A love letter to videogames

I'm a 33-year-old woman, I love my Switch, and that's ok

It's Christmas 1997; I'm eight. The whole family sits together to distribute the gifts at my grandma's. It's warm, we just ate a ton, and my large and loud family talks over each other¹.

It's warm because in Brazil, Christmas happens in the summer. The reindeer, snowmen, and all the other Christmas paraphernalia look frankly ridiculous when everyone wears t-shirts and dresses. I'm anxiously waiting for my present while sitting between my many cousins when it happens:

My Nintendo 64 was one of my most beloved possessions as a kid. However, that wasn't my first encounter with electronic games or even my first console. At that point, I had already spent many delightful hours with iconic Nintendo friends, such as Mario, Donkey Kong, and Kirby, as they traveled their 2D worlds on my Super Nintendo. But my first gaming experience was on a computer. I played Prince of Persia, Doom, The Lion King, and other games I don't even remember the names of on my old computer in the early 90s.

If you are not a video game person, I have probably already lost you. But if you keep reading a bit longer, maybe I can convince you, at least, not to think video games are stupid or a waste of time.

I know there's a lot of prejudice against them. I know because people are especially surprised by the fact that I play them on a regular basis. The main reaction is usually: “Wow, really?"

This person touches grass AND plays video games

The thing is, video games have always been with me. I grew up playing them and never stopped. It was a chance to pass the time, follow a story, have fun, and sometimes learn something².

But most of all, for me, it has always been a social activity. I played a lot by myself, but what I really love is having fun with others. Growing up, I played often with my sister, friends, neighbors, and cousins. We had great moments playing together, even if the game was meant for just one player. We would take turns; we would pass through it together, two heads solving puzzles, creating a Sims family, or building and managing theme parks.

Roller Coaster Tycoon gave me many creative and chaotic hours.

In that sense, video games are not so different from board games³. You get together with friends and have some fun competing or collaborating with each other. You talk trash, give high-fives, and have snacks and beers. It is fun, and we all feel more connected afterwards. Even when there are no friends over, I can count on my partner to play and have some fun.

Just like movies, TV shows, and other media, games have boomed in the past 10–15 years. There are just so many studios creating games and so many games being launched that it's almost impossible to keep up. It has become a fascinating medium to tell stories. The creativity I find just blows me away, and some of the visuals are beautiful. It's amazing to see.

This is a game! It's called GRIS

It's rotting my brain and wasting my time

Thankfully, my parents didn't believe that. Well, of course, I have never been awake all night playing video games or left playing inside when there were more interactive and natural things to do instead. I had a sane relationship with it, and my parents were a big part of the reason why. But people in the 90s (when home consoles became ubiquitous) were particularly scared about video games making children stupid or violent.

I mean, if you are a parent today and afraid of that, I am your guinea pig. I will tell you that I have always had amazing grades, and I am only extremely violent against mosquitoes. There are some studies that show that it actually increases intelligence, but none that clearly link video games to increased violence.

Now, the wasting time part is interesting.

I agree that some games are addictive. I would say that they are increasingly so. There are many, many games nowadays, especially ones involving microtransactions, that are made to keep players hooked and coming back. This is not healthy at all, and I have no idea how kids growing up with games designed to be this addictive will fare in the future.

At the same time, I feel like there's a stigma around "wasting time". We have this charged view of people watching TV, playing video games, or not doing anything useful or constructive. They are seen as lazy. Video games will not earn you money⁴, make you smarter than reading or studying, and cannot be used as a side hustle.

Playing video games is nothing more than having fun. Unlike hobbies that make you sound more interesting or allow you to learn a skill, this is a hobby that won't make you a better person. It's not useful for society at all. So, in a way, we collectively despise video games because they are simply for having fun and nothing more.

Why shouldn't we have fun?

Millennials like me have been the punching bag for over a decade. They say we don’t want to grow up and constantly complain about “adulting” on the internet.

But "adulting" is indeed hard. There are many economic and social factors that prevent us from reaching adult milestones such as having a house, getting married, and having children. I think those have already been discussed extensively in articles and video essays. But what I don’t usually see discussed is why we should fit into this model of milestones anyway? Why is “growing up” so great? Why do we have to stop enjoying things deemed for children or teens, like video games?

My Nintendo Switch is honestly my favorite piece of entertainment technology in my house. I know that there are many like me who grew up playing Nintendo and make up a substantial share of the game market. But, at the end of the day, video games are for kids, and I think, especially for women, there’s a lot of prejudice against playing them. Society views girls as maturing and growing up faster than men. Sometimes this means giving up hobbies or past-time activities that are not "mature".

For instance, after becoming a teenager, I have never had girlfriends my age who are into video games. When my older sister was 12 or so, she stopped playing with me. She said video games were for kids, and she never played them again. I think this is incredibly sad. I'm happy I could continue doing it, even if it meant I always had to play with men.

There shouldn’t be such prejudice and shock when I say I like video games. Men certainly don’t face or do much less at whatever age they are. We should allow ourselves to do whatever we like, even if it’s not everyone’s cup of tea or idea of how a 30-year-old woman should be.

Video games are meant for having fun, socializing, and even wasting some time. And why shouldn't we be able to do that?

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Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin

I LOVED this book, and yes, it is worth all the hype. It highlights all the reasons why I love video games: the storytelling, the craft of it, the social aspect, and the reassuring predictability in a world so unpredictable.

It's the story of two friends (Sam and Sadie) who reunite as young adults and start making video games together with the help of a new friend, Sam's roommate. Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow is about creativity, art, love, and life in general.

WarGames (1983)

I just watched this movie, and it's SO 80s. It features Matthew Broderick as David Lightman, a charming teenager (which was kind of a Matthew Broderick thing), who basically hacks into an FBI computer with a telephone. It is the most Cold War movie I have ever seen. There's the impending possibility of a nuclear war caused by a computer that wants to play games. This is something only the main character can solve, of course. It's not that great, but it's anti-war and anti-AI and features video games, so I was happy with that.

The Last of Us (HBO)

Video game movie adaptations are usually some of the most terrible movies ever. Fortunately, some series, such as Arcane and The Last of Us, are finally doing things right. By using the source material well while still delivering an engaging story to the audience.

Those not acquainted with The Last of Us game, like me, should feel confident about entering this world. It takes place in a post-apocalyptic US populated by zombie-like people infected with a fungus. Still, it finds humanity in the ruins, and that makes it worthwhile to watch.

1. Is there any other way of talking?

2. I don't know how many people in Brazil I know who have learned English by playing video games.

3. Something I also enjoy.

4. At least if you are not a professional e-sports player.