Gaming Parenting: How my Mum allowed me to love games

Even today many parents view gaming as something bad. They only see the negative sides it can have, like being too addictive. They don't see how it can teach you social skills, art, emotional intelligence and so on. My mum was always different and as I'm about to lose her right now it makes me reflect on our life together.

She allowed me to fall in love with my favorite hobby in a healthy way. I'm very thankful for it and for the memories we made together. Now granted, I was born in 1989 and many things have changed since then, but I still feel like most of what she did still holds true today.

Sharing the Gaming Hobby

One of my earliest memories as a child had to do with me and my mum playing Sonic. It was one of the Gamegear ones and I never got far in the game, but I do remember the day that my mum reached the last level of the game. She called for me all excited and I came to watch her play. Till this day I remember how nervous I was watching her beating the endboss of the game.

Another early memory is connected to the PC Point and Click Adventure Game Kings Quest 7. We played it from start to finish together! One of us used the mouse while the other was watching and then we both tried to solve the puzzles together. The Game itself wasn't that special but playing it together was.

My mum also helped me to fall in love with one of my favorite gaming franchises of all time, The Legend of Zelda. When I got the game Links Awakening on the Gameboy I couldn't read it yet. So she was sitting with me and reading the text for me. The older she got, the less she was gaming herself.

Still the interest never fully fated. I still remember how we both were playing games like Sim City or Anno and helping each other out. I think it says a lot that we both got those core memories through gaming. In my eyes it shows that if you share a hobby with your child that it truly loves that it can lead to lifelong memories.

Knowing your Child

Another thing my mum always did was checking on what I am playing. The biggest memory of this for me is connected to the PC launch of GTA 3. Back then I was 12 and GTA 3 was the first 18+ Game I was ever interested in.

From friends I knew how cool the game was, so I really wanted to play it. Most of my friends got the game either with an illegal copy or because their older brother got it for them. I on the other hand trusted my mum so I spoke with her about it.

I showed her a review video of the game, explained to her what it's all about and asked her if I could get it. At first she wasn't sure so we made a deal, she would get the game for me but we would play it together at first and if it was too much she would take it away again.

So we started to play together and she observed how I reacted to the game. We laughed so much in the opening hours how I drove over some grandma by mistake and she quickly saw that I don't take the game seriously and that I can handle what is shown. So she let me be and let me enjoy one of my favorite games of my childhood.

Every child is different and handles different themes in different ways. To me this example showed that it's simply important to know your child and to spend time with them and see what they can or can't deal with.

Supporting the Hobby

My mum quickly learned how much I love gaming and that it is more than just a hobby for me. So she always tried her best to give me access to as many games as possible. This involved helping me with selling some of my old games and getting new ones on the flea market for example.

One of my biggest memories however is connected to the Gamecube launch. Till this day the Gamecube is my favorite console of all time. So my mum knew how much I love Nintendo and how badly I would want the Gamecube at launch. So she tried everything to make sure I would get it day one.

She made many phone calls and ended up finding a small gaming store an hour away who still had preorders open. So she preordered me the Gamecube with Luigi's Mansion and Star Wars Rogue Squadron. The best part, they even got the console and games early! So we ended up driving there together after school a few days early and I got my console.

One of the happiest moments of my childhood and I guess in some way it made me an even bigger Nintendo fan because of it.

A few years later she also helped me to make a World of Warcraft Account under her name, which was a big thing at the time. As a child who struggled with finding friends in school at the time, playing World of Warcraft and making more friends there also ended up being a big help for me in so many ways.

Thank you Mum

Now as I said earlier I know times have changed. With the internet, more online games and more danger out there it becomes more difficult than ever to be a good parent. But I still think all those things my mum did still apply today.

Thanks to her I fell even more in love with my favorite hobby and made so many wonderful memories with her along the way. Losing her is one of the hardest things I ever experience in life, but I know that every time I play a new Zelda game I will remember how she played Links Awakening with me.

Everytime time there is a new Nintendo console launch I will remember how she tried everything to get me the Gamecube. And honestly there is a great comfort in all of this. Thank you mum, I will always love you and be thankful for what you did.