“Geek”: twenty years of change through video games

From the 1980s to the early 2000s, the practices gradually grouped together under the name “geek culture” developed at the crossroads of computing, video games and imaginary worlds. Personal computers, consoles, role-playing games, science fiction and fantasy fuelled passions that met and reinforced one another. At the end of the 1990s, the spread of the internet made it easier for enthusiasts who had until then been scattered to connect: specialised websites and forums allowed them to share their knowledge and to recognise themselves in wider communities. The figure of the lonely enthusiast was therefore already masking a collective reality, which would become more visible during the 2000s.

Video games offer a concrete way to follow how the word “geek” has evolved. From the 1980s to the 2000s, they helped shape a lasting stereotype: that of a young man absorbed by his screen, seen as isolated, excessively passionate and cut off from ordinary social life. His hobby was sometimes portrayed as an all-consuming investment, at the expense of personal relationships or schoolwork. Cinema helped spread these representations while also making them evolve: from Revenge of the Nerds (1984) to Gamer (2001), Cyprien (2009) or Pixels (2015), the figures of the nerd, the geek and the passionate gamer have been portrayed somewhere between caricature, marginality and the celebration of their skills. Today, these representations are no longer enough to describe reality. Video games have become a widespread pastime, a major cultural industry and a space for many communities.

The word “geek” has accompanied this transformation. Its etymology is said to go back to the Low German geck or the Dutch gek, terms meaning “mad” or “foolish”, which recall its old pejorative connotation. Long used as a mocking label, it has also become a proudly claimed identity and a media or commercial category. These uses do not replace one another, however: they coexist, with different meanings depending on the circles and the people involved.

The aim, then, is to understand how the spread of video games has changed the scope of this label. Not all players call themselves geeks, and not all geeks place video games at the centre of their interests. The periods distinguished here correspond to dominant trends, not to clean breaks: stigmatisation, identity pride and commercial appropriation overlap.

I. The 2000s: between stereotype and recognition among enthusiasts

In the mid-2000s, the word “geek” was still strongly associated with a derogatory image, even though it was already beginning to be claimed in some circles. David Peyron’s work places precisely in this period the emergence of a claimed geek cultural identity in France. The term could therefore be used to belittle someone, but also to recognise one another among enthusiasts.

Video games were at the heart of this ambiguity. A teenager or young adult who spent several hours on a console or computer could be labelled a geek, especially if they knew the games, the machines and the fictional worlds with a precision that escaped the Muggles. Their passion was then interpreted as an excess: it seemed to take up too much space and to draw them away from “real” life.

Within groups of enthusiasts, on the other hand, that same knowledge could be valued. It reflected curiosity, skill and attachment to worlds whose references had to be mastered. A trait seen as strange from the outside thus became a source of recognition inside the group.

Yet the geek is not defined by a single activity. They may play, build a computer, hang out on forums, watch science-fiction series, read manga or be interested in fantasy. The variety of these interests is not a recent development: research on geek culture already highlights the importance of the links between technology, imaginary worlds and shared references before the new millennium.

Video games were a meeting point for these fields. They combined technology, storytelling, competition, collecting and creation. But playing was not enough to define belonging. One person might enjoy a popular game without recognising themselves in any particular culture; another might make the hobby part of their identity, follow new releases, know the history of franchises and regularly talk with other enthusiasts.

This distinction also helps tell the words “gamer” and “geek” apart. The first refers more directly to an investment in video games; the second can encompass a wider set of passions, whether related to games or not. The two identities overlap without being synonyms.

The “no-life” stereotype, however, tends to erase these nuances. It associates investment in games with a supposed lack of social life. Yet network games, forums, clans, modding communities and LAN parties are also spaces of relationships. A LAN party, for example, physically brings players and their computers together to play over a local network. It illustrates the gap between the image of the isolated gamer and practices built on meeting, cooperation and exchange.

Geek culture thus developed amid a kind of misunderstanding: while it remained exposed to disparagement by the general public, it nonetheless offered real spaces of solidarity and recognition. The very references that set enthusiasts apart from “non-initiates” allowed them to build bonds.

