Gaming through crisis

Gaming is incredibly important to me, a point that I hope to make clear throughout this article. At 25 years-old, I have been surrounded by video games for as long as I can remember.

My parents themselves were early adopters of the new form of media. In the early ’80s they owned dozens of games to play on their Atari. By the mid ’80s they had two daughters, and a new system in the form of a Nintendo Entertainment System. By the time I came into the picture in 1995 these were old news.

For me, the consoles I remember most from my earlier years were the Super Nintendo Entertainment System and the SEGA Genesis. We’d all gather around our 32″ CRT television in the living room to play Mario, Sonic, or the dreaded Lion King Nintendo game (still the hardest game I’ve ever played).

But my first real memory of loving a game was when I played DOOM with my father on his computer. The graphics, while simple now, blew my five year-old mind. It felt like you were controlling an action movie and trying to save the world. Right now, I wish I could have that feeling back, and I wish something as simple as a guy running around killing demons was all it would take to save our world from the crisis we are finding ourselves in.

As it stands, we’re in the midst of a pandemic. While we have all seen pictures of people carrying on like there isn’t a crisis, its important to remember there most certainly is. Like I said, I am a gamer and a writer. I haven’t studied virology or medicine so I will defer to the Canadian government and their team of experts on that topic, but just realize we are all in this together and its important to realize what our responsibilities are.

The biggest one that you should not be hearing about for the first time here is social distancing. Its basically what I as a gamer have been doing for years. The Canadian government describes it as such:

• avoiding crowded places and non-essential gatherings
• avoiding common greetings, such as handshakes
• limiting contact with people at higher risk like older adults and those in poor health
• keeping a distance of at least 2 arms-length (approximately 2 metres) from others

One of these hits me a bit close to home. If you didn’t surmise from my background, I am the youngest child by a decade. That means when compared to most of my peers, my parents are older. Throughout my own period of social distancing and self-isolation I realized how much I miss having the option to see my parents. My father has always been my best friend, and while talking on the phone is nice I know that for myself and everyone else, its incredibly taxing.

I think back to playing DOOM with him more often these last few days, and its not just because of COVID-19 keeping me isolated. It is also because the latest game in the franchise, DOOM Eternal just came out and I’m spending my new-found free time trying to rid the world of demons.  I got the game digitally on my gaming PC, so I never had to go out physically for something as non-essential as buying a game.

Essentially, non-essential

That’s what a game is, right? Something non-essential to life. Even as a life long gamer, this seems like a fairly obvious statement. But last week I was confused to read a headline that seemed to fly against this seemingly obvious fact. It said something along the lines of “GameStop CEO says stores are an essential service”.

GameStop is the American parent company to Canadian franchise EBGames. When you dig further you start to find reddit posts from employees and store leaders alike of leaked emails. Here is the one that made headlines:

This is not a message that inspired much hope for GameStop employees who are already living in fear of the crisis currently surrounding us. There were messages of anger towards corporate on the subreddit /r/GameStop.

Many people took to twitter to share their stories of what was actually going on inside of EBGames and GameStop in the midst of this pandemic. Some claimed there was not enough sanitation, or store layouts made it impossible to even attempt to practice social distancing. Here are just a few that stood out.

My spouse works for @EBGamesCanada and I had to send cleaning supplies from home to work with him this week because his store didn’t have enough. It just feels like the perfect storm to spread #COVID19

— Laura Miskimins (@LauraMiskimins) March 18, 2020

As a former employee as of this past Sunday, i would just like to share that there are ZERO measures being put in place to keep people safe and surfaces sanitized.

The company did not supply stores with extra cleaners. There is no initiative to clean thoroughly.

Be safe.

— YeahThatFigures (@YTFigures) March 17, 2020

Working at EB Games right now is really weird. You have kids coming in of different ages touching everything and they don't know what they want when we offer to help. I can't tell if someone seems sick or on drugs and we were not sure if we were still going to be open.

— Ashley Asha Arjune (@writingoverashe) March 17, 2020

One Reddit user posted an image of an email that they sent to stand up to corporate.

But why GameStop?

One of the most talked about potential reasons for GameStop being so unwilling to close their doors during this time, is the likely chance they may never be able to reopen. The company has been in rocky waters for years when it comes to finances. In recent years, digital downloading and purchasing of games has become most peoples default method of gaming. On PC there is no shortage of digital gaming marketplaces and consoles now come fully equiped to purchase and download games out of the box.

Because of this, physical game retailers like GameStop have shifted the focus of their stores. Instead of just selling video games, consoles, and accessories they now sell a lot of “nerd stuff”. Things like Rick and Morty mugs and Harry Potter socks. That’s not me throwing shade, I am a huge owner of “nerd stuff”. I have so much of it on my walls and everywhere else that I was horrified my now-fiancee would run the first time she came over.

The other way they have secured their place in gaming is offering physical pre-orders for upcoming games. For many, downloading a game digitally isn’t an option, or the console they play on (think Nintendo Switch) doesn’t have enough on-board storage space to hold a large number of downloaded games. GameStop and stores like them are fundamentally the only way that some people have access to gaming. But right now, that really doesn’t matter.

Gaming is a luxury and it seems selfish to subject workers who are fearful for their lives and their loved one’s lives to even a chance of dying if they are part of the communities most effected by COVID-19. It seems, after this internet outrage, GameStop is also seeing things in a different light.

The memo details that as of this week GameStop will only be allowing stores to be open as a delivery-at-the-door location. With this, employees will no longer be allowing customers into stores that are still open.

Instead customers will be able to purchase products ahead of time online and just pick them up at the door. CEO George Sherman also details that there will be paid time off for all employees that are affected by the growing pandemic.

Isolation and gaming

Now, that aspect of gaming is fairly heavy. To be fair, however, almost every topic feels heavy right now. But I will try and lighten the mood and talk about some of the absolutely amazing things going on in gaming right now.

For one, Steam (the largest digital marketplace for games on PC) is currently breaking all of their records for users online. It gives me such hope and pride to see numbers like this because it means a huge number of people are taking social distancing seriously.

The other aspect of gaming that I view as incredibly needed right now is for the companionship that comes with it. I play a lot of online games with my friends that are all also locked up at home right now.

My fiancee and I currently don’t live together and have been spending this time isolated from one another. Like anyone else, we like having fun together and doing things. While that clearly can’t involve going out together at the moment, because she recently was able to get into gaming, we still have activities we can do together while chatting.

Its not ideal, but it provides a form of escapism that lets you leave your mental prison. I don’t know if my sanity would be quite as intact as it is if I didn’t have that release.

I hope that when you read this you take a minute to think about what is essential in your day to day life. Is that item or activity you want to do needed or is there another way you can get what it will give you. If nothing else, I hope you decide to stay in, play a game and stay close to your loved ones, even if they are far away.

For more information and news about COVID-19, the economy, and more follow @XFMNews. Follow the author Sam Cook @The_Deep_Ender to read more.