Subconcious Admission

It's a generally accepted fact that the internet is a melting pot of lies, deceit and pornography. As paedophile mania swept the world, everyone has become even more conscious about the amount of evil that takes place in our virtual world. While not everyone on the internet is a paedophile, a lot of them are blatant liars who love nothing better than to pretend to random strangers online that they are good at stuff. You've all got to have noticed this at some time on your journeys around the forums of this vast virtual landscape - You've scored 3 million on Ikaruga? They scored 5 million on hard with only 1 credit. It took you 20 hours to fully complete Zelda? They did it in just over 15, collected all the upgrades and unlocked a sword that is only in special, Japan only versions of the game. You've got a platinum Gamecube? They've got a Qube, specially signed by Miyamoto.

Most of the Internet gaming community seems to be on an endless pursuit to seem as hardcore as possible to their peers. Join any popular game forum on the internet and you can almost guarantee that their will be someone there quoting obscure Japanese games, saying how it makes all of your Mario's and Zelda's seem as innovative as the latest EA game. Disagree? They'll laugh at you, inform you that you are but a casual gamer, and tell you to go back to your PS2 and play on Turok. Ask them to prove their collection? Unfortunately, they don't have a digital camera as they spent all their money importing 'Mini Moni Step Up - Pyon Pyon Pyon' (which is actually a game).

Why do they do it? Why would somebody purposely go out and lie about their gaming habits? The way I see it is that is that they are lonely - the kind of kid who sits alone in school, and tells intimidates anyone who comes near them by telling them that their Dad is richer than yours. The kind of kid who longs to sit atop the playground hierarchy. The kind of kid who lies and tells stories about how he met David Beckham, and how he beat him at free kicks. The kind of kid who just wants to be accepted.

You see, the way I see it, the forums of the internet are a place where many of societies outcasts go for validation and acceptance, to prove to themselves that they are good people. They WANT to be popular. They WANT to be respected. They WANT people to like them. They use forums as an online playground, trying to gather up groups of 'friends' to bully the weaker, less stable kids on the virtual tarmac - the newbie's.

When I look back over this article, it seems more and more like the word 'they' should be changed into the word 'I'. Maybe this article was a subconscious dig at myself? Maybe it's my inner self telling me that I'm trying to be something that I'm not - a good gamer.

You see, I'm not a great gamer by any stretch of the imagination. In fact, I'm a pretty average gamer, who just has ideas above his station about gaming. Of my 17 Gamecube games, only 3 have I completed - the rest have either been too difficult, too boring, or you can't finish them (sports games and Animal Crossing).

I should really be honest with myself - I'm a mainstream gamer with Mainstream tastes, and I've just found myself a niche with Nintendo titles. I should try to be myself more, and not the ideal EDGE reader which I seem to be aiming to be. Be yourself. It leads to a lot less confusion

Written by: Matthew Britton
Date: 19th August 2003
Email: matthew.tribute@ntlworld.com