II. 2006–2012: video games broaden their audience

During this period, video games became more visible in family life, in the media and in everyday conversation. Specialist shops, forums and communities of enthusiasts remained important, but they were no longer the only places where this culture unfolded.

The release of the Wii in 2006 symbolised this opening up. With this console, Nintendo sought to reach people unfamiliar with traditional controllers, particularly families and casual players. Motion controls, central to the Japanese company’s games (especially the now cult Wii Sports), made certain interactions smoother and immediately understandable. The press of the time presented the Wii as a console for all generations.

The Wii’s success greatly changed the relationship between video games and geek identity. Playing Mario Kart or a game on your phone did not necessarily mean identifying with a “subculture”. As the hobby became widespread, it was no longer enough, on its own, to identify a particular group. The difference lay more in the way people played, kept informed and shared their passion than in the simple fact of playing on a console or a PC.

At the same time, the growth of online gaming made the collective dimensions of play more visible. Players could form groups, communicate during matches and build shared habits despite the distance. Communities organised themselves around titles, guilds, servers, competitions or creations made by their members. The pioneering community model of the legendary World of Warcraft (2004) became the norm.

The experience also extended beyond the games themselves. Players produced guides, maps, mods and videos (the simultaneous emergence of YouTube being far from negligible). This made it possible to discuss strategies, storylines and new releases. These activities show that video game culture is not limited to the mere consumption of a product: it also relies on its transformation and appropriation.

Opening up to the general public did not, however, make the old clichés disappear: the image of the family pastime coexisted with that of the player excessively absorbed by the screen. What changed was the growing difficulty of reducing all players to a single profile.

III. 2012–2018: a more visible identity, communities at the heart of commercial strategies

The 2010s saw geek identity gain visibility: showing one’s attachment to video games, technology or imaginary worlds became a widespread way of presenting one’s tastes and meeting other enthusiasts.

This visibility came through clothing and collectibles (merchandising in general), trade shows (such as E3), reviews and videos, and increasingly through cinema as well. Video game references circulated more widely in public spaces. They were no longer reserved for specialised venues and small groups: they became shared signs of recognition on social networks and content platforms.

The rise of streaming illustrates this transformation. Twitch, launched in June 2011 and bought by Amazon in 2014, made it possible to watch players broadcast their games and to chat about them in real time. Gaming became a commented spectacle and a community gathering. The platform’s acquisition by the American e-commerce giant also shows the economic interest in these new spaces of attention.

The passionate player could thus become a creator, commentator or community leader. They explained a strategy, analysed a storyline, edited a video or shared a discovery. Part of the cultural life of games now takes place around the games themselves, in the discussions and content they generate, with viral clips and memes leading the way.

For companies, these communities represent more than a group of one-off buyers. They may follow a let’s play for years, take part in events and keep interest in a franchise alive. Collector’s editions, merchandise, collaborations and community campaigns extend this attachment.

In this context, “geek” became a convenient commercial category. The term made it possible to group together audiences supposedly sharing an interest in games, technology and the cultures of the imagination. But this simplification masks differences: a competitive player, a collector of vintage consoles and a fan of indie games do not necessarily expect the same things.

This visibility was accompanied by debates about the authenticity of geek culture. Who can still call themselves a geek? What knowledge or practices make that identification legitimate? Research on the controversies surrounding the “fake geek girl” shows that these questions particularly touch on gender relations and mechanisms of exclusion within communities.

A widespread gaming identity therefore does not remove boundaries. It also sharpens conflicts over who may belong to the group and who claims to represent its codes.

IV. 2018 to today: an ordinary pastime, multiple identities

Since 2018, the diversity of gaming practices has made the old geek stereotype particularly reductive. In France, the study carried out by Médiamétrie for SELL in 2025 counts 40.2 million players, including people who played at least once during the year. The average age is 40 and women account for 49% of players. These figures describe a vast and diverse population; they do not allow us to conclude that these people identify with the “geek” label.

