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Hey TL,
This is my 1st blog on the site. However, I've written a bunch of material about SC2 strategy. I really appreciate this site and everything that it does for the community!
A little about me:
I'm 26 years old, I play P, married, work for an IT company doing sales and marketing. I live in Canada and I try to get involved in as many SC2 community events as possible.
My main issue:
Some gamers are immature, perverts who need to climb out of their shell, learn some manners and start to act like normal people who actually contribute to society instead of acting like degenerates.
And now that I've got your attention here are...
My thoughts:
Games like CS, WOW, Halo, COD and now SC2 are bridging the gap between people who play video games and those who don't.
Before those games existed, HxC (hardcore) gamers kept to themselves in their mothers basements and were basically untouched by society.
However, now, HxC gamers have an outlet to play their game and find meaning and purpose doing it. As we all know, the pro scene is legit and the organization of competitive play at home is legit - eg, ladder ranks and tourneys. Furthermore, the internet is bridging the gap between pros and novice players. I can feel like i'm part of the pro scene when I play LiquidRet on the ladder. These things all make playing a game more legitimate. I'm no longer "wasting my time" because my time and energy is resulting in something similar to time and energy put into playing basketball or bird watching or knitting.
For example, my wife doesn't think its completely lame for me to play SC2 because she thinks it's cool i can climb the ladder and play online tourneys. She also thinks its awesome that i can go to local lans and be involved in a local SC2 community. For us, SC2 isn't a game, its more like a sport or a hobby like playing Hockey or Baseball in a beerleague.
So where am I going with all of this?
My wife, for example, still discriminates towards gamers. One of the main reasons why she doesn't like that I game is because I associate myself with greasy, nerdy, perverted people who get fat and are socially awkward.
My wife isn't the only one who thinks this way. A lot of my other "cool" or "trendy" friends (i'm huge into folk music so the majority of my friends aren't "gamers") also think of gamers the same way.
Even some of my work colleagues feel the same way about gamers and when i tell them i enjoy playing SC2 A LOT they are shocked that someone like me would enjoy such a thing, and when i tell them i like going to the local barcraft they almost roll over into their graves they are so shocked.
So I sit here and I think about all of these peoples oppinions and i am bothered. Not personally. But i am bothered that perhaps there are some gamers out there who still represent these stereotypes...
Perhaps there are gamers out there who stream and use words like Ni***r or Fa***t or who talk about rape and all sorts of inappropriate things that you would never talk about in any "normal" social setting...
Perhaps these people aren't helping our situation at all... Maybe they are leaches on society who are unmotivated and who are riding a free train for a couple years on the idea that "they are pro and trying to do something new and exciting as a career"...
At the end of the day, the more "legit" people in the scene will rise to the surface, and as SC2 gets more mainstream, they will show the world that gamers aren't greasy or perverted or unmotivated.
I still think that, we as gamers, need to grow up a little bit.
When we climb out of our holes to attend a Barcraft, we should take a shower and comb our hair and brush our teeth.
We should leave our ladder rage at home, and FOR GOD'S SAKE we should never say sexist things around our waitress or swear out loud at the screen when IdrA loses again.
If we wana be punks then we should get involved in the local scene where degenerates like to hang out. But as far as I can tell, SC2 is going mainstream, so we better jump on that bandwagon and clean ourselves up...
These are some of my thoughts on the matter. Sure, there is a time and a place for vulgar language and joking but i think it should be kept to closed quarters similar to a bunch of dudes joking around the kitchen table while playing poker.
In the end, people are still guna hold to the stereotypes if we uphold them. If you're all okay with being stereotyped in this way, then i guess this blog is pointless.
In the end, i'm guna keep playing SC2 despite the stereotypes because they don't really hurt my feelings and i genuinely love this game. I also know a bunch of sweet dudes who play, and we all represent a sweet image for the rest of the community.
Feel free to post whatever you'd like regarding my blog. I'm interested in everyone's ideas.
-CBK
EDIT - AND A QUICK NOTE:
I realize this blog is very negative towards the scene and I judge basically anyone who games or calls themselves a gamer.
I've been trolled a lot because of this and I believe I deserve the trolling.
I mostly wanted to write this blog and just share my thoughts. I know the title is strong and demands a course of action from the reader. Perhaps I should have made this blog more of a thought process than a call to action.
Some people have posted some pretty harsh things, and in return I posted harsh things back. I am a hypocrite and a judgmental jerk, but hey, aren't we all from time to time?
I should have put more thought into some of my "old fashioned" arguments, and if i could go back and rewrite the blog, i would change my approach. I am a little disgusted with some of the language that is used over b.net and streaming and i think our community could grow in maturity in that sense but even if it doesn't it will still be a welcoming place for people to express themselves freely and that's cool too.
