I remember
Written on Aug 01, 2008 // Thoughts.I remember people mocking me for reading superhero comics, now we have Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk and a new Punisher movie all on the big screen in one year.
I remember people thinking that playing computer games was just for kids and silly, now everyone and their granny either has an X-Box, DS or is hopping on the Wii bandwagon.
I remember people saying I was a computer nerd for getting on the internet, now everyone has internet even on their freakin’ cellphone.
The trouble with all those things going mainstream is that the quality goes down because it ‘has’ to be adapted for the idiot masses, which usually makes it lose its appeal that drew us to it in the first place.
Try wading through hundreds of spam blogs and ad ridden sites to find an old school gem of knowledge.
Try finding a game that makes you raise an eyebrow instead of being same old same old rehashed and dumbed down to infinity.
I miss the old days.
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Humane
Aug 02 2008, 1:43Well written. I think this is your best and most interesting post in a while. :)
Littlemog
Aug 02 2008, 2:08True, although pretty much no-one at my work plays computer games, and they’re like “OMG Wow you can do that?!” when I say I built my computer because it’s cheaper. That said, it’s a women’s clothes store so maybe to be expected.
And although all the guys at my college and secondary school were into games and stuff, girls are still considered geeky for it by other girls, and for some reason a lot of guys. Not so bad at uni because they’re more mature, and I hang out with the guys doing 3D and wanting to go into games :P
I think the only girls I know IRL that’re into games are only into WoW O.o But then, you’ve got to be a really close friend before they’ll ‘admit’ it.
(I’m mildly amused by the way the PS3 is missed out being as it’s one of the ‘big three’, btw :P any reason?)
Julynell
Aug 02 2008, 9:34you’re in a nostalgic mood lately, aren’t you? :) But I agree, I miss the old days too, sometimes. But you’ll always stay a geek, don’t worry ;) You still know more than the average ‘because-everyone-has-a-pc-I-have-to-have-one-too-idiot’ ;)
The thing that annoys me the most, I guess, is that the above mentioned idiot does expect people like you and me to help them out with their pc stuff. You want to be one of the masses, do it yourself or pay to get things fixed :P
And I agree with Littlemog, you still are looked at in a strange way as a woman/girl that playes games nowadays.
Not so modern after all, are we, mass? ;)
dragon627
Aug 02 2008, 14:31Another problem that comes from this is that the idiot masses will usually continue to stay idiots. What didn’t interest them before now becomes “cool” and “trendy” to like. Once the fever dies down, so do their interests. Take Spider-man for example… I remember starting a conversation with a co-worker who claimed to be a huge “Spider-man fan” and new all about him. When I ventured into the realm OUTSIDE the movies, he didn’t know shit about him anymore. See what I mean? They only do the “popular” thing by liking what everyone else likes but will still be idiots.
The same goes for games. They only play the “now and the wow” with no “gaming history” background to make them appreciate the new games (if they’re even any good). I agree wholeheartedly; I miss the old days. At least back then the small group of people who were into this stuff were the ones who really appreciated and understood it.
Decay
Aug 02 2008, 17:07An old work friend of mine used to call me ‘child of the 80’s’ …meaning i don’t have much recollection of the old days :P But i can certainly see the downward spiral happening, and it certainly doesn’t seem to be limited to the internet, or games… its everything.
For a uni project i had to build a website. We were specifically told to make the thing idiot proof. Our tutor was a professional web designer and he confessed to hating the fact that he now had to build sites so that even a spasmatic gorilla could use them.
liltireddevotee
Aug 03 2008, 1:27Written with so much truth. Half the stuff you search for nowadays is “buy my crap” dribble, and all the useful stuff is buried so deep below it makes the Internet a large shopping mall of neon blinky signs. You’re not alone in feeling this, and thanks for saying it;)
helixy
Aug 03 2008, 18:48Even in light of my age and in light of the fact that I didn’t have a computer in my home until I was ten, I fully understand and agree.
The internet is such a fantastic resource and tool for so very many things, but those things see little use now… The internet is all social networking and dumbed-down bullshit. And don’t get me wrong, social networking isn’t necessarily bad, but the masses have made them so. Damn kids demanding a broadband connection just so that they may check MySpace or Facebook.. ugh.
It is so thoroughly disappointing.
Pb
Aug 05 2008, 21:53I can totally see where you are coming from X. Though, in some cases, I think the idea of things like Comics and Videogames being childish has begun to die off because the people interested in them grew up. They still enjoy the medium, but they are not kids anymore. Also, with the internet, many people are able to find others with the same interests. Look at Comic-Con, everytime I see footage coming from there, the people there are adults.
Another problem I have noticed with the internet as of late is the rampant elitism that has sprung up. I’m not talking about anyone here, because I really enjoy this place, but some areas are so incredibly hostile to anyone new, that it doesn’t make sense.
As for more unique gaming experiences, I totally agree. I also miss the old days.
-Pb
Croga
Aug 06 2008, 8:30dude, you’re getting old!
Yet I do think that even though our old geek stuff has gone mainstream, there’s enough geek stuff to still make us geeks….
robbie
Aug 08 2008, 16:25Something new always comes around for geeks to fool around with, before it’s snatched and noticed by the big money machine… the fun of fiddling around with it dies because now everyone and his chipmunk can do it…
on the other hand, i’ve seen stuff improve and get more usable in every day life too, thanks to mass interest that is.
Ah well, i have to agree with pb though… i’m still feeling allot of elitism on the internet and the blog-scene is first to show this behaviour *cough* 9rules *cough* … Robbie out!