Five rules for introducing your girlfriend to gaming
…Without resorting to minigame collections and other such nonsense
Above: “I saw some ammo on the left. Go to the left. You’re not going. Don’t you want that ammo? You’re almost out of ammo, you should go get that ammo I saw. Oh, wait, where is it? I swear I saw some ammo there. Hey, let play for a sec, I’ll find it.”
It won’t be long before you’re the one who’s stuck, and she’s pointing out the way to go. I would have been stuck on the final battle in Resident Evil 5 for an extra ten minutes had my wise companion not pointed out my error. So, to recap, don’t be a dick – you make mistakes too.
Above: “Oops, I killed you. Sorry. Now where was that ammo? OH, I think I know where it was. Go back there after you respawn. You’re not going. Are you listening?”
Now get out there and convince your non-gamer friends, girlfriends, or boyfriends (if all of this gross stereotyping is reversed in your case) to give games a chance. The perception that gamers are lonely animals is completely off – gaming is, and always has been (with a few exceptions) an excellent social experience. Overcoming a pain-in-the-ass boss fight is far more satisfying when you have someone to celebrate with.
Apr 15, 2009
Finally setting the record straight on sexism
This modern masterpiece shakes the FPS genre to the very core
Sign up to the 12DOVE Newsletter
Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more
How NOT to fit in to the cultural microcosm of gaming