“Honestly, playing video games is just a waste of time.”

I cannot count how many times I have heard my parents, teachers, and friends say this. To be fair, I get why people see it that way. If someone just sees you staring blankly at a screen for hours while smashing buttons, it definitely looks unproductive. But for me, gaming has never been about killing time or getting high scores. It has always been about the stories.

Whenever I start a new game, I never rush to level up quickly, beat bosses right away, or show off rare gear. Instead, I just want to follow the plot at my own pace. I love figuring out why a character made a difficult choice, exploring quiet corners of a fantasy map, or reading the random bits of history hidden inside the world. To me, playing a well-made story game feels just like reading a good book. Books build worlds with words, while games build them with visual environments and player choices. Both let you step into an entirely new reality.

Right when summer break started, I flew to Korea to stay with my grandparents for a month, and I actually just got back to the U.S. last Wednesday. Out of everything I did there, the most memorable day was visiting the Genshin Impact pop-up cafe in Hongdae.

At first, I went with a simple thought: since there was a cafe themed around a game I love, I thought it would be cool to check it out, buy some merch, grab a themed snack, take a few pictures, and just hang out. But after ordering my food on the first floor and heading up to the second floor, the atmosphere was completely different from what I had imagined. Covering an entire wall was a giant glass window, filled edge-to-edge with colorful fan art, funny doodles, and heartfelt notes from other players. They had baskets of window markers sitting out for anyone to use, so I picked one up and added a small drawing of my own in an empty spot.

It was honestly just really cool to see in person. Usually, all this fan art and community stuff stays online, locked behind computer screens or buried in forum threads. But standing there, seeing that entire wall filled with drawings made me realize just how many real people love the same world I do. We did not know each other at all, but we shared an instant connection through a game we all cared about.

When I got back to my grandparents‘ house that night, I could not stop thinking about that glass window. I sat on the living room floor with my iPad and colored pencils, sketching out ideas and capturing how that afternoon felt.

People always tell teenagers that reading books is the only real way to build your imagination, but I think good games do the exact same thing. Stories made of digital pixels can bring people together in real life and inspire them to create something of their own. To me, gaming and drawing are not just pastimes. They are how I express myself and connect with the world around me. Someday, I hope I can create art and stories that stay with someone for a long time, too.

<Ye Jeen Jun 학생기자 토랜스 고교 10학년>