Once again, it's Thursday, meaning the time has come to roll out this week's chapter of the Guide. Follow me through the jump, where you'll find another gamer archetype analyzed, scrutinized, dissected*, and moderately lampooned for your persual and delight.
This week's chapter is coming a little later in the day than originally planned due to malevolent ninja intervention**, but being the hardy, manly sort that I am, I've fought through those difficulties for the good of you, our readers, meaning that gamer number 10 is but a click away.
* Dissection will unfortunately be metaphorical only in lieu of the arrival of our surgeon's licenses. Don't worry though, we've found a web site which we've been assured can qualify us.
** The malevolent ninjas intervened by messing with my router. I didn't actually see them do it, but the whole job positively reeked of ninja.
#10 - The One-Game Gamer
The modern gaming climate is an incredible phenomenon. The rapid advancement of technology over the last couple of generations has put the creative minds of our favourite industry in a position where they can now make almost anything a reality. Old genres can be overhauled with all-new HD graphics, and complex physics engines allow all manner of new possibilities for interactivity. Online technology facilitiates connections between vast numbers of gamers and their chosen game worlds in ways which were mere fantasy a few years ago, and new innovations in control input are bringing about almost limitless scope in what a game can be and how the player can manipulate it. Gaming really is an endless buffet table of almost infinite flavor and texture now.
There are some gamers however, who don't seem to care about any of that.
The one-game gamer realizes how much is available, but just doesn't seem interested. He is aware of the vast spectrum of gaming available to him, but somehow, it just all feels peripheral to his needs. The ongoing march of development and cross-pollination really does seem to be a waste of time to him, as the games industry has clearly already produced the pinnacle of its past and future achievements, and he already owns it.
There was a point, probably several years ago now, when he wandered the videogame landscape like a nomadic ronin, dabbling in the many varied experiences of gaming, but never really finding one which felt like home. Now however, he is fully aware of his place in the gaming environment at large, and having moved in his furniture, redecorated, filled the place with knick-knacks, and put his feet up in front of the TV with a cup of coffee, there's no way he's ever moving out. He knows which game, and which game alone, is worth playing, and the disc-slot of his console has been glued shut once and for all, lest anyone ever try to make him change what it contains.
Since he found his game, everything else has been so much an irrelevent diversion. His game is not only the absolute height of its genre, but is so good that it transcends genre, providing everything anyone could ever want in a videogame experience in one title alone. Show him anything else, on any format, from any era, in any style, and while he might nonchelantly prod the buttons for a minute or two, the look of distrust on his face will say it all. He'll know from the start that it isn't going to be as good as his game, and a two minute fumble with the controller is all it will take to prove him right.
However, while you should never point it out to him, the chances are that his game isn't actually that good. It's probably thoroughly enjoyable in its own way of course. After all, none but the most misguided videogame elitist would spend every waking hour pouring his energies into something bad. But the defining moment of the whole medium? Maaaybe not. Something other than pure game quality alone is at play in the one-game gamer's attitude, although he'd never admit it to you himself.
Sometimes a strong community based around a game causes this devotion, and there's nothing wrong with that at all. A strong social element based around or within a game can make a good experience great if the right people are involved. As much as gaming is a technology-led medium, it is nothing without the human element, and a strong sense of camaraderie can quite easily overtake gameplay as the driving force for participation.
At other times, the game in question may be a security blanket, an early gaming love which introduced him to a genre, and which, shielded by a thick shell of nostalgia and a personal connection, has remained preserved in its perfection to his eyes, as flawless and fresh now as it was the first time he ever laid thumbs on it. New and more advanced variations may come and go, but none of them will ever have the same feel as the game which started his passion. Like sleeping in your own bed for the first time after coming home from a vacation, the old favourite might not be as technically impressive as other examples, but it just feels right.
There is one kind of one-game gamer however, who is as such for much less benevolent reasons. There is unfortunately a certain type who only plays one game because he can only play one game. He's mastered his chosen title, developed a formidable set of skills, become rather good indeed at seeing off the competition, and now absolutely refuses to go back. He's put months of his life into honing his now considerable abilities, sacrificing sleep, social events, and the health of his previously non-calloused thumbs in order to become pro, and there's no way he's letting his now godlike image become fractured for the sake of playing a game he doesn't know.
If you're playing his chosen game with him, he'll be perfectly happy, quietly show-boating his talents, knowing that this is the one game that no-one in the room will beat him at. Suggest anything else however, and the icy look of scorn will freeze your controller solid before the words even come out of his mouth. Those words are guaranteed to be a set of hastily ad libbed reasons why the game you are suggesting is not only terrible, but makes you a terrible person for insulting him with the offer, and will never be played in his house. A few months later, when he's quietly bought a copy and put some practice in, you may well find he's changed his mind completely about the game's quality, but until then, you have no chance.
Games Played
While a number of one-game gamers stick with older titles, claiming that "They just don't make them like this any more", most prefer more modern, well-known fare with a large community element. World Of Warcraft is frequently a game of choice, as is Halo. There are also franchise variations, such as the Final Fantasy loyal, and a great many will buy one Nintendo console every generation simply for Smash Bros. The show-boating one-game gamer will naturally always go for titles with a strong competitive element, so beat-'em-ups and shooters come up very often.
