Typically, when a baby is coming, there’s a lot of “hurry up and wait” going on. Birthing can take an entire day or more, of course, so there’s a lot of twiddling of thumbs to be done by relatives and dads, and sometimes by mom herself.

But it seems a lot of dads are trading twiddling thumbs for twiddling knobs and joysticks (and I mean that in the most non-euphemistic way possible, I promise). These grown men are bringing their gaming habits into the maternity ward.

A study found that 1 in 7 dads bring a video game console to the labor and delivery room.

The study was conducted by Everyday Health Group on behalf of the parenting and pregnancy website What To Expect. They polled 615 parents. Of them, 15% of moms said their partner had brought their video games to the hospital with them.

And we’re not just talking about handheld… GameBoys or whatever people are playing nowadays (I am extremely old and have never been into video games, sorry gamers).

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Parents are bringing entire consoles like PS5s in their hospital ‘go-bags.’

There’s really no difference between a handheld gaming console and a crossword puzzle or a game on an iPhone, right? Might as well throw it in the go-bag for all that downtime. No big deal.

But that’s not what’s going on — or not entirely, anyway. Respondents to the poll said dads are packing whole PS4s in their go-bags and connecting them to the hospital TV.

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And according to doctors, it’s nothing new. One OB/GYN told What To Expect she’s seen dads do this for at least the last 15 years, basically as soon as consoles started being compact enough to be suitably portable. But doctors also say the trend seems to be growing in recent years.

Some parents and doctors say it’s a great way to pass time and de-stress

So, is this just a good way to pass all that hospital downtime, or an utterly infantile display of the stuff we always hear online about men acting like entitled babies while their wives give birth to actual ones? Well, it turns out it depends on who you ask.

Interestingly, a small percentage of respondents to the poll said they brought a gaming console so MOM could play games during labor, or so mom and dad could play together, which is kind of sweet! In a dystopian “Wall-E” sort of way…

Hospital personnel also responded to say that they thought it was a good way for people to not only pass the time but blow off steam and de-stress so that they could be more present for their partner once the real child-birthing dramatics began. “With my first (baby), my husband brought his PS4,” one mom shared with What To Expect. “We both are gamers, and we played together until active labor started. Sometimes men need a little distraction because they’re nervous as well.”

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But others were firmly against it, even many moms who themselves are gamers.

Even if the practice has its fans, it seems like, perhaps unsurprisingly, there is definitely a man-baby contingent among those dragging a PS4 to the L&D department. “My (boyfriend) insists on bringing his PlayStation to the delivery room to play games when it’s time for me to be admitted,” one mom told What To Expect. “Although he wasn’t 100% glued to it, it still felt so unnecessary … It just rubs me the wrong way completely.”

Even some moms who are avid video game players themselves were not feeling it. “My husband and I are gamers, and I still say ABSOLUTELY NOT,” one said. “It’s not about him. Boohoo if he is bored — that doesn’t compare to the stress women go through at this time.” Another said she’d “bring another support person to the hospital, and he could stay at home with his precious games.”

The doctors who spoke to What To Expect said it’s ultimately about communication and consideration, and recommended that the mom’s preferences be the determining factor (obviously). They also cautioned about the noise and the stress that gaming itself can cause, which nobody needs in a labor and delivery environment.

And of course, they said that if the video games are going to distract from the main job at hand of supporting your spouse through the birth, the games gotta stay home. Which hopefully goes without saying!

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John Sundholm is a writer, editor, and video personality with 20 years of experience in media and entertainment. He covers culture, mental health, and human interest topics.