As people on this forum know, “Gamers” have been over for decades. However, words are helpful to communicate general ideas.

I like using the term “Video Game Hobbyist” because it’s broader, more inclusive, and recognizes that there are more than one way to engage with the hobby and its adjacencies.

Here are some ways that you can be a games hobbyist. Please note that these ideas are presented independently and specifically don’t require any kind of dependence on any of the others. I randomized the order after writing them, so any hierarchy is intentionally accidental.

- If you like making fan art or fan fiction based on video games
- You contribute to emulation development
- You enjoy contributing to video games forums - I’ve heard good things about Insert Credit.
- You have a group of friends that you play games with on a regular basis
- You play games at some kind of competitive level
- You enjoy traveling to games conventions
- You read about games for fun
- You play gatcha games while you’re waiting for your meeting to get going
- You’re a cosplayer and create and/or wear costumes based on characters from games
- If you play lots of games
- If you collect games, but maybe don’t play them
- Are you a games historian or archivist or researcher in your free time?
- You set up a bunch of emulators on a PC or develop dedicated devices to play emulated games
- If you make your own games for your own enjoyment, but don’t distribute them widely or at all
- I don’t know about you folks, but I listen to an awful lot of music from video games
- You play words with your friends

How else can you engage with the hobby of games beyond being a “gamer”?

Get this into your lexicon y’all!