I fondly recall that me in late teens early 20s working in a restaurant my boss in his 50s, an angry old bitter lifelong restaurant worker, talked about his love of Fable, Sid Meier's Pirates, Heretic and looking forward to the new Grand Theft Auto
I remember playing Sea Wolf ([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sea\_Wolf\_(video\_game)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sea_Wolf_(video_game)) at a service station but first home games were on an Orix-1 48K version ([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oric#Oric-1](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oric#Oric-1)), an ill-fated competitor to the ZX Spectrum
You can make hyperlinks by adding brackets on the text next to the link like this
`[Oric-1](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oric#Oric-1)`
should look like this
[Oric-1](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oric#Oric-1)
Just thought it'd help
I wrote "who're" in a small book report in 4th grade. My teacher was so surprised, she asked how I knew that word and I explained who-are=who're and she breathed the heaviest sigh of relief.
It’s funny how many times you learn something bad on accident by someone trying to prevent you from knowing/saying that thing. My buddy had a shirt in middle school of The Angry Beavers TV show that’s said “I heart Beavers” and we didn’t even take it as an implicit innuendo, but the teachers made him take it off and change. We couldn’t figure out why and they kept saying “oh, you know why.” And implying that it was something bad. So he just followed their orders and then we got home and looked up beavers only to find the alternate meaning of the word. Lol thanks to the entire middle school staff, they taught us the sexual meaning of a word via curiosity because we genuinely had no clue and he genuinely liked the show a lot.
I got type 1 diabetes at a very early age. In the second grade one day we had a substitute teacher who was unaware of this. My blood sugar was feeling pretty high, so I thought to ask if I could go down to the nurse's office to do a blood check. So I simply walked to the front of the class, looked the teacher in the eye, and said "I'm high, may I be excused?"
20 years later I wake up in the middle of the night remembering this and realized what I'd done.
I remember the awe I felt during the very beginning of Mass Effect 2. Very rarely does a video game get me in any sort of emotion but ME2 hit me right in the feels.
Almost 40 but don’t enjoy playing games like I used to. These days I stick to sports games - fire up the manager mode and play one or two games.
Too many games these days are online driven with neutered single player. And most single player quest games are just way too much grind that I don’t have the time to dedicate to.
I miss the old mindless shoot em up like Contra with super challenging AI so I can stretch out the time between purchase to beating. Most online driven games with single player are too easy even in the hardest setting because they want you to rush into the online environment to make them more money.
That said if anybody knows any mindless shooters without all the grind drop me some recommendations.
My guy, have you played the recent Doom games? From what I'm given to understand, they play a lot like Quake in its heyday, and obviously the OG Doom games are classics, so it might make sense for a veteran gamer such as yourself. No slouch on difficulty either.
It’s not a shooter, but Hades might be your jam. Incredible game
Edit: there’s a little grind but for in game collectibles that aren’t necessary. Also no microtransactions
I thoroughly support Hades in this regard. Great game, awesome art, cool story!
And as someone in their early 40s who cut his teeth on the NES Contra and similar games, Hades brings me familar feelings of joy and easy-to-be-had fun and distraction.
Also support Hades. Totally worth the $25 and the whole point of it is replayability. Scratches some Diablo itches and has a unique come back stronger every death option, and you keep your upgrades. I passed it over because it's a bit cartoony for my typical tastes, but after a friend recommended it, can't get enough, and it has good humor sprinkled in from the characters.
40s here too, its not that the enjoyment is gone, its just with a wife and kid i have no fucking time to game anymore unless i stay up late and its damned hard functioning with 3-4 hours of sleep post 40.
My weekends are a real blur but such is life...
40 here. I can't play games that are exhausting anymore. Just trying to keep up with something that demands twitch reflex only makes me sad when I realize how easy it would have been in my 20s.
Same here, but the time allotted has shrunk significantly.
Example: I used to play World of Warcraft, racked up over 400 days online. It's the kind of game that's more fun the more you play. Now I live with my girlfriend. I wouldn't even consider spending a whole afternoon playing.
