"I got into this because a friend of mine introduced me to dance games through an online simulator, and the next day, I went to the arcade. I tried it out. I was pretty terrible, but, you know, I kept at it, and three years later, I'm one of the best in the state, and there's a great community," says Dance Dance Revolution enthusiast Rob Rives, right, before a Thursday night practice at the Raleigh arcade, BattleZone Laser Tag. 'I've met a lot of friends through this hobby. You know, I became a regular here at BattleZone because I play here all the time and know everyone here. It's a great community of friends." Rob, whose gaming name is Captain Colorblind, practices as friends Bridget McCartin, 16, left, Laura Gardner, 15, back, and Austin Zanella, 17, far left, watch.

Rob, a 17-year-old senior at Sanderson High School in Raleigh, says he practices as much as he can but that he had to "step back a little bit and save some money too" so that he could concentrate more on school and trying to get into college.

Rob's interest in gaming has led him to join several online forums and to become involved with the gaming community within the state. When he speaks of the community, he says, "It might seem kind of weird to a lot of people, but, you know, everyone's got their hobby and every hobby has its elitists."