by HercMax of Xbox Zone

Despite all current statistics that show the average age of the modern gamer is around 30-34 years old there’s still a stigma attached. Unfortunately, playing games when you’re over 30 and married is seen as childish, unproductive and unambitious. Spending $250 on an arcade stick is seen as frivolous whereas spending $250 on a meal with your wife is seen as an event worthy of mountainous praise. It’s a tough deal we married gamers get and sharing a house and the “big TV” with a non-gamer wife is about as tough as time management gets.

I found this to be a good read, especially since i could relate to a lot of the things said in the article, e.g. the $250 arcade stick, sharing the big tv, not wanting to get interrupted by the other half while i give 100% focus to the game on screen.

Gaming scores before whores, anybody?

just sounds like he chose the wrong wife
mrs hardware is as much a gamer as i am

Just become gay and the chances are your partner will also love games.

Gaming is literally all of those negative things. Sorry.

Hah, my GF (basically wife) always resists things such as the big telly and console, World of WArcraft etc etc. Then a month later she's right into them.

Always has been, we used to play Starcraft, Quake 1 etc together. I don't know if she's just humouring me and trying to get into something I'm interested though. She probably isn't I guess, she never comes to any heavy metal gigs with me.

if your life partner isn't compatible with one of your favourite hobbies then you made a mistake somewhere along the line.

I find its not really my wife i need to compete with its wiggles, shaun the sheep etc :P

taggs, so what you're saying is that you'd give up the girl of your dreams merely because she doesn't suppodely like gaming as you do?

Sacrifices have to be made somewhere along the line.

If she doesn't like you and what you do, how is she the girl of your dreams?

I live the life of a child a lot of the time, I read childrens stories, watch childrens tv, listen to childrens music. Having babies will justify a lot of my lifestyle choices, just like it did for Michael Jackson. I will have more excuses to go and do kid-like things in public, and yes it will be a bargaining chip to use against the mother of my children to allow me to play more video games, go to Hi-5 concerts, whatever...

I am not a pedo.

oh right, we see why you're so retarded now


to you other guys, what is your wench doing out of the kitchen to know you're even playing games in the first place?

the girl of my dreams wouldn't have a problem with me gaming and would also enjoy the odd game herself.

my current girlfriend is like this, and most of my ex-gfs have been as well.

but hey, whatever floats your boat. as long as you're happy who gives a s*** what i think.

edit: f*** i can't spell today ><

last edited by taggs at 14:03:20 15/Jul/09

haha thermite

If she doesn't like you and what you do, how is she the girl of your dreams?

My wife doesn't game much, she's still the girl of my dreams though. I think she likes me.

I'm not a hardcore gamer 4 lyfe though so I don't consider it a deal breaker.

taggs, so what you're saying is that you'd give up the girl of your dreams merely because she doesn't suppodely like gaming as you do?

no but if she is gonna be with you for life, it would be good if she understands and accepts yor interests, instead of ridiculing them as i'm sure many women do.

If she doesn't like you and what you do, how is she the girl of your dreams?

In an ideal world, what if you're perfect for each other and the only difference is the gaming? It's not like we're saying gaming is your career and all your life revolves around it. We're talking about gaming as a hobbie, as pointed out by taggs in his comment.

But whatever, no biggie. The only 2 games wifey actively plays is FIFA09 and the only team she picks is Brazil. Oh and Eddy with Tekken 3.. . all the bloody time. So shameless.


last edited by The Match Fixer at 14:13:35 15/Jul/09

oh gods thermite, that explain so much.

I watched an Aussie doco long time ago about Men and their Sheds.
I think the Computer Room is the ultimate shed.

Yeah it explains why I'll be the coolest Dad. Not many Dads will play dress-ups with their kids, but I will have all the best costumes, you'll see!

lol @ thermite ... nice one mate!! Being a kid and a father is the way i want things to be. It's not like i'll be a kid all the time, i'll have to provide and so forth but at the same time i just wouldn't mind playing some game, not hardcare gamer stylez but just comfortable. Anyways, the benefits are that i'll be able to maintain a decent level of hand eye co-ordination as well as in the event that the world gets overrun by Zombies i'll know how to take care of myself and my family! Who says that games don't contribute to WORLD DOMINATION!

