No more overweight or skinny gamer stereotypes, folks. Gamers are ripped now. Or at least Tfue is and with the internet being the internet, people are calling him a juicer. Including me alluding to it. For… headlining and clicking purposes. Oopsie. But rest easy, gamers and mouse-clickers: Tfue is not on steroids, he just... works out and eats right.
I know, I know, all of this is new to the gaming world. It was new to me too. Rather than having the gym in the basement, we had the gaming lounge residing down there. Rather than playing sports, we built up esports and rather than working out, we… we used one hand and a repetitive motion, and I really don’t want to finish painting this picture.
But, the times have changed. The tables have turned. Fortnite streamers look like this now:
If this is a Fortnite player, imagine what a CS:GO or Warzone player must look like. After all… Fortnite is just a kiddie game, right? Right?
Tfue is not alone and definitely not the first to subvert gamer stereotypes. The gaming industry has long been in tune with lifestyle, fashion and fancy influencers. In fact, in Asia, where gaming is much more mainstream, a lot of the cool fashion kids are gamers themselves. I want to say, that this is how HypeBeast originated, but I’m not a cool fashion kid, so I’m not sure at all. In fact, I’m not even sure if that’s how you spell HypeBeast, but what I am sure about is that this coolification – word of the day – has also made the jump across the pond:
Gamers and streamers are the new influencers. And if you’re a pre-2000 birthdate: An influencer is basically the new-form celebrity, who… hold on to your keypads now… influences.
You want your product to be cool? Have a gamer sponsor it. Yes. From wearing their brothers and sisters hand-me-downs and bad hygiene to this... the gamers of this 21st century have come a long way. I mean, gamer girls have become so in-line with modern-day beauty standards that two of its biggest – Alinity and Pokimane – are at the center of multi-million dollar Twitch lawsuit for inspiring too many sexual fantasies in male viewers. I wish I was kidding about that, but I am not. I also wish I was sorry about plugging our own content here… I am not:
More EarlyGame Talk: Esports vs Sports
Gamers are cool. This is the new status quo. You wanna be anybody in this modern world? You better be playing Warzone, Fortnite or Valorant. Heck… even Animal Crossing will do. But the modern cool gamer is more than that. These new era gamers are paving the way for your body and health to mirror your skills on the pad or mouse and that’s really what I’m trying to get to here:
Whether beautiful, attractive or sexual, it doesn’t matter: Popular streamers like Tfue, Pokimane, and Alinity are displaying good bodily health. Fitness is not necessarily about being buff, ripped or muscular. It is about being fit enough to be considered healthy. We’ve long joked about the overweight, unhygienic gamer living off Red Bull and Pringles, but it’s not a joking matter. Being a gamer is awesome. Neglecting one’s personal fitness is unhealthy.
Time to break old stereotypes and introduce new ones. So next time you rank up - rep up.
Or insert another cool motivational sentence of your choice to end this column.