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Comment by estrabd | Hacker News Reader

The last game I played was Wolfenstein 3D. After that, I considered all video games a waste of time. They might satisfy some need, but one the game is over or your mom cancels your subscriptions for not eating your tendies, what do you have? A bucket full of nothing.

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Thought-provoking experiences, decades-old friendships, an appreciation of a different form of art and the complexities therein... yeah, I've got nothing from playing video games. Nothing at all.

But I'm curious why you felt the burning need to be an asshole about something instead of just going "hey, I don't get it, what's the appeal?".

Agreed. I can't reply to the parent post since it's dead, but I'd also add literally thousands of hours of simple enjoyment. That should count for something.

This doesn't seem like as strong argument against games, since you can use it for practically everything else in most people's lives. Especially entertainment, but also most other things.

You have the same as what you have after watching a movie or reading a book.

Most animals do play. Games have a function, which is basically training: fighting another male, hunting, fleeing... Some video games can have a similar function. Not to train you physically (although a 'dumb' FPS like W3D can do some good to your eye/hand coordination) but mentally. How to react to pressure, how to react to provocations or even insults, how to lose gracefully. It can also be good for your cognitive abilities. For instance card games can help with training kids (lots of additions and subtractions).

No fun allowed.

You might try lightening up.

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