Why I am "still" a Gamer! Pt. 2

[EXEcution]

Here is "Why I am a Gamer! Pt. 1 (http://www.gamemecca.net/forums/showthread.php?t=72533)

I was a bit skeptical before I started writing this because of the lack of comments I received in the first part of my story when I first posted it. Now that some memberst have offered some feedback, which I appreciate dearly, I can write the second part. This 'article' will attempt to explain why I still plan to game in my near future and will be much more insightful and opinionated than the first part.

What is the future of gaming? No one really knows and all we can do is make predictions which will attempt to explain this. But before looking at the future of gaming we must look at its past and ask ourselves a few questions.

Has gaming been evolving for the past 25 or so years? Yes it has! We have gone from Pong, a simple arcade game which can probably run on a 20 year old computer, to games like Half-Life 2, Doom 3, Unreal Tournament 2004, which require high-end computers to run and contain vast and realistic environments composed of millions of polygons. All that in a span of about 25 years, whereas things like automobiles have been evolving for decades more.

I think gaming, like automobiles, will continue to improve, evolve, and ultimately progress. Of course progress cannot exist without its mistakes. Just like people cannot learn without making them. Gaming isn't perfect just like everything else, it has numerous flaws. Although I am not experienced enough to name them all, the simple fact remains that gaming has not been brought fully into mainstream. Gaming is still young, and the majority of gamers do not take their hobby seriously.

While there are several exeptions such as Fatal1ty, a 23 year old who has won enough money through his gaming talent and career to start his own company which works to promote gaming as a 'cyber sport', most of the gamers in the world sit at home playing on their GameCube's, Xbox's, and Playstation 2's. They play for fun not prizes or money like professional gamers do by going to LAN's and participating in sponsored tournaments. This 'majority' probably doesn't even know things like the CPL exist and that you could make some serious cash if you are good at gaming on the PC.

To sum up my point, most of the console people are playing for fun either unaware or uninterested in the fact that professional gaming exists and is evolving. Years ago and even now console game tournaments are being held for fun and relatively small prizes. Today there is a gaming tournament going on right now where the total amount of money one can make if he wins it is 1,000,000 dollars. That tournament is sponsored by the CPL (http://www.cplworldtour.com/) and the game being played as many of us know is Dreamcatcher's 'Painkiller'.

Thanfully Painkiller will only play a small part in the future of gaming, due to its lack of popularity. The CPL of course had reasons to pick PK over UT2K4, which the majority seemed to favor, and I feel that they are good reasons and would bring some new talent to the world of pro-gaming. The fact that you could become pretty rich if you played this game go several people pretty excited. And even though most of the people that are participants in the CPL World Tour do not enjoy playing PK and would rather be playing something else for a million dollars, they still practice, play, and win.

Not many people here are as interested in pro-gaming as much as I am, and I can understand that. The majority of us care more about playing the games ourselves and having fun, and not reading about how some 16-25 year olds are winning money playing games. However, I feel that the future of gaming depends on both classes of players: professional and non-professional. The game companies want everyone to buy their games, not just the pro's. Yet there are people who want to become professional gamers and look up to the likes of Fatal1ty, so they buy the games as well.

The next big question is: What's next for the world of pro-gaming? The CPL isn't the only pro-gaming organization, there are others such as the GGL, the ESWC, EuroCup, and several others. They are also backing the industry by providing gamers with tournaments at favorable locations around the world. Gaming is an international activity which does alot for it's reputation by saying that almost every country plays games and it can attract new players from almost anywhere.

The next-gen consoles will soon be released, and the gaming market will be up in ferver while the gamers stand in lines to buy their brand new Xbox-360's, PS3's, and whatever the hell Nintendo is making. There is money to be made no doubt. Same goes for PC gamers as they anxiously wait for Quake 4, and upgrade their systems by buying brand name hardware from manufacturers such as nVidia, ATi, AMD, Intel, and others. Hardware, just like consoles, does not come cheap so its obvious that the hardware comanies are receiving just as much income as the game developers who design games that will be suitable for new hardware. More people, including adults and children own high-end PC's and next-gen consoles almost every gaming generation.

