The Gaming Community, Motivation, and Socialization ? The ...

I got to programming again. I?m currently revamping some of the code from piq to fit the needs of my new project; I plan to use simple roguelike-esque graphics so that I can choose to make either a roguelike or a social organism simulator ? I?d like to make both, but my original intention was to clone a game of life and take it a bit farther, so I think I may do that first.

Why do I adore the gaming community so much? It?s full of a combination of insanely creative people ? creative in marketing, math, computer science, art, music, and, not often enough, engaging players. I have, in past, had some amazing gaming experiences, and I truly miss them. Most of what my friends from elementary school and I did when we got together was play games. Many of my most cherished memories are of games.

I?ve been going onto The Independent Gaming Source?s irc channel and chatting with a bunch of really interesting folk. I?ve also been hanging around the xkcd irc, and someone whom I spoke to yesterday recognized my nickname and welcomed me. That?s really cool.

I vented to (the?) TIG irc that there don?t seem to be enough hobby programmers around my community. One response I got was that coders, at my age, mostly work on their own and remain isolated until they get older and have had experience developing. I don?t like hearing this, but I realized that he didn?t mention that it?s really not that bad: online communities, like TIGSource, are great places to get inspiration and have meaningful, albeit distant, conversations.

And I need to talk to people. Without communication and socialization, I lose steam. People give me feedback, ideas, focus, and fun. I learn a lot from others. Falling back on them and just relaxing and talking about nothing in particular is a great way to take a break from my serious, isolated, disciplined mindset of working. It reminds me that there are like-minded folk out there whom I can feel comfortable sharing and discussing anything with ? and what?s even better is that there are a lot of them collected in very specific, accessible spots.

Honestly, I?d prefer being able to meet and hang out with them in reality. Chatting with people over the web is great, but sitting in front of a computer all day is painful, and it can even get depressing. I need a balance between Internet buddies and real-life friends. I can compromise a little bit by talking over Skype, but that still requires me to sit at my desk.

I?ll continually reflect on my progress and motivation, especially as I alter the amount of communication I have with others. I like viewing life like?it?s an experiment: slightly change one aspect, note the result, and continue tweaking until you?re satisfied.

I guess I can be active and meet people with whom I probably share interests by going to Yoga classes at my local YMCA ? I imagine there are a bunch of vegetarians, independents, and hippies there, and I tend to respect and have good relationships with that sort. Then again, maybe I won?t meet such people, but at least I?ll be reaping the rewards of doing yoga.

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Source: http://newtownsman.wordpress.com/2012/03/15/the-gaming-community-motivation-and-socialization/

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