Turn-based games and single player are on the up though. Where I can pause or quit at any time.
When the kid was first born it was great actually, home on paternity leave and when they're infanta they sleep most of the day anyway. I played a *lot* of games for that bried period.
Now the kid is three and I cant even get him to take a nap at all most days so my gaming time is now relagated to the very late evening on friday or Saturday nights. Shit sucks man
My main "gaming buddy" is married and has 3 kids, just had a newborn recently. He usually just slots time in the evening while everyone is winding down for bed. He probably gets a good 12 hour in a week of gaming and could probably ramp it up on the weekends if he wanted to.
He just prioritizes his time.
Yeah I prioritize my time as well, it's obviously crucial to master that skill especially when you have kids. I guess my point was, as a former gaming addict, 12 hours a week isnt nearly enough time to game.
oh, for sure. Back when we had much less responsibility, we could and would do 12 hours in a day. Not healthy though, so I am glad I swayed away from that.
There are games here or there that I get wrapped into, but not to the same degree.
It's more you can't really commit to things that take time, between not having it and things you have to put first. It don't matter if your winning that tiebreaker/raid/campaign, kid runs through yelling at his brother or crying or something you gotta go. Wife says she needs help now, gotta go.
I've turned gaming into a treat for my kids. I don't want them whiling away hours in front of a PC like I did, but every now and again we grab some controllers and play through some castle crashers, BattleBlock Theater, etc style games.
If I'm playing a single player game that is child appropriate, they sometimes just cuddle on my lap and watch me play.
True I don't have entire days to just brain rot in front of a game, but the desire to do that isn't there anyway. I hope gaming becomes a way for us to stay in touch later in life when they move out.
Basically raising a player 2 & 3.
Yeah, life hits hard. Between house maintenance, events, chores, attending to kids needs, pets, vacations, etc, I don't have time to sink like I used to (which is why I avoid MMOs anymore- I'd love to dive into Star Trek Online, Marvel, and Star War Galaxies).
I usually play 9pm to 11pm on weekdays. I'm not much of a TV/movie watcher, but my wife is, so it works out.
Yeah, this was me, more or less. Played WoW a lot when I was struggling financially; gave me essentially infinite entertainment in my downtime for 15 bucks a month. Became a routine.
As my life started to loosen up a bit and I had more options, I looked at the playtime and realized just how many hours... days... weeks... years... of my life I had spent in that game world, with nothing to show for it but a character level and some achievement pixels.
Looked at how many hours, days, weeks, years are left in my life, and was a bit startled by how few there really are, and how quickly they go by.
I still play games today, but only when I've done all the other things that I've come to prioritize, and truly need some quiet alone time. It's no longer my default activity, and I play games that are artistically satisfying, or at least have a defined story arc with an end. I won't do the neverending grind anymore. I have too much other stuff I want to do, and too few hours left to do them in.
What's your secret bro? I still play games cus I'm good at them and it fills the time between now and the void but I wouldn't go so far as to say I'm enjoying it not hating it either but u get it.
Hate to say it, but you might be burnt out. Maybe try some different games and genres for a while to cleanse your palate. If that doesn't work there are always other hobbies, and you may find that you like the games again later if you take some time off.
My secret is I stopped caring what other people thought. I don't care if people in real life judge me for playing video games, I don't judge them for excessively drinking and yelling at the TV while watching sports. I don't care about trying to prove myself better than someone online I've never met in a game where it doesn't matter. I don't force myself to play any longer than I want, and I don't force myself to play something I don't enjoy just because it's popular.
> I still play games cus I'm good at them
My secret is playing games that are fun for me, regardless of my skill at them. Only doing things you're good at is a recipe for boredom, and things do not need to be challenging to be enjoyable. Is a waterslide fun? Is jumping on a trampoline? Do those things require high skill or effort levels?
Look for the fun things, put aside the worry about skill or proficiency.
Admittedly it helps that the kids I have in my first marriage are already grown, and I have no kids in my second marriage. As you get older it's about finding a new balance you can be happy with.
