It is bad form to be a killjoy when it comes to gaming, so I will start by saying that there is nothing essentially wrong with it. Everyone has to relax, and there are more damaging forms of relaxation like drink, drugs and arguing with strangers on social media.
About half of Britons game, playing on consoles, computers and smartphones. On average, Brits who game do so for about ten hours a week. Millions now watch other professional gamers compete with each other. Being a pro gamer has joined ‘football player’ and ‘rock star’ among the dream ambitions of young men. What’s more, Britain has a long history of making world-class video games and the industry is worth nearly £3bn to the UK economy.
The technology giants are now starting to acknowledge that people want to game just as much as watch TV shows. Google is launching a service that offers customers the chance to stream video games.
Britain’s best politics newsletters
You get two free articles each week when you sign up to The Spectator’s emails.
Already a subscriber? Log in
Comments
Join the debate, free for a month
Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first month free.
UNLOCK ACCESS Try a month freeAlready a subscriber? Log in