The Video Game Subculture

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ncne21

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Hello!

For my final project, I am working on a journalism piece about the subculture of video games. The piece has to talk about the history of video games, have interviews/quotes from real people who play games AND design, talk about why the subculture is so big in our society and what about it has made a subculture.

I would love to work one on one with you about this, because the final project is due in December but for now, I need a rough draft.

Thank you so much, and please message me any questions

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Attached.

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Student’s Name
Instructor’s Name
Course
Date
The Video Game Subculture
Introduction
Relaxation is deeply embedded in human nature. Video games have proven to be able to
provide adequate relaxation and enjoyment whenever people have the time to do so (Granic,
Lobel, and Engels 66). The rise and rise of video games has paved the way for the development
of the video game subculture. The continued growth of computers and other related technologies
has had a stimulating effect on the unprecedented popularity of video games that we are
witnessing today. While the subculture has been propelled by a broad array of factors, mobile
games and the internet culture have been the most instrumental.
People who play video games often consider themselves as gamers, though the term is a
bit broad and somewhat ambiguous because it may imply anyone from a starter, a core player, or
a professional who earns from gaming. The availability of multiplayer and online capabilities has
exposed most of the dedicated gamers to both local and global social networks. Since most of
these networks are organized based on shared games, expertise, and interests, it is reasonable for
shared values, beliefs, and philosophies to gradually develop among the players, and thus this
becomes a group that can be considered as a sub-subculture. In this vein, the video gaming
subculture continues expanding across the horizons.
Posing Questions

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As it continues expanding exponentially, the subculture of video games raises various
questions to our society. First, what and who comprises the video game subculture? What
characters define its participants, members, or adherents? Are there particular classifications of
members of the subculture, something like amateurs and nerds? What are the implications of this
subculture on other modern subcultures, and on our culture as a whole? Does it integrate well
with popular culture? What do people outside the subculture view it? An in-depth examination of
the subculture and its major games and ways of interaction will evoke and provoke more
questions. For example, why are video game designers allowed to make explicit content yet
some of these games would typically end up being played by almost everyone who can access
them, including children? Why would a game like Game of Thrones feature sexual and violent
imagery? A more penetrating question in this regard would be: Why do we tend to view games
differently from films and cinema yet they all have similar effects on our society? While it may
be difficult to answer these questions directly, examining the video game subculture more
extensively may offer some insights into what it entails and may make use understand some of
the reasons why it is the way it is.
In this piece, I will explore the video game subculture and examine how it has earned a name in
modern society. I will also explore how I became part of this community, primarily through
playing some of my favorite games and attending a few video gaming events, both virtually and
physically.
Brief History on Video Games
The Early Years
The first gaming machine was unveiled in 1940 during a World Fair in New York.
During the few months that it was displayed, it was reported that the game had around 50,000

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participants. Interestingly, the machine won almost 90% of the games, but people still played on.
However, the first computer game meant for commercial production would have to wait until
1967 to be released to the masses. It was known as the ‘Brown Box’ and included such games as
checkers and ping pong. As technology continued improving, the game's capabilities were
expanded to include target shooting features using a light gun and golf putting game using
several special attachments (Chapman 23). The game gained popularity and would end up being
mass produced and marketed as Magnavox Odyssey, selling over 300,000 before its
discontinuation in 1975. This is arguably the onset of the video gaming subculture as we
conceive it today.
In around 1960s and 1970s, several companies had started expressing interest in arcade
gaming. In 1972, Atari became the game changer when it started designing arcade games for
large-scale sales, thusly creating a huge gaming community in the US. Pong was the first real
video game to hav...


Anonymous
Just what I needed…Fantastic!

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