By Sherwin Loh

Kyle Tan, 27 cadet pilot, Singapore Airlines

VIDEO gaming has always been a "group thing" for pilot Kyle Tan, who began hosting game parties when he was just nine years old.

"At that time, there was no LAN gaming so I had weekly events where my friends would come over to my house to play."

Eventually, he progressed to single-player games and counts role-playing games (RPG) as one of his favourite genres.

"RPGs are nice because they have a story to it. It beats reading a story book."

Over the years, he has amassed several game consoles, including the Super Nintendo, PSOne, PS2, Game Boy and PS3.

In fact, he credits gaming as early training for his current career.

Playing games like Quake actually helps, as a pilot needs good hand and eye coordination, he says.

Would you tell your colleagues you are a gamer?

If the topic came up, why not?

Each gamer may encounter different problems even if it's the same game, like the wrong setup of a character or a wrong technique in using the units or character.

So when gamers meet, they can share some pointers and ideas.

That could be an ice-breaker.

What was your longest record for playing video games non-stop?

I didn't really keep count but I think it was 10 hours.

It was just after I finished my National Service.

Nowadays, I average about three hours a day.

What is the most extreme thing you have ever done for your video game habit?

When I was 21, I spent hours playing a massively multi-player online role playing game (MMORPG) called Lineage.

I skipped some meals, passed on meeting my friends - other than the friends playing the same game - just to equip my character with the best items for player-versus-player mode.

In Shattered Galaxy, I spent hours drawing up a table on the best settings for my units.

At that time, around 2001 or so, the game was only for beta testing so no walkthroughs (or game guides) were out for it yet.

What would you think of a colleague or peer who is a gamer?

I would be fine with it, (especially) if he is interested in the same games as I am.

It would give us more things to talk about.

How would you feel if you found out that your surgeon or lawyer spent the previous day playing video games, before an important operation or a case?

If that happened, then I'd want to change my doctor or lawyer.

Doctors and lawyers have a responsibility to their clients and, as adults, they should put their priorities in order.

Work first, then games.

Of course, you could play for a while to relax if you have finished all your preparations.

This story was first published in The Straits Times Digital Life.

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