Now for me, a dedicated PC gamer who is always looking for the next best game to play, I patiently await the arrival of Quake 4 along with getting home to start biulding a new computer that will run the game well. I am not going to go into why Quake 4 will be the next best thing to play online in my opinion so i suggest reading this excellent info/review on Quake 4 (http://www.ggl.com/news.php?NewsId=991). All I can say is that I have very high hopes for this game, and right now its the reason why I want to continue to game.

Well that's all I can think of for now. Tell me what you look foward to in the future of gaming, and some of your perdictions about the future. :thumbs: :thumbs:

[Mad Fox]

Great story and I like your thinking

[Free Styler]

Ok here is my opinion.

would i like to make a few bucks playing a game?
Shure i would.The fact is if a lan party is being battled over seas or in texas for exemple.....The ultimate question is, would i be willing to pay 1000$(plane ticket,expenses,hotels) to go prove that i can win against the best.I'd like to say yes but the real anwser is no.
People who start working at a certain age in their lives realize that gaming and real life is 2 different things.I'm not trying to discourage you in any way btw.

But my real opinion?
The pro players from today are kids who were living at moms and dads house and got the free time and money maybe summer job? to go to lans and win.
Now that they have been sponsered and are comfortable with their 24 hours per day practice time they can continue to strive in glory.
Name me one pro 30 year old player?
there all 18 to 23 hence making them ligitimate homerbabyprodgamers in my above post.

I still think the pro gaming industry will evolve to become more and more attractive to young players who live at there parents house but....Maybe not has attractive to mrs i have a kid and spending 1000$ every time theres a big lan where i could win money and of course i could upgrade my wallet.Thing is only 3 out of the whole bunch trying would actully pay their dippers comming back home.I dont have a kid btw it's just a exemple.

btw the normal gaming industry will evolve of course no matter what

I saw the thingy from quakecon 2003 or 2004 or whaterver where there was this guy who had taken second place in the tournement daler? i think.He lived 10 minutes from quakecon.One of his friends who ultimatly lived 10 minutes from there also took 4th or something in quake 3 or whaterver game it was.
You think this is some kinda of coincidence where 2 hometowners won because their were very good in talent or skill?ok ya prolly better then average.
But Bring every player from every country for free and i garanty you someone somewhere would of ownd both of these guys very badly.IMO

So all and all the point of the story is.Would i try to become a pro gamer?
Yes if the actual events were next to where i lived cause imo with a "lot" of practice i think i could do serious damage.

If your trying to accomplish all of this online 3 problems accure.

mrs i have a top notch over tweaked computer and files.(and btw i dont care what you think ..but the guy who has a half a second advantage because of this has a half a second advantage because of this.No matter what you say theres a big problem ..even if the guy is not that good ..he can still win because of this.
I mean wtf.For me this is like steroids in real sport equaling bs.No matter what you say i think this is total bs.unless you upgrade and spend tons of money doing so and try and play endless hours comming back from a real job so you can pay your plane ticket and take a chance.
mrs i have a t1 connection...well this again is whaterver you want to call it.
mrs i like to cheat and i'm a growing majority in the gaming industry(very sad to see this happening...but what else can you expect from a 9 year old frustrated kid.

oh i forgot ........210 fps with a monitor who supports this everything tweaked to the lowest settings and a very motivated soul could take a chance and go for a win against the "pros"

Imho a few i did say a few and not a lot a few people around the world would have the skill talent and what it takes to beat these guys who go to lans and win money in a profesional league.

I think you need a kinda natural feeling of play when controlling your caracter when it is is no longer a issue in your mind then you move on to tactics timing items armor and of course perfect aim intuition and a few other abilities that i have not mentionned.Even if you have all of the above and a natural abilitie and have a skill of 10 on10 lets say.The guy who has 9/10 who practices 24/7 will overcome you.
Those guys are the second best of pro gamers imo.then you have the 10/10
of natural abilities and countless hours of practice and when i say countless i mean countless and these guys are prolly very hard to beat indeed.

