Gaming Lifestyle

Gaming has become the most popular leisure activity for Americans, and the type of leisure activity that has the fastest-growing demographic of any other type of leisure activity. As people are becoming busier, they have less time to devote to themselves and more time to spend with friends and family. One way that this trend can be combated is by engaging in a form of interactive entertainment that requires the player to move around and physically perform physical tasks. For example, a car game, console game, or computer game is a computer or video game that involves physical interaction with a human user interface device, such as a mouse, joystick, keyboard, or infrared motion sensor device. This type of physical action often required strong, coordinated movements of the hands, arms, and legs to accomplish simple tasks, and therefore lends itself to gaming.

Another aspect of gaming that has grown over the past decade is the use of user-created worlds or “online worlds” or game play platforms. These online worlds often have predefined rules and objectives, and players are challenged to accomplish these objectives while using their own imagination and style of play to stay motivated. The best-selling game franchises often include these types of worlds, with their highly detailed and often fantasy worlds where hundreds if not thousands of real people share their adventures, and interact with each other on a daily basis. These virtual worlds, or online worlds, have also been credited with helping jump-start the careers of many popular modern gamers, such as Counter Strike and Dora the Explorer. This type of engagement and personal connection to a group of like-minded individuals has been credited with encouraging more casual gamers to seriously consider gaming as a lifestyle choice.

Modern gaming devices such as computers, video gaming consoles, and cell phones are constantly evolving to create more dynamic and realistic game play and interface features. The emergence of social networking and massively multi-player online role playing games (MMORPG) has also increased the number of people who consider gaming a lifestyle. These game players are willing to invest in the equipment necessary to enjoy the highly customizable and interactive video gaming experience.