Do you actually play handheld consoles in public places?
 

Obviously the main point of a handheld system is so that you can play it anywhere, not just in your home but outside as well. Thing is, do you actually do that, and if you do then how often do you do it?

When I was a kid my parents never allowed me toi take my Game Boys to school because she feared I'd either lose them or someone would steal them from me. It's fair, because they're the ones who paid for them :lol:. My brother lost his original Game Boy(the grey brick) one day when he was like 11-12 years old and I think that also contributed to our parents never letting us take our toys and handheld systems to school.

Since my tube and bus rides are never long enough for me to get into a game before my stop comes, it's pointless for me to take my 3DS outside. Supermarket lines and such don't give me much time to get into a game either. When I pick up a game to play I want to spend at least a decent amount of time on it. Less than 10 minutes isn't enough for me to have an enjoyable time. Might as well just take out my mobile phone and browse the net with 4G or listen to a couple of songs on Spotify's mobile app while I'm waiting for something or for my destination.

Ofc, if I go on a plane trip again someday or go on a long distance train trip I'll definitely bring something to entertain myself with.

As for the Switch, when I eventually get one, I don'r think I'll play it in public at all. That console is pricey and it'd suck to have an accident or me forgetting it somewhere or someone robbing it from me.

So yeah, I mostly play portables at home while lying in bed. What about you?

Yes. Libraries, flights, waiting rooms, post office lines, you name it. I bring my 3DS and/or Caanoo (handheld emulator) out fairly often.

Not since I was a kid/teen, no. I never take anything videogame related outside the house. Sometimes I honestly forget my Switch is even a portable. I think I used handheld mode like twice in the 2 years I've owned it.

Libraries? I've only been to those to use the computers and to check out books or study. Never saw anyone playing a handheld at a library in my life nor have I ever considered doing it myself. Am I missing something here? Are the lines at the libraries you go to big enough for you to whip out your 3DS and play on it while you wait?

Had never heard of the Caanoo until you mentioned it.

Not really public, but work breaks have been good handheld and Switch time.

Flights and being stuck in an airport that one time were also convenient.

Funny enough, I didn't play on my 3DS in the two flights I took earlier this year. Tbh they were both about one hour and a half each only(hint: lots of short flights in Europe). And I travelled with soem people I know so I spent sometime talking to them during the flight and the rest of the time I played a bit on my mobile phone. Think it was Turtles in Time on a SNES emulator for phones.

If I ever end up on a flight longer than 3-4 hours I'll definitely bring along both a phone and a portable console fully charged with me.

Like I've said, the only time I really could get some good gaming time outside of home was at uni, especially if I arrived a long time before my class or if I didn't have a class between 2 others.

Never as a kid. Bed was always the best place to play handheld consoles, and there's no paranoia of the system being broken by that jerk in school or getting lost.

As an adult however, I've been on inter city bus rides that can take up to 6 hours. Luckily, the buses had tables and power outlets so that was a perfect opportunity to plug in my laptop and play some Melee and Counter-Strike.

No. I’d be paranoid that they’ll get damaged or stolen.

Yes, sometimes I play 3DS or PSP on the train/bus.

Yeah. And tbh it's a normal fear. You can never be too careful.

I would, if I had a new game to work on and wanted something to keep myself occupied while doing something that has a long wait, whether it be the doctor's office, plane rides, etc. I've even done it when I was waiting to be called for potential jury duty.

There are mentions here about not doing it out of concern of it getting lost or stolen, but I remember someone talking about not doing it in public out of fear of being judged. Especially in the presence of females. I thought that was silly, since I never thought it should be that big a deal. If a woman is going to judge me on that alone, she's an idiot and not worth my time. I know my interests aren't limited to just video games. I took my 3DS with me for when I was taking the car to get inspected once, and I was using it to kill time in the waiting area. This man sitting next to me asked me how I can play video games for an hour. I told him that it hasn't been an hour (it was more like half an hour), and that even an hour of playing is nothing. The inspection even took less than an hour. He just seemed to assume that I put in endless hours of playing video games just because his son does, but I was only trying to kill time. I might even have a book with me for long waits sometimes, but that time, I had a video game. People ought to just stop judging each other and mind their own business. Still, the only time I wouldn't recommend doing this is if I went for a job interview and was waiting for it to start.

