Gamers and Video Game Culture

An Introduction to Gaming Culture

More than 155 million Americans play video games and 4 of the 5 American households have at least one gaming device (Entertainment Software Association [ESA], 2015). Forty-two percent of Americans surveyed play video games 3 or more hours per week (ESA, 2015). Nearly three quarters (72%) of American teens surveyed reported playing video games online or on their phone (Pew Research Center, 2015). The accessibility of games on a variety of devices including smartphones, tablets, and PC/MACs allowed them to find “…their way into more and more aspects of our lives-homes, cars, workplaces…” (Whalen & Taylor, 2008, p. 2). Video games have grown as a pervasive part of the culture and gamers have a culture of their own (Dini, 2012).

Given the easy accessibility of games and prevalence of gamers, an understanding of gamers and gaming culture as well as discussion of how to adequately serve them in counseling is warranted. Scholarly research related to gaming has increased and affords counselors an opportunity to develop a greater understanding of the needs of these clients, their partners, and their families. This article is not intended to be an exhaustive or comprehensive review of the literature. Instead, the purpose of this article is to introduce and support counselors in their understanding of clients who engage in video gameplay. The authors will discuss elements of gaming culture including population characteristics, terminology, and healthy and unhealthy gaming. This knowledge can aid counselors in various practice settings to work with a client population that is largely unfamiliar to the majority of clinicians.

An Abbreviated History of Gaming

Video games have progressed from their roots in the amusement industry, particularly coin-operated games (Whalen & Taylor, 2008), and have moved through advances in arcades, television, computers, and the Internet. A complete history of gaming is beyond the scope of this article; instead, the authors offer an abbreviated history, so that counselors can see the evolution of video games through the decades and have an appreciation for how games of today are markedly different from their predecessors.

In the 1970s, video games emerged as a popular form of entertainment (Whalen & Taylor, 2008), with the introduction of the first household gaming console that connected to the television. Atari released a home version of Pong™, a game that had previously been played as a coin-operated game (Kent, 2001). During this decade, cartridges were introduced allowing gamers to switch cartridges in a console and permanently changed the industry as “consumers no longer wanted single-game consoles” (Kent, 2001, p. 98).

Throughout the 1980s, arcade games like Pac-Man™ and Donkey Kong™ were converted to versions that could be played at home. Consoles such as Nintendo Entertainment System (NES)™ and Sega Genesis™ were released along with GameBoy™, a handheld gaming device. These games were typically single player games against the machine and getting good at the game only meant a high score and improvement of the gamers’ eye–hand coordination (Young, 2009). This would drastically change in the next decade when the gaming industry exploded (Young, 2009).

“Gaming evolved from single-player games to gaming experiences of living, self-contained three-dimensional societies” (Young, 2009, p. 357) in the 1990s. Nintendo introduced the Super NES™ and 64™ and was the first to offer 3-D games. Sony released PlayStation™ and Sega introduced a CD-based console, the Dreamcast™, which was the first with a built-in modem and pioneered online play. Violence in video games also got the attention of the U.S. Senate in the late 1990s. In response, the ESA established the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB), an independent organization, to provide ratings and information about video game content.

In the 2000s, games continued to evolve. Consoles such as PlayStation 2™, Wii™, and Xbox™ were released and introduced enhancements in graphics and the use of DVD technology. Improvements were made to portable gaming devices and they increased in popularity. The introduction of the iPhone unleashed gaming potential with software, the application store, and reshaped the gaming industry (Parkin, 2013). Following the launch of the iPhone, more games were released than any other hardware platform in video game history (Parkin, 2013). In 2016, Pokémon Go™, a location-based game that operates through the GPS on a gamer’s cell phone, topped the app charts in popularity and downloads within 24 hr of its release (Lovelace, 2016). The accessibility of games on mobile phones served as a means for the general population to enter the world of gaming (Okazaki, Skapa, & Grande, 2008).

Population Characteristics

Advances in technology have pushed gaming from its early origins of simple, 2-D graphic games made for single players to games with increasing sophistication, realistic 3-D graphics, and relational and social elements inside and outside of the game. These technological advances coupled with accessibility of games led to a state of change in the demographics of gamers (Shaw, 2010). Teenage boys once dominated the gaming market, but recent data indicate the average gamer is 35 years old (ESA, 2015). The availability of games on a variety of mediums including PC/MACs, tablets, handheld devices, smartphones, and TVs or consoles allowed video games to capture the attention and gain popularity among a variety of demographic groups (ESA, 2014; Lenhart et al., 2008; Lucas & Sherry, 2004). The marketing efforts of the video game industry have also led to games increasing in popularity among women, the fastest growing group of gamers (ESA, 2013). Women aged 18 or older currently represent 33% of the game-playing population (ESA, 2015).