In the end, these are my thoughts and I'm grateful to TL for letting me share freely and blog, even tho i am a dick about it. My hat goes off to this site and their willingness for everyone to just open up and share - even if we are just flaming and BMing each other. It's all helping us understand each other and grow as a community.
  
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Unnecessarily condescending and patronizing, also too much whining for my taste. 2/5
By the end I wouldnt have been surprised if you had called for some white knight crusade to try and rid the community of all that is vile and wretched lol
Take it easy.
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Blazinghand
United States25550 Posts
Although I may agree with most or all of your opinions, Sc2 (and gamers in general) are a diverse community. It's not my job, or yours, to tell them who they should be or what they can do. I'd certainly prefer if people wouldn't use bad language on the ladder or perpetuate a certain image regarding gamers in their private lives, but that's their personal choice, not mine.
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Those gamers who are already socialized will respond that they already know what you're saying.
Those gamers who are not will respond that they don't care what you and your trendy friends think.
Who is the intended audience here?
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On March 30 2012 03:17 Harrad wrote:
Unnecessarily condescending and patronizing, also too much whining for my taste. 2/5
You're also being unnecessarily condescending and patronizing. He brings up legitimate issues which have been brought up often enough before. Why don't you talk about what he says instead of posting a one liner? EDIT: I see you've added a bit more. Not to be taken out of context.
To the OP: The issue of maturity in gaming has been brought up several times before, and I agree with you that many of us need to step up their public appearances, if only for the sake of the commercial side of eSports (what people say or do in private is none of my concern).
BUT, the image of the sweaty, lazy gamer is a stereotype that is already being eradicated, IF slowly among people who do not assosciate themselves with the gamer subculture. Gamers are a diverse group of people, and - as you said - games like SCII help to bridge the gap between the casual and the hardcore.
It's going to take time. The eSports scene is still adjusting to the large amount of growth it has seen in the past two years.
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Don't swear at the screen when your player/team loses? That... is not a gamer thing, that's an every competition ever thing.
Though I will agree, I 100% judge people who don't shower / wear deodorant at tournaments.
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Fuck you nigger faggot. Go play the sims.
User was temp banned for this post.
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Yeah, you are kind of preaching to the choir here. FOR THE MOST PART, the people who are on TL are fairly intelligent and reasonable (I said "for the most part," don't jump on me, mods, telling how wrong I am  ). Those who are truly pricks get weeded out quickly.
And once more, the gamers who truly rage like that rarely will ever change their ways, especially because one guy on TL told them to.
However, the gamer demographic is expanding, so you really get all kinds of people. I always think it is funny to imagine someone over 24 raging at me over ladder, so I think it is mainly adolescent gamers who are so provocative. Those who attends BarCrafts, I would assume, are better than you describe.
EDIT"
+ Show Spoiler +On March 30 2012 03:33 TubbyIsAwesome wrote:
Fuck you nigger faggot. Go play the sims. Like this guy. A weed.
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Most of us agree with your sentiments about wanting to see a respectful and motivated community grow and flourish so that we can be taken seriously, but there will always be the few bad apples... in the same way that there are the jackasses of every sport.
Also, I found it funny that you're preaching to us to grow up, when you wrote "hardcore" as "HxC". What the fuck is that?
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On March 30 2012 03:33 CyDe wrote:Yeah, you are kind of preaching to the choir here. FOR THE MOST PART, the people who are on TL are fairly intelligent and reasonable (I said "for the most part," don't jump on me, mods, telling how wrong I am ). Those who are truly pricks get weeded out quickly. And once more, the gamers who truly rage like that rarely will ever change their ways, especially because one guy on TL told them to. However, the gamer demographic is expanding, so you really get all kinds of people. I always think it is funny to imagine someone over 24 raging at me over ladder, so I think it is mainly adolescent gamers who are so provocative. Those who attends BarCrafts, I would assume, are better than you describe. EDIT" + Show Spoiler +On March 30 2012 03:33 TubbyIsAwesome wrote:
Fuck you nigger faggot. Go play the sims. Like this guy. A weed.
It's funny how you act like you're a part of the community. Noone on TL gives a damn about what you say on here.
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Good thing no one ever screams and curses at the bar tv when their dumb fuck qb throws a pick
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On March 30 2012 03:17 Harrad wrote:
Unnecessarily condescending and patronizing, also too much whining for my taste. 2/5
No, i really think this is neccessary right now. This is how most people in the south think, that all gamers are like this and its truly disconcerting. Its like an entire community of some really great guys is defined by the truly loserish people who don't want to accept some of societies norms. Its like where i live and skateboarding, i personally skateboard (though apparently I'm a huge hipster according to my friends) i don't conform to the all black, punk skateboarding lifestyle and neither do most boarders here. I play SC2 when i can so I'm in gold league, when i could play more i was in plat and rising to the top near diamond, but thats not very good in comparison to where i could be if i tried hard. My point is that should i be judged as a skateboarder/lonboarder when i don't conform to that stereotype? Should gamers be stereotyped so badly (stereotyping happens but we can change that stereotype if we cleaned up our act)? The answer to both is no. I belong to a group, yeah I'm a nerd, but I'm a social nerd with a life and a cleaned up image. Not many of these greasy people do exist, but some do and they tend to create the stereotype because they are the most striking. The sum of what i am saying is that we need to clean up our image and put up a symbol of our changed look, we are now the Day[9]'s the Tastetosis' and BitterdaM's that represent us and they have a very clean image. That is what we should look like.