Nope. Afraid of accidents/getting lost too. I don’t like the idea of needing to take care of an electronic device that I don’t actually need to carry around. I only play them at home. Same goes for tablets.

A vacation would be the only exception since you’re away and you’d have a hotel or a place to stay.

My parents didn’t let me take games to school either but honestly I did not want to anyway for the reasons above. Plus like you said how can you really get into a game in such a short time? Not worth the effort.

Mobile games are different since they’re designed to play in spurts but even then I prefer to play at home.

How old is this person you've mentioned? Because I don't think many people over the age of 20 would be afraid of getting judged for playing a 3DS in public.

I also don't know how some people can take books and read them on short bus rides and supermarket lines. When I pick up a book I don't want to put it down 5 minutes later. I usually spend 30 minutes to one hour when I decide to pick up a book and read it.

This. And if/when I get a Switch, I guesstimate the precise number of times I will take it portable will be 0.

The guy I mentioned was 25. I myself was 30 at the time, and he figured that I was at an age where I shouldn't feel any shame about it anyway. I never felt any shame about it at his age either, and not even when I was a teenager. He thought girls fear guys who play video games.

In his country, which if I remember correctly is the Netherlands, there was this dating show where one guy had a choice of thirty women. He said about twenty of those women lost interest in the guy upon his mention of being a fan of World of Warcraft. That's a shame, since I heard of a couple who met through that game, and have since gotten married. A man and a woman. I told him that to help him understand that there's no shame in playing video games in public. He was also afraid that people might think he's a video game addict if he were seen playing a video game in public.

This was all from a discussion at another message board where the subject of playing video games in public was brought up. The topic starter said that he had a friend who said that although he isn't afraid to play his DS in public, he just wouldn't use it in the presence of women. Another person in the discussion mentioned feeling more comfortable using his PSP in public than his DS, since the PSP looks like an iPhone.

It just amazes and sickens me how people with how people find fault in the littlest things.

It's funny you guys mention that. My brother is the complete opposite. He's only played his Switch in portable mode so far since he doesn't have a TV at his place atm.

I see. Honestly, if I went out and asked a bunch of random women around my age(I'm 27) if they knew what World of Warcraft is... I doubt most would even know what it is. So if I ever told one I was a fan of the game I bet they'd just ask "what is that?"

Not really. Due to fear that you might get robbed of your portable handheld device.

Its ok for Phones however. Since you can make emergency calls. But if you were carrying a 3DS or some portable gaming device. You would become a target of someone who wants to rob you.

So no. I would never play any handheld consoles in public places. It would become a distraction and you have to be alert at the place around you.

If I were an avid player of WOW, I wouldn't make it one of the first things known to a woman when I meet her the first time.

By the way, keep in mind that the discussion dates back to 2010. It was a bigger deal back then.

I still don't have a problem using my 3DS in public, but I'm not sure about my Switch. That's something I'd rather save for trips that involve flying. I'd just use it on the plane and at the hotel where I'm staying.

I actually did take my Switch with me on a trip last year, but I didn't use it once.

Well I don't know much about WoW or MMOs tbh. Never really cared about those type of games. I think WoW was mostly a big deal in the mid-late 2000s tho? Most people seem to play MOBAs like Legue of Legends and Dota 2 nowadays. Not to mention games like Path of Exile, Rocket League, Hearthstone, etc.

The Switch is quite pricey. I'm not sure I'd even take it with me if I were to fly somewhere again. I'd take the 3DS tho. But tbh, like I've said already, the last time I travelled by air plane to stay at a hotel for 4 days I barely played on my 3DS at all. I'd get up early in the morning, explore the island and only go back to my hotel past dinner time to sleep. I basically only slept, showered and had breakfast at the hotel I stayed at. I was there ot enjoy the vacation with the small group I went with.