Contrary to media portrayals of gaming as an individual teenage boy locked away in a basement (Jordan, 2014b), games have evolved into a medium that can facilitate social interaction. This relational function of gaming can occur in families playing together in their living room or virtually across states, countries, or continents. “Video games are becoming much more of a social world-a place to meet people, hang out with friends and share experiences-often while storming a fortress or arming spaceships” (Rigby & Ryan, 2011, p. 64). A large part of gaming is now about making social relationships (Young, 2009), and the virtual world may provide social experiences to gamers that are not available elsewhere in their lives (Ng & Wiemer-Hastings, 2005). There is some evidence that these online relationships are just as important as offline relationships (Peters & Malesky, 2008). These relational elements of gaming, either online or offline, deepen the experience and enjoyment of gaming by connecting gamers in a world of shared purpose and camaraderie (Rigby & Ryan, 2011). This relational aspect of gaming is often overlooked by those trying to understand how or why gamers can become absorbed in gaming. It is important for counselors to be aware of this element of gaming and its significance to clients. Counselors can explore how clients engage in social opportunities within video games and their ancillaries (e.g., discussion boards, chat rooms) in the course of counseling.

Gaming Terminology

The culture of gaming also has its own terminology and vernacular born from these virtual spaces (Dini, 2012). Gamers have abbreviations to describe genres or types of games (Apperly, 2006), other players or characters, and actions within games. The following is a selection of common terms and their definitions.

Counselors may hear or see the following acronyms used by gamers: RPG, MMORPG, or FPS. RPG is the acronym for role-playing game. In this type of game, gamers create and play a character in a fictitious setting. When RPGs have multiple players, they are called MMORPGs, which stands for massively multiplayer online role-playing game. This type of game involves players working together as guilds or clans to achieve particular feats or goals in the game. These games typically include “persistent worlds that continue to exist whether players/gamers are in it or not” (Young, 2009, p. 358). First-person shooter (FPS) is another type of game, in which the gamer plays from a first-person perspective and has a firearm within the game to defeat opponents.

Gamers use terms to describe themselves, other players, or characters in a game; their behavior; or function within the game. A nonplayer character (NPC) is a character with whom the gamer can interact, but that the gamer cannot play as within the game (The Average Gamer, 2006). Griefer is a term used to describe the behavior of another gamer who annoys or aggravates other players within the game. The term noob is used to describe a new player, somewhat like the term newbie, but also implies the player is performing poorly in the game.

Terminology of gamers includes actions performed within the games. Levels are stages within games, and gamers attempt to level up, to move forward, or advance in the game. A save point is a time when a gamer is able to keep the progress of his or her gameplay and come return at the same point if he or she choose to quit playing the game. An autosave is whenever a video game will automatically make a save point for the gamer as her or she progress through the game. A rage quit is a term used to describe when a gamer suddenly quits a game out of anger, typically because he or she is repeatedly unable to level up, defeat an opponent, or otherwise achieve a particular goal within the game. Gamers may also experience permanent death. This occurs when a gamer’s character within the game has no life or saves left and therefore must start over in the game as opposed to starting from a previously achieved level or saved point in the game.

In addition to the terms described here, counselors can expand their gaming vocabulary by listening to terms used by their clients and inquiring about their meaning. Counselors should be aware that technological advances, new products and features, and shifts in trends and popularity lead to introduction of new terms and the extinction of others.

