self-identify as gamers out of fear of stigmatization.As of 2011 ESA reported that 71% of people age six to forty-nine in the U.S. played video games, with 55% of gamers playing on their phones or mobile devices. The average age of players across the globe is mid to late 20s, and is increasing as older players grow in numbers. One possible reason for the increase in players could be attributed to the growing number of genres that require less of a specific audience. For example, the Wii console has widened its audience with games such as Wii Sports and Wii Fit. Both require more activity from the user and provide more reasons to play including family competition or exercise. It could also be because people who played video games when they were young are now growing older and still have that interest in video games. Currently, the largest entertainment industry for children is gaming. According to a 2008 telephone survey with a sample size of 1,102 respondents, 97% of children living in the United States and between the ages of 12 and 17 play video games. As displayed by the recent release of certain games, video game developers have started to create gaming content that appeals to alternative audiences, beyond those of 'Player 1.' The idea of 'Player 1' refers to the stereotypical straight male gamer as the sole individual that video games are created for. On the other hand, 'Player 2' may refer to populations of gamers who divert from this demographic, such as women or LGBTQ+ communities. Games designed to appeal to 'Player 2' offer gamers an alternative gaming experience, thus allowing for the further demographic expansion of the video game subculture. Video games are played in a variety of social ways, which often involve domestic gatherings or even in public places. A popular method of accomplishing this is a LAN (Local Area Network) party, which if hosted at a home involves family and friends, creating a social event for people friendly with each other. LAN parties are often held in large-scale events conducted in public spaces and have a great number of participants who might not usually socialise. The Everquest Fan Faires for instance, provide weekends of socializing and playing, at a large gathering (an event of several thousands) of dedicated game fans. Terry Flew in his book Games: Technology, Industry, Culture also emphasises the Online Gaming Communities – 'where players aren't physically located in the same space, but still socializing together'. This raises the notion of McLuhan's 'Global Village', as people are able to transcend their physical limitations and communicate with people, possessing a similar interest, from all around the world. Shapiro also stresses the possibility of 'Using technology to enhance one's social life', as friendships no longer have to be structured by physical proximity (e.g. neighbours, colleagues). Shapiro states that 'the net (Online Gaming Communities) gives individuals the opportunity to extend their social network in a novel way, to communicate and share life experiences with people regardless of where they live and form online relationships'. Thus, such online communities satisfy a genuine need for affiliation with like-minded others. Online gaming has drastically increased the scope and size of gaming culture. Online gaming grew out of games on bulletin board systems and on college mainframes from the 1970s and 1980s. MUDs offered multiplayer competition and cooperation but on a scope more geographically limited than on the internet. The internet allowed gamers from all over the world – not just within one country or state – to play games together with ease. With the advent of Cloud Gaming high-performance games can now be played from low-end client systems and even TVs. One of the most groundbreaking titles in the history of online gaming is Quake, which offered the ability to play with sixteen, and eventually up to thirty-two players simultaneously in a 3D world. Gamers quickly began to establish their own organized groups, called clans. Clans established their own identities, their own marketing, their own form of internal organization, and even their own looks. Some clans had friendly or hostile rivalries, and there were often clans who were allied with other clans. Clan interaction took place on both professionally set competition events, and during normal casual playing where several members of one clan would play on a public server. Clans would often do their recruiting this way; by noticing the best players on a particular server, they would send invitations for that player to either try out or accept membership in the clan. Gamers of all ages play online games, with the average age being 31 years old.