What Do Your Parents Think of Gaming?

[Hylian Pants]

This is mostly a topic that applies to people still living at home, but feel free to share regardless. So I'm a college student, and I live a dorm, so I'm only home for about a third of the year. Obviously I'm home for the Winter Break right now, and since I don't bring my Wii to school, I've been cramming Skyward Sword like crazy while I can, as I have zero time for gaming at school. I usually play at late at night into the early morning since the Wii is in our living room and my family uses the TV during the day. The past couple nights I've been up super late, in effort to finish my first run; I finished it last night (this morning, actually) and opted to start up Hero Mode, which I plan to get rolling tonight.

Anyway, I don't usually pull these kinds of gaming all-nighters. The only other times I have that I remember were with Wind Waker and Pokemon Stadium. My mom has been catching on to my recent going to bed at 5 am and getting up at 1 pm routine and is genuinely worried that I'm developing a video game addiction. Thing is, I've been an open video game enthusiast for a solid decade by now, and my parents have endorsed it all the while, by means of buying me systems and whatnot over the years. My mom has never restricted my game time, or banned games or anything, mostly because I've prioritized school and get good grades (I'm also an adult now, so it'd be tough for her to start). In light of my SS campaign and the bags under my eyes, my mom desperately asks me, in effort to understand, what makes these games so appealing. I've tried to explain every facet of my love for games, used endless amounts of metaphors, even the "puzzles keep my mind sharp!" excuse, and she's at a loss, and just continues to believe I'm some kind of unhealthy, nerdy insomniac.

So I as I prepare to embark on Hero Mode, knowing my mom will be confronting me all the way through, I just wonder how other people's parents feel about their gaming habits. I've read little posts here and there around the forum of people's parents playing along with them, and the opposite, harshly restricting them. Nowadays I feel like the older generation is a bit more open to the gaming world, since there are plenty of gamers who are parents, themselves, but also parents who still just consider them to be violent button smashing to a tune of beeps and boops. My dad was a bit obsessed with Pac-Man for a while back in the day, so I can understand my mom's concern, however unfounded it may be..But the point is, what has your experience been with your parents and video games? Has it gotten more or less strained as you've gotten older? Were they supportive, or could they not care less?
Just wondering how other people have had it during their gaming careers.

 

[Danigo92498]

My parents don't mind me playing they just want to make sure I don't make it an issue.

 

[ZeldaOcarina]

I've been a video game enthusiast for years- I can't remember a time before I began playing video games. So my parents certainly have had plenty of time to adapt. Of course, it's never been a huge problem; I've always gotten good grades in school, and I've not let much suffer due to gaming.

My parents do support it, in a sense that they know what series I like, and have gotten me games in those series (or various merchandise). However, they don't quite understand it. Worst is when my mom has tried to sit down and chat with me while I was in the middle of a battle. Of course, since they never banned me from it (not an issue now as I am an adult), I typically tried to understand that they don't know what's going on in the game.

Generally speaking, I know they couldn't care less, but fortunately they've been willing to listen to me rant on about how I just beat Ganon and what he tried to do to Princess Zelda this time! I suppose it is helped by the fact that I often discuss other interests, so it doesn't seem so video game-centric.

All in all, it's been a pretty good relationship, video game wise. My parents certainly aren't against it, and have no issue with me staying up all night in order to beat a boss (so long as I don't wake them up). I've never once been accused of being an addict, although I probably would never try to deny it if I was.

 

[Ventus]

My parents hate games with a passion. My dad thinks I have to be on top of schoolwork; above and beyond. So I'm in a bunch of advanced classes, I get no time to do what I want (play games). He even took it upon himself to destroy all of the entertainment in the house.

Well, it isn't fair to say my parents hate gaming with a passion, as my mom really doesn't care. She'd get me a Wii if my dad wasn't so adamant about NO GAMES, ONLY SCHOOLWORK. It really sucks, not being able to do what I want, but at least I live. Still, I know my dad could get a game system, and I know for a fact that I've done extraordinarily well in school when I DID have a distraction (Game system) with which to busy myself with. Now that there's nothing I like to do in the house, my grades are actually suffering because I put too much time and effort into school.

At one point, my dad used to love gaming. We'd play Zelda, Red Faction, Resident Evil and so on together. But since I'm in high school, he thinks that I have to be at the top of the class and beyond the class so as to ensure that I get a good spot in college. But...I'm going to a local college if any at all – my grades don't matter a thing (so long as they're not Fs and I don't make any semester grades that aren't an A). I really do wish my dad would let the family have a freaking game system, just so I could be happy :/

 

[guapo2003]

My parents don't care for gaming, but then again they didn't grow up with it. I'm sure parents in the newer generations that grew up with it will have alot of fun playing with their kids. I know I sure will.

 

[StrauberryJam]

As much as my parents don't like gaming, they both understand and respect it, especially my Mum. I was talking to my Mum about Skyrim before and i swear she was getting more shocked about the things than me.

 

[YoshiFlame]

My parents have absolutely no problem with games, and they actually like them. I remember playing Mario Party with my dad and little brother, and it was my dad who actually played games before I did, introducing me to them.

 

[Azure Sage]

My parents don't really care for gaming too much, but they embrace it for me and my brother. They don't understand the games, but they still let us get them. They did used to enjoy Wii Sports a lot, but that was before we lost the game a few years back.

 

[sailorgirl221]

My mother is the whole reason why i love video games lol. she is the one that bought the system into the house (N64) and all that jazz. she is the one that played them and i would watch her all the time. then i started playing them lol.. my mother had no problem with me playing them.

 

[pit0010]

my parents let me play but not during school days...only holidays....:O

 

[Caige]

Wow...well, both my parents and my whole family are gamers. My step-dad and uncle are mmorpg players, my cousin and I are pretty into video games, my little sister plays V-Tech (IT COUNTS! XD), my grandma used to play the DS, but now plays Farmville, which is kinda like Harvest Moon. My Aunt plays LEGO games and my mom plays Spyro when she has the chance to get on the PS3. Otherwise, she also plays Farmville. My other cousin also plays LEGO games and kid games because she's only four-years-old(which is when I started gaming ). So everyone in my family plays games atm, my Aunt even played Phantom Hourglass. Oh, and don't take me as a thirty-year-old momma's boy. I'm still in my teens. XD

 

[Corrol132]

My mom hates it i think, any time I am going to buy a game (I live in Brazil, so games are expencive) she complains, and I can't play a lot or else she gets mad.

 

[KirbyBBQ]

My mom is totally fine with it.
In fact, she plays a lot of that mobile stuff, as well as totally being into Portal.

My dad's fine with it too, although, I'm pretty sure he has no interest in it whatsoever.
But, whenever me or my brother are playing games, and we're all in the same room,
he has enough interest to start up a conversation about it, with us. ^^

 

[Xloi63]

My mom has always been super restrictive when it come to video games. She lets me play for 10 minutes, then acts as if I had been on for hours. I play at my dad's house where he doesn't care, as long as my grade's don't suffer.

 

[Caige]

I forgot to add that ^ as well. My parents will take it away if my grades start to suffer or until I get my work done and then they give it back whenever I do something that they want done. But most of the time I do get my work done and have good grades and compromise with my mom over things she wants me to do.