Unhealthy Gaming

While many gamers have healthy gaming habits, a proportion of gamers have unhealthy gaming behavior and experience negative social, educational, financial, and emotional consequences. The first reports of video game addiction in the psychological and psychiatric literature appeared in the 1980s (Griffiths, Kuss, & King, 2012; Pontes & Griffiths, 2014). In the last few years, the literature and research on Internet gaming addiction has proliferated (Kuss & Griffiths, 2012). Many names have been used including gaming use disorder, gaming addiction, gaming dependence, and pathological gaming. While the name and diagnosis continues to be debated, a possible avenue for consensus occurred when the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-V) was published and included Internet gaming disorder as a condition that warrants further study. The proposed disorder included nine diagnostic criteria (American Psychiatric Association, 2013):

preoccupation with gaming, withdrawal symptoms when gaming is discontinued, tolerance for increasing amounts of time spent gaming, unsuccessful attempts to control participation in gaming, loss of interest in other hobbies or activities as a result of gaming, continued excessive use of gaming despite knowledge of psychosocial problems, deceiving others regarding the amount of gaming, and the use of gaming to escape or relieve negative moods, and jeopardizing or loss of a significant relationship, job, or educational or career opportunity because of gaming. (p. 795)

Healthy Gaming

Problematic video gaming has received considerable attention, however; positive functions of video games in various settings are a growing area of the literature. Proponents of gaming put forward the powerful motivational pull of video games, their meaningful positive effects, and show these can be harnessed to enhance education, training, and skill development (Rigby & Ryan, 2011).

Video games can be used as a virtual playground for players to experience the cognitive, motivational, emotional, and social benefits of gaming (Granic, Lobel, & Engels, 2014). Specific games can support and enhance cognitive functions. For example, first-person shooter games can promote cognitive skills such as accurate attention allocation, spatial skill improvements, neural processing, and efficiency. These skills can be generalized outside of the game into real-world contexts (Granic et al., 2014). These authors also list the motivational elements of gameplay to include “…work toward meaningful goals, persevere in the face of multiple failures, and celebrate in rare moments of triumph after successfully completing challenging tasks” (p. 70). Often these goals are pursued through interaction with fellow gamers, in person and online. Players, while storming fortresses, collecting coins, or battling a common enemy, are engaged in prosocial behaviors including working together toward a mutual goal (Granic et al., 2014). Thus, playing prosocial games can promote, improve, and increase helping behaviors (Ewoldsen et al., 2012; Greitemeyer & Osswald, 2010; Greitemeyer, Osswald, & Brauer, 2010). The gaming atmosphere provides players with a place to develop and practice social skills (e.g., collaborating, offering assistance, and communicating needs), and these skills can be generalized to face-to-face social settings.

In education, video games have been explored as an emerging paradigm for learning (Squire, 2013) in school curriculums and have flooded the educational market (Girard, Ecalle, & Magnant, 2013). Gaming has been used to enhance teaching and learning in a variety of subject areas including social studies (Maguth, List, & Wunderle, 2015); reading (Compton-Lilly, 2007; Jolley, 2008); music (Reyher, 2014; Richardson & Kim, 2011); language (Petten, 2005); and science, technology, engineering, and math (Beatty, 2013; Khalili, Sheridan, Williams, Clark, & Stegman, 2011; Marino, Israel, Beecher, & Basham, 2012; Mayo, 2007). Some educators are using video games in lieu of textbooks in educational settings (Schwartz, 2014). Games have also been used to engage particular populations like middle school students with special learning needs (Fengfeng & Abras, 2013).

In addition to uses in education, video games have been used in other professions including military training (Chatham, 2007), health care (Kato, 2010), women’s health care (de Wit-Zuurendonk & Oei, 2011), and nursing (Pater, Shattell, & Kagan, 2015). In the helping professions, there is an emergence of literature exploring the use of video games in counseling and psychotherapy (Barak & Grohol, 2011; Ceranoglu, 2010; Griffiths, 2003; Horne-Moyer, Moyer, Messer, & Messer, 2014). For example, Gackenbach, Ellerman, and Hall (2011) explored video games as a means for nightmare protection with military gamers, and Brezinka (2013) used a video game to support treatment of children with obsessive–compulsive disorder. In addition to video games being used for therapeutic purposes, video games have been developed specifically for therapeutic purposes and are called electronic games for psychotherapy. These are commercially available games used in mental health settings for a variety of diagnoses and therapeutic goals (Horne at al., 2014). These aforementioned examples suggest video games are a promising medium for education, prevention, and intervention in counseling.

Implications for Counselors

Because video games are a part of life for millions of Americans, Jordan (2014a) argued that therapists must learn about video games to keep up with a changing client base. Counselors can first examine their own assumptions and biases about normality and abnormality of playing video games before working with gamers as clients. Specifically, counselors should avoid confusing interest in video games with a deficit of interpersonal or social skills, desire for isolation, or other negative stereotypes commonly held about gamers. In session, clients can be invited to share their video game interests and gaming experiences. Counselors can take a naturally curious position, exhibit genuine interest, listen without judgment, and acknowledge that for some clients, gaming represents a significant portion of their world (Dini, 2012). This is consistent with multiculturally competent (Arredondo et al., 1996) and ethical practice (American Counseling Association, 2014).

