After growing up with two older brothers, it's hardly surprising that I got into video games. Battlefield 1, Battlefront, COD, SWOTOR, HALO, Assassins Creed (especially Assasins Creed...), the list goes on and on. I'm most excited about MMORPG's (mass multiple player online Role playing game) and FPS (First Person Shooter), but I still reminisce about those good ole' "Crash Bandacoot Days".
Often people have this stereotype of gamers. Anti-social, hiding in their rooms for days at a time, whose only friends are online fellow geeks. However, contrary to popular belief....we do have a social life! We even play sports and go to outside in the sun! That being said, we do get very excited over "expansion packs" and DLC (Downloadable content). We even watch YouTube videos on other people playing to learn the best techniques. To us, watching someone playing a video game is the same as watching someone play football or baseball. Its really not that weird. If you are going to do something, you better do it well.
That being said, I do want to address one misconception about girls who game. When a guy hears that a girl games, he either thinks one of two things: you're just a preppy girl who wants attention and has no idea what she's talking about, OR she's a complete tomboy. More often then not, gamer girls are neither of these.
Most of us are just your average college girl: intelligent, funny, and average looking, we just also have this small desire to shoot people and knife them in back (only online, of course....). Playing video games is our way to enjoy entertainment while also being able to interact with it. I mean, guys are not the only ones who think being a mysterious assassin with a hood in renaissance Italy is super cool.
When I was little, I would play with barbies in the morning, and play Star Wars on the computer at the night. If you want to bond with two older brothers...you learn how to play video games. It's like learning to play basketball so you can hang out with your dad. It's really not that weird, just think of it like an interactive movie, just more complicated.
When I say I'm a "gamer", that is only one aspect of my personality (and a fairly small one at that). I still love school, going on outdoor adventures, socializing, and just reading a thick book at night. So next time someone tells you they game, don't slip into the pitfall of stereotyping. In reality they are probably way cooler than most people you'll ever know.