Oh and just to clarify not in a relationship at the moment so you can take the above statement either way. On top of that i've chosen to remain single for awhile ... 9 1/2 years of serious relationships takes it outta you after awhile.

+ 1 for Thermite (as long as you really aren't a pedo)

I miss having an xbox so the bf and I could play games together. Really enjoyed playing two player games like the lego ones with him. I play computer games but I definitely won't play them for the same length of time as he does

Haha bulls*** minxy, you've spent 3 times more hours in l4d than I have.

by the way, my boss was the one who forwarded me that article cause he thought it sounded like me. In saying that, this dude is the most hardcore gamer i've ever come across in person considering his circumstances (married with kids).

He has 2 xbox 360, one for him and one for his wife and a bucketload of games and gaming accessories. They lan each other on live with their headsets and webcams and all. They also hold xbox 360 bashes at their place every now and then that go for hours on end. Funny thing is his wife never used to be into gaming and now he has her hooked, and it all started with Far Cry Predator and its map editor on the xbox 360 (he was going purchase a copy for me just so i can get into it but i ended up getting it for $10 anyway). Oh not to mention the free PC games he's given me (Prototype, Wolverine, Wanted, GRID).

Best. Boss. Ever

Now i just gotta get him to read this somehow so i can get that promotion that i've been wanting.

p.s. we're looking for more far cry players on the 360, if you have it add me.


last edited by The Match Fixer at 15:04:42 15/Jul/09

My husband makes arcade sticks and cabinets. He spends money on his hobby and I would rather see him play his games than go out to a pub or god knows where else.
I would rather see my husband at home and happy, than forced to go elsewhere to find happiness.

My husband gets to choose everything technical related. I get to choose everything else around the house.

That and my husband gets just as much out of gaming as watching me play games. As if I am going to look a gift horse in the mouth

i wanna work where you work, booyah :(

wifey dont like me gaming too much, and im usually too busy for any extended game time

she always makes me do chores and stuff during my gaming sessions so i just try and game when shes out;

she always makes me do chores and stuff during my gaming sessions so i just try and game when shes out;

I hear ya dude, only my wife waits until I fire up TF2 and start building a sentry until I'm reminded of what I haven't done.

i wanna work where you work, booyah :(

nah the pay is meh (cause i believe i'm worth more), but I make up for it in other ways :p

I think the Computer Room is the ultimate shed.

Pretty much this.

The trick is to set boundaries early in the relationship so they know what to expect. But I'm sure having children will turn everything on its head.

reckon, my comptuer room is my cave

nah computer room doesn't replace the shed, or vice versa
need both

bloody oath.

also... +1 thermite

last edited by koopz at 15:53:59 15/Jul/09

Haha bulls*** minxy, you've spent 3 times more hours in l4d than I have.

Hey, I've only played it once since I moved in with him and that was for half an hour because he told me to test out how well the game would run with our new internet. So take that!

my computer room is currently transitioning into a nursery (see sig)
she was all for the big screen tv and she plays more games than me though, so i could care less

give me a huge shed > computer room any day

nah computer room doesn't replace the shed, or vice versa need both

http://www.stickfreaks.com/images/gameroom/gameroom_after_001.jpg
+
http://benchmark.mameworld.info/cab1/images/027.jpg

If she doesn't like you and what you do, how is she the girl of your dreams?

Big tits.

I must say, I've always been in awe of Elvis/Kat's MAME room...


what do you call it?

That's awesome kat.

Does he even play them?

f*** that's awesome kat. I'm inspired!

My husband makes arcade sticks and cabinets. He spends money on his hobby and I would rather see him play his games than go out to a pub or god knows where else.
I would rather see my husband at home and happy, than forced to go elsewhere to find happiness.

My husband gets to choose everything technical related. I get to choose everything else around the house.

That and my husband gets just as much out of gaming as watching me play games. As if I am going to look a gift horse in the mouth

Not sure what your point is Greazy?

what do you call it?

He refers to as the 'games room', I refer to it as the 'geek room'. The first time we looked at this place he dibs the room for his stuff and it has been his room every since.

Does he even play them?

Not as much as he would like to, but he shows them all some love every once in a while.

