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The latest patch 5.4 newsBreakfast Topic: How do you cope with muggles who don't "get" WoW?
by Aiden James Kosciesza 
Jan 27th 2011 at 8:00AM
We have a hunter in our guild whose mother does not understand World of Warcraft at all. She's the type who doesn't use computers, refused to have an internet connection in the house until this very year, and thinks that MMOs sound the death knell for her hopes of having grandchildren. My friend the hunter has painstakingly explained that raids are a group activity, that there are real people behind the colorful avatars, and that it's not polite to jump up and leave in the middle of fighting a raid boss -- to no avail. The mother still doesn't understand what could be so compelling on a computer screen that her child can't be at her beck and call.
We all know people who are not WoW players, and most of us have had the experience of trying to explain our favorite game to someone who just doesn't get it, whether that someone is a parent, a significant other, a coworker, or a friend. My own efforts have met with varying results. My family still can't quite wrap their heads around a gaming hobby, but after much persuading I was able to convince my last girlfriend to give WoW a try. She's a valued guildie to this day.
Have you ever had to explain your World of Warcraft hobby to the uninitiated? What was the hardest thing for them to understand? What kind of reaction did you get? Have you convinced any of them to try the game themselves?
Filed under: Breakfast Topics, Guest Posts
Reader Comments (Page 2 of 9)
MusedMoose Jan 27th 2011 8:10AM
One of my co-workers saw the Alliance logo sticker I have on the back of my car and asked what it was. I told her it was from World of Warcraft, and her reaction boggled me - she said, "Oh, that's all right," like I'd done something wrong. I just frowned at her and said that of course it was all right. And she has quite a bit of merchandise from her favorite football team on her desk, so it's not like she doesn't geek out about what she's into. It just kind of irritated me. With everyone else who knows that I play, though, there's never been a negative reaction.
I did, though, have to fully *explain* what WoW was to my mom sometime last month. It was kind of funny, and while I don't think she fully got it, I think she understood the appeal of running around with friends in a huge fantasy world. I would have showed it to her, but I really didn't want to have to explain to her why the character that came up when I started was not only female, but had horns and hooves. ^_^
Neena Jan 27th 2011 7:12PM
Co-workers can be weird. I know of two people at my workplace who play, and every now and then the three of us talk about.
And whenever we do, one of our co-workers starts insulting us -- practically yelling -- about how it's stupid, how the married player is lucky his wife doesn't leave him because he plays a game, etc. I just try to ignore it now, but it really took me aback the first time it happened.
The funny part is, despite her very loud anti-geek bias about how being a geek makes people undesirable, she is the one who is single. I've been with my boyfriend for almost five years, one co-worker who plays is engaged and the other is married, so clearly being a geek is working for us.
She's one of those people who watches stuff like "The Bachelor," but I don't yell at her about how stupid I think that show is or make extrapolations about how it makes her a lame person ... even though I may secretly kind of think that. It's so aggravating!
Draknareth Jan 28th 2011 6:41AM
Can understand how annoying that is. The general sterotypical WoW player is the obese spotty 20 something man, living in his mums basement, probably a virgin, no friends, will NEVER get laid.
Yet the majority of actual WoW gamers are in relationships and succesful people...... me included.
Vitasia Jan 27th 2011 8:11AM
I have a friend - a quite annoying one, actually - who cannot fathom why I would rather spend my time in front of a computer on a Thursday or Friday evening instead of going out to the bars with him. One time, he even chastised me for not coming over and playing "real" video games, such as Call of Duty.
He doesn't get that by not attending a raid, I'm essentially blowing off 24 of my friends. All he sees is that I'm blowing HIM off. He sees WoW as leeching off our friendship, despite the fact we still go out and do other "guy" things during the weekend.
To be honest, if one of my friends don't "get" it, I understand. Just don't expect me to change because they can't see my perspective. As long as we have a "live and let live" agreement on my WoW time, I just don't bring it up in casual conversations.