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Although some of your points are mildly legitimate as far as the topics of maturity and present ability in e-sports the underlying elitism through out the whole thing ruins your end goal, I honestly don't even know where to start with it and it's ultimately disgusting.
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You strike a few good points but most of it is just telling people to start caring about what others think of them
Which, to an extent, one should do, but definitly not to the extent that you're implying here.
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On March 30 2012 03:47 docvoc wrote:Show nested quote +On March 30 2012 03:17 Harrad wrote:
Unnecessarily condescending and patronizing, also too much whining for my taste. 2/5 No, i really think this is neccessary right now. This is how most people in the south think, that all gamers are like this and its truly disconcerting. Its like an entire community of some really great guys is defined by the truly loserish people who don't want to accept some of societies norms. Its like where i live and skateboarding, i personally skateboard (though apparently I'm a huge hipster according to my friends) i don't conform to the all black, punk skateboarding lifestyle and neither do most boarders here. I play SC2 when i can so I'm in gold league, when i could play more i was in plat and rising to the top near diamond, but thats not very good in comparison to where i could be if i tried hard. My point is that should i be judged as a skateboarder/lonboarder when i don't conform to that stereotype? Should gamers be stereotyped so badly (stereotyping happens but we can change that stereotype if we cleaned up our act)? The answer to both is no. I belong to a group, yeah I'm a nerd, but I'm a social nerd with a life and a cleaned up image. Not many of these greasy people do exist, but some do and they tend to create the stereotype because they are the most striking. The sum of what i am saying is that we need to clean up our image and put up a symbol of our changed look, we are now the Day[9]'s the Tastetosis' and BitterdaM's that represent us and they have a very clean image. That is what we should look like.
Yeah I see your point but how are we supposed to go about that? You do not cure a disease by treating its symptoms. That's my issue with this blog, it does a good job pointing out the baddies but does not actually provide any kind of viable solution, that's why I called it whining.
You see I don't doubt that CBK had good intentions writing this, but you need to understand that those kind of posts will almost always do more bad than good, if anything at all. He's basically saying: "I have no clue what to do about you or how to fix you but I hate you, so I'll post on TL to let people know so at least I can have some degree of satisfaction." How does that help anybody?
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I'm pretty sure that not all gamers don't already "take a shower and comb our hair and brush our teeth" when they go out. Unless you were raised by wolves or something I'm pretty sure you already know basic manners and basic hygiene. Like others have said before The gamers who are out to socialize have already cleaned up before they go out to a barcraft and The gamers that are living in their mothers basements probably don't care what you think. There is "cleaning up your act" to a certain extent but the bottom line is that people will act how they want to act. Perhaps a better solution would to be just to remove those providing a negative image in public via the establishment itself. As in, the bar kicking out the person raging and yelling obscene things. This is not limited to gamers at all. I've been to many bars where non-gamers are being rude and end up being escorted out of the bar.
Also, really bothers me how you use the phrases "legit" and "associate myself with" because you are implying that a majority of gamers are "greasy, perverted and unmotivated" and illegitimate. That they are not good enough people to be part of the e-sports movement. This seems to be a personal bias and not necessarily your friends because you use these terms multiple times, but you go on to say that you don't care and that you're "guna keep playing sc2" and you contrast that with "you and some other people provide a "sweet image" for the rest of the community. This seems pretty unnecessarily condescending to me.
This blog bothers me a lot. It comes off to me as you asking for people to change their culture just so you can earn the approval of your friends and wife. If it bothers you so much that they think you associate with these people maybe the best thing is to just not talk about it. There are many many more people promoting e-sports in a positive way and I have never seen anyone yell vulgar slurs at a barcraft or at any sc2 event. I've only been to two barcrafts and an MLG so I don't know if that really counts for anything.
Have you ever thought that just maybe your friends are the issue? Not the gamers? Now I'm not saying that they are or anything, but you should give it some thought. People can act how they want and outsiders to a culture should be open minded about how a certain group of people act and and interact. Try introducing your friends to starcraft2 and bringing them to a barcraft to change their opinions and stereotypes.
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1. Show her a picture of Nada, Bisu, Marineking...etc. Explain who they are.
2. ???
3. Profit!
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1/5. totally disagree with your blog..
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when i go to sports bars people shout swear words all the time when our team losses
ive also been to soccar games with people yelling some pretty bad stuff
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EPT