So would i be willing to gamble my money knowing this.No
If one day im rich i'll put time in a game and will go play not for money but for first place.If i'm not rich well so be it i'll play for fun here and there at home even "if"i would of liked to give it a shot.

Of course some people get pick up in clans and sponsors and bla bla bla.
But like i said earlier, most of em if not all are or were kids living at their parents house at the time.

[Free Styler]

Does what i say make any sense to some?
Or i'm i completly looking at this in a bizarre way.

[SoulReaver]

Does what i say make any sense to some?
Or i'm i completly looking at this in a bizarre way.Yeah it does make sense. Now that I thought of it, most pro gamers are young adults. On a sort of related note, no offense but I find being a professional gamer being your career kinda pathetic, but thats just me. Please don't be offended.

[EXEcution]

Yeah it does make sense. Now that I thought of it, most pro gamers are young adults. On a sort of related note, no offense but I find being a professional gamer being your career kinda pathetic, but thats just me. Please don't be offended.
Well you offer no reason as to why you think that it's pathetic so I cannot be offended by a comment that isn't backed by any facts. And pathetic is the last thing that pro-gaming is, in my opinion.

FS:

You must type really fast to be abe to make so many mistakes at once. :)
But as always I appreciate that you actually read most of what I write and bring up some good points.


would i like to make a few bucks playing a game?
Shure i would.The fact is if a lan party is being battled over seas or in texas for exemple.....The ultimate question is, would i be willing to pay 1000$(plane ticket,expenses,hotels) to go prove that i can win against the best.I'd like to say yes but the real anwser is no.

Anyway, a few bucks? I don't know if 1,000$ is a few bucks to you but usually that much goes to a 4th or 5th place player in most tourneys. Say you place 4th or 5th, probably no one in the pro-gaming world knows your nick but you won enough money to buy something of value, or to put it in your savings.

You don'y necessarily have to fly overseas to particiate in a tourney with cash prizes if you live in the US or even Canada. So a plane ticket wouldn't always be necessary, or would end up costing you less than 300$. Logically you only go to these LAN's or tourneys if you know you or your clan/team have what it takes to win. This is all much easier to realize and understand with Counter-Strike because it has a very evolved pro-community with a large following. But with games like Painkiller, UT2004, and Q3 there are pro's who have what it takes to win against other pro's and so they go to COMPETE and possibly win or lose. It's like playing the lottery whereas here you have a much greater chance of winning money.


The pro players from today are kids who were living at moms and dads house and got the free time and money maybe summer job? to go to lans and win.
Now that they have been sponsered and are comfortable with their 24 hours per day practice time they can continue to strive in glory.
Name me one pro 30 year old player?
there all 18 to 23 hence making them ligitimate homerbabyprodgamers in my above post.

Some pro gamers who are 20 or over actually have their own houses or apartments. Of course all 18 year old aren't going to stop living with their parents once they become pro gamers because they aren't mature enough to live on their own. I don't think I am old enough myself to move out of my mom's house being almost 19. Most kids in America who are 18 have year-round jobs so they can make enough money to fly over to wherever they need to compete. Either that or their parents back them, which is rare and I have an explanation to why that is. Lets be serious no one practices 24-hours a day, the most anyone should practice almost anything is 6-10 hours a day.

Now to explain the 30 year old comment. Yes I can name a 30 year old pro-gamer, HS, who played at the Doom 3 1v1 tourney at Quakecon 2005 and placed pretty high up. There are 30 year old and even 40 year olds who back the pro-gaming industry with money and resources though, or provide us with info on pro-gaming.

Gaming is still young, it hasn't even seen 30 years of age, especially pro-gaming which is about 7 or 8 years old, where as most other pro sports and activities are more than 30 years old. The inddustry is still growing and I am sure that we will see and hear more about pro-gaming in the years to come.


But Bring every player from every country for free and i garanty you someone somewhere would of ownd both of these guys very badly.