How To Deal With Them
Learn to love their game as quickly as you can. It's the only way you'll ever enjoy any multiplayer with them. Other than that, never spring a new game on them unexpectedly. Venturing outside of their safety zone will be a massive, if not impossible step for them, so it's best to let them quietly take the initiative, lest the shock to the system cause irreparable damage.
Index
Chapter 1 - Back-Seat Gamers and Closet Gamers
Chapter 2 - Chav Gamers
Chapter 3 - Fluffy Gamers and PC Snobs
Chapter 4 - Technical Gamers and Japanophiles
Chapter 5 - Aggressive Gamers and Ghosts
My girlfriend only plays WoW and Ecco the Dolphin. Sometimes when the 360 is on she goes into fits of rage like a caveman would as if she doesn't understand what's going on and it's upsetting her.
Variety FTW.
One game gamers are typically not all that bad of folks, they just fear change. A good portion of my friends are one game gamers, and getting them to even try something else is a chore.
I have a friend who is similar to that. He only owns a PS2 and he doesn't seem to understand why most people have moved on from it. He also doesn't seem to understand why a new cross-platform release would look the worst on a PS2, compared to a 360 or PS3. I swear, if he wasn't a sensitive kid, I'd smack the shit out of him.
Admittedly, I'm also kind of similar, in that I only own an Xbox and a small handful of games, but that's not entirely by choice. Sadly, gaming just can't be a financial priority for me, right now.
Ecco the Dolfin is the greatest games evar. sega CD ftw.
and I had friend who fit in this category; his game of choice was Unreal Tournament (all or both iterations whatevr.. I don't know never played it) but I shouldn't talk because my Halo:Other Games ratio was like 364:1 for a year. but yeah he would only play UT at the local collegiate library. and we was a bit elitist about it. he hated the xbox, no doubt about it.
ehhh.. sorry *he - not we
Most One Game Gamers I personally know are all about GTA. A few of these never even moved on from III, because as far as they're concerned "Fuck that 80's/gangsta shit."
My little brother used to only play FF7 for like 3 years.
I'm usually hip to the lingo, but what the hell does IK+ mean?
=( you got me.
Tekken is PS2.
yeah, I'm starting to lose interest in actually PLAYING games, but as soon as the smash bros comes out, things will be different..
SMASHBROSMASHBROSMASHBROSMASHBROSMASHBROS.....
i LIK SMASH BROAS LOTZ
IK+ is the sequel to International Karate, a 2D fighter by System 3 (I think). It was released on C64, Speccy, Amstrad and Amiga. It was the spiritual successor to Way Of The Exploding Fist and was very similar in format and control although far more polished.
It was unique in that it has a 3-way, 1 vs 1 vs 1 fight dynamic with every man for himself.
It also 'hilarious' codes where if you pressed certain keys while playing different effects occured, like the fighters pants falling down!
Obviously, it was and still is the best game ever made and anyone who disagrees is a cunt.
I was a 1 game guy for about a year I must admit. G.R.A.W. was the center piece of my downtime. But I've since kicked that habbit. Now I play other FPS's.
This is my brother with Gears of War, except he sucks at it.
Good post.
My old housemate was like this. Although he was a 2 game gamer. The only games he ever bought were Pro Evolutionand Smackdown. To be fair though he did buy each yearly upgrade. Still...
i have a friend who has a 360, but has not played gears of war. . . it just sits with halo 2 in the drive since hes bought it. . . so fucking sad.
Man, I guess (and I'm not exxagerating on this) something near 60% of the total of PS2 owners in this fucked up country called Brazil are one-game gamers. And, yeah, you guessed it: it's Winning Eleven/Pro Evolution Soccer.
Seriously, that's just how fucked up this country is.
my friends and i still get together to play smash bros/melee, up until a few months ago it was a weekly thing. that game is seriously amazing, i could play it forever.
but i plya other games too. lol.
OMFG, i just noticed the names of the butterflies.
you win.
This is the closest one to myself, if only as my total antithesis. I got a new game the day before yesterday, another the day before that and I'm getting two more right now. I can't stop myself, I must play EVERYTHING.
Good read, maintaining consistency.
Had to sign up just to post. I am totally without a doubt a one game gamer. ( I actually play a few) But I have been playing the original Unreal (not UT) for over 8 years now in a mod called infiltration. The community is what keeps me playing. And like the article says I am fairly good at the game, and everyone on there knows me (probabably about 200 people) Every game that comes out now in the fps category I just think meh, Unreal can do that. Bullet time? Try slomo .2. A lot of the people that still play the game also make new maps and weapons all the time. For such an old game there is a map with a huge deathstar, and fighters that you can get into and fly, and you can play with the lightsabres that were made which can slash or deflect bullets. I also play other games that are unique, like smash brothers, or red faction (with geomod). I will try other games, but Unreal is the best, and I always hand out copys to my friends to play, which they do not since you die shortly after starting. Anyways great article, and you haveme down to a T. LOL
I’ve always been a bit of a one-game gamer because I buy systems for killer apps. I bought a Genesis just to play Hard Drivin’ and it was the only game I played until Mortal Kombat came out for it. I can’t remember what my killer app was for the PS1; it was either Dark Forces or Twisted Metal II. I almost bought a PS2 just for Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (specifically that GTA and not the others, Mxyzptlk)--I still might a PS2 and GTA:VC used if I start making more money next fall. I would have liked the gangsta sequel if it had just been about driving around wasting people; but all that eating and shopping and spray-painting and riding bicycles kind of ruined the escapist fantasy for me.