Do most hardcore MMO players have no life or just love them some MMO's?

Not trying to insult anyone. I was just watching a review of Sword Art Online on you tube. For those who don't know it is an anime I was eager to purchase about people who get trapped in an MMO video game and have to fight for their life or die in the video game world. The reviewer was interesting at first but then he began to degrade the main character (hero) by saying that he was a loser because the reason he was so awesome in the video game trap was because in the real world he had no life and spent all his waking hours playing the MMO. In short he was a "loser" who could not amount to anything outside of a video game universe. The reviewer then went on to comment on how the film was one that could only be liked by other "losers" with no life in the real world who could relate the hero of the game.

I shrugged it off and watched a different video of a guy named Francis/Boogie who talked about why he got into MMO's. He is usually very funny but in tis video he was seriosu and spoke of how miserable his life was and how he was anti-social, and almost suicidal until he discovered MMO's and said games gave his life purpose. He spoke of how although his real world life did not improve much (he played so much he lost his job) his emotional health improved because he was able to socialize with people in the MMO in a way he never could in the real world. Thoiughts of suicide left his head as he found friends and purpose in MMO's. He went as far as to laud the fact that although he was nobody speciaL in real life, in the virtual world of MMO's his life had meaning since as a kinght or dwarf or whatever he was a better person and beter able to cope and socialize and find purpose.

After hearing Francis' story I wondered why I could not bring myself to applaud and feel happy for him the way he was happy for himself. Although it was great that something pulled him from the edge something felt wrong about someone having to go virtual to find meaning in their lives and a reason to feel good and worthwhile. This brings me back to my topic. This is my first MMO and I am a casual player at best. Although my life will never be featured in a music video or old navy commercial showcasing nothing but people having a great time, I have stuff to do (whether I like it or not) other than play MMO's, some of which have purpose and meaning and is important, at least to others, if not to myself. But to you serious and hardcore players I ask you this: Do you feel that most of your fellow hardcore MMO players (or yourself if you are willing tobe candid) have no lives and need this meidum to be able to socialize and finding meaning, or do you think most hardcore players just love the heck out of MMO's? Why?

Funny you should mention SOA I watched it and it made me want to play an MMO. Having only a 360 and a ps3 I needed a console based game and thus I found dcuo.
I'm a very social individual up until the end of the year last year I spent most of my time working, playing halo, and going to the clubs for raves to see my favorite dj's drop some chest caving bass in my face. Managed to go out at lest 4-5 nights a week. And never miss a beat at work.

But upon finding out I was going to be a father I had to reevaluate my priorities and now I stay at home and play dcuo instead of going to raves. Do I miss it? Not really. I'm 28 years old I've had a fun life and I think I made a sweet trade. I've also never been the type to stick to a relationship but I'm enjoying my current situation. So to cut my biography short. I work in customer service I do nothing but socialize all day I'm a people person and have no problem meeting new people. I just enjoy the heck out if dcuo. It's my fist MMO and probably the first game I can spend all day playing.

Of course this wont be the case for everyone but as for me the whole no life thing doesn't Fly. I have many friends and I still go out and do many things. I enjoy my anime and my gaming and I'm not ashamed of who knows it although it is easier for some ppl to socialize online.

Oh one last thing. The main character of SOA spent so much time in games to ignore the fact he was adopted he found out but was never actually told. So that didn't make him a loser I guess some ppl could use MMO as an escape. I suppose the author if that review didn't watch the full series.

Most have no life.

I certainly have next to no life.

personally, I like it this way. I'm not outright anti-social, but my friends prefer coming to my place to socialize. I'm never really lonely and I never really wanted a romantic relationship anyway.

Quantify what it means to have a "life". Then ask yourself who decides what makes makes a life worth living.

One of the things you will learn about with MMOs the more you play and the more you get involved in them is that they are a second life. Everyone who plays them is escaping from something in their real life. What the person is escaping from varies a lot, but the truth is we are all messed up. People spend all their days playing this game because it gives them the chance to socialize and feel happy for once when they can't feel that way in the real world. Casual players are casual because they don't see the point in having a second life because their life isn't that bad they don't need an escape from reality like the hardcore players do.

I think the reason I play this one, or watch anime, or go to movies is that I think that unless you put yourself in mortal danger the real world is pretty darn boring to look at, let alone live in. That doesn't mean that I want Joker blowing up my city, or mosters walking down the street, but the normal life involves (wake up, go to school/work, go home, go to sleep, repeat until death). With food breaks, graduations and weddings, sports, music, and vacations, and sex, sprinkled in). For me at least, its a hum drum world. Keep moving, nothing to see. I'd play an MMO just to see the beautiful architecture that exists in those worlds that we can't replicate here.

I play this MMO because I can do things I'd never be able to do in reality and I can do these awesome things beside some of my favorite heroes I've known since I was a kid. This game can also be an outlet for me to "escape the real world" so to speak but I have outlets other than this game as well. To be honest, what is defined as "having no life" is really up to the individual and not the kind of judgement someone else can place upon you.