Daler is actually a VERY good Quake 3 player and is very well known, his Doom 3 skills are also quite impressive but I do not follow D3 at all. He has competed against almost every other pro gamer and has beaten them. Whether they are from Russia, England, Canada, US, or anywhere else. So what if he lives 10 mins from QuakeCon, that's coincidence and nothing more. He hasn't won every QuakeCon, but he didn't lose miserably either to players around the world who attended the event.


mrs i have a top notch over tweaked computer and files.(and btw i dont care what you think ..but the guy who has a half a second advantage because of this has a half a second advantage because of this.No matter what you say theres a big problem ..even if the guy is not that good ..he can still win because of this.
I mean wtf.For me this is like steroids in real sport equaling bs.No matter what you say i think this is total bs.unless you upgrade and spend tons of money doing so and try and play endless hours comming back from a real job so you can pay your plane ticket and take a chance.
mrs i have a t1 connection...well this again is whaterver you want to call it.
mrs i like to cheat and i'm a growing majority in the gaming industry(very sad to see this happening...but what else can you expect from a 9 year old frustrated kid.

Pro's play against other pro's. They all have their own config files, and for Quake 3 you don't need a top of the line computer, same with PK. Most pro's play with low or medium settings. Quake 4 will be a different story because you WILL need a top of the line comp to play but it's logical why that has to be. So that the video card companies make more money for their newest cards, and I already mentioned this in what I wrote. Be real, hackers never go pro and win money, they are just what they are, cheaters.

Practice, experience, talent, dedication are what makes a pro in anything, including gaming. Pro gaming is a sport of its own in the making, and it WILL grow and you WILL hear about it on the news and even on ESPN. Someday this will happen but for now all we can do is hope.

Professinal gaming cannot be sumed up in a couple of words, sentences, pages, or even books. It's something you need to experince fior yourself and then draw your own conclusions on whether it has a future or not.

[EXEcution]

Great story and I like your thinking
Thank you Fox, I like my thinking as well. :cool:

[<<Hybrid>>]

i preferr to make my own game...cuz I think the highest priority always gets maker not user. Game developers makes more money than gamers and you are not 90-100% turned away from reality. Online friends and real life friends are very big difference, well if you dont like anybody to talk to you or support you in real life, then good solution is to sit 24hours a day at computer, sleep there, eat there, grow your stomach etc... lazyness :) Does other people around you suports that? no.
what about girls? Dont you like them? sitting at computer you wont get a girlfriend.
Ok for example you've decided to listen to your friend and go to party for one night. Would you have the same fun as anybody else there? no (first of all you wont know 90% of them).

Well, i dont complain or discourage you as well my mate, but face it! Thats truth.

This is what happened to me when i lived in Latvia. All i knew was my town, town i am learning at and PC... home-school-home-pc-sleep... everyday. no parties.
Now i was living half-year without internet and PC and i am completely changed to completely different character and becouse of very active and hard work i am doing (Metal refineries) my body shape changed instantly (compliments from friends) and i didnt get sick in all this time... I respect other people very much now and can find theme to talk about with almost everyone.

Face it again man.... you know i am right
So there is choise between A and B... or maybe there is even choise B? (literarry bull**** i know)
Please reply to this one, i really want to know what people thinks about my opinion

[SoulReaver]

Well you offer no reason as to why you think that it's pathetic so I cannot be offended by a comment that isn't backed by any facts. And pathetic is the last thing that pro-gaming is, in my opinion.

Here are my reasons why:

1. Your most likely need to spend very much time on the comp to be a pro gamer, where is the social interaction with people face to face? You won't get to know anyone well except for your "online" friends.

2.You'll most likely spend less time with family and friends and your bond with them will be gone.

3. Your not really helping anyone with anything. Sure, you may be helping the gaming community advance but whats that compared to being a doctor, engineer, heck anything. You'll be benefiting others more by choosing another career.

4. Lets face it, you'll never get a girlfriend/boyfriend. You just won't spend much time with them, mainly focusing on games. You most likely won't even know what to talk to them about or what to do with them, especially if they don't like games.

Yes I guess some of these ideas may be opinionated, but lets face it, its most likely to happen.

