Are you a gamer?
Prior to reading “Virtual Ascendance” by Devin Griffiths, I will probably not classify myself as a gamer because I barely spend time blasting monsters in front of my computer or clutching video remote controls. But I was wrong. I am, without me realizing, a gamer too. This book attempts to tackle the stereotypes we attribute to video gaming such as it is a geeky activity.
“This is more than a story about video games, though. It’s the story of an awakening, of a realization that while I wasn’t looking, a childhood pastime popular with lonely hearts and geeks exploded into a thriving, multi-billion dollar enterprise – one rooted in entertainment but whose tendrils reach into virtually all aspects of society.”
In fact, it surprised me when it pointed out that in the U.S., 40-year-old females made up the average age of people playing social games like Sims Social and Bejeweled.
Furthermore, video gaming these days are no longer confined to the traditional set-top consoles. We are now taking it on the go and playing them on a wider variety of platforms on our smartphones, tablets and laptops. These advancements and evolution of the gaming industry, the author argues, is a direct reflection of the soul of our society.
“As human beings we are also gamers. The games we create and the games we play tell us something about our society and ourselves: what we desire, what we value, what we encourage, what we fear.”
Book of words 