Anonymous wrote:Early 30s guy here, and lately I've noticed a lot of women I end up on dates with simply don't play video games. At all. Generally I associate people not playing video games with them being terrible bores who don't really want much out of life (to take an entire medium of art, one as rich and vibrant as music or literature if not more so, and just write it off entirely is a fairly extreme act), so I treat it as a major deal-breaker, but I'm curious if there are others who disagree. I'd do the same if they issued a blanket statement like "I don't listen to music" or "I don't read fiction" too, obviously.

OP, generally, most grown up women find men who play video games for hours on end, every free waking moment, to be terrible bores who don't want much out of life. Your statement has got to the be one of the strangest statements I've heard. People who want a lot out of life generally go experience it for real, not in front of a tv/computer.

If a man plays once in a while, that's fine. I like watching mind numbing tv and scifi, Walking Dead, Star Trek, etc... But, I don't spend that much time doing so.

If you want a women who doesn't mind this, or who likes to play as much as you do, and who is hot, good luck to you. There aren't that many out there. Even if you think you've found one, you may find that she changes after you get married and/or have kids because the priorities change. If you want to stay a boy forever, please don't get married, or at the least, please don't have kids. They will suck up your valuable gaming time.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Women here. A guy who plays video games over the age of 18 is a deal breaker for me. I don't want to marry a child. To each their own.

I'm guessing that you're over 40. XBox/Playstation are ubiquitous and today's men, and yes women, grew up on these things. It's not your Daddy's Pong. I know it's portrayed on TV Comedies as something dorky guys who can't get chicks do but the reality is that most men under a certain age probably play video games to some extent.

This isn't a personal defense, btw. I've over 50 and own no game consoles of my own. My college age daughter does own a playstation and she routinely plays things like Grand Theft Auto with her friends when she's home on breaks. It's not just dweeby teenage boys anymore.

My husband works as an IT professional, speaks several languages, likes to cook and ride his bike. He is 46. Yes, he also likes to play video games on the PS, Wii, DS, etc. So what? He doesn't watch TV and I do. If he dumped me because I watch Real Housewives sometimes that would be just as ridiculous.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I love video games but I hate reading fiction so I guess I am out.

I don't get video games; I don't read fiction; music is... meh. I like the classical station in my car, but I would never sit in a chair and actively listen to anything.

Not a chance with OP. Oh well, my loss

(Seriously, is this for real?)

Are YOU for real?


OP, what if I only played Animal Crossing?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Older women tend to have an extreme aversion to video games. They just hate them, and see it as an activity for losers. I think this is a generational issue.

I don't play video games, but virtually everyone else my age does, including women, to an extent.

Right. I wouldn't want a guy who did nothing but play on a console 8 hours every weekend or who ignored me for hours on end. But there's nothing wrong with a guy who enjoys his xbox. It must be generational because I don't understand the extreme hate that some women display towards them.

8 hours of football... okay, but Xbox... NO

Yeah. There are a lot of mind numbing pursuits that both men and women engage in. For some reason video games just hit women in a particularly bad way. Not sure why.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Older women tend to have an extreme aversion to video games. They just hate them, and see it as an activity for losers. I think this is a generational issue.

I don't play video games, but virtually everyone else my age does, including women, to an extent.

Right. I wouldn't want a guy who did nothing but play on a console 8 hours every weekend or who ignored me for hours on end. But there's nothing wrong with a guy who enjoys his xbox. It must be generational because I don't understand the extreme hate that some women display towards them.

8 hours of football... okay, but Xbox... NO

Anonymous wrote:If your question is "should I date someone who stridently opposes X activity?" and that activity is important to you, the answer is probably "no" unless the person you'd date wouldn't begrudge you your activity.

It's OK -- preferable even -- for a couple of have individual interests.

But if video games are so important to you that they take a seat at center stage in your life, I think most women will find that a turnoff.

+1 I've never been interested in videogames while my DH plays them but not to excess IMO. Often in the evenings we'll spend some time together and then he'll play his game while I read (he doesn't read, but does listen to a lot of audio books). He has a couple times over the years become too absorbed (in his opinion) in a PC game and decided to uninstall it. We didn't have a gaming system until our son asked for one. Now gaming is something he and DS do together. So, OP, if you can find a partner who respects your need for game time while you keep it as a balanced part of your life you may find yourself creating your own gaming partner

While it is more common for 20-30s women to play videogames than it was in previous generations (I'm 46) they still skew much more male. The are designed for and marketed to young men. We've had a game system in our house since my DD was in preschool and purchased games we thought she might enjoy but she really is not interested, with the exception of Minecraft. And even that is just an occasional interest.

Anonymous wrote:My DH is a partner at a firm, very busy and successful,mind plays Xbox when he has a chance. What's the harm? I never minded.

He's obviously just a child wasting his life. Do you cut up his hot dogs for him?

Signed, DCUM Ladies.

Anonymous wrote:Lol. I think it's "trite and conventional" to sit in your home glued to a screen. Interesting people live their lives.

Unlike u?

I wouldn't date someone who does play video games.

I'm 45 and used to play a little with friends growing up and in my 20s. Small doses is ok but not something I'd want to do often since I do find that they are life sucks. In fact, I am not getting any game systems for my kids because I think it will suck away time from playing outside and reading (fiction). But they can play at friends' houses.

Anonymous wrote:I'm a woman and I play video games. My husband does not. I don't think that it's necessarily a totally juvenile activity. There are some games that are honestly more like interactive movies than anything you'd see in an arcade. I'm pretty picky about what I like to play, though, and I can totally understand why many women would find the type of guy who sits around playing Madden or Halo to be immature.

IMO, it is a mind-numbing activity. If someone does too much of it, they're probably not doing much with their life. So no, I would not be interested in dating a gamer.

Yeah, put me firmly in the Gen-X/you-should-have-outgrown-this-by-now camp.

There's just something so pathetic about a guy glued to couch with a console in his hand. It's the equivalent of a girl in the mirror constantly preening and tweezing and primping.

But to each his own.

Doing real things, learning new things and mastering skills are sexy. My DH plays soccer a couple times a week and I find this is a turn on. If he spent that time on the couch playing video games? I have to a admit I would lose respect for him.

As for the PP who don't read, yikes. You guys are missing out.

I'm glad I'm older and dodged this bullet and married a non-gaming reader.

Anonymous wrote:Older women tend to have an extreme aversion to video games. They just hate them, and see it as an activity for losers. I think this is a generational issue.

I don't play video games, but virtually everyone else my age does, including women, to an extent.

Right. I wouldn't want a guy who did nothing but play on a console 8 hours every weekend or who ignored me for hours on end. But there's nothing wrong with a guy who enjoys his xbox. It must be generational because I don't understand the extreme hate that some women display towards them.

Your question is flawed. Who cares what we would do, we aren't you. If that's a dealbreaker for you, then hold the line. If it gets you results then good on ya.

Older women tend to have an extreme aversion to video games. They just hate them, and see it as an activity for losers. I think this is a generational issue.

I don't play video games, but virtually everyone else my age does, including women, to an extent.