[Free Styler]

well......

their were lots of cheating going on in warcraft btw exe.
Cheating?A lot of articles were writtin about this on war of warcraft or whaterver.
teams being disqualified for this excat reason.
others games prolly also.
a utk4 player was a pro gamer and got disqualified also.
saw it on esreality.com once.sorry dont have the link of that article but....trust me it happens more then you think.


second i think you could have a better career in movie animation or whaterver elese career you would chose.

If you cant beat me in sam your not close from beating people playing these games.No offence my friend.

If you really want it start practicing a lot and i mean a lot.
like i said earlier take a 10 on 10 of natural skill guy and beat him when he has at least 10 hours of play a day.If you make it, good for you.I'll be more then happy to say i was rong but until then i still think i'm right.

last and not least sorry for the mistakes i made writting this :)

btw i forgot if one day you get a appartment 500 bucks a month
food 300 bucks a month
electricity phone internet cable 200 bucks a month.
toleit paper q tips soap shampoo clothes and related expenses has in going in a bar once in a while 500 bucks a month.

that's a TOTAL of 1500$ a month.
Make shure you win a lot of competitions in big lans to make a minimum of 20000 $ a year if you want to have a decent living.

But then again if you have a car and a house ....make shure you win a minimum of 50000$ a year to have a decent life.

Then again even 50000$ a year is considered a medium salary these days.

[EXEcution]

I have something to counter all of your opinions by backing up my replies with facts, examples, and exclusions. Firstly I would like to remind everyone that has read and/or responded to this thread that I personally do not want to become a pro gamer. I do not have the skill and talent it takes to become one just like not everyone can become a pro football player. I have said this before and ask that you read what I write CAREFULLY, I play games for my personal pleasure, not to reach a "goal".



i preferr to make my own game...cuz I think the highest priority always gets maker not user. Game developers makes more money than gamers and you are not 90-100% turned away from reality. Online friends and real life friends are very big difference, well if you dont like anybody to talk to you or support you in real life, then good solution is to sit 24hours a day at computer, sleep there, eat there, grow your stomach etc... lazyness :) Does other people around you suports that? no.
what about girls? Dont you like them? sitting at computer you wont get a girlfriend.

You do what you like Hybrid, whatever makes you happy and gives you satisfaction. But not everyone can and has the desire to make their own games, so they buy them from other developers. I do not feel like going into this whole reality/unreality deal. I belive that everything that exists and everything that can exist is real, whether it be games, living people, rocks, trees... everything.

I also belive that you do not have to sit in fron t of a computer to become a pro. Some people are gifted with natural gaming talent and they can pick up a game easily and play better than someone else. There is also the amount of experince a player has. Someone who has played CS from version 1.1 to 1.6 obviously has more skill than someone who has played non-stop for the past week.

Sitting at a computer will not get you a girlfriend, so that's why most pro and non-pro gamers don't sit and play all day long. A body cannot handle the stress that is caused by gaming withing the course of 24 hours or more. I game for a couple hours, do my homework, possibly read something if I'm in the mood, hang out with my friend if he's around, surf the web for info or just to post and a ton of other things throughout the course of my day.


Ok for example you've decided to listen to your friend and go to party for one night. Would you have the same fun as anybody else there? no (first of all you wont know 90% of them).

Yes this is true, but I do not like most of the people in my grade meaning that I would never go to one of their parties. They do very stupid and unhealthy things there most of which are much stupider than sitting at home and playing some sam. When I get a bit older then yes I will go out more but for now I like everything just the way it is.

Everyone is different and we all choose how to live differently.

SoulReaver:

1. Pro gamers go to LAN's where they meet real people, talk to them, go out with them, and party with them. A very social pro-gamer called socrates would probably back me up on this.

2. I game alot and have never lost a bond with a friend or a parent, sure there was some arguing on how I should spend less time on the computer, but I think that I am old and smart enough to know when I've had enough.