He made a bunch of sticks (did the ones for OH7) and I helped him with them and both cabinets. Next, one each for the kids

he wants a husband

I can't tell if the :( is refering to the fact I don't have it my husband does, or that I have a husband, or that he doesn't have a husband

It's all very confusing. Maybe all greazy's hate towards me is really out of jealous rage?

that sounds plausible

greazy wants a nice hubby to build him some mame boxes and buy televisions for him

MY HUSBAND *megaphone squelch*

My husband makes arcade sticks and cabinets. He spends money on his hobby and I would rather see him play his games than go out to a pub or god knows where else.

fixed greazy

I tread the fine line between playing games as a hobby or as an addiction haha.

Having a toddler really owned my gaming time though. I'm a gamer 4 life but my daughter trumps games, only just tho ;P

I have it all planned though, the next kiddy will be coming shortly and in 2-4 years they should be happily entertaining themselves enough for me to squeeze in a game of Duke Nukem Forever.


It comes down to good time management with gaming time + family time + work time + sleep time + other time.

http://img441.imageshack.us/img441/4258/den.jpg

pimp my den.

Being OK with gaming is a definate on my potential GF criteria.

I didnt move in until internet was connected..

There's no way I'd spend $250 on an arcade stick OR on dinner with a woman. If a woman needs hundreds of dollars spent on them to let them know you love them I say it's time to find a new woman.

Not sure what your point is Greazy?

The number of times "my husband" is said is proportional to the amount of abuse the poor man gets.

Australia says no to physical abuse.

jake, that is an extremely bad speaker setup

There's no way I'd spend $250 on an arcade stick OR on dinner with a woman. If a woman needs hundreds of dollars spent on them to let them know you love them I say it's time to find a new woman.

or find a cheaper arcade stick.

I'm glad my gf is asian and willing to play 'some' games (but she prefers old school stuff) but at the very least she knows it helps me destress after a bad day.

However my poor brother choose a gf that wants him to watch tv with her (watching s*** shows ontop of it) and gets pissed off if he trys to play computer games....no wonder he smokes so much weed, the only way to make tv even somewhat interesting.

f*** im glad im not alone!

My gf would be cool if i played games...but she would complain about it. I still don't have freaking time. I've been on holidays from study for like 2 months almost now, and I have played like....3-4 hours of TF2 - so sad.

Making up for it this weekend though! LAN!! Firing up quake 1, ut 2k3 and whatever else people want to play/bring.

shaun the sheep

shaun the sheep is awesome! yeah, i gave up on games ages ago when the missus come along. just buy the nephews ps3 games for "them".

really dont have time tho. got spore. played it for about 1hr, that was it. mechwarrior might be a different story tho.

haha, yer we love shaun the sheep too!

Wow. How depressing. I can't believe how many people are forced to stop gaming by their missus (as opposed to life)

Wife doesn't give a rats arse if I am gaming or not, many a time she will join in. However with infant it is a bit different, with the late night sessions being interrupted by the little one. Along with many other activities

Wifey doesn't mind too much about my gaming but to be honest, I find I'm playing less and less and would rather just kick back on the couch or go out to the shops.

Super cool thread, bros. No, really. Not being sarcastic. Forwarding to my missus right now with specific references to Minxy and Kat's posts ;-)

Every now and then I cop some backlash from my other half when gaming, but mostly it's because I was playing soccer, doing triathlon, building something or whatever else that probably didn't involve her for a few days in a row prior.

She will be like, "So you are going to play [computer] games now?", which is a rhetorical question where the incorrect answer could result in dismemberment.

I think greazy secretly wants you Kat.

At least I'm upfront about it. I have a thing for ginger's and ties.

However my poor brother choose a gf that wants him to watch tv with her (watching s*** shows ontop of it) and gets pissed off if he trys to play computer games....no wonder he smokes so much weed, the only way to make tv even somewhat interesting.

That's kind of bad - everyone kinda needs some of their own time to do things they enjoy.

But there has to be a limit I think - a lot of people play games excessively imo.

At least I'm upfront about it. I have a thing for ginger's and ties.

i have a thing for tits and looking at them!

omg!

^ haha

Doesn,t matter mate,im 43, and i bloody love games,im into

Gtr 2 and v8 supercars 3 and sim city 4 and flight sim x
racing and simulation games,some war games too,
so it doesn,t matter what age buddy,just get your wife to
play the nintendo wii games and they will keep her fit too..

cheers and happy gaming...match fixer

cheers and happy gaming...match fixer

Will do. In fact, I'd do anything for you, balboa.