For decades, gamers have often been stereotyped as being anti-social, overweight, having no ambition, and living in their mothers' basements while playing video games all day. A recent study by Alienware and Dell Gaming has found that gamers are, in fact, the exact opposite of the negative stereotypes associated with them, and that today's gamers break these negative stereotypes.

Alienware and Dell Gaming surveyed gamers in 11 countries and found that firstly, today's average gamer is not a teenager living with their parents, but that the average gamer has a job and a family, and is often an active member in the community. In addition to that, because gaming has grown so much across the globe, today's gamers are more accepting of others, especially in terms of ethnicity, political views, and sexual orientation.

The study also revealed that, where being a gamer was perceived as negative in the past, with terms such as "nerd" and "geek" being used to describe gamers, today being called a gamer is perceived as positive. Today's gamers are often described as being "cool", "fun," and "exciting," while also boasting many increased skills such as leadership skills, strategic thinking skills, and increased hand-eye coordination, to name a few.

According to the study, today's gamers are also well-rounded human beings, as they have many other interests besides gaming, including fitness. In three countries, contrary to the stereotype that gamers are overweight, more than 40% of gamers reported that they like to exercise. Finally, in contrast to the negative stereotype that gamers are loners, today's gamer is proven to be good at self-sacrifice while being unlikely to skip social commitments such as birthday parties and sporting events.

If one looks at the increasing globalization of gaming, and the demographics of the gaming community today, where both men and women, as well as people of different ethnicities, enjoy gaming, it is not surprising that gaming has become a more inclusive activity. The video game industry has certainly come a long way, and it is hopeful to see that gamers are being recognized for their positive attributes and that negative stereotypes are fading away.