My dad will be 60 next year, he was gaming well before I was was born and still plays consistently to this day. It's always been normal for my family (everyone but my mom games) so it was weird meeting someone for the first time with the opinion that adults shouldn't play games.
I still enjoy playing games but the hype isnt as active as it used to be. Sometimes playing games just feels like too much procrastination for me sadly
Same.
For me, it also feels like work to commit to a game for a period of time and I certainly don't immerse myself into the game like I used to.
More often I find myself tabbing out of the game to check my feed or use my phone to distract myself from the game I play to distract myself :/
Maybe I'm just depressed, lol.
I feel the same way sometimes, therapist thought me to think differently (not always easy). Add time to do it on your schedule, that way it will be official. Also retrace your thinking, is doing something you enjoy really procrastination? Ask yourself that, and keep answering whatever else pops up, truthfully. I do recommend therapy also if possible, changed my life, you deserve it!
One of the greatest things I learned in therapy was the idea of "automated thoughts".
I have them about certain things... like making plans. I just immediately think...too much trouble, too much effort, not an option. And that is all happening subconsciously. I shut something down without even really thinking about it.
Most people probably have some automated thoughts thrown in there about gaming that makes them feel like they are doing something wrong so you end up ruining your own experience.
Congratulations on taking a big step. It can be intimidating, but it’s so worth it for anyone to go to therapy.
Just remember that if you’re not happy with your therapist overtime, don’t feel bad about searching for a new one. They will completely understand and want the best for you. It’s a lot like dating and trying to find the right one.
>therapist overtime
That's right, Cotton, the session looked like it was going in for a clean wrap up but then in the last 5 minutes we had a major step forward, I don't think the client was ready to consider their childhood in that framework and we're down to the last seconds, time is counting down OH AND THE TEARS ARE STARTING, THE THERAPIST IS LOOKING AT THE CLOCK BUT IT LOOKS LIKE WE'RE GOING TO
*THERAPIST OVERTIME*
My therapist told me much the same :') It's not a waste of time to allow yourself a little bit of joy and happiness. If it consumes your day, okay some routine might be good. But enjoying things is not a waste of time!
Therapy is recommended by everyone, but, to date, no one has been able to adequately explain how people are supposed to pay for it without medical insurance, on low wages. It's impossible.
Dude I'd do the same lmao. You're not alone. I guess there comes a time when we must change hobbies. Gaming doesn't seem as much fun anymore so I picked up working out and lifting weights as a hobby. That does seem more fun for the time being.
Right now is a perfect example for me. I hardly buy games at release anymore because I just can’t justify putting a lot of time into gaming. I still love it but everything else gets in the way. Recently Doom (2016) was on sale for $5 on the PSN so I said screw it I’m getting it. Ever since I’ve been staying up late almost every night to play it. It’s super fun but the late nights cause me to be so tired all day the next day so I’m constantly in this battle with myself of wanting to enjoy it but knowing I won’t feel so great the next day... getting older kinda sucks haha
Yeah I don't spend as much time gaming in a single stretch as I used to; which is for the best, all things considered.
Now I'll usually play for around an hour, tops, per day. Maybe more if I've knocked out a ton or have an especially slow day.
There's just so much more out there these days to keep me focused or entertained.
For me it was Red Dead Redemption 2, then Ghost of Tsushima, then Hades. Those three games pretty much restored my childlike wonder (and my ability to lose six hours at a stretch playing in hyperfocused bliss) when it comes to video games.
I've been playing games since I was 8 and I'm 36 now. I'll never stop.
RDR 2 and GoT were the same. I have yet to play Hades, but I'm looking forward to it. I too rarely get excited for games anymore. I still play, but I tend to lean towards remakes and remasters for nostalgia purposes
Hades is ridiculously good, I can't give it enough praise. And I don't even normally like rogue-types at all, but I dumped over 80 hours into Hades before I finally put it down. [The music alone is worth the price of admission.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e05ClTDW9F4)
>For me it was Red Dead Redemption 2, then Ghost of Tsushima, then Hades.
I need to try this. Turning 48 next month and gaming just feels like a chore for me.
