My Life in 3-D

By Peter Glagowski
Staff Writer

What it's like to grow up a gamer.

My life hasn’t been characterized by much more than Video Games. Since I was four years old I’ve had a controller in my hand. I may have even been born with one. Not all of my experiences with games are positive, but starting at such a young age has shaped the way my character has developed over the years.

Ever since I started preschool I had a very active imagination. Thoughts of playing Super Mario Bros. would crop up in my head during recess. I would dig little holes and jump them, set up obstacles for me to clear and even create little sand creatures for me to jump on. I wanted video games to be real.

Come kindergarten, I was even more engaged in games. Having just purchased a Super Nintendo, my mind was even more hooked. The graphical technology powering this new system was so much more advanced to me. This was like heaven: staring at a television screen with life-like technology filling my mind with wondrous images. I saw people connecting fists and kicks with each other and I knew that I had to be a part of that. I found ways to supplement my imagination. Action figures would have all-out brawls when I got my hands on them.

Lego blocks also allowed me to build towering infernos like the creatures I saw in my games. I would stack those blocks to the ceiling, it seemed, and then send them crashing to the floor. My stray hands would sometimes even connect with other kids, though I never meant for that. Having my head filled with such impressive thoughts often made me a singular child.

My early life with video games has allowed me to expand my intelligence. Since video games had fairly low budgets and little to no production values back in the early 90s, I spent a lot of time reading text. Old-school games are notorious for having a lot of on-screen text, so I was never absent from reading.

While grammatical errors were never really apparent to me, I would sound out words that confused me at a young age. I would ask my mother what they were and I would spend time in class asking the teacher correct ways to spell words. This led me to have a better understanding of grammar than most kids my age.

As technology advanced, so did my thoughts. Seeing true 3-D for the first time was like a dream come true. Nothing had ever seemed more realistic to me before. When I would dream at night it would be about Mario in 3-D. I was taken to different kinds of worlds without ever leaving my home.

More recent trends in gaming have shifted into modern warfare. Games like Rainbow Six, Ghost Recon and Call of Duty all show a hyper realistic and more modern approach to shooters. The games also bring you into the world of being in a tactical squad without any of the real danger. These types of games have shaped my thoughts and views towards the Armed Forces. While I may not approve of our occupation in Iraq, I have the utmost respect for people who choose to give their lives for their country.

The rapid growth of the Internet put gaming on websites for anyone to view. Being so ecstatic about gaming made me run to these websites the first chance I got. Since these websites are a form of journalism, video games have led me to my current major.

Continuing games gives me the payoff of exploration. Since my mind has grown through schooling and previous games, I have an urge to visit places. My mind has changed to a more visual style and gaming takes you to far off lands. Through gaming I have traveled to the far ends of the galaxy, been to ancient Greece and Rome and even through Hell.

Video gaming has had some negative effects on me, though. For one, I’m still relatively shy. I tend to not engage in conversations with people or try to look for friendships. The prospect of failing scares me, and that is definitely something learned from gaming. Gaming gives you a continue or a restart, but life only offers one chance.

Another negative effect of gaming has been my growth as an adult. A lot of my actions are still childish, even if my thoughts aren’t. I’ve never had a relationship with a woman because I spend my time in front of televisions. Despite not having a previous relationship, my thoughts about women are very chivalrous. Many video games are about saving a woman you barely know and they show no sexually explicit content after you do, so my thinking is similarly linked to that.

The future of games seems to be going back to basics. Old-school is new again and nothing could be better for me. I can finally relive my childhood with a more focused view. This will also allow me to reanalyze myself and try to fix any blemishes that may be present in my character. Games have gotten more mature over the years and that certainly can be paralleled with my growth.