I went to a trip to Cuba once and took my 3DS. But i never really got around to playing it. Just wasn't in a gaming mood. But I took my tablet and was playing the android version of Duck Tales Remastered. Never got around to finishing it though.

Yeah, similar story here. I went to Madeira Island and, despite bringing my 3DS along with me, I think I've only played on it about 35 minutes in total in the 3-4 days I was there.

I guess its just that I was bored and just wanted to chill the whole time. Its difficult to find someone to play video games with. So you end up not being in a gaming mode the whole time. Playing video games alone kinda sucks.

I do pull out my Nintendo handhelds in various places if I know I'm going to be sitting around a while waiting for something, but I admit I do feel a little juvenile doing it, so at some point I'll probably start reading a book and then maybe alternate back and forth.

I once saw a guy playing Street Fighter at an electronics store who must have been about 45-50 years old. Not that common to see that, but older gamers are out there.

As for Nintendo handhelds, never saw anyone that old playing it in public, but I think I'd find it surprising yet kinda cool.

Not that often but only because it's easier to browse the internet on the phone.

Well it wasn't just my Switch I took with me. I took my 3DS with me as well. I worked on Mega Man X and Earthbound, but I didn't get very far. They were both just hard, although I've finished Mega Man X once before when playing it on GameCube through the Mega Man X Collection.

It's sad to feel juvenile playing a 3DS in public, but I'll admit that perhaps it does feel weird doing that sort of thing now that I'll be 40 next year. I mentioned the guy who felt self-conscious playing video games in the presence of women in particular, but I remember seeing a girl who might have been in her early 20s or mid-20s playing a GBA some years ago.

Now this is back in the summer of 1990. When I was going to Florida, I saw a man at the airport who looked to be in his late 40s or early 50s playing a Game Boy and he looked like he was on a business trip since he was wearing a suit. He must have been playing Tetris.

When I brought up the discussion about feeling embarrassed playing video games in public, this one guy gave a response that I thought was interesting.

I feel more ashamed when dumb people killing other people and blaming it on video games for the crime; then playing handheld video games out in public.

I bought Mega Man X last summer on the 3DS eShop. beaten it about 10 times or close to it already. Got nearly 30 hours in it. Am yet to beat X2 and X3 though. The latter stages of those games are harder.

I'm starting to think I'm better at MM than the average person since a lot of people I see online complain about the games being very hard and never being able to beat any of them or just one or tow at best. So far I've beaten:

Mega Man 1: I don't even know HOW
Mega man 2: Countless times
Mega Man 3: Beat it countless times on the GC AC version but never on the 3DS MM Legacy Version. For some reason the game is a lot tougher than I had remembered it.
Mega Man 5: A couple of times.
Mega Man X: Several times.


Played but never beat MM4, MM6, MMX2 and MMX3. Also, I've played a bit of Mega man 7 and Mega Man 8 way back in 2007, but couldn't go very far in either, so I don't really count those.

In this football forum I post on, there is a massive video game thread where two users once claimed their dads(both around 70-72 years old) are big gamers and have been since the Atari days or so. I thought that was kinda cool but also kind of mindblowing. I've NEVER met anyone that old that loves games.

Well I might want to get Mega Man and Mega Man X Legacy Collections to be able to play the games on those sets that weren't able to be played on the go before.

I only grew up with MM2. Didn't get a chance to try the other 7 of the original series until I got the Anniversary Collection for the GameCube in Christmas 2007.

I played MMX for the 1st time in 2017 and loved it.

I've really been wanting to take advantage of the Switch's portability, but I'm just so darn paranoid I'll drop it/it'll get badly scratched, etc. I have used it on long car rides/road trips and around the house in handheld mode, though

I used to play the game boy advance and DS in public, now I play the 3DS.

Sometimes I play the switch but I usually stick with consoles that fit in my pocket.

