I’ve always found the notion that there’s a natural split between people that like Call of Duty and Battlefield and people that don’t more than a little bit rubbish. I’ve written before about how manufactured gaming culture is; and nothing demonstrates the arbitrary split between the self-proclaimed intelligentsia and the rest more than the vitriol from the ‘nerd’ side of the fence and the most popular shooters in the world.

It’s no secret that I happen to be a bit of a fan of the campaigns of the world-beating shooters that dominate the sales charts for much of the year. And although i’m lagging behind a tad, having played both Battlefield:Hardline and Call of Duty Advanced Warfare recently, I can say they’re bloody good examples of why in their own ways. They’re both good looking, adrenaline pumping actions games, held together by threadbare storylines that do just enough to make the twists and turns somewhat meaningful.

Much to my surprise they also both share something in common with a lot of people whose skin crawl at the very mention of their names: a deep reverence for Star Wars borne out through clever references to the 1977 original.

So to those who feign some level of superiority over choice or taste in video games, and critique others for theirs, I say this: Are we not human? If we pick [Call of Duty or Battlefield], do we not bleed?

Quick Offloads are short posts when we need to get things off of our chests but don’t necessarily want to waste too many words on them. But please add your words in the comments below.