CBS’s Luke Burbank Bashes All Gamers And Makes My Blood Boil

Wait a minute. Doesn’t CBS Interactive own GiantBomb.com? Oh, and what about Gamespot.com and its sister site Gamefaqs.com? All three are huge gaming news sites where you can download thousands of titles, read reviews and watch trailers.

Burbank says that he was never good at playing video games as a child, so he often watched others play, which is “…boring, extremely boring.” Hmm, do you think there’s a little underlying jealousy going on?

They’re watching other people play video games all day long.

Luke Burbank

The video appears to be in response to Amazon’s recent purchase of the video game streaming service, Twitch. Burbank asks: “Why exactly would someone want to watch someone else waste their time?” Many developers use Twitch to showcase a game as it is being built by streaming their pre-alpha and later versions. This allows the community to give feedback on the game, and helps to shape the direction that development will take. Some gamers use streaming to show off their success or creations, such as car customisation or fast lap times. Others use it as a way to share battle strategies, like in League of Legends.

Burbank thinks gamers are using Twitch to watch other gamers “all day long.” I agree that it is unhealthy to spend all day gaming, but there are millions of players who can balance their daily lives and use gaming as a way to unwind while sharpening their mental abilities.

Burbank tries to stereotype all gamers as those who let the virtual life take over their real life. How many of you play games but also hold a job, go to school, work on your car, go to the gym or spend time outdoors? It’s funny how video gamers take so much criticism, but we don’t see the same for other, more ‘classic’ gamers. When was the last time a major news source criticised chess players, poker players or golf players for being time wasters? Sometimes it’s easier for reporters to take a shot at whatever is trending.

Rant over.