Ben-DutkaI've done articles on girl gamers before and in fact, one of them generated such an outpouring of feedback from female gamers everywhere that my inbox exploded over the weekend. But I've been wondering: we all tend to assume that a guy gamer's fantasy is to find a really cute girl who is also into his favorite hobby. And as the industry grows and the years wear on, this is becoming less and less of a novelty.
So the question is, does your significant other or girlfriend play video games? And if so, are you responsible for getting her into this form of entertainment or did she already have a big ol' game collection when you met her? And if you are currently without a lady, do you want to find someone who shares your enjoyment of the interactive video medium? …how many different names can I come up with for "video games?" Anyway, the goal is to see if the old-school "fantasy" remains the same for both long-time gamers and gamers from a new generation. Personally, I'd have difficulty finding anything wrong with a girl who plays games but at the same time, perhaps there's something a little boring about being with someone who's too much like you. I mean, I suppose there's no shortage of conversation due to your shared interests but sometimes, there are particular differences between couples that prove to be the most appealing and, well, "spark-inducing." So, what's your take on this? Anybody ever date a chick who loved games but still turned out to be intolerable?
I suppose my problem is that my generation never really had girl gamers. That would be like guys playing with Barbie dolls; it just wasn't done that often. Therefore, women around 30 years of age still don't understand gaming and see it as a kid's hobby…but then again, I've outlined all this before. I'm not about to start again. 😉
redskins?! bah! and to think i thought you were cool! 😛
j/k. you're still cool. even though you like the redskins.
Too funny that! The only reason anyone would ever be a skins fan is because they live in VA. Do you live near DC Metro?
I would have never pinned you as a Madden guy, with all the love for RPGs and anime. Believe it or not, my girl was the one who got me into basketball.
I lived in the DC area when I was a kid, it was my first football team. Then we moved abroad and I had no football for years. When we did eventually get TV coverage of the NFL, the Redskins were doing really well (it was the original Gibbs years), so naturally I went right back to the Redskins and through thick and thin (lots and lots of thin) I've stuck with them. Last year was not a good year to be a Redskins fan, neither were th two years before that.
@Nynja,
I play Madden as a simulation game – franchise mode. I don't do the superstar thing, or play as the QB or whoever. But the strategy of Franchise mode has me hooked – plus I love seeing my team win the Superbowl when I successfully guide them there…
Last edited by TheHighlander on 5/3/2010 4:45:20 PM
my ol' lady (fiancee)loves to play games, especially with me. she says it feels like we're "bonding", whatever that means. for single player, she actually introduced me to god of war 1 in 2005(?) and had a PS3 before me! she loves her some kratos. she also loves the manhunt series, ratchet and clank, and of course the sims, and katamari, saints row and GTA, LBP (she used to make levels) and tons of other stuff. i just got her to play super street fighter 4 and she was ripping off ultra combos with cammy in like 5 minutes. but then her thumb almost fell off, lol. she's got some conditioning to do!
she doesn't like blazblue though. 🙁
i think it's because i spend so much time trying to perfect my combos every night. she doesn't like disgaea either, for similar reasons. 😛
yeah, its fun to have a gamer girl, even if she can't game as much since we've had our daughter. 🙂
Last edited by Rings0fUranus on 5/3/2010 2:49:19 PM
I wish mine was a gamer or at least would play some games. It would be nice cause then I wouldn't have to listen to her complain about me playing. Oh well guess I can't have everything the way I want.
Hell it might be better that way cause then we might be fighting over who gets to play.
Babes and games is a rarity
Most of them are pretentious*
For the most part they'll act as if they actually like games but they're only really into 1 or 2 series (Tekken, Final Fantasy)
Rarely will you ever meet a gamer babe which will actually list Motorstorm, Street Fighter, Resistance, and Gran Turismo in the same breath
Not saying that liking one or two games/series doesn't make you a gamer. But it just feels very pretentious (limiting) to me. Specially with the variety PS offers
My Fiancee is on the couch playing a game right now. She doesn't play that often but when she does she gets right into it.
She also likes to watch me play games especially action like Bioshock or Uncharted, anything that moves along fairly quickly. Good times.
Not that rare Scare (IT'S BEEN A WHILE PEOPLE WHAT'S UP?!) XD, my ex played a lot, but now I'm dating some NFS/Guitar Hero fan, I have a blast watching her play cuz it's really rare to see a girl having rage attacks with video games!!!
Ok I know thats prob really funny….never seen my misses throw a fit (she just turns off the game and watches some UFC.)I think it would be pretty cool to see a chic get mad over a game. That means she INTO it! Kudos!
to you take and ravage her right there?
my wife has a wii and my old DS. shell play games like Peggle, Mario, Wii Sports, and Uno occasionally. Shes more interested in the storylines for games like Assassin's Creed, Uncharted, and GOW, to the point she'll read the spoilers and know how they end before I do.
Amazing. Some of you have pretty tolerant wives or girlfriends.
My wife on the otherhand sees gaming as an addiction and something I do to avoid speaking to her (she even gets annoyed when I play when she is asleep!).
She does join in during party nights playing Buzz Quiz TV, Singstar and The Beatles Rockband. Anything else with the controller is too much.
She says things like "you love that stupid console more than me" and "I wish I was born a Playstation so you would talk to me more!".
So game time is pretty limited otherwise I get the scowl. She sees it as a kids hobby.
