Freeman64: OLDER PEOPLE ARE ALSO GAME TO GAME

Video Game History: Interview

My mother B and her friend JC (a grand name for an ex-pat Kiwi), have 3 computers in the unit they share. One laptop recently purchased, one in JC’s room with the third PC in the dining room which is now the entertainment centre of the unit. All computers are less than two years old. The main computer is an up to date version; they have a high speed, 1500kps, broadband connection as well as wireless. They average about 25 gig of broadband usage per month.

The PC in the dining room has a 24” LCD screen and is now the entertainment hub of the house. The television/DVD/video cassette/CD /digital set top box unit in the lounge room has not been switched on for the last eighteen months by my recollection.

Mostly both sit in the dining room at the main PC watching the other although if there is a clash and each wants to use the same machine for different purposes lively negotiation ensues as to who relocates to use the PC in the back room.

This interview is about the gaming experiences of B and JC. The medium of the interview was through Skype video and took about 45 minutes. Each of us took snapshots of the screen during the interview.

The interview questions were as follows. They were sent to the interviewees through Skype chat thirty minutes before the actual on-line interview.

Can you tell me how long you have been involved with gaming on computers?
What was your major form of leisure entertainment before you played digital games?
What are your favourite games and where do you get them from?
What would be the most money you would pay to purchase online games. i.e. would you be willing to pay a monthly subscription?
What factors are involved in your enjoyment of these games and how big a part do they play in your entertainment space?
What changes have you noticed in your “entertainment space” since you started playing these digital games?
There is currently a maximum rating of 15+ in Australian video games that can be purchased. There is no R or 18+ rating. Any game rated above 15+ is automatically banned from sale in this country. Do you agree with this and why?
I assume you are familiar with the modern shoot ‘em up games which portray varying degrees of violence and varying degrees of graphic representation. Do you think these games affect behaviours shown in the younger generation and in what ways?
Is there educational value in games? Why?

“These questions are to do with your online gaming experiences. It is OK if you cross over into digital technology as we go but the emphasis here is on games. Hopefully we will explore your gaming experiences through computers (digital technology).

Are you sitting comfortably? Then we’ll begin.”

1. Can you tell me how long you have been involved with gaming on computers?

B: 12 years
JC: 12 years, since about 1998

2. What was your major form of leisure entertainment before you played digital games?

B: watching television, CD’s and some video
JC: television, card games, going to the club and playing snooker or poker machines which were quite expensive hobbies.

3. What are your favourite games and where do you get them from?

B: Card games, patience, mah-jong, Eldorado, Peggle
JC: Age of Empires, games from Gamehouse which include casino games such as poker, keno, poker machines. Some games have been purchased such as Peggle, Eldorado. The advantages are that I can now play gambling games as much as I like without using ‘real’ money.

4. What would be the most money you would pay to purchase online games. i.e. would you be willing to pay a monthly subscription?

B: I do not pay anything, I play the games that JC installs, although I have paid up to $70 for a set of CD’s.
JC: I would pay no more than $50. I have no interest in paying a monthly subscription fee for a range of games. I am particular about which games I choose to play.

5. What factors are involved in your enjoyment of these games and how big a part do they play in your entertainment space?

B: I am not very mobile so games play a big part in my entertainment. I sit at and watch JC play games as a sort of background entertainment while I sketch or paint using acrylics.
JC and myself also have a ‘satisfying competiveness’ in regard to playing similar games. I have time to enjoy the games, I take my time and I feel that the playing/watching JC play games creates a sense of harmony within the household.
I use the internet to explore my personal interests as well as to communicate and share pictures with my family both here and overseas through Skype video or e-mail.
JC: Playing games provides more stimulus than reading (books). There is friendly competition between us although I do not watch B play games. By stimulus I mean it helps with co-ordination functions and it keeps my brain active. I disagree slightly with the harmony creating aspect B mentions, more a distraction.

