Tag Archives: social media

The lost art of “just enjoying something”

The Internet has done many things to our collective consciousness, attention spans and numerous other aspects of our existence, but one thing that saddens me more with each passing year is how the art of just enjoying something for what it is — rather than mourning what it isn’t — seems to be slipping away from everyone.

What I mean by this is the way in which I can’t remember the last time I saw someone simply say “I like this” with genuine passion and enthusiasm. It’s far more common for people to pick fault with literally everything, often under the justification “it’s important to criticise the things you love”.

But is it? Is that not just setting oneself up to be perpetually unsatisfied? It certainly looks like it from here.

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The joy and despair of loving things that others don’t care for

If you’ve been reading MoeGamer or any of my other work for any length of time, you’ll know that I’m a strong believer that anyone should be able to enjoy what they want (assuming it’s not outright illegal or harmful) without fear of being shamed for it.

By extension, I also tend to believe that anyone who enjoys something should have the freedom to talk about the thing they enjoy — again, without fear of being shamed for it, and with others showing them at least some basic courtesy and understanding, even if they don’t share the same tastes.

It’s this latter bit that the world today seems to struggle with — and it’s an aspect of life that, with increasing frequency in the modern age, leaves me feeling desperately lonely and frustrated, even surrounded by these things I love so much.

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#ThankYouPatrons – A Message of Gratitude

I posted this quite late last night, so although it’s technically a day late I’d like to share something important.

Yesterday was #ThankYouPatrons day on Patreon, and creators from all over the world have been sharing messages of gratitude for the people who support them — whether it’s generous contributors on Patreon or similar services, or those who help out in other ways, such as leaving likes and comments, following on blog pages and social media, subscribing on YouTube and all that good stuff.

I love doing this, and every day I am filled with gratitude that other people enjoy and appreciate what I do, too. So hopefully that comes across in this message to you all.

If you’d like to support my work, please do stop by Patreon to find out more, and get access to exclusive daily blog posts, weekly vlogs and monthly wallpapers. You can find my Patreon page at https://patreon.com/petedavison.

10 Ways to Enjoy Video Games More as a 21st Century Grown-Ass Adult

The year is 20XX. You are a grown-ass adult who has always enjoyed video games.

But just recently you’ve caught yourself being a little dissatisfied with your experiences engaging with your favourite hobby. You can’t quite put your finger on exactly what it is, but you frequently find yourself getting irritable and restless, often coupled with an irrational desire to hurl abuse at random strangers online.

To the rescue, here I am, with a 10-step plan to enjoy video games more as a 21st century grown-ass adult. Results not guaranteed. Your mileage may vary. Subject to status. Some chafing may occur.

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Around the Network

Hello everyone! I hope you’ve had a good weekend. Mine has been pretty quiet and dull.

I’ve been a bit bummed out by some rather negative happenings in the retro gaming community recently; thankfully none of them have involved me, but they do involve a creator I like very much and support on Patreon. You can read more about that elsewhere, though — I might even pen something about it myself next week depending on how things go.

It’s at times like this that a bit of enthusiasm and positivity goes a long way, though, so let’s take a look at some of the things you might have missed this week.

Continue reading Around the Network

“Anime Avatar” is Not an Argument

Bit of a personal one today, but I think it’s worth saying.

Calling someone an “anime avatar” is not an argument. Referring to “the anime avatars in my mentions” does not automatically cause your ill-advised social media post to suddenly become correct. Attempting to make the term “anime avatar” a slur does not make you look progressive, woke or smart.

If you judge someone by anything other than their behaviour and conduct, you are bigoted by the very strictest definition of the word. Let’s ponder this in a bit more detail.

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Super Mario Maker 2: In Praise of “Normal”

Now Super Mario Maker 2 has been out for a little while, we can consider certain aspects of it in greater detail — something of a necessity when contemplating an online-centric title like this!

There’s already a huge variety of levels out there for you to enjoy, with new ones being added all the time. I’ve even got in on the action with two of my own at the time of writing and more to come — check the game’s Hub Page for the codes if you want to try them!

And, of course, the game is flavour of the month for streamers and YouTubers. But I have a bit of a concern about this side of things in particular; let’s talk about that.

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Waifu Wednesday: Bowsette

Every so often, you’re fortunate enough to witness a cultural phenomenon occur in real time. And it can be a surreal experience.

Such was the case with the meteoric rise to popularity of the character who has become known by several names over the last few days, be it “Bowsette”, “Koopa-hime”, “Princess Bowser” or any variation thereof.

This is a phenomenon that demands some exploration! If only for a tailor-made excuse to look at some sexy fanart.

Header art by Pomu (Pixiv). Please support the many wonderful artists who have brought this meme to life, and check out Kenji’s awesome Twitter thread for many more pieces of artwork, complete with original sources!

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The MoeGamer Awards: The Fond Farewell Award

The MoeGamer Awards are a series of made-up prizes that give me an excuse to celebrate games, concepts and communities I’ve particularly appreciated over the course of 2017. Find out more here, but you’re out of time to leave me suggestions, I’m afraid!

One interesting thing about modern gaming — and, to be honest, something I’m not all that thrilled with as an aspiring gaming archivist and historian — is the fact that we’re increasingly starting to see aspects of the hobby with in-built “expiry dates”.

Whether it’s games with multiplayer servers that shut down after it’s no longer viable for the publisher to keep them running, games that are patched beyond recognition from their physical releases via online storefronts or games that are straight-up no longer available to buy anywhere due to the closure of their digital distributors, it’s going to be a strange and difficult period to accurately preserve for the future. Today’s award celebrates one deeply fascinating aspect of modern gaming that we’ve already lost, only five years after it appeared.

And the “winner” is…

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Kizuna Ai: A Perfect Parody

As someone who writes a lot of long-form pieces — and someone who is an old fart — I’ve never quite latched on to the appeal of “YouTubers”.

Don’t get me wrong, I understand the value of having the opportunity to “get to know” someone via the videos they put out or, in the case of gaming-centric YouTube channels, to see how games look, play and “feel” before purchasing them, I’ve just always been someone who preferred to enjoy content about the things I’m interested through the written word rather than watching or listening to someone.

I say all this to give some context to the following: there’s one YouTuber in particular I have, to my surprise, come to enjoy very much recently. And there’s something rather special about her.

That YouTuber is Kizuna Ai.

Continue reading Kizuna Ai: A Perfect Parody