Would young men be rioting in the streets if they didn’t have video games to pacify them?

Hear me out.

We are seeing record levels of young men unemployed and living with their parents: The future for them is bleak. Saddled with college debt, they can barely get a job that pays miimum wage, while living independently is forever out of reach.

I feel like at other points of history, there would be more social unrest, but things are exceedingly calm given the economics.

I was watching a video by Healthy Gamer, a gamer bro-turned psychiatrist. He points out that video games are very addictive and seductive because they MIMIC accomplishment. You can grind to get to the next level, you can gain new skills, you are continually put on a treadmill of constant progress. It’s very satisfying in a hollow way, satisfying in a way that might make you forget that society has nothing to offer you but debt and homelessness after you followed all the rules.

Are video games weapons of mass distraction, the metaphysical equivalent of a million Christians being fed to a million lions every day?

  • schipelblorp@sh.itjust.worksOP
    2·
    4 days ago

    Yeah, I was a little unsure if I should gender this discussion, but a few factors went into it:

    • video games seem to cater to male-centered power fantasies;
    • men are much more often the actors of street violence;
    • men have a greater sense of entitlement to economic success;
    • currently, men are doing worse than women on a lot of measures;
    • and men seem to be remarkably politically active when their video game fantasy-life is threatened.

    Totally agree that economics is at the root of all of it, and at the root of all of that is wealth (and power) concerntration.

    Edit: Keeping in mind gender essentialism is bullshit, men in general tend to be more attracted by themes of power and control, women more by themes of connection. I think the gendered nature of the distractions we are bringing up reflect that.