Junior Jay Watkins walks up the carpeted stairs after returning home from school and enters the “game room.” Closing the sound-proof doors behind him, he sits in his wood framed, mint green director’s chair and props his feet up in front of the 53” flat-screen television as the loading screen for Call of Duty illuminates the room.
Every other day, Watkins plays video games for three or four hours. He owns multiple gaming systems including the Gamecube, Xbox, Playstation 3, Nintendo DS, PS Vita, psp and Playstation 2. A majority of his games are action-filled war games. Recently, Watkins purchased Call of Duty Black Ops 2, a game that sold 11 million copies in the first week. He’s also bought Dishonored, Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3, Dead Island and Medal of Honor Warfighter.
“Some people think that video games affect the lifestyles of the gamer, and some people do actually go out and join the military under the influence of Call of Duty or Battlefield 3,” Watkins said. “If you don’t let it [gaming] influence your lifestyle, then it won’t.”
Watkins also plays other games in addition to video games. In the past, he’s played baseball, soccer, golf and karate. Currently, Watkins plays on a professional airsoft team in Fort Worth. His closet walls are covered from top to bottom with different airsoft guns and protective gear. A majority of his weekends are spent with friends playing airsoft and hiding in the foliage, waiting for an opposing team member to walk past.
“If you know how to blend in, the you can easily target the enemy and remain hidden as you shoot them,” Watkins said. “You also have to know how to be quiet long enough for them to pass without noticing you.”
Along with his video games and airsoft gear, Watkins has Star Wars Lego ship models and board games lining the shelves in the “game room” and his bedroom. Games such as Magic Blocks and chess sit stacked on top of each other. Aside from the strategic games, Watkins also plays carefree board games such as Candy Land and Monopoly.
“The good thing about board games or plug-in systems is that you can just play for as long as you want,” Watkins said. “With a portable device, you have to stop and charge it often if you play on it for a while.”
Most of his video games are for his Playstation 3 or his PS Vita, which are his two favorite gaming systems.
“On a ps3, the graphics are much better than an Xbox so it’s worth the wait when the DLC (downloadable content) like map packs comes out,” Watkins said. “With a PS Vita, you can download stuff like Netflix, YouTube, and you can play games. It’s basically like an iPhone, except on a Vita, you can play live full on games like Call of Duty with other people.”