I've been playing my portable consoles in public since my first Atari Lynx back in the 80s. I have almost the complete collection of Lynx games and keep my favourite carts in the pouch I take it around in. The old arcade-style games on the Lynx are great for short bouts, nowhere near as involved as your typical console or home computer games so I can get a decent amount of gaming done in short intervals.

I also have a Gameboy Advance SP which I mainly play King of Fighters on, which I can finish a whole game of in under 20 minutes. But the Lynx will always be my mainstay because it's just badass and you make friends with these things. Here's a photo my girlfriend took of me playing California Games on my Lynx at the airport in California, about to fly home to Australia after having spent the weekend with the creators of the Lynx.

I really wish the Switch was available in a non-portable version. It's already gotten knocked or pulled off the mantle (by the USB cable charging the pro controller) a couple of times and both times I feared the worst.

Sure do! I love my 3DS. Mostly because it's the only gaming system I can afford at the moment. :cry:

Wow someone actually owned an Atari Lynx?! :o

Yeah, the Switch is a bit too pricey and big for me to have the guts to take it outside with me.

Whenever my brother comes over he always brings his Switch along with him, and I notice how he lets it lie on the bed or near the edge on the top of a drawer. Sometimes I don't notice at first what it is and assume it's a book or something and almost knock it down or almost drop some water on it. My heart has definitely skipped a bit a few times.

I've only ever had a Game Boy Advance, and I never played it outside my house. I've always generally operated under the philosophy, "Never leave the house with anything you'd be devastated to lose." Especially after I got mugged once when I was 9, by some older kids. I "luckily" didn't have anything of value on me, not even any money, so I "just" got roughed up a bit, but after that I definitely made it a point not to take anything of value with me when I left the house, outside of essentials. Just seemed like common sense.

Of course, that GBA I had was later stolen from inside my own house, by a "friend" while I was in the bathroom. So in the end it's not like my endeavors to not get robbed did me much good anyway. :lol: I have a Game Boy Advance Player hooked up to my GameCube so I just never bothered replacing the GBA, although I might one day.

Exactly. Like I said, my brother somehow lost his original Game Boy outside when he was a kid. I never understood how he did that but my mother was clearly upset at him for losing it, so she never let me take any toys or handhelds to school. And tbh, I was a kid at a time where there weren't that many handheld games with multiplayer. If anything it sucked not being able to trade Pokémon or battle with other kids in school, but it wasn't a big deal for me either.

Yeah, that's why I never buy expensive phones. Wouldn't wanna risk losing it or getting ti stolen from me.

I was robbed once when I was 14 back in 9th grade. At a bus stop nonetheless. I was stolen about 40 cents. The guys who robbed me asked me for my cell phone but I leid and said I didn't have one. Lucky for me, they believed it.

Ahh, the days when you could tell someone "I don't have a cell phone" and there was at least a 30% chance it was true. :lol: If that happened today they'd probably have pistol-whipped your ass for telling such a blatant lie. :trazz: Glad it didn't go worse, though. Seriously.

The worst when I was a kid, were the kids who'd bring their Game Boy to school and put on a big display of playing with it at recess, making sure everyone noticed it, and of course were like "NO, you can't try it out!" :lol: They were insufferable with such a transparent grab for attention. It's not like they were gonna get much game-time within ten minutes or whatever; they pretty clearly only brought the damn thing to school in the first place to try and make people jealous and/or notice them.

Actually, it was already in 2005. Pretty sure all people aged 50 and below had cell phones by then.

Nah, I doubt I'd have been shot. It's not very common for thieves to carry firearms in my country. But I might have risked a stabbing.

Tbh, it's odd how back in the day people gathered around someone playing the Game Boy. Depending on the angle you probably couldn't even see what was happening. And the screen was so small and needed to be played in a well-lit room.

I honestly don't think I had a cell phone until around 2007-ish. I do know I was one of the last people in the civilized world to get one and resisted it for as long as possible. It might not even have been until 2009. I can't remember.