By: Folashade Adetuyi
Aaryan Shetty, 22, is a Seneca Polytechnic student, studying in the Esports Marketing Management Program. He started playing video games on his PlayStation 2 as a kid. He took a break from playing video games but started playing more frequently during the COVID –19 lockdown and has stayed active since. “I spend 14- 20 hours a week playing video games,” Shetty says.
Some might say he’s addicted to video games and he’s wasting his time. It’s a bad reputation gamers have faced for years.
What is a stigma? According to Merriam Webster, a stigma is a set of negative and unfair beliefs that a society or group of people have about something. How can we define video game stigma, then? This type of prejudice stems from negative stereotyping and calling someone lazy or a child for playing video games. Shetty says that is a narrow view.
“Games are not just wasting your time, it’s actually a proper hobby that keeps you entertained, it’s like you are doing something skillful, while also having fun,” Shetty says.
Video games first appeared in the 1950s. They became more accessible to the public in the 1970s with the introduction of home consoles and arcade games. Today, video games are a global phenomenon. With an industry valuation exceeding $100 billion, their impact continues to expand, reaching audiences worldwide and transforming the way we play and interact. Esports has become one of the biggest industries for video gamers to compete in their profession. According to Esports Insider, Esports (Electronic sports) is a form of competition using video games. Esports is used for online virtual tournaments, or in-person events for online spectators and/ or a crowd.
The Program Coordinator of the Esports Marketing Management Program at Seneca@York, Professor Amir Fallah, says there is more to video games than passing the time.
“Esports allows video gamers to step up their gaming past a hobby. It allows them to take a hobby to the next level and monetize it, maybe turn it into career, whether on a business side or a playing side.”
Many parents worry about violent video games’ effects on kids. Video gamers earn millions in competition, and some compete for charity events to raise money. Despite these benefits, parents still believe gaming creates long term negative effects on their kids. Is this concern justified? Or just an exaggeration?
“I think there should be a limit to it. I feel like parents of the previous generation are still getting introduced to it, and that kind of makes it scary because they only see news about the bad effects. They feel like it’s not good for your children, but I feel like parents maybe need to explore video games more, when they do I feel like that stigma around video games will change drastically,” Shetty says.
Fallah agrees, “For years parents will tell their kids; to stop playing video games or stop having so much screen time it’s damaging to you, knowing they can’t win that war because digital is part of our lives. The idea now is to embrace it, so the stigma is being converted to don’t do this into let learn more about this, so we can consume this safely.”
Critics of video games says they are dangerous because
- Video games cause players to become more violent and lead to social isolation, according to CPYD.
- It causes negative effects on physical health, which is another concern relating to excessive video game playing, according to mediasmarts.
- According to AddictionHelp.com, video games are shown to be an addiction that can lead to anxiety, depression, and even thoughts of suicide.
According to Sutter Health, video games are shown to be a resource that helps improve our mental skills, such as: problem solving and logic. There are many psychologists and scientists who believe that playing video games offers higher-level intelligence and abstract thinking skills. “Games allow you to live out your creativity, games like Minecraft expand your visions, and opportunities to make things that are not readily accessible to you to make in real life,” Fallah says.
Overall, Shetty says video gaming is about finding a community that supports you. “Esports is definitely one of the inclusive industries, we are very diverse no matter who you are, what you think in life, you are always welcomed.”
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