Gaming as a hobby

The first thing to be said about gaming is that it is as diverse as any other media. Especially in regards to the people who patronize video games.  Gone are the days when you could easily say that a "gamer" is either a 350 pound, 40-something, recluse, with coke-bottle glasses or a 12 year old boy who is just showing signs of puberty as he flames you over the voice communicator.  Don't get me wrong, those two subsets definitely exist, but they have become marginally fewer when compared to other populations.  I've seen and gamed with every type of person from young kids to 70 something grandparents, the blue collar dad, to the mother looking to socialize with other adults while the kids are napping.

Beyond the demographics of gamers, there are some pretty big divides, which leads me to my main point, gaming as a hobby.  I firmly believe that the dynamics of gaming are most lively and dramatic when 3 major types of gamers mix.  

First, the "hardcore" gamer, you know them well.  The ones who treat gaming as work, they are deadly serious about it.  They usually are REALLY good at the games they choose to play and expect everyone else to be as good as them or get out of their way.  They dedicate some pretty obscene number of hours to playing the game.  They are usually the first ones that get on your case when others mess up, and they will be the first to see the end to any game. These types of people are a form of hobby gamer, but in other very important respects they are not.  Most don't get paid to be the douche bags they usually are, and they usually have a deficiency in other aspects of their lives that lead them to focus so intently on playing a game until their computers break.  I know two hardcore gamers and both have neurologic syndroms like Asberger Syndrome and Autism.
It's my opinion that these folks tend to live unhealthy and unbalanced lives, but we will save this subject for a more in-depth post.
Then you have the subject of this blog's interest, the gamer hobbyist. A hobby as defined by the dictionary is: an activity or interest pursued for pleasure or relaxation and not as a main occupation.  If asked, most people who game on a regular basis probably would define themselves as a gamer hobbyist.  I, however, disagree.  Gamer hobbyist fit into a very particular set of parameters.  A gamer hobbyist needs to do something else with the majority of their time besides gaming. Simply put, add up the amount of hours you spend doing different things in a week, gaming can't fall into the top 2 to be a hobbyist.  A gamer hobbyist strives to be good at the game, they study, they are patient and they are in it for the long haul.  If you haven't spent more than six months (not continuous time) playing a game, then you aren't a hobbyist.  A hobbyist spends time on the details, like getting the Loremaster title in WoW, it doesn't help you in any way achieve the main purposes of the game, but it certainly enriching to the lore, understanding and experience in the game.  That is a hobbyist.

Lastly, you have the casual gamer.  These folks do NOT spend much time gaming or playing any one game for long, and don't particularly care to study the ins and outs of a game.  They play simply for the enjoyment of the game and the social aspects that exist and they stop when they are bored.  These folks are the most likely to piss off the hardcore guys, and it's my suspicion that these folks represent the vast majority of folks who game.

The fun part of gaming for all these groups is the dynamics, for me how these 3 groups interact is endlessly interesting and we will explore that in it's entirety over time. 

I'll stop here and continue my thoughts later.  Now it's time to hear from you.  What do you think about my definitions?  What would you add or subtract to these definitions?

Jaybles