Having already spent far too long with my in-laws over the Christmas period, I was surprised to find myself the butt of several jokes on Saturday evening. My extended family know very little about my job and as a group of individuals who don’t play video games and spend the majority of their time talking about football, what curry they enjoy eating and what tool is particularly useful on a building site, it’s fair to say our personal tastes significantly differ. Whilst they’re unquestionably a caring bunch and incredibly close (and more than willing to talk about anything and everything) the subject of games has never reared its head.

To digress and to add some context, my wife’s family alongside her parents, brother and his girlfriend decided to get together on Boxing Day. It’s somewhat of a tradition and generally involves lots of alcohol, music and enough nibbles to cause a food induced coma. My brother-in-law, on the evening in question, began the night in a good mood. For some unbeknownst reason, that mood deteriorated rapidly to the point where he was no longer talking and instead, looked particularly miserable. I’ve no idea why he soured, but then again, it’s a frequent occurrence with him and we’re all well and truly past sympathizing. It was at his most miserable that he suddenly sprang to life and began in earnest to 'take the piss' out of my job, the video games I choose to play and what they involve. Needless to say it was all stereotypical jibes: me and my band of merry men fighting dragons, unicorns and calling ourselves ridiculous names.

There's nothing wrong with wanting to explore worlds like this

Though the majority who were present laughed heartily (with the exception of my wife) I found it fascinating that this attitude still exists: that there remains a level of ignorance surrounding video games, their popularity and the breadth of individuals who play them. I would certainly never question the fact that it has an image problem - you only have to visit any gaming event to find a token “geek”. What angered me most was his willingness to intentionally belittle my hobby and passion. Were I to golf, play football or go rock climbing, he’d consider it more than acceptable and have little to say. But because it’s a computer game, played online and the majority of people I play alongside I rarely meet, it’s somehow open to ridicule.

Considering my brother-in-law has no hobbies outside of spending money on alcohol and overpriced knitwear he can’t afford, there’s no mistaking his ‘joking’ was malicious rather than in good humor. In such an environment, it’s particularly difficult to defend yourself without appearing overly defensive or easily offended. As it happens, it simply asked him what the last game he played was (Call of Duty) and if he realized the income earned from video games is comparative or greater than many other entertainment industries. I then exampled World of Warcraft and how, at its peak, many millions of players paid $15 a month to participate - and still do. As it transpired (and unbeknownst to me) two people in the room happened to still play it and their ages were vastly different (59 and 44). Within minutes there was genuine interest and curiosity about the industry and my job, whilst my brother-in-law looked even more morose at his inability to score points.

So what did I learn from this family encounter? Firstly, irrespective of your hobby, it never deserves ridicule. To have a hobby, certainly as far as I’m concerned, is incredibly important. It offers a guaranteed outlet of enjoyment, can help you socialize and build relationships, regardless of whether it’s on a football pitch or in a bedroom: if a hobby provides personal enjoyment it’s something to be cherished. Secondly, my brother-in-law is an idiot when he wants to be but is, when he isn’t in a ‘mood’, a genuinely lovely person. Thankfully Christmas is only once a year and for now, I've had more than enough.