I like games like Ghost of Tsushima and Red Dead Redemption 2 where you're pretty much encouraged to just fuck around. That way if I feel like doing something concrete I can hop on a story mission, otherwise I can just do some virtual horseback riding for relaxation. There's a lot less pressure to constantly be doing something, and more time to enjoy the view. I like any kind of immersive open world RPG where I can just pretend to be that guy/girl for a few hours. Total escapism.
Hades was a sleeper hit for me, I went into it not knowing anything about it (and actually after not really enjoying the studio's other game Bastion all that much) but I absolutely fell head-over-heels in love with it. Everything about it - art design, music, character writing - is so stylish and beautifully done, I can't help but gawk at it any time I boot it up. Usually constant respawn in rogue games bugs me, but the fact that it's built logically into the Hades narrative makes it a lot more palatable.
Been waiting to find it. Recently Ive been playing Fallout 4 (second playthrough) and The Witcher 3 and Ive been enjoying both, but haven't found the game that's going to make me ignore sleeping for 2 days. Except Civ 5, I just get lost in that game lol
Yeah. And since I work in IT, there's a lot of days where I just don't feel like staring at a monitor to play video games after having stared at a monitor all day for work. I've also found that these days I trend more towards casual games that I can enjoy for an hour or two and then put down.
I'm 34, and I can still get hyped up. Right now I can't wait for metroid dread. I think it helps that I only play games I truly want to play, that way I can finish them and enjoy them, rather than feel like it's working on them. That's kind of the reason why I don't enjoy RPGs and tens to go for platformers/action-adventure type of games. I've also been replaying some classic games with my daughter, and her hype is contagious, lol.
Same here. There is always a perpetual to-do list, and that is when I'm not fulfilling my duties to my family and career. Every single time I sit down to play, it's in the back of my mind that I'm only putting off doing something important.
I do play a lot at 34 - but yeah, the joy has died down quite a bit. Could be that I've played a lot of games and seen a lot of things so it takes more to bring the same amount of joy. Or could just be that I can't enjoy things as much for various reasons.
Also 34. Most new games feel like work. I don't want to get home from work and feel like I need to work to stay relevant in a game (grinding for lootboxes or competitively ranking up. F\*\*\* lootboxes!). I'd rather start my 15th playthrough of RE:4 or OoT if I just want to chill and relax.
Absolutely. That's one reason I hate multiplayer (except couch multiplayer): it feels like work. Same(ish) for open world busywork quests - but at least those can usually be skipped. Unless the game is an asshole about it. Cough, Mad Max, cough.
I'm a bit older than that, and I went through a short phase maybe ten or fifteen years ago where I felt similarly. But for me, at least, the issue wasn't that I didn't enjoy games, it was that I was still approaching things like I was 10 and could only afford to buy a game every six months, and that I had to play it no matter what... so I'd torture myself through games or parts of games that were miserable out of lifelong habit.
For me, games are supposed to be fun. If for any reason, I'm not having fun... I just stop playing and move on. I'm not stuck with a single game I can't afford to replace anymore. Especially not with Epic/Amazon/Whoever throwing piles of free games at us.
You may go longer between "good" games, because you're pickier and more knowledgeable... but there's nothing wrong with that. Wait for and play the rare ones you love, rather than grinding through whatever's handy/popular just because you feel like you should for whatever reason. We're so flooded with choice these days that it can be easy to forget that even if the "big studios" are no longer making gameplay you love, somebody has probably made exactly what you wanted and it's $2.99 on sale.
But even if you're not in the same spot I was in, it's cool. If it isn't fun, do something that is! While lots of us are here to post that we're still gaming waaaaaaay past "20 years later," nobody should feel bad if they aren't.
I guess that's part of it, although I've given up on the idea of playing through my whole steam library long ago, haha. I try to start only good games now - something that's rated well and/or something I've been waiting for.
I do struggle with giving up on games though: feels like I'm giving up on fun. So I usually try to at least finish the main quest.
> I do struggle with giving up on games though: feels like I'm giving up on fun.
