4 ms·

> I continue to be completely mystified with the concept of outrage about video games. What about the concept of outrage about programming languages, framework

> I continue to be completely mystified with the concept of outrage about video games. What about the concept of outrage about programming languages, frameworks, web browsers, operating systems, laptops, phones, open source? I guess 99.9% of the population would be mystified with the outrages that we can see on Hacker News. - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17221527 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17221527 - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17413572 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17413572 - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15940144 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15940144 - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18052923 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18052923 - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17927972 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17927972 (just few recent examples, the list could go on)

pcwalton 8y ago
I think a lot of people have overly strong opinions on things like programming languages and web browsers as well.
thomasz 8y ago
The comments in these links are downright tame compared to r/diablo right now, while the stakes are way higher. The decisions of tech giants like Google, Microsoft and Apple have real, tangible impacts on our careers. Diablo is just a goddamn video game.
- pcwalton 8y ago
  > The decisions of tech giants like Google, Microsoft and Apple have real, tangible impacts on our careers. Not only that, they have an impact on democracy. The importance of FB, AMZN, AAPL, GOOG, and MSFT to society has never been higher. The relevance of ATVI to anything important is, to a first approximation, zero.
  - jakebasile 8y ago
    Again, you're essentially saying that because games aren't something you care about that it's wrong for anyone to care deeply about them.
    - WalterSear 8y ago
      I'm not much of a video game player, but I chafe at the number of people coming in to this thread to express how much more valid their emotions are, than some group of people they've have little interaction with.
      - thomasz 8y ago
        I have sunk an absurd number of hours into games in my life, Diablo in particular. I still remember some of the goddamn uniques on my sorcerer from the first one (Dreamflange, Thinking Cap and Najs Plate or Cape). And while I'm totally flabbergasted by the emotional response, I'm not very judgemental about it. I don't get deep emotional attachment to sport teams or TV shows either. But the sheer fury and vitriol and the paranoia fuelled fantasies about evil journalists are a little bit unsettling to be honest, especially because we both know that the stuff we get to see is just the tip of the iceberg. I simply can't help noticing the striking difference to the reaction to SyFy's cancellation of The Expanse.
- jakebasile 8y ago
  The decisions of game giants like Activision, EA, and Ubisoft have real, tangible impacts on my life. They obviously do not have such an impact on yours. Who are you to tell me what I can and cannot care about and how deeply I should care about it?
- ThrowawayR2 8y ago
  > Diablo is just a goddamn video game. The Super Bowl is "just a goddamn game" too. The Harry Potter series is "just a goddamn book" and Game of Thrones is "just a goddamn TV show". I'm sure whatever leisure activities you enjoy can easily be given a sneering dismissal as well. Are we not allowed to have passion for our hobbies?

pcwalton 8y ago

I think a lot of people have overly strong opinions on things like programming languages and web browsers as well.

thomasz 8y ago

The comments in these links are downright tame compared to r/diablo right now, while the stakes are way higher. The decisions of tech giants like Google, Microsoft and Apple have real, tangible impacts on our careers. Diablo is just a goddamn video game.

pcwalton 8y ago
> The decisions of tech giants like Google, Microsoft and Apple have real, tangible impacts on our careers. Not only that, they have an impact on democracy. The importance of FB, AMZN, AAPL, GOOG, and MSFT to society has never been higher. The relevance of ATVI to anything important is, to a first approximation, zero.
- jakebasile 8y ago
  Again, you're essentially saying that because games aren't something you care about that it's wrong for anyone to care deeply about them.
  - WalterSear 8y ago
    I'm not much of a video game player, but I chafe at the number of people coming in to this thread to express how much more valid their emotions are, than some group of people they've have little interaction with.
    - thomasz 8y ago
      I have sunk an absurd number of hours into games in my life, Diablo in particular. I still remember some of the goddamn uniques on my sorcerer from the first one (Dreamflange, Thinking Cap and Najs Plate or Cape). And while I'm totally flabbergasted by the emotional response, I'm not very judgemental about it. I don't get deep emotional attachment to sport teams or TV shows either. But the sheer fury and vitriol and the paranoia fuelled fantasies about evil journalists are a little bit unsettling to be honest, especially because we both know that the stuff we get to see is just the tip of the iceberg. I simply can't help noticing the striking difference to the reaction to SyFy's cancellation of The Expanse.
jakebasile 8y ago
The decisions of game giants like Activision, EA, and Ubisoft have real, tangible impacts on my life. They obviously do not have such an impact on yours. Who are you to tell me what I can and cannot care about and how deeply I should care about it?
ThrowawayR2 8y ago
> Diablo is just a goddamn video game. The Super Bowl is "just a goddamn game" too. The Harry Potter series is "just a goddamn book" and Game of Thrones is "just a goddamn TV show". I'm sure whatever leisure activities you enjoy can easily be given a sneering dismissal as well. Are we not allowed to have passion for our hobbies?