AlanBarber.Org
Thursday, February 26, 2004
How to Get Your Woman to Game
I found this funny but intriguing article about getting your girlfriend/wife/etc to play video games with you at Gaming Nexus. At first I thought it was going to be just sort of a joke article about girls and gaming but it turns out not to be. It turns out to be a very good article designed specifically to explain the dos and don'ts to guys.The article covers just about everything a guy should think about when trying to get his girlfriend/wife/etc to join him in playing video games. From the basics like making sure she's comfortable with the controllers by giving her the best one you have to choosing games that will be easy to understand and play. These are thinks you would expect to be logical but it's nice to point it out. There's nothing worse than giving her the crappy controller that has buttons that stick or making her play a complex game that expects the player to manage lots of tasks at once.
It suggests you pick games that will appeal to her and that's another obvious duh! It specifically mentions games such as Animal Crossing, The Sims and Dance Dance Revolution. I would agree these make good starting games that would appeal to many females. They don't require fast reflexes or complex button usages. More importantly they're fun to play because you can relate to them. Games like Animal Crossing and The Sims are really very much like playing virtual dolls. While at first it may sound insulting to make a grown up women play dolls the games are more complex than you think and can be quite addicting. I'm not embarrassed to admit I like playing Animal Crossing. It's a lot of fun. You interact with animals by talking to them, playing games and writing letters. You collect items, go fishing, hunt bugs, dig up fossils, and more. Best of all the game uses a real time clock so the game matches the real world. It changes seasons in the game the same as the real world. So right now in my town it's covered in snow and boring. In another month it'll start to get brighter and there will be new things to do.
The article also covers other things like sharing your memory card with her. Don't be selfish and let her save games and characters on your card.
quote:
They'll want to feel like their place in your life is secure, gaming included. That?s why you need to go out of your way to include them in your gaming experience, to let them know that their presence still remains even when they?re not around.
Ok, I have to sorta disagree with this one. All right, I see the point he's trying to make but at the same time there's the issue of accidents like her erasing you're save games or characters. When you spend weeks working on a game it sucks to loose all that work. Sure the whole sharing thing sounds good but I think the opposite could be just as true. Going out and buying a card just for her might seem like a thoughtful gift. It's saying "You're not just a second rate player that gets to only save wherever I let you. I care enough to give you your own memory card to use as you want". Well that's what I think.
Finally it talks about sharing your games and even *gasp* your system with her. Letting her borrow the system for a while to play at her home. This is definitely a good thing. Not only does it show her you're willing to let her borrow your systems but it gives a good excuse to spend time at her place. She won't feel like she has to always come over to your messy place because you want to play games. Then, because you're at her place it lets her feel like she's in control and can choose the game or even decided not to play. Although as a guy you don't want that, the gesture of power giving makes her feel good.
So that's enough of my ramblings. Go read the article because I'm sure you'll find it very good.
on 02/26/2004 at 02:47 PM
News says that women around 40 plays games because they’re bored; most plays The Sims. It’s odd that some people are still in disbelief, someone like my uncle.
Anyway, I think that someone should get the old folks to play games, too. My grandmother likes to watch me play Diablo II. Gaming is seriously for all ages.