6. What changes have you noticed in your “entertainment space” since you started playing these digital games?

B: I have noticed it can be very time consuming. I really should only play in my spare time – which are my waking hours - and understand it can be habit forming. I regularly let other things go in favour of playing games but I do not feel guilty about it.
JC: Playing the games is time consuming and sometimes other duties are ‘left out’ although I really don’t feel too guilty about it. I enjoy the anticipation of playing games.

7. There is currently a maximum rating of 15+ in Australian video games that can be purchased. There is no R or 18+ rating. Any game rated above 15+ is automatically banned from sale in this country. Do you agree with this and why?

B: I was not aware of this. We do not need any more explicit games. I have seen games that my grandchildren play and they are explicit enough. I do not really like the banning of games but at the same time I do not want them for my grandchildren.
JC: I agree with it. There is no need for explicit sex or violence; all you need to do is watch the news or other television shows. It is unnecessary in a gaming environment. Gaming is a fantasy environment and does not need extremes of sex or violence. For example; I have seen a violent game with stick characters in it. This is totally unnecessary.

8. I assume you are familiar with the modern shoot ‘em up games which portray varying degrees of violence and varying degrees of graphic representation. Do you think these games affect behaviours shown in the younger generation and in what ways?

B: ‘Desensitising’ is not good for the ‘very impressionable young’. I suggest you read newspapers about mortality rates and types of crime in relation to age groups.
JC: Younger people spend hours in control of a game which passes on into real life. There are control issues. In a car racing game nothing happens (when you crash) but in real life there are real life consequences. There is a difference. It is a false representation of real life.
Note: When asked if young people separate ‘fantasy’ and ‘reality’ both disagreed immediately.

9. Is there educational value in games? Why?

B: There is the question of how to entice 16-17 year olds to buy these type of games. They need to be entertaining enough. I consider Simtower to be an educational game and my grandson (20) still plays it.
JC: Yes, there is educational value in games. E.g. Age of Empires: If you do not defend, provide for your people or show progress you lose. You learn skills to overcome adversity. In Simtower you need to keep building, you need to adapt. Learning skills are learnt from having to clean rooms, maintain the building, supply food etc. B’s grandson has a game where you sell lemonade. It is easy to sell lemonade outside your house but you do not progress. It teaches business skills such as supply and demand, marketing, location etc. It can be used by smart people as a business tool. If you cannot beat these simple games you cannot transpose to the real world. There is real educational value in these games.

End of interview.

A brief analysis of this interview reveals that these two people have embraced and adapted modern digital technology in a way that might surprise a researcher. There is evidence of a familiarity with digital technology and a learning curve over time which has rid this ‘older’ generation of any fears of the use of it. Neither have undertaken any specific courses in use of the technology so it can be surmised they are self-educated, a graphic illustration of the educational value of the internet.

Digital video games pay a very large part in the production of entertainment value within the household. The PC is now the entertainment centre. The “old” entertainment centre comprising television, DVD/video player and set top box has stood idle in the lounge room for eighteen months and is used rarely, if at all. Although the main thrust of the interview was slanted towards video gaming there were many other aspects of digital media that were touched on and not written up. Of special interest to the interviewer was the familiarity and use of digital technology in the adaptation to suit particular preferences in entertainment and communication.

It is of importance to note the transition over time towards the full employment of digital technology within this household, not only for entertainment, but also for communication and production. This illustrates agency offered and accepted by the household members in their own personal development related to their leisure time enjoyment experiences. Besides the obvious convergence of media genres, there is also a convergence of the human experience. The experience has enabled the consumers here to cross over into the arena of production and self education, not necessarily by necessity, rather by choice.

During the interview using Skype video there seemed to be an air of informality or familiarity, a sense of satisfying interactivity as well as, in the interviewer’s opinion, a small sense of pride that the interviewees had ‘control’ over the technology and have no fear of exploring and adapting digital technology to their own personal use.