3. People need to learn how to help themselves. You cannot spend your entire life relying on others to do things for you. Most people would probably quit gaming altogether when they become doctors or engineers anyway. Fatal1ty has started a rather successful company through his gaming career so he isn't doing too bad for himself. You want to become a doctor or an engineer, FINE, there is nothing holding you back from becoming one here in America, I would rather see more people become researchers so that we could find a cure for cancer, but it's not going to happen just because I want it to.

4. It depends how much time you spend on the computer. Some people will never be happy with what they have. There are always good and bad points in having a girlfriend. Sure you love them, but how much are you willing to risk just because of love? These are tough questions and in the end you will have to decide for yourself what you want more.

FS:

As I said before, there are cheaters everywhere, people that steal, people who take steroids to enchance their athletic abilities, how can you stop them? Same goes for gaming. There are cheaters but they will always be cheaters and that's their problem, if they don't respect the gaming community why should we respect them?

Practice is all relative, along with experince, talent, and the amount of time you are willing to spend to better yourself. And no one makes a living out of just playing games yet.

I hope all that has cleared up some confusion on my part.

[<<Hybrid>>]

well.. emm
so you will go out when you will be a bit older? Right, so there is my opinion. That will be too late.
It wont be all the same, your friends will have different humor and attitude. So you will be bored with them and the best solution probably will be come back home and sit couple more hours playing sam :-)

thats IMO, mate. No offence from me!





you know i love you :D

[Free Styler]

on my part exe you do whaterver you want with your life and try and be happy doing so.

I was not trying to dictate you on how to live your life in anyway whatsoever.

I was just giving you my vision on pro gamming and what it has to offer for a future.

I was just trying to let you know that for my part pro gaming would prolly not be a good idea because of money related issues.

I do think that if you really wanted to become a pro gamer you prolly could.
I'm not trying to say that me being better in sam then you means you can't be better then me in quake 4 for exemple.

I'd honestly like to play with people on that level cause i'm a very competive person in sports and like challenge.
But that being said i think the amount of time required is minimum 6 hours a day at that level.At least for the first 2 months .

All and all like i said ,i'm not trying to be a a** towards you and say i'm better then you in anyway.

All i was trying to say is only very few pro gamers make a decent living out of this fatality being one of them indeed.

[TurlockJC]

nice writting everyone. Enjoy reading everyone's opinion:D

I personally wouldn't want to work as a gamer. As time passes by; I am starting to become more picky about the games I play. The means your not going to see me in the stores buying every FPS that comes out in the market, even if it is from a good developer.:thumbs:

I know that once I am 21,(which is soon) I am only going to spend 1 to 10 hours a week playing games at the most.

I'll probably be in the clubs or with my friends on the weekend:D

[Death Engineer]

Personally, I think balance is an important part of life. Sitting and playing games for 6, 8, even 10 hours a day is not healthy for multiple reasons (eyes, back, etc). There is just too much life to live to spend that much of the day playing games that, in the end, don't amount to a hill of beans.

I'm not saying that games are bad or that you're in need of psychological help if you do play games that much. I'm just saying that are missing so much more of life. I can say this freely without judgement because I am a very addictive gamer. Sometimes I have to reel myself in and reorient to what my true priorities are in my life: God, family, friends, etc. Again...games are not bad, and can be a healthy stress reliever. But don't let it take over your life. You are worth much more than your persona on a game.

On another note, I know you guys are young, but I want to say something: Don't do something (or quit doing something) just because you think it will "get you a girlfriend." You do need balance in your life, but if the only reason you leave the house is to "get a girlfriend", then you are going to be disappointed and frustrated. Have some balance in your life because you need it to become everything you can be. Go on a walk and appreciate nature. Spend some time with friends.

Trust me when I say that there is a universal attraction to someone who understands themselves and lives a balanced life.

[SALvation]

I don't think $1000 is very much if you think about how many hundreds of hours you practiced to get that good. It probably works out to less than minimum wage. Spend your hundreds of hours learning a skill that will make you employable in the real world and you will make a hell of alot more than that.

Also, there is no way a pro gamer has a house, wife, kids, and all the responsibilities that come with adult life. I can't see hoping to win the latest Unreal Tournament so I can pay my mortgage this month.