Obviously she has a point if I was gaming whilst she was cooking or putting the kids to bed. Usually I try and fit it in when she isnt in or awake.
40 hours into Fallout 3 at the moment so she may have a point. That game is impacting on my work/life/wife/gaming balance…
I also have Oblivion on the shelf. Too scared to play it!
No offense, but you two need to have a talk.
Hey Gordo, Ben is correct.
I have been married for over 18 years, and the one thing I always have strived to do was to make sure my wife does not feel threatened by my Playstation. My wife is my best friend afterall.
I am constantly talking to her about my gaming. I even ask her if I am playing "too much" as well.
Communication as always, is key in marriage. Especially when it involves doing seperate things from each other.
Based on my experience and my happy marriage, I recommend that you find the 50/50 balance with her and your hobby. Split your gaming time with (for example) watching her favorite TV show with her. Things like that go a long way my friend.
I hope I didn't come off to preachy, but after reading your comment, I felt compelled to respond.
Last edited by maxpontiac on 5/3/2010 5:32:45 PM
cheers guys.
Yip, communication is the key. Re-reading my comment I do come across pretty critical of my wife. Its not that bad…
Obviously being married 10 years with a 6 year old girl and a 4 year old boy quality time most definately needs to be shared between everyone.
I was more amazed at all the people with video game playing girlfriends. I always thought it was a 99% male hobby.
Ya man, talk to your wife and budget some time that she agrees to, and make sure you give her plenty of attention.
I get about 10pm-midnight to play games usually, and then play a bit on the weekends when she is at work and I am not.
She does play, but I play more than her, and she doesn't play shooters, or games like Grand Theft Auto or God of War… so I gotta do those in my allotted time.
Mine is definitely a gamer. She even likes the same type of games that I do. It's amazing. She's amazing. 🙂 <3
That sounds like loooove, HIGHFIVE
That sounds like loooove, HIGHFIVE
Haha hearing "My wife." from alot of these comments made me realize just how very young I am amidst this community. Ooh, youth, how it makes you wish to be an adult but oh how adulthood makes you long for youth. Quite a vicious cycle, don't we all agree?
(Sigh) Life…
Yup.
Very true.
Dude i turned 20 yesterday. It feels……strange. haha
Still not married (y)
Wish I was 20 again.Sigh, with all this knowledge I have now.
What's that saying? The youth is wasted on the young. Maybe Dutka can name that literary reference?
I'm single now, but my last serious gf wasn't just a non-gamer — she was HOSTILE towards gaming. I spent one — ONE ! –afternoon trying to finish FF VII: Crisis Core. We had a date later that night (we lived together too) so I figured hey, she can fend for herself while I try to get through this insanely long final boss battle. She effin' LOST it, and we broke up less than a week later. We had a lot of problems, obviously, outside of games, but Crisis Core pissed her off something FIERCE. I had no ambition, she said. I was lazy, she said. That was 18 or so months ago. I still can't wrap my head around it.
Do I need a girl that plays games? Jeez, I'd be more than happy to date someone who isn't FURIOUS with the fact that I enjoy the odd game here and there!
Women in your life .
hahahahaha looooooooool
I've been between gf's for longer than I'd like to admit but my ex was at least a casual. She mostly watched but she obviously loved her snes back in the day.
What is this "woman" you speak of?
I think a lot of you would be surprised by how many female gamers there are. They are very ninja like, though.
There are a lot of girls who play RE5 versus mode… just a little friendly tip. ; D
Yes. I am back on the site. The articles that were bothering me pretty much stopped a long time ago.
Call me a hypocrite you want.
While my wife of three years wasn't a gamer when I met her, she grew up in a household where her older and younger brothers and younger sister play games.
So, after three years of marriage, she has slowly started to game more. She likes puzzle games, but she also gets into fighters like Soul Caliber and racers like Burnout Paradise. Plus I bought her a DSi that she loves. She, too, likes watching me play games like GOWIII, Uncharted 2, or Heavy Rain.
My wife is definitely a gamer, and has been long before I met her more than 10 years (gah!) ago now, oh and she's 32 so don't say 30+ women don't play games, you just need to look closer!
She loves playing Guitar Hero & Rock Band on the PS3, and she's basically as good as I am on both guitar and drums, and she can play pretty much any song on expert on the guitar. She also loves RPGs and RTS games, mainly on PC but also some PS3 games, and used to love playing Diablo II and the Command & conquer / Red Alert series. I remember we played through one of the first action/RPGs Untold Legends: Dark Kingdom on the PS3 on co-op together, not that great a game, but overall fun still, especially playing co-op together. We also played through the PS2 game Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance together which was a lot of fun, unfortunately we haven't been able to get hold of the second game yet.
Right now she's constantly playing LOTRO (Lord of the Rings Online) which sometimes gets me on my nerves as it can be hopeless to get her to stop playing 🙂 Of course, to her credit I can be the same way with other games so I guess we're equally hopeless :p
Unfortunately a lot of the games coming out nowadays are either "first-person" or very camera-angle-3Dish which she can't play because it makes her ill with all the camera rotating stuff, so a lot of AAA-type PS3 games she can't/won't play. Even though they're otherwise great games, she'll probably never play Uncharted 2 because there's too much camera movement going on in some scenes, although she did seem to enjoy playing God of War III…