Sar Jan 27th 2011 4:12PM
I had friends like that when i was in high school. They would get angry with me because i would rather go home after school and play wow instead of letting them drag me places i didn't really want to go in the first place. They said things like "You'd rather go and hang out with your imaginary friends than your real ones."
Let's just say we don't see each other much anymore.. lol
cyanea85 Jan 27th 2011 7:42PM
My best friends are in my guild. I've rarely found geeks and nerds to the degree that I am in "real life".
I don't find that fact sad, because I'd rather be "best friends" with someone who shares my interests than with someone who disrespects them.
Most of my local friends want to go to bars (I'm in college so yeah...) or to parties or to clubs. To someone with some degree of social anxiety (the more people you put around me, the more I clam up), who is gay (so I have no interest in girls which is the main topic of discussion amongst my friends), and who has little discretionary income, these are not my favorite ways to spend my night.
So excuse me if I'd rather spend my night in my dorm talking to people who share my interests than spend a night bored, nervous, and broke.
Othgan Jan 27th 2011 8:12AM
My parents don't understand the real-time concept of they game. Every time I say "I'm in a raid." or "I'm in a dungeon." my moms says, "Well just hit the pause button." -_- Its quite difficult, and though they are getting better, it still happens quite often.
Kira Jan 27th 2011 8:21AM
Just explain that hitting the pause button would involve a trip around the world physically assaulting 24 carefully selected people in order to knock them out, and that even after doing so, the "pause" button can unpause at any time.
sandlwalters Jan 27th 2011 8:16AM
My hubby still calls it "world of dorkcraft"
Mogura Jan 27th 2011 9:20AM
My wife calls it "The Nerdery." I personally like the name, it just rolls off the tongue.
Oznla Jan 27th 2011 10:02AM
Oh, I am so not telling my husband this, because he would use it. A lot.
Yes I'm the WoW addict in the household and he's totally uninterested. He even teases me about playing with my teenage friends (I'm 49). Though that accusation isn't strictly true - my guildies ages range from early 20s to me (I'm the geriatric).
I haven't tried to explain my love of the game to anyone that doesn't play. You could say I was a closet player.
Ryvers Jan 27th 2011 10:39AM
It's "World of Nerds" followed by "You're such a nerd!" when it comes to my fiancee.
Longtime Lurker Jan 27th 2011 1:59PM
We've always called it "The Real World," quotation marks included for emphasis!
Conny Jan 28th 2011 1:14AM
My girlfriend calls it World of Warcrap :)
Shoryl Jan 27th 2011 8:22AM
I have had varying results as well. For the most part, though, I have had little problem with my friends - it's my family and coworkers who don't get it. Teaching my family that I needed to "get safe" before I stepped away from my computer was the hardest of all, really. Raiding I just told them I had blocked off time and wasn't going to do anything else.
The easy way to explain to someone who can see your computer is to show them that you control your character, and explain that someone else controls the rest of them. For this trick to be really successful, it's best to turn your nameplate on and show them a PvE realm, where you can explain that the blue names indicate a player.
razion Jan 27th 2011 8:20AM
I usually do it by starting with lore. I talk with them about a quest I did today, and hopefully it's a little silly. I'll then go on into group quests, dungeons, and go on into raids, introduce my guildies and my circle of friends, a bit of role-playing experiences, then world PvP conflict, and it's all just a mountain-slide from there. It all starts just with a little lore. The world is filled with an AMAZING and rich story-line.
Driix Jan 27th 2011 8:34AM
I loved the Twilight Highlands quests. At one point I got my kids to go up to the Kitchen and we all started poking my wife. She asked what we were doing. I simply told her we had a quest to kill (random number) of Twilight Cultists and that I would spare her if she called enough of her girlfreinds over for me to complete my quest.
Pwnzoar Jan 27th 2011 8:21AM
"Can't you just pause the game?"
Jeremie Jan 27th 2011 8:35AM
Wait, there is a pause button?
Mullane Jan 27th 2011 9:12AM
"When you're driving to work, can you hit the pause button on your car so you can get out and walk over to the corner to push the button to make the light change color?"