I'm a gamer, that part about me is obvious considering that I'm an active member of this site. As much as I do not care for the term, by definition, I am a "hardcore" gamer, I constantly keep up with gaming news, am well aware of nearly every major game coming out within the next few months, enjoy nearly every genre of gaming and own multiple systems.

What if I told you some of my current favorite games were Theatrhtyhm: Final Fantasy, Zumba FitnessRush, and Bejeweled: Blitz? Would you question me as a gamer and say I'm not hardcore, just a casual gamer? Now if you that I'm also a musician, dancer, and have always loved puzzles, would those games now seem acceptable for me to like?

I'm sure most of you reading this are not bothered by what kind of games other people like, but I'm sure many of you have seen times online and even in real life where others, myself included, get ridiculed for the games we like or even the companies we support. I hate it when I get generalized because I tend to support Nintendo online (since they usually get the most uneccessary hate) and I'm sure each of you have been categorized simply because you like a certain company.

From what I noticed, this is what many think when they find out which console we prefer:

Nintendo - childish, blind, ignorant and ever since the Wii, unfortunate

Microsoft - "hardcore", only plays COD/Halo, trash talker

PC - arrogant, elitist, graphics whore

I actually couldn't think of how Sony fans would be categorized as so feel free to comment on that.

It's funny that we're supposed to be living in a society where tolerance and acceptance is the norm yet for many of us, we can't even accept that someone else likes a certain company/game that we hate. If you can accept that your friend likes to listen to Rap music while you prefer Rock, why is it any different than accepting that someone prefers FPS games instead of RPGs?

Each of us grew up differently and have our own culture that shapes who we are. For me, I grew up as an American citizen but as a Filipino, I've always had strong Asian influences so I tend to not prefer what Western audiences are drawn to, instead I'm more towards Eastern games so it's unfair to judge me for preferring Japanese RPGs compared to Western RPGs since I grew up loving Japanese culture.

There is a saying that who you are online is a reflection of your true self because online, you're free to be who you want to be and if you're a prejudice jerk most of the time online, chances are, that's the kind of person you truly are. If you find yourself constantly judging others because they prefer a specific company or like certain games, even if they're being fanboys, ask yourself this "Why does this matter to me?" I understand defending what you like, I do it all the time because while I absolutely do not care if the person I'm debating with hates Nintendo or whatever game I'm defending, I respond to comments that are rather baseless accusations or false/inaccurate info that usually stems from the fact that the person is being a hater.

So before you judge someone else because of what console they play on or what kinds of games they like, think about why they have those preferences, especially if it's someone you know, what about them shapes those preferences of theirs, because I'm pretty sure none of you want to come off as a prejudice jerk because seriously, it's those kinds of gamers that are giving the community a bad name and I for one do not want to be associated with such people.