Gaming with Queer-GG Connect
Hello everyone and welcome to Queer-GG Connect. I, Queer-GG, am a non-binary gamer that has developed a massive passion for video games since I was very young. It was a dark night in a crowded office room in my childhood home when I began my own personal gaming journey. Eagerly watching the download progress bar of World of Warcraft all day on this old desktop tower, I made sure the computer was muted so no one would know I was still awake way past midnight. What would it be like to have my very first account all to myself? What character would I make first? I didn’t care that the computer wasn’t built to handle that game on anything but minimum settings. I didn’t care that I had school the next morning. In that moment, it was me, that old HP tower, and the World of Azeroth at my fingertips.
As I grew up, so did my need to explore more of the video game industry, moving from World of Warcraft to The Elder Scrolls, Assassin’s Creed, Far Cry, and so many more. Now, I’m combating my ever-growing backlog that seems to just get longer each year. My video games are not only an escape from a long day at work, but a way for me to connect. Like reading a great book, I could cry, celebrate, panic, and laugh with my characters as we danced through any plot or trial we decided to tackle. Need a quiet day to unwind? Stardew Valley was an easy way to micromanage and take a deep breath. If I was upset about something, I could load up Dovah-Kiin and “Fus-Ro-Dah” draugr off a mountain with ease. Some days it just feels good to blow stuff up in Far Cry 4.
~Gender~
Things are not that simple in real life though. Not only am I an introvert, but I’m also a heavily left brained scientist. I was the perfect nerd growing up that never quite fit perfectly into any social box, especially not the ones selected for a private college-prep education. I always knew I was different but I didn’t have the words for why. No one around me had the ability to help me understand that. By high school, knew I was gay but gender variation? That was a lesson I wouldn’t learn until after graduate school. I’m still quite new to my gender, but I’ve never felt more myself in my entire life. It was always there with me, surprisingly, in my video games.
Now, let me be clear, the games I was playing did not have this representation built into them. It was through my expression that I could change them to try and get close to how I saw myself. Even if the character I made didn’t fully represent me, in this virtual world, it allowed me to be the self I wanted to present. I’ve learned this is not something out of the ordinary for people that grew up like me.
~Connection~
Video games have always been an excellent way to connect to yourself. Not just emotionally, but your genuine core self. I now see and understand that in a way I have never understood it before. Being so late to this understanding, I want to learn so much more. There’s now a whole new world to explore whether that’s through video games, or a new part of the LGBT+ I am so proud to be a part of. Which brings me to why I started this blog: Connection.
Gaming with my friends online was always a great way to hang out and enjoy each other’s company outside of school. But when my friends were offline, I was able to break through my social challenges and connect with people from all over the world. I became part of raid groups, dungeon runs, and would even follow some people to other games if we weren’t feeling that vibe that night. Even though I have developed so many connections, none of them were with the queer community.
Part of me thinks that’s because, for the longest time, it wasn’t safe to be out like that. I also didn’t know where to find that information. Anything queer related wasn’t accessible to me in any sense, not just gaming. There are still areas of gaming that aren’t accessible. Look at what happens when a woman uses voice chat in competitive first person shooters. But the world is changing.
~Hope~
I want to celebrate the connections we have with video games and what all these developers have brought to the world. I want to explore and connect with games I’ve never heard of. I want to feed the knowledge seeking demon in my mind with community and shared experience. I want to learn and educate myself. In sharing what I love about games and being a queer gamer, I hope to connect to others out there and have a place to enjoy what games can do no matter who they are or where they’re from. Let’s have fun and be safe. Let’s play games!
And So, Queer-GG’s Journey Begins
Join me on this journey of expression, exploration, and of course, connection. This blog will be updated bi-weekly with my latest thoughts on what I’ve been playing or what’s going on in the industry. Social media is still in the works as I’m not very familiar with the various platforms but I will hopefully have something to follow soon! In the meantime, feel free to comment or send an email at [email protected]. I do read every comment/email though it may take me time to respond (yay, daytime responsibilities!). Please also feel free to send me game recommendations, I will be updating my blacklog regularly and am always down for new experiences. Thank you for the support!
~ Welcome to Queer-GG Connect, Queer-GG