The experience of Animal Crossing: New Horizons provides another example of this diversity of uses. Released on 20 March 2020, at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, the game notably allowed players to keep in touch from a distance, visit their loved ones’ islands and interact within communities. Researchers have studied this social function during the lockdowns and argue that the same game can be a pastime, a creative space and a medium for relationships.

In such a context, saying that someone plays video games tells us little about their identity. Some describe themselves as gamers, speedrunners, streamers, collectors or retro-gaming fans. Others claim no particular term at all. These labels can be more informative than “geek”, without necessarily replacing or excluding it.

The word indeed retains several functions. In media or marketing discourse, it can loosely group together products and audiences. Within a group of enthusiasts, by contrast, it can keep a precise meaning, tied to shared references, a common history and a particular way of engaging with works. Its spread therefore does not lead to the same loss of meaning everywhere.

The 2020s are also marked by the greater visibility of players’ criticisms and expectations. Discussions focus on the quality of games, but also on subscriptions, microtransactions, additional content (DLC), developers’ working conditions and the preservation of older works. These criticisms are not new: it is mainly their visibility and their place in public debate that have grown considerably. Research invites us to question received ideas: a study by Przybylski and Weinstein (2019) found no significant association between violent games and aggression among the adolescents studied. The WHO also points out that intensive play is not enough to characterise a disorder, which involves in particular a loss of control and significant consequences on daily life.

A more visible word, a less obvious identity

The shift from insult to marketing sums up only part of the history of geek culture. Video games helped entrench certain stereotypes while also providing spaces for meeting, creating and gaining recognition. Their spread has made these practices more familiar, without erasing every form of disparagement, and has even polarised some debates.

Above all, this change of scale has transformed the relationship between practice and identity. Since video games are so widely shared, they are no longer enough to signal a particular belonging. The word “geek” can therefore evoke expertise, a way of living one’s passions, a culture of references or a commercial category.

The point, then, is not to decide who is a “real geek”, nor to announce the disappearance of the term. It is to recognise that its meaning varies with its uses: it can be a word people use to describe themselves, an outside judgement, a tool of recognition among connoisseurs, or a category used by companies to sell products.

Bibliography

Main academic sources

• D. Peyron, Culture Geek, FYP Éditions, 2013
• D. Peyron, « Qu’est-ce que l’identité gamer ? », Émulations, 2019
• D. Peyron, « Une histoire de la figure du geek dans la culture populaire »

Video game sources

• Le Monde, « La Wii, console de jeu intergénérations », 4 December 2006
• Médiamétrie / SELL, Les Français et le jeu vidéo, 2025 edition
• SELL, L’Essentiel du jeu vidéo, French market report 2025, published in 2026
• AFJV, « Étude Médiamétrie – SELL : les Français et le jeu vidéo en 2025 », 2025

Studies on the effects of video games and problematic use

• A. K. Przybylski and N. Weinstein, “Violent video game engagement is not associated with adolescents’ aggressive behaviour: Evidence from a registered report”, Royal Society Open Science, vol. 6, no. 2, 2019, article 171474, DOI: 10.1098/rsos.171474
• World Health Organization, “Addictive behaviours: Gaming disorder”, Q&A, 22 October 2020, accessed 17 October 2026

Additional theoretical sources

• H. Jenkins, Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide, New York University Press, 2006
• H. Jenkins, S. Ford and J. Green, Spreadable Media: Creating Value and Meaning in a Networked Culture, New York University Press, 2013
• M. Consalvo, Cheating: Gaining Advantage in Videogames, MIT Press, 2007
• T. L. Taylor, Play Between Worlds: Exploring Online Game Culture, MIT Press, 2006
• T. L. Taylor, Watch Me Play: Twitch and the Rise of Game Live Streaming, Princeton University Press, 2018
• J. Newman, Best Before: Videogames, Supersession and Obsolescence, Routledge, 2012
• A. Shaw, Gaming at the Edge: Sexuality and Gender at the Margins of Gamer Culture, University of Minnesota Press, 2014
• K. L. Gray, Race, Gender, and Deviance in Xbox Live: Theoretical Perspectives from the Virtual Margins, Routledge, 2012

BGBaptiste GODINMaster's student in digital law

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