Voices
We Asked Our Readers:
"Why Do You Play
Video Games?"
To escape stress, vanquish evil, go on fun quests with your sibling, adventures with your children or simply just to immerse yourself in a mysteriously majestic world?
We asked you guys on Instagram to tell us why you choose to play video games and your comments once again did not disappoint.
Whether it's to bond with family or friends, compete or just unwind – keep doing what makes you happy! Here are some of your gems:
But
Why? –
Because shooting each other, racing through the town, vanquishing evil and other fun activities are considered rather illegal in real life. #reallifesucks #fml #99problems
–iamcsongor
Because WHO DOESN'T WANT TO FEEL 12 YEARS OLD AGAIN? #Highscore #MsPacMan #Rollofquarters#Memories 👊👊👊👊👍👍👍
–fjhcsr45
Because there's nothing better than escaping reality, work, problems and having to deal with nothing other than whatever is on the screen
–dablett_photography
Because who else is going pull all the weeds, and keep up with friends, and donate to the museum in my #animalcrossing city?? WHO?!
–thriftypassenger
464
Number of people killed by police from Jan. 1 to May 31, according to The Guardian.
3
Average number people killed by police every day in the U.S. in 2015, according to The Guardian.
385
Number of people killed by police in shootings as of May 30, according to the Post, at a rate of about 2.5 each day. The Guardian tallied 408 people fatally shot by police in 2015.
1.1
Average number of people killed by police each day in 2015, according to FBI data. According to this incomplete count, police kill an average of about 400 each year, with 461 justified homicides in all of 2013. Both the Post and The Guardian suggest that the actual number of police killings is more than twice that, at least to this point in 2015.
Less than
Percentage of the nation’s 18,000 state and local police agencies that have reported fatal shootings by their officers to the FBI, according to the Post.
3x
Rate at which black citizens were fatally shot by police this year, compared with whites and other races when adjusting by the population of the census tracts where shootings occurred, according to the Post. The newspaper's database contained a total of 100 black people killed, compared with 171 white, 54 Hispanic, six Asian, three "other," and 31 unknown.
20
Number of women shot to death by police in the first five months of 2015, according to the Post. The Guardian reported that 5 percent of the 464 total people killed by police were female.
Number of unarmed citizens killed by police by all means this year, according to The Guardian. The Post placed the number of unarmed people shot to death by police at 49.
102
32%
Percentage of black people who were unarmed when they were killed by police, according to The Guardian. The paper reported that black Americans were more than twice as likely to be unarmed when killed during encounters with police as white people.
62
Percentage of unarmed victims who were minorities, according to The Guardian.
Percentage of unarmed people fatally shot by police while fleeing, according to the Post. This included Walter Scott, a 50-year-old black man fatally shot by South Charleston, South Carolina, police officer Michael Slager in April. The shooting was captured in a widely circulated video. Slager has been charged with murder.
Twenty Percent
Less than 1 Percent
Percentage of police shooting cases in which officers have been charged, according to the Post.
Number of people shot to death by police while wielding toy guns, according to the Post.
13
8
Number of children younger than 18 shot to death by police, according to The Post.
16
Age of the youngest people killed by police, according to the Post and The Guardian. Three were aged 16, according to the Guardian. Police said all had brandished or fired weapons at officers before they were killed.
Eighty Three
Age of the oldest shooting victim, according to the Post. Police reported that an Oklahoma octogenarian had threatened officers with a machete before he was shot. The Guardian noted that an 87-year-old was killed after his vehicle was struck by a police cruiser.
92
Number of mentally ill people shot to death by police, according to the Post. The Guardian reported that 26 percent of all people killed by police "exhibited some sort of mental illness," and in at least 29 cases, victims were identified as suicidal.
5'4"120#
The stature of Lavall Hall, a mentally ill black man killed by Florida police in February. Hall, 25, was dressed in boxer shorts and an undershirt and waving a broomstick when he was confronted by officers. A family member had called 911, reporting Hall was having a violent episode. Police said Hall attacked an officer, though video of the incident appears to show Hall repeatedly backing away from officers in the minute preceding his death.
Number of fatal shootings committed by police, compared with the U.S. total number of fatal shootings, according to the Post's Christopher Ingraham:
14
EIGHT
3%
.7
Through June 1, there have been 5,099 gun deaths in the U.S., according to up-to-date numbers maintained by the Gun Violence Archive. Based on the 385 figure, that means that American police are responsible for about 1 in every 13 gun deaths in the country, or 8 percent. The Gun Violence Archive numbers include suicide as well as homicide, so the police-involved share of gun homicides would be even larger.
One in Thirteen
To enjoy watching my 7 year old daughters laugh hysterically as they beat me in every. Single. Game.
–onesimpledanielle
Nothing to do --> play video games --> meet someone online --> date that someone --> play more with him --> break up --> nothing to do --> play more video games
–lollipoo
Part of a mother's job description
–meganauli
To escape the stress and monotony of every day life. Video games are also more structured more fairly than our current society, and actually allow people the chance to achieve based on merit most of the time - unlike our current economic and political system.
–misslolomarie
Unlike movies & tv shows gaming has the power of true immersion & the feeling of consequence based on my actions. Whether that be from the narrative or game world.
–half_nelson
I don't. It's boring. I make music instead.
–typetrauma
It's a hobby that my husband and I bond with. We even bought two Xboxs so we can play co-op games in the same house.
–keshding
Because I like to sit in a dark room, listen to repetitive music and eat magical things
–k.a.r.t.t.i.e
@huffingtonpost great question! Video games bring people together that otherwise would likely never get the opportunity to meet or interact. By playing video games, I can have fun while working towards a common goal with someone on the other side of the planet. That's cool to me.
–jaybeecray
To live and be part of many life just like with books and Movies. To keep myself sane, to keep myself always wondering. To feel, to be many times alive.
–orsan11
To beat my brother. Controller drop. I'm out!
–pinkribbonbakery