The following email was received on December 15, 2001; typically I like to answer the feedback and general questions. I feel "Sara" deserves more attention than what she is getting. It is not fair to neglect Real Life (tm) people for a simple video game. Then again, I do not feel it is fair to the gamer to be harassed for enjoying themselves once or twice a week.

you asked it
yes you do suck
online gaming sucks
has anyone set up a chat room for internet widows such as myself
has anyone who is into online gaming actually got a life( or want to have one)
want some real thrills try living in the real world. You lot and cable modems have a lot to answer for. I don’t care if you publish my message. I bet I am not the only neglected woman out there due to you lot.
Sarah

Well thank you for the valuable feedback. I'm not sure if I agree with you and saying "we suck," it isn't the best way to gain attention, but tis’ the season. Here’s my reply.

Let me start off by stating: "I for one do not suck; I find the habit repulsive and disgusting." There are players/readers out there that do suck, the world is full of different people, but like to go on record to say not everyone here sucks. Some people are born to suck, it is genetics, they cannot change who they are. While I cannot speak for the staff of PF, but if it makes you feel better, I believe I am one person who does not "suck."

You do have a good point on sucking, but it is just one view. Thursday night I learned that there are places where people pay to have weekly enemas for pleasure. There are clubs where they feed you pea soup and water to clean the body. The enema is the final part of the cleansing. Everyone has their own perspective/interest, who am I to argue? Then again you are right, some online games suck. Not all of the games suck, I believe some suck like a Hoover. Thousands of players love Counter Strike, a game that is not for me, so in theory, you could file that in the suck category. The game has a strong following so the creators must have something going for them.

Planet Fortress is a Team Fortress site, based off of a game which definitely does not suck. In fact, TF is probably one of the greatest games ever created. It set a new standard in modification creation. If you are interested in playing Team Fortress Classic, I know Half-life is pretty cheap. Maybe you could try to learn the game and get the full experience. You could also try the original version of Team Fortress by buying Quake 1. You could play the game first hand and learn why gamers love this game. Maybe your significant other can teach you how to play? This would prevent you from being an internet widow.

Just by sending this simple email to us, you have taken your first steps away from being an internet widow. In fact you have started to become one of us. The internet has virtually endless possibilities, I’m sure there are interests you can relate too. A good place to start searching for interests is www.yahoo.com or www.google.com, these are two excellent sites that will move you away from being a widow and more towards an online junkie.

Online junkie, which may not be the best term to use, how about community member? Let’s go off the internet for a bit. I would like to believe I have a life outside this digital domain; I am an avid car audio audiophile. I do stereo installs on my friend’s cars as a hobby. Usually we hang out and chat while I work. Other times we head out to my friend’s camp on the lake. There we water-ski, wakeboard, grill-out, take saunas, etc. Basically we participate in some quality outdoor fun. We have done some pretty crazy things too. In the winter we climb on top of cars and drive around till someone falls off. There are snowball fights, snowmobiling, ice skating. On Wednesday nights we get together for Pool Leagues and on Sunday we watch (American) football. To me, this qualifies as a life.

One can have a life online too. It may not be kosher in society right now, but over time society will acknowledge the online community. An online activity can be as good as Real Life (tm) activities. Instead of the Wednesday night Pool Leagues, they are now Wednesday night TF Leagues. They both are organized competitions, both can provide entertainment. To gamers, the leagues are virtually the same. Just because we cannot physically see each other’s face, does not mean we are any less of a competitor. It is pretty demeaning to the gamer when he is laughed when he informs friends that he partakes in an online league. Is that fair to us?

You write in asking for much deserved attention. I have replied with my thoughts and experiences. I am a gamer, who does not suck and who lives a quality life. Being a gamer is not easy, but neither is dating. It takes patience from each side to make the relationship work. Talking to him can make it work, if not, there are a lot of non-gamers in the world. Hopefully the gamer who has ignored you will now appreciate your interests little more. Maybe you can see his side a little better. Try to work for a compromise. When you are watching your shows on TV, he can play his game online. On girls night out he can hang out with his friends online.

Planet Fortress does not destroy lives, we just are a gathering place for friend with a common interest. We do not require people to visit our site, we do not break knee caps for people leaving our site. Our site has information for people with a common interest. It is easy to point out faults in another, but we often forget our own. We respected your views, so please show some respect towards us.

Sincerely,
DieHard