Once again, I start by stating what has become a bit of a running gag.  I have not followed gamergate very much at all.  So, I’m not reacting to it.  I have, however, previously been fairly harsh toward the games journalists.  I’m not entirely convinced they even exist, if you haven’t heard.  What I have noticed is that in the last few years, those claiming to be games journalists seem to think they should be telling me how to enjoy games.

I’ll try not to let too many of my personal views infect this article.  I try to keep my advice as “agnostic” as possible so that it can be enjoyed by all, or at least all eight of my loyal readers.  The bottom line is, somewhere between all games being art and the indie game explosion, gaming seemed to become more about the message and less about the fun.  Maybe the Call of Duty bros have it right?  Perhaps ’tis better to play the same game every year and love it, than to play games that care more about how they’ll look than whether I’ll enjoy them.  I believe the term for this is “hipster?”  That feels right.

I’m not interested in trying to knock anybody from playing the games they want.  I’m not saying a video game HAS to be fun to be a video game.  That’s ridiculous.  I am saying that being fun doesn’t make one video game worse than the other.  Extrapolating further, being a gamer that likes fun games doesn’t make one a worse gamer, or person, than somebody who doesn’t.  It’s a form of elitism I can’t get behind.  I don’t even hold it against gamers who only play the Wii or mobile games.  I’m not sure why these fake divides started setting up in the community, but it’s quite frivolous.  They’re games.

I get that I can’t very well call on the games media to try to change the way they report on these things.  After all, there is a pretty strong media sense out there who just want to keep things fun.  I can respect that.  There’s another group that may not keep it fun, but they do keep it focused on games.  I suppose I can respect that, too.  Then there’s the new wave of games media.  These outlets seem to think they have far more influence than they really do.  Those that don’t so much talk about games, but try to influence the minds of gamers, while simultaneously not really liking gamers.  These individuals would likely benefit from my message, though I’m certain I cannot count them amongst my eight loyal readers.  To even try to address them directly would be a bit too pretentious, and even closer to gamergate than I’d prefer.

But what choice do we have?  I’m so very glad you asked.  I firmly believe in the power of the consumer.  We are what they want.  The media, and the game companies, want us.  We are their lifeblood.  Without our eyes, their zeros and ones are nothing but megabytes on a server, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.  That’s the level of control the gamers have.  If you’re being despised or patronized, you have the power to take it away.  If having fun with my hobby makes me not worth their effort, than can I really be blamed for going where I’m appreciated?  That’s not just economics; that’s life.

Wherever you find your enjoyment, or in whatever you seek your escape, go to where that sense is cultivated.  Gamers shouldn’t have to endure the abuse of our entertainers.  There are places where you can escape those shenanigans.  For example, I hear good things about Enthusiacs.com.  Real games, no ego, that place has.  And if you like movies, I think they have a really good movies podcast as well.  I like the host.

No matter where you choose to find your sanctuary (Enthusiacs.com) just remember that  for those of use who have chosen video games as our hobby, we are individuals.  We don’t have to conform.  We don’t have to play through games we don’t like because they are “art.”  We can dislike “art.”  Some people would rather have a Bob Ross painting than a Van Gogh.  That’s perfectly fine, I say.  It’s my identity, I’ll take ownership and determine what it means.  “Gamers are dead,” indeed.

The bottom line is that while the channels of games media that have gained distrust still try to wrangle their audience, my loyal readers can focus on leaving them behind.  As Brad Pitt once said while pretending to be Billy Beane, “Adapt or die.”  Therefore, my loyal readers, I say we give them that choice while we have our fun.