Community and Video Games

The Annual Music and Gaming Festival

This prior weekend, I attended MAGFest, the Music and Gaming Festival. This is the second MAGFest I have attended, and I have also attended a couple other gaming conventions and pop culture conventions. Game conventions truly show something magical that very few other things can, that being the sense of community that can be created through gaming. 

People who are truly passionate about games are, in many cases, looked down upon by people who don't play games or who can't understand the passion. That is far from warranted, but that is a discussion for another day. When you are at these conventions, you feel opened up, you aren't afraid to strike up a conversation with a stranger because you know that the people you're with have the same hobby. Everyone there is a nerd for something, even if it isn't games, as it serves as a hub for other pop culture staples as well, such as anime, movies or other things of the sort. There is a mutual respect that everyone has for others, and no matter what you love, you will not be judged for it, and there is almost certainly someone else there who shares that love.

Now, regarding my personal experience, I can say with confidence, this year was truly enriching and fun. The previous time I went was excellent, but I decided to spend the majority of my time playing games in the arcade and console lounge and I only attended 2 official events. This year, I attended a number of concerts as well as what are known as "MAGES Panels."  These are each 1 hour gatherings with a host or group of hosts that lead a discussion regarding a topic, ranging from Therapeutic uses of Games to the place of LGBT subjects in games. The hosts begin the conversation, but it is largely open to the crowd to discuss things.  I attended 6 of these and I would consider most of them greatly beneficial, and they all opened my mind to new perspectives and made me begin to think about new things in the industry that I really hadn't until that point, and some of their subjects will definitely make an appearance on this site as I share my thoughts on them.

It was fascinating, as a number of people shared their personal experiences, and in some ways, they would likely be ridiculed by many from the general masses, but in these rooms, not only did people just accept them, but in many cases, people there shared their experiences. Many people felt great comfort in knowing that people had similar pasts to them and that they could help them with any troubles they may have had.

Popular Comedy Rock Band, Ninja Sex Party

Ninja Sex Party is a Comedy Rock Band that has found a good amount of success on the internet, with the lead singer being Danny "Sexbang" who is one of the two lead members of another internet sensation; Game Grumps. Because of their great popularity with the video game community thanks to Game Grumps, they played at MAGFest this year. I had the great fortune of attending their joint performance with Tupperware Remix Party, another band of internet fame, and being only 5 rows away from the stage. I have attended a couple of stadium concerts before, and they did not reach the amount of energy (and volume) that this crowd of 4500 did at the NSP show. Everybody in the entire room was getting each other excited for the hour leading up to show. During the show, I would easily believe that literally every single person in the room was screaming after each song, the volume was truly crazy. After the show, it appeared that everybody was smiling and laughing with all the people that they hadn't known just 2 hours ago. Everybody shared a mutual respect as they had enjoyed this great show together.

Speaking of mutual respect and understanding, another concert I attended was the Journey Live show by the original composer, Austin Wintory. Everybody in the room, which was a couple thousand people, were completely silent during the show.  The show itself was the premiere of the nationwide tour, and it was brilliant, if you have the opportunity to see it at any point, I can't recommend it enough. With both of these shows, I experienced very different crowds, yet very similar crowds. One was far louder than the other, but the mutual feelings in both crowds were very similar, both there to see something they love and showing their love for it in different ways, one being extremely loud and the other being silent. I have never been in a place where such a large number of people shared passion for one common thing, and it was truly wonderful.

Not much more can be said regarding the impact of the sense of community on any individual other than myself, as I don't have any knowledge of the psychological effects of a sense of community, all I can really say is that it is wonderful and the presence of it within gaming is enormous and stronger than I have seen in most other fandoms.

How do you feel about gaming's ability to provide a sense of community? What is your best experience with this community? Let me know in the comments or wherever you see fit.

Have a tremendous day.