[SoulReaver]

SoulReaver:

1. Pro gamers go to LAN's where they meet real people, talk to them, go out with them, and party with them. A very social pro-gamer called socrates would probably back me up on this. So what? They meet up with people once for a day or two and then will only see them perhaps once every month on more LANS? You'll most likely just forget about them after the LAN and might never see them again. You won't make long lasting friendships by going to LAN's.

2. I game alot and have never lost a bond with a friend or a parent, sure there was some arguing on how I should spend less time on the computer, but I think that I am old and smart enough to know when I've had enough. You never lost a bond because your not a pro gamer. I am saying that if you were to be, you probably would. Some people who are pro gamers just can't stop playing and become addicted.

3. People need to learn how to help themselves. You cannot spend your entire life relying on others to do things for you. Most people would probably quit gaming altogether when they become doctors or engineers anyway. Fatal1ty has started a rather successful company through his gaming career so he isn't doing too bad for himself. You want to become a doctor or an engineer, FINE, there is nothing holding you back from becoming one here in America, I would rather see more people become researchers so that we could find a cure for cancer, but it's not going to happen just because I want it to. I was saying that there are many other jobs that help the world more than being a pro gamer. I was giving an engineer and doctor as an example.


4. It depends how much time you spend on the computer. Some people will never be happy with what they have. There are always good and bad points in having a girlfriend. Sure you love them, but how much are you willing to risk just because of love? These are tough questions and in the end you will have to decide for yourself what you want more. So are you saying that love isn't that important? Just because you have a girlfriend doesn't mean you have to stop playing games, just less. Heck, your girlfriend might enjoy playing games. Some pro gamers won't be able to get girlfriends due to a couple of reasons:

1. They will be going to many LAN and tournament events, which their girlfriend most likely wouldn't want to go to.

2. They won't know what to talk about with their girlfriends

3. Pro gamers play games a hell of a lot. Don't deny this fact, its the truth. Their girlfriends may feel like they don't care about them as much as games.

All in all, I guess your right about #4 exe. People have different opinions about whats more important.


Anywho, nice discussion guys.

[EXEcution]

All I can tell you (meaning everyone who has posted in this thread completely dissing pro-gaming) is to read the 'Hall of Fame" posts on esreality.com and actually learn something about pro gaming before judging it.

Not in one of your posts have you mentioned a single pro player and you keep on raving about the moral implications of gaming. It's for fun guys, and yet you THE GAMERS keep on pushing the fact that pro gaming isn't "worth the time and resources". I say screw all that and do what makes you happy. I would personally watch a Quake 3 demo of Zero4 playing Cooller than watching a game of baseball on TV. I would also rather wathc a QUake 3 frag movie then some corny Hollywood take on what the Resident Evil should be like on the silver screen.

Gaming to me is the future. If you read what I wrote instead of just throwing around your ideas you would understand that I HAVE NO INTENTION of becoming a pro gamer. I just like pro gaming as a whole and the amount of skill some of these players possess iimpresses me a whole lot.

[SoulReaver]

I didn't say you wanted to be a pro gamer first of all. Yes, gaming is for fun, but how are you going to make enough money and support a family that way? I also noticed that you chose to relate the Q3 vids to well...IMO crap. Ok some people do like baseball but most people that I know of hate watching it. Sure, Re sucked as well. But guess what? I would enjoy watching a crap load of other movies rather than some Q3 vid. I could name tons. Donnie Darko, The Last Samurai, Anchorman, etc.

