I recently acquired Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and I freakin' love it. My girlfriend, on the other hand, does not. She says that it has pushed the envelope too far. Apparently, controlling the actions of a fake terrorist as he blows away fake innocent bystanders can be considered morally reprehensible. And while I am happy to just agree to disagree (it's FAKE! It's a VIDEO GAME!) about the amoral implications of MW2, she is not. It is beginning to put a strain on our relationship. What do I do?
Guyville to the Rescue
Well the obvious answer would be not to play Modern Warfare 2 anymore. But then you would be the guy who stopped playing Modern Warfare 2 because his girlfriend didn't want him to play anymore after it hurt her feelings. If you were that guy, you wouldn't be asking the "what do I do?" question to begin with, so I guess that's not a viable option.
The second most obvious answer would be to not play MW2 in her presence, nor talk about it, nor have it in its case visible to the naked eye when she is in the room. Which sounds like a pretty easy thing to do, especially if you don't live together. It could be one of those little vices we never talk about and do only when we are alone because it brings up awkward questions and judgments.
If you do live together and "alone time" doesn't really exist anymore, or if you don't want to lump your new favorite video game in with nudey magazines and eating chili cold out of the can, things get a little more complicated.
You could give Modern Warfare 2 to your neighbor and constantly run out of sugar or eggs or Drain-o so you have an excuse to run over and get a few quick rounds in.
You could lie and say that it's All Boys and No Girls Poker Night at your house once a week, but actually have it be All Boys and No Girls Modern Warfare Night. Just leave a card deck or two out on the kitchen table and crush some tortilla chips into the carpet so it looks like Men have been around.
You could use time to play Modern Warfare 2 as a bartering tool. "I promise to stop making snarky remarks during Project Runway if you stop accusing me of being a heartless, mindless drone when I play MW2."
You could try to explain again that it is just a game and you don't actually think being a terrorist and killing hipsters at the local Jamba Juice is cool or a good idea.
Try to turn the sound down really low so you can pretend you are actually playing a nice game, like Wii Golf or Mario Kart.
You could just ignore her complaints and comments and continue to play and laugh (yes, laugh!) as the body count increases. In for a penny, in for a pound. Note: I only recommend this one if you don't really like your girlfriend anymore...
