The Freak & The Geek: Games Journalism's Coverage Of Sub-Cultures

[I mean, I say “sub-cultures,” but I know why you’re here. ]

In the previous days the well-read and progressive-thinking ventured to the seediest part of town to catch a dog and pony show, respectively. Only a handful know of it, and are privileged when invited. These writing dignitaries stared into a cage rife with filth and a stench that could conjure convulsive dry heaves. When they looked in, they saw a beast that resembled a human, but clearly wasn’t capable of acting like one.

A malnourished, feral child looks back at the visitors through a cage. It’s seasoned. It knows what faces to make and what songs to sing. But it also knows that these people are only here to see that one special trick. The freak is the main attraction, and always has been the main attraction for this one trick. When the well-dressed visitors pay their pence, the host hands the freak a whole chicken.

SNAP! Without a second thought, that chicken’s head is off and is making it’s way through the sharpened teeth of the freak’s foul-smelling mouth. The visitors look in disgust, but they still look. They call it names. They can’t believe it’s existence. They shuffle and scoot closer. The freak picks the fowl apart meticulously, not forgetting a bone or sinewy tendon. It’s trick is over. A crass belch is let out and for any who continue to gaze, the freak gazes back.

Only this time, the freak threw the bones back. “You’re the freak. I’m the geek.”

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