A move was not something my 11-year-old self was expecting, but it was coming nonetheless.
In 2002, my parents told my brothers and I we were moving from Southern California to the mountain state of Utah. At the time, I had some familiarity with Utah, but my entire, albeit short, life had been in the Los Angeles area.
This move was a mixture of emotion. I was excited for a new home, but was going to miss my friends. I don’t remember being angry about the move, but I definitely didn’t know what to expect.
It was during this time that I learned how important a constant can be in your life.
My pre-teen life was changing, much of it out of my control. I didn’t know what awaited me in Utah and at a young age, I was oblivious to much of those initial struggles.
What mattered to me was my narrow view of life: school, friends, and a new environment.
All of that was hard for an 11-year-old to grasp, but there was one way that helped me make the adjustment. Video games served as my constant through this tumultuous time and ironed out what could’ve been a tough move.
My Love For Games
Video games had always been a love of mine, especially in my early years.
Growing up, we had both a Nintendo 64 and a Sega Genesis. Mario and Sonic quickly became animated icons to my brothers and I, but it didn’t start there. I used to love playing on the computer during the late ’90s with games like Spy Fox, Backyard Baseball, and Pajama Sam.
All of these were great outlets at such a young age, but it was my Game Boy Color that caught my eye the most. More specifically, it was the first and second generations of Pokémon that occupied most of my time.
I owned Red, Gold, and Crystal Versions for my deep purple GBC. I played religiously and dug into these games to the point that I discovered many of these games’ secrets.
When the GameCube launched in 2001, this also occupied a lot of my time. Specifically, Super Smash Bros. Melee and Luigi’s Mansion were my go-tos.
All of this added to my gaming foundation that began long before the 2002 move.
Finding an Anchor Amid Swirling Change
The move came and went, and it wasn’t long after finally settling that my new baby sister had arrived. That’s a lot of change happening in a short period of time.
One of the biggest lessons I learned from this experience was how important an anchor can be.
What I mean by an anchor is something that is constant in your life while your life and world are changing. For me, this was video games.
At this point, I was in a brand-new area of the country going to a school I had never been hard of all while starting middle school. In fact, I was two weeks late to the start of the school year because of different start times between Utah and California.
Furthermore, I had a new sister arrive who was 11 years younger than me. Prior to her birth, it had always been just me and my twin brothers who were less than 3 years younger than me.
Change is hard and it can feel like you are out of control at times. If you ignore it, that feeling can quickly overwhelm you to the point of insurmountable anxiety.
Fortunately, that did not happen with me. I had video games to serve as an anchor.
First, let me clarify that my siblings and parents were there through this with me. It was just as hard on them as it was me. No matter where I went, having my family there did bring a lot of comfort.
Video games added to that feeling. They helped to connect me with what I loved so I could manage the change around me.
I could come home from an ever-changing day at school and pop on my Game Boy to return to Johto. The familiarity of my GBC in particular was crucial to this anchor.
The GameCube was another help. My library began to expand after moving as Super Mario Sunshine soon joined our collection. Even though Sunshine was not with me prior to my move, it was a source of comfort.
I will always listen fondly to the hub music of Delfino Plaza as it will always remind me of this time in my life.
What’s the best about this is I don’t look back on this move with any kind of negativity. I don’t remember it being a bad thing so that tells me that these anchors did their jobs.
Video Games Aren’t Only For Fun
Decades have come and gone since that initial move and a lot has happened since. While I’ve always loved video games, my interest did fade for a time in high school.
Still, I returned to video games early in college and haven’t looked back since. Part of that is my love for adventures and storytelling, but another part of it is the comfort that comes with it.
Look, video games are comfort food. They’re games and, for many people, a hobby that pales in comparison to real-life problems and challenges. I agree, to an extent, with this assessment, but stop well short of discounting gaming because of it.
Video games should not be vilified and neither should the person playing them. Sure, they can cause bad things but so can any passion taken too far.
Video games, like any other artform, provides comfort to people in different ways. For some, it’s an escape from real-life problems. For others, a competitive hobby that serves as an outlet for stress.
For me, it was an anchor that kept me afloat during a move at a young age. That is the beauty of video games. they can serve in myriad ways.
Their entry into the mainstream has been a welcome sight for me because it means less people are vilifying others because of them. Sure, it tends to erroneously draw fault for mass shootings, but its acceptance has been a positive step.
At the end of the day, it might seem silly that video games helped me through a move. Looking back as an adult in my early 30s, it somewhat is, but I will be eternally grateful for them.
For some, they find an anchor in books or TV/moves. Others may find a constant in exercising or another hobby such as crafting or crocheting. All of these are great outlets.
My message today is voice support behind the idea that video games can serve as positive outlets in cases of mental health, life changes, and many other areas.
Video games may not have the reputation of these other outlets, but they should. They can make a difference in anyone’s life if that is where a person seeks refuge.
For an 11-year-old boy moving to a new state, they made all the difference.
Featured Image: Pawel Durczok (via Unsplash)
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