Bringing the World Together

I have a pretty good group of friends that I game with on Xbox Live®. To a one, they are respectful of me as a girl gamer, and what's more they are just fun people to game with. One of the things that really impresses me about this group of gamers is just how different they are. A wide range of races, nationalities, and religions are represented in that group.

Where else can you see a guy from Los Angeles, a blue-state liberal gamer girl, a red-state true republican, Europeans, Canadians, Australians, pagans, and Christians all in the same room and not only treating each other with respect but enjoying each other’s company!?? I would submit that such a place would be nearly impossible to find.

Making Connections
Granted, the connections formed on Xbox Live are the most basic kind, but that does not make them any less important. A serious relationship starts with a very simple connection and I've seen more than my share of serious relationships develop from Xbox Live meetings.

A good friends list is a perfect start.

Xbox Live has been able to do what politicians and civic leaders have not. Xbox Live has brought people from a wide range of backgrounds together, who probably would not normally associate with each other. Not only that but it has allowed these people of varied interests, backgrounds, races, religions, and beliefs to come together and forget their differences and enjoy the one thing they share in common: gaming.

Feedback System
I don't mean to say that there are no annoying people on Xbox Live. There are, but Microsoft has given you tools to weed them out and avoid them. With user feedback now being incorporated into gamer cards, you can now see if a player has a good reputation or not. Any gamer that acts like a jerk will likely have poor feedback and it will show up in their rating.

I have found it quite easy to find a good group of friends with whom I regularly game with, who are some of the most respectful people around, and who are just plain cool. What's more, these people are from the most diverse backgrounds possible.

Xbox Live has succeeded in doing what society has been trying to accomplish for many years. It has brought people together from very diverse backgrounds and it has convinced them to see others based not on their differences, but on what they have in common. Xbox Live is not going to solve society’s ills, but it is a small start. Every great thing starts very small.

Maybe Xbox Live can teach us something that we have been trying to learn for the last several decades. Maybe it can show us that what we have in common is more important than our differences. Maybe it can help bring the world a little closer together one gamer at a time.

Article by Shannon Teague, Xbox Users Group