Ok here is what I'm getting by you saying there would be no problems being a pro gamer:

John, an 18 year old decides to become a pro gamer. His parents have no objection to the fact that he is going to do so and allow him to sit on the computer playing games for 6+ hours everyday. His friends also support him in becoming a pro gamer. Even though he spends so much time on the computer, John remains active with a social life, talking with his friends and family and going to the movies, mall, etc with them. He begins going to LAN a couple of times a month, but still actively communicates to his friends and family. Somehow, he gets a girlfriend and they spend time together everyday. John eventually starts going to tournaments and actually wins enough money of them to support all his travels to LANS and tournaments. Eventually, he and his girlfriend get married and through tournaments, he gets enough money to buy an apartment for them to live in. To earn enough money he still goes to much tournaments, but always makes enough money for rent, food, clothes, etc. He also STILLS communicates with his family and friends. Eventually he and his girlfriend get a baby boy. But its no problem for him, for he makes enough money. Even though he goes to a lot of LAN and tournaments, he still helps nurture his kid and still see his family and friends.


Tell me how you could raise enough money to pay rent, food, clothes, appliances (oven, refrigerator, etc) by just being a pro gamer? Further more, how can he still have a good relationship with friends and family when he is going to LAN and tournaments a lot. How can he stay an important person in his son's life?

I know this is just a fake story, but tell me, you cannot do all this by just pro gaming. Exe chill man, we are just posting our opinions.

[EXEcution]

Who said that every pro gamer could support a family. Not every person in the world even GETS married and has children. By that time a person is usually mature enough to get a solid education and find a more fitting job that will get him enough money to support his needs. He can even become a web designer, programmer, game designer, etc. Wouldn't 'pro-gamer' in a resume for ID software be a nice plus on top of graduating from a higher ranked college that offers courses in programming games? In the future I would say 'YES!' Anything is better than nothing.

I think Fatal1ty is an excellent example of a pro gamer who could support a family through his company and semi-celeberty status. He is very enthusiastic, smart, physically fit (because he plays sports), an interesting persona to have around, not bad looking for a guy, and many other things. I also think that winning 1 million dollars through the CPL World Tour would be enough to last a smart person a long time. Don't think that there won't be other World Tours later on. The CPL has a TON of great sponsors so they have enough money to do it again with another game.

Most of you don't seem to be getting the point due to your lack of interest in pro-gaming and your lack of expertise. Please do research before posting your opinions and then you might start a good argument.

[EXEcution]

Please read this article on Microsoft.com (http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/games/learnmore/progaming.mspx) before posting your opinion. This guy has much more skill in writing than I do, and expresses himself more clearly and brings up great points backed up by FACTUAL material.

[Death Engineer]

Please read this article on Microsoft.com (http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/games/learnmore/progaming.mspx) before posting your opinion. This guy has much more skill in writing than I do, and expresses himself more clearly and brings up great points backed up by FACTUAL material.

Dude. You need to wake up and smell the roses. The fact that people actual posted something other than "you suck" or "I hate you" or "I look gay, don't I?" means that you have accomplished something here. Don't be offended because your essay got some attention and got people thinking. You have stated your case and some of us agree, some disagree. That's ok. The point is that you laid out a logical case about a reasonable subject.

This is a rarity on these boards lately, so for that I give you props. Now shut the heck up. :P

[Die Hard]

Well there is some good stuff in here. But "Pro Gamer" give it a wide berth.....

[Free Styler]

You keep referring to fatality has him being a image of some sort.
I mean dont get me rong ,the guy seems like a nice guy and all but him himself told or tells everyone he practices up to 8 hours a day.

i watched him play in one of the quake 4 vids you had posted.At the end when he gets up and looks at the crowd it looks like hes still trying to spot some more heads shot lol.

[EXEcution]

Dude. You need to wake up and smell the roses. The fact that people actual posted something other than "you suck" or "I hate you" or "I look gay, don't I?" means that you have accomplished something here. Don't be offended because your essay got some attention and got people thinking. You have stated your case and some of us agree, some disagree. That's ok. The point is that you laid out a logical case about a reasonable subject.

This is a rarity on these boards lately, so for that I give you props. Now shut the heck up. :P
Agreed. I will say no more about how other people should perceive gaming. :D :D

I hope that there will be more threads like this where people actually offer quality feedback. I am glad to see SAL's, FS's, and your posts here as well as Soul's, and Hybrid's. There is much to write about in the gaming community these days and we must open ourselves up and accept the changes, or deny them as intelligent people, not as 'gamers' or our made up personas.