Counselors can broaden their knowledge of and obtain accurate information related to video games and gamers in several areas of existing and emerging literature. This can start with counselors becoming familiar with up-to-date gaming terminology, content and ratings of games provided by the ESRB, and current recommendations for screen time limits for children under age 17 provided by the American Academy of Pediatrics. This information can be used to assist parents and guardians in making informed choices and creating developmentally appropriate boundaries for their children’s use of video games.

Additionally, counselors need to have an understanding of the relational elements of gaming, including elements within and associated with the video games (e.g., chat rooms, discussion board, and blogs). It is important that counselors consider how these relational elements can enhance and detract from relationships outside of the game (Hertlein & Hawkins, 2012). Forming relationships within games and among other gamers can come at the expense of the gamer’s relationships with family, friends, partners, or spouses. Gamers, particularly those addicted to video games, stop interacting, participating, and feeling the importance of relationships outside of the game (Young, 2009). It is often the persons in these neglected relationships that encourage or demand the gamer seek counseling. Counselors then need to have knowledge of appropriate clinical interventions when gaming is a primary or secondary problem for the client(s). In individual counseling, the focus may be on the intrapsychic nature of excessive or pathological gaming; however, couples or family counselors will typically view gaming from a systemic lens.

Hertlein and Hawkins (2012) identify unique issues that online gaming can create for one or both partners and described a multitheoretical model to address them. Issues included game-playing time and its interference with responsibilities, alteration of boundaries and rules to include permissible online play (e.g., characteristics of avatar, amount of personal disclosure), definitions of and interference with intimacy, relationship maintenance, and addiction. Couples counselors can attend to the structure and process of the couple to address these unique issues (Hertlein & Hawkins, 2012).

Young (2009) introduced the brief strategic family therapy model for families with children and adolescents 6–17 years old with gaming as a presenting problem. In this approach, the counselor observes how the gaming behavior can be a symptom of a dysfunction within a family. Thus, the problematic behavior serves a purpose within the family. The counselor identifies the family’s patterns of interaction and how these fit with the gaming behavior. Then, the counselor creates plans for changing the interactions that maintain the problematic gaming behavior.

As technology evolves, so too might the issues for couples and families. Thus, counselors should continue to stay informed of emerging research and continuing education opportunities regarding outcome research; evidence-based practices; and introduction of best practices in the prevention, intervention, and treatment of pathological gaming or gaming addiction. This knowledge can aid counselors in distinguishing casual gamers from those who exhibit indicators consistent with problematic gaming or the proposed criteria for Internet gaming disorder, case conceptualizing, selecting appropriate interventions, and creating treatment plans with clients when video games are the presenting problem.

Finally, counselors can also consider the usefulness of gaming in the therapy room (Jordan, 2014b). Many elements of games (e.g., trial and error, rule-based, player attached to outcome) are generalizable (Simpson, 2005) and can be related to the client’s lived experiences outside of games. Video games can be an environment in which clients experiment, practice, and receive feedback, similar to the counseling setting (Dini, 2012). Brezinka (2013) argued for the use of therapeutic video games as a means to increase a child’s or adolescent’s motivation for therapy, enhance child compliance, offer attractive work assignments, structure therapy sessions, and offer new ways of treatment. Adal (2014) suggested play therapy evolves technologically and utilizes video games. In addition to these, Granic, Lobel, and Engles (2014) proposed video games as a cost-effective means to reach populations with limited access to care. Video games can be used as a technological medium to connect or engage clients in counseling or as a primary or adjunctive intervention. These uses and possibilities for the use of video games in counseling are still fairly underresearched (Wilkinson, Ang, & Goh, 2008) and warrant further study.

Conclusion

Gamers are a growing population and culture unfamiliar to the majority of counselors. Counselors are challenged to become acquainted with gaming culture and to work effectively with gamers as clients. Knowledge of the history of gaming, population characteristics, terminology, relational aspects of video games, and healthy and unhealthy gaming can serve as a foundation for competent work with gamers in counseling.