Does the rat in the Skinner box clicking the button for a random chance of a food pellet have a life?

I alway found it funny how just because you enjoy playing video game whether it be an MMO or FPS. That you are tagged with not having a "Life" .

So tell me what's the difference of someone enjoying spending his free time playing video games vs some that enjoys his free time Going Out? What difference it is if a Gamer is has Fun playing online with his Friend Online Vs a Person that goes out Where ever and has fun playing with his Friends?

Because I always though if that person is having Fun and not harming himself or anyone else in the process, it really shouldn't matter what it is he/she is doing.

^In addition to that, MMO players always seem to be treated/stereotyped as the nerdiest/geekiest/no-life-iest (is that a word?) of all the gamers.

What I don't get is this thread. No offense but we all know we have lives. We love being gamers and spending hours in an mmo in our free time. What are we trying to prove and to who with this? I feel it should be made into a documentary! I'll get the camera you get the lights but since we spend so much time in a fake world we aren't getting any action lol!

/sarcasm

I play for fun.

Sometimes I would love to do nothing more than take a day away from everybody and lose myself in my MMO. However, I know that my body occasionally needs exercise and sunlight and fresh air. Occasionally.

I think there's a mix of both ... but I do always suspect the "YOU MUST WORK FOR IT IF YOU WANT IT" crowd, that supports really ridiculous grinds and heavy RNG tactics, derives too much of its self-worth from video game status. In real life, you can put a lot of time into something and still get beaten by the talented folks who do it less but are simply better. With heavy vertical progression, as long as you put enough time in, you too can roflstomp most of the other players who lack the ability (or inclination) to engage in that level of time commitment.

Real life, the rewards aren't as quantifiable (there's no exploding graphic, there's no +10 to calculus hoodie you can put on) or glorified. Satisfaction and sense of accomplishment that people would normally derive from their job or a sport are now gotten in a much flashier way online. Actually, the link in my sig talks about this a lot. Fascinating read imo.

I think it's absolutely possible to balance gaming with having a life outside of MMOs. I guess it just depends how you define "hardcore" I would think 15-20 hours per week constitutes a "hardcore gamer" and that's less than the average individual spends watching television, and if anything, gamers have greater social skills that folks vegged out in front of the boob tube.

I see it as entertainment. If I weren't playing MMOs, I would just have some other hobby/form of entertainment to fill the time I wasn't working /taking care of my family / hanging out with IRL friends. I just choose an MMO as that hobby. Honestly, I'd prefer to be at the shooting range, but the judge said I wasn't allowed to go to those places anymore.

Firstly, that anime sounds a lot like a hardcore remake of Captain N: The Game Master.

But seriously, you are not a loser for playing a game... unless you miss out on life cause you'd rather be playing a game. But that goes for everything. I know people I would deem a "loser" because they will forgo all social interaction to sit home and watch football all day, or plan their whole day around watching The Walking Dead or whatever show they like. Same difference. Our "anti-nerd" culture just prejudges things like comics, video games, etc as "loserish" While revolving your entire life around a sport team is deemed "cool." If I am at home, relaxing, and I want to play DCUO for 6 hours, what's it to you?

Heh, I always viewed "hardcore" as a mindset more than just hours spent. IE, one person could log in for a couple of hours and spend an hour of that rearranging furniture or chatting in league chat or whatever. The hardcore person would either be progressing in some manner during those two hours (these are the "must complete this alert/raid/etc. at maximum efficiency people) or extensively testing new loadouts and crunching numbers (which is progressing in RL knowledge of the game, so still progressing). Neither of the hardcores will do anything that they cannot reap a tangible benefit from. They're not going to be playing house or taking pretty screenshots or whatever.

But everybody defines them differently.

Meaning "you".

I've been a gamer for twenty-seven years. I always go from relatively hardcore to ridiculously casual. It just depends on what is happening in my life. I've got a baby on the way and I know my game time is going to take a nosedive for awhile. This is also one of the few MMOs I've really gotten into, aside from playing PSU years ago and recently getting into Guild Wars 2 (Asura Engineers ftw!); I mostly play single player (Dead Space freak in the house). I don't consider myself lacking in a life. I'm usually happier getting the hell away from people, lol.

Honestly. It's both really. We all play the game because we have fun with it, this is our definition of fun. Just the fact of someone playing the MMO or not doesn't reflect anything on their social life. Many are older, married people who still play for fun. Many are younger kids/adults in schooling playing it to pass their time with something they like.

We all have our lives we live.. Our stuff we do during the day whether it be work, school, taking care of kids. This is just our fun time on here. Same as if someone chose to go out and hang with friends, same concept just different thing.

Now there are those, that have no job, no school, no responsibility and are just on here 24/7... That's the only group I'd put into your category of maybe "not having a life". That group though is considerably small honestly. The majority of MMOs are either young kids in school, college kids, or working adults.