G: Gamers and Grammar

Warning: This is one of my longer posts!

From the post title you can probably already guess that this is going to be fun. At least I think it is! I think discussing gamers and grammar is hysterical and here is why.

Number 1: Grammar is not my strong point, as you can probably guess from reading my blog. It is definitely one of those things that I have to really look at when I edit a MS and one of those things I ask my beta readers to really crack down on. But it is something I do notice when it comes to watching Gamers write to each other mid-game.

Number 2: Gamers amuse me because my husband is a gamer ... Let me set the scene. When I met my husband, I didn't know what an Xbox was. I had never heard of Yugioh, and I didn't even know the term "gamer" existed. I had no idea that people could actually spend time on a computer or game system playing pointless games for hours on end. This was a very new concept for me. Thankfully my husband is not a gaming addict, and therefore transitioning into real life and realizing that a marriage is very different from being a bachelor was not too difficult for him. But I have seen some of my friends who have husbands who are addicted to gaming, and I feel very blessed that I do not have that challenge in my life. My Husband prioritizes and that means a lot to me. But he is still a gamer at heart and he loves his games and the time set aside for him to enjoy his little gaming world - much to my amusement.

Ok so back to gaming and grammar (technically I should also add the lack of spelling to this). Gamers, apparently, do not have to use grammar - EVER. It is the rule! If you use grammar .... They know you are an impostor! No, seriously!!! I'm totally serious here! :) Also, apparently they are not allowed to spell things right!
My husband and I have come to several compromises. Due to his giving up gaming and being willing to read some of my work (He HATES reading - which is ironic that he married a writer) and watch chick-flicks, I have been willing to learn to play some games with him. His favorite is LOL (Which in this case stands for League of Legends, not Laugh out Loud).

Whenever I play this game with him, his friends think it's hysterical. Not only do I spend most of my time panicking and yelling "What do I do?!?!?! He's going to kill me!!! AHHHH Run, Run, Run!!!" (Which is only made funnier because they are usually all on a group Skype call when they play, meaning that EVERYONE is hearing this and there is much laughing) but I also spend a lot of time correcting their grammar. My husband and his friends, however, do not find this insulting because they know that not only am I an author, but also an English Major and that I studied this stuff and it's a huge part of my life.

So I see sentences every time I play with these guys that make me cringe but make me laugh also.
Their comments to each other are like this (copied from an actual game I watched my husband play and are some of my favorites):

I ned new username, plz give mee an suugestion
wat about cruft
lul, whut a gay nam
omg stfu plz
he is feed off fear
cuz im squishy
karma is swqishery then you
if she runs you fallow
please for the love of a kill that tower
usesd it a sec ago
u care this la i am noob
i afk la byebye (I still have no idea what these last two sentences are supposed to mean, but apparently everyone else knew what they meant ....)

For a long time, before I consented to play this game with my husband, I would stand over his shoulder and watch him play and correct the things he typed. He is so kind and patient that he didn't say anything about this. A couple of weeks ago, however, when I was having a discussion with him about the grammar in my writing (Which honestly I don't think he cares about - but as a good husband he listened and tried to pretend to be interested), he informed me that it is one of the biggest insults to a gamer to correct their grammar.
I was flabbergasted! And then I laughed, really hard. That is an insult? This was made funnier to me by the fact that I have seen them insult each other on this LOL game. Usually their insults consist of "You are such a noob" meaning you are a new playing and don't know what your are doing. Apparently this is insulting. Most players get super upset by this comment and go on a rampage about how good their scores are and how they are not noobs - although every time someone says it to me I usually respond with "yes, I am. Thanks for being patient with me while I learn." And this really throws them off, and makes my husband and his friends laugh. I just don't see how being new at something is an insult. But it is! And apparently so is correcting grammar.

Now, just to be clear, the world of gaming, specifically with the game of LOL, is not nice. These people are so attached to their game that they get rude and obnoxious. They can say some cruel things and they lose their minds if they lose a game. (Not my huband - thankfully - or he would no longer be playing this game). I am constantly reminding them "This is a game, not real life!" which is something their brains cannot seem to comprehend.

So now, as awful as this may seem, I have learned how to retaliate. As a rule I am not a mean, cruel, or vindictive person. But when people are yelling at me for not playing a game the way they want me to, or for letting my character die in battle, I have learned to get even. I don't yell back. I don't use crude or mean words. And I don't call people noobs (ha ha ha ha ha - still don't see how this is insulting).
What do I do to get even when they are mean to me? I correct their spelling and their grammar!
Ha - take that, suckers!