I is just like saying nothing about these too, that is like disgusting man ... innit!
Prefix
Just a quick aside ... gaming is ensuing apace, but unfortunately not on the 40k side. As you may have noticed from the previous posts, Infinity has grabbed my attention this year, and I fully intend to make 2011 the year of the small skirmish games, with Infinity and Malifaux topping the pick of the pops, pop-pickers!
As such I've been busy painting up a whole series of Infinity Haqqislam models, with photo's to follow (as soon as I've thought through the final touches on the paint scheme AND the basing...)
Back On The Subject ... and the only one in the village?
Back when I was at school in the 80's and the 90's, the title of this piece would have solely been the regard of the most alienated kid in the Derbyshire School. The gay ones.
Nowadays (thank goodness), the UK has moved away from wholesale discrimination of Gay men and Lesbians and its a lot nicer place for it. That's not to say that it still doesn't go on, but any aggression is usually propagated by the same group who are also inherently racist and sexist, so clearly they like to collect a full set of prejudices.
Main stream gay men like John Barrowman and Graham Norton are BBC talent and the nation as a whole accepts Stephen Fry as the national treasure he is, things are pretty good. It may be different where you live, but the UK has a long and progressive history of either hating or loving our gay icons... just check out Gruber from 'Allo 'Allo.
Either way, the result for double-entendres has a special place in an Englishman's heart, even if at the time we were as homophobic as the next country!
And the relevance to wargaming...
Well, it polarises, doesn't it. Some people are infinitely interested, while others look at you aslant with somewhat akin to a complete destruction of their interior perception of you and your credibility. Perhaps this changes elsewhere, but my 'small plastic men' are a topic which must be handled carefully ... and with tact. In the past I've found myself not joining in communications with less scrupulous uber-geeks as I am neither familiar with the company and keen to make a good impression ... not unlike Gruber above it's best to speak in code.
Why is this? Why should I feel shame at the prejudice of others? Alas, I have discovered that people are quite happy to use 'toy soldiers' in a derogatory way and belittle me. I'm successful, have a beautiful family and a very happy life and great business.
How odd?
Being a 'geek' has never been more fashionable, yet if I admitted to playing chess, I'd be considered an intellect. But I see something else in (some of) their eyes when I admit to wargaming. As such I have formulated the following table of socially acceptable geekidioms...
Geek Scale of Cooldom (an Oxymoron if ever I heard one)
- Harry Potter and ilk, Stardust, Startrek, Starwars etc (totally mainstream)
- Computer Games on a TV based platform (mainstream)
- Computer gamer on PC (bit more geeky)
- Call of Duty Online player (totally normal - working class)
- World of Warcrafter (opposite - very geeky, and danger danger, your life will disappear!)
- Hacking = cool, but/because illegal
- Programmer = largely dull, except if you design online/iphone games
- iphone games = mainstream
- Wargaming = GEEEEEEEK ALERT
- LARPing (Live Action Roleplay) = even I run away screaming at this stage, completely fucking weird!
- Cosplay - I used to live in Japan, I speak Japanese - cosplay is weird, Japanese people have a particular weird subset that is explained by BEING JAPANESE. Westerners who copy them are beyond weird...
...Rant over.
EPIPHANY!
Perhaps I should introduce my passion thus: "Infinity? Oh it's a bit like chess, but not so basic." He shoot's, he scores!
What's your experience, your feedback and your friends (non gaming) appreciation of wargaming? WII's, PS3 and XBox are now so mainstream my mother owns one, but somehow 'wargaming' is still in the geek-fringe (very straight, with pimples below). Why? Am I in a hole, along, quietly cradling my plastic crack habit and weeping softly?
Throw me a line here!
