SweetieGames

I love to play video games. They’re my favourite pastime. This should not come as a surprise to anybody who has read this blog; I particularly enjoy RPGs and visual novels, but I’ve dabbled in a large range of genres.

There are some games I think I’m really good at. I’ve played Dragon Quest IX enough that I played the entire thing without dying to a main story boss. I’ve played Sonic Riders since I was 7 years old, and now I’m fairly confident in my abilities. I have a keen eye for detail, making cross examinations in Ace Attorney fairly straightforward (unless the argument is super convoluted!) But there are also games that I adore, that I’m not very good at.

A couple of these games I’ve mentioned on this blog previously; I love Breath of the Wild, but I am bad at open world games. People underestimate the skill needed for cosy games, and farming sims don’t come naturally to me. I don’t want to talk about how many attempts I’ve made at Deltarune secret bosses, or the entirety of Devil May Cry. The number is embarrassing, but why should it be?

I will put my hands up and say that I think I’m bad at a lot of games. I am someone who spends a lot of time playing a genre that a lot of people widely believe aren’t actually games at all. But that doesn’t change the fact that I love to play them, it might just take me a bit longer to get through them! I’m not looking to be a speedrunner here; I have a lot of respect for people who are ablet to pull that off. I believe that being good at a game doesn’t necessarily equal the amount of love you have for it. I’ve been pretty good at games that I didn’t absolutely adore.

I’ve never understood why being bad at a game is so widely mocked; if the answer is obvious it can be frustrating to see someone struggle, especially if they’re not giving the game the attention it deserves. But if someone is truly trying their best to succeed I don’t see any reason to mock that. Why is a persons love for gaming judged by how good they are at it, rather than their knowledge of gaming or their enjoyment of it? As adults, a lot of us have jobs and responsibilities; we don’t have time to be honing our skills to be the very best at a video game!

I believe that if its someone’s job to play video games, you can expect them to be good at it. But it’s a bit unfair to expect a regular video game fan to be the best at a game. Maybe I should be a bit less embarrassed by my Deltarune secret boss attempts; I’d tell you how many I’ve made, but I’ve truly lost count!