My family was in town this weekend, as my sister was graduating. They love to ask me questions, especially about the game industry. I have a lot of support from them for my chosen profession, but it is interesting to see how my perceptions have been shaped from a very different society.

I grew up in a time when multitasking was incredibly common, if not required. Often when I play games, I do something else at the same time, such as reading a strategy guide, talking to my sister, or even talking on the phone. I always try to show respect towards the people I am talking to when multitasking, and never attempt to play when someone is having a serious conversation with me.

It did not seem unusual to me to bring my DS to the graduation ceremony. I had to be at school at seven in the morning, a full two hours before the ceremony began. I was tired and cranky. I had had little time to play games in the past few days and my family wasn’t talking to me very much. So I pulled out my DS and began playing Puzzle Quest with the sound off.

Puzzle Quest is the type of game that doesn’t require my full attention every second. I find it relaxing to work through a puzzle while doing something else, like talking to people. Also, I have no time limit for my turns in the game, allowing me to respond to the outside world when I want. I thought it wouldn’t be a problem to play, as I felt I would be a more attentive listener later if I had a little time then to enjoy my game.

Unfortunately, playing my DS caused a fuss. Suddenly I became the center of attention, and all my relatives wanted to talk. I would listen and respond like a normal participant in any conversation, but my family kept teasing me about playing games. “We’ll have to take it away from you,” they joked, even though the half-hour marching of the graduates was still a good 20 minutes away.

I grew frustrated with the lack of acceptance for my game at that particular moment and put it away after only 15 minutes. I began to wonder why I was so frustrated. If my family supported my interest in games, why were they offended that I would take a few minutes to play around them?

I soon realized that my relatives weren’t as familiar with the idea of multitasking. While multitasking has become a necessity for me, the idea that I could play a game and still pay attention to my family was foreign to them. They saw me as actively ignoring them and rightfully felt upset. I realized it was probably a mistake to play in front of them.

However, my sister’s boyfriend understood how I felt. He also has Puzzle Quest, but his version is for the PSP. At one point, we left my sister’s graduation party for a few minutes to see if we could play against each other. Unfortunately, the PSP and the DS are not compatible for wireless multiplayer functions. I had no idea the PSP version was set up so differently but, with only one screen and no stylus, it makes sense that it would look like another game.

I did find some time to play Puzzle Quest later, but it was mainly on my own. People like my sister’s boyfriend understand the desire to play, even in the company of others. Yet many people, like my relatives, have not been around games long enough to see how much they have become a part of our culture and a major component of my life. I hope that someday, in the near future, playing games in public will become mainstream and people will understand the how games can help calm and exercise the mind.