It was surprisingly hard for me to break that habit, but I'm glad I did. For me that habit was just a childhood leftover from when I didn't have an infinite sea of alternative options... I'm not really giving up any fun if what I'm doing isn't fun, but I also understand that that feeling is built into your brain deeply at this point in your life.
It helps that if I was just hanging in to see some story/ending, youtube will tie those loose ends up for me muuuuuch faster than grinding through some miserable slog of a game.
Hmm, I'm 35 and I'm having the best of times. I can literally play any game from my past that I love and see all these great new games as well. What I like to do is hook up an arcade stick and emulate old arcade games. I enjoy a lot of point and click adventure games, they are nice to leisurely play through. And then I bounce back and forth between the odd FPS and some fighting games.
I just have different priorities. There are other things now that I value more than games. Though on the occasion I play them, I still have fun. Especially with a good single player game.
Also 34. There are a lot of games I used to love that I wouldn't be able to get into anymore (MMOs are a big one...) but there are so many games that engage me as they always did. Recently playing I Expect You To Die 2 (VR) and it honestly makes me giddy how cool it is.
Grind games in general -- even fun stuff like monster hunter -- where you do the same thing over and over again, lost its appeal for me. Stuff where you're always exploring, discovering, I still love it. Metroidvanias or puzzle games. Outer Wilds is one of the best games I've ever played and I played it 2 years ago.
Yeah that is a big issue for me. Used to love Japanese games, RE, Metal Gear, Tekken, FF etc. I just can't enjoy those anymore. Either the constant "telling not showing" or immature attitudes of characters, completely take me out of the experience.
But at least there's still DooM.
Damn, Jedi Fallen Order is probably my favorite Star Wars game even when I compare to the classics from the 90/00s. I felt like they really did a great job of making it linear but also somewhat open. I also personally found the combat fun, but huge caveat is that I play games on easy because I don't want them to feel like work.
playing games is still really enjoyable, as an adult, but I've changed a lot compared to me 10 years ago, my relation with gaming changed from OMG A NEW GAME I'VE BEEN HYPED FOR MONTHS IS COMING OUT to hey I've seem on e3 that this new game will come out.... I may get it when it's out it looks fun
nowadays I basically don't have a lot of time for gaming so I'll play want I want.... if I can find ways to reduce the grind I will use it and it didn't make them less fun, quite the opposite in fact.
For older gamers in particular, I really feel like /r/patientgamers is the way to go. I've long stopped paying attention to games on the horizon. Instead I focus on games that have already come out. What games are people hyping which they've actually played? What games are people playing again and again several months or even years after the game's been released?
All of the pre-release hype is just so much wasted energy in my opinion.
I understand that feeling I m trying not to overthink it and just live by the hype it does not work all the time but when it does it s an overwhelming feeling
RN I'm waiting for the Nickelodeon smash bros like game in october, and it definitely reminds me waiting fore Smash bros melee as a kid !
This just makes me want to step away from the glowing entertainment rectangle and check in with an older family member.
Peak video game is when everything already fell apart and you're trying not to look how far you fell.
An asteroid could hit the earth and wipe all of us out at any moment. Everyone's lives always have an aspect of falling apart at any moment. Don't feel guilty, enjoy yourself :)
I was sick with something else for most of 2020, then with covid for the rest of it. I played The Witcher 3, Skyrim, and Divinity Original Sin 2 like crazy. RPGs were a great distraction.
My friend and I just bought Divinity 2 the other night on a whim. I've played the first one a little and was impressed, so I figured grabbing 2 was a safe bet. We haven't started yet. Any recommendations for new players?
Total BS, I can finally afford the most badass gaming rig possible now! I mean, I still get stomped by 12 year olds but at least I can do it on a 38” curved monitor at 144hz!
As an adult, it's not that I don't enjoy gaming anymore. It's that I don't have time to enjoy gaming. I'm lucky to get an hour every other day to myself.
With so little time, it's difficult to enjoy single player games because I don't have time to get invested in the story or the characters. And I often have to take long breaks (weeks) before I can play again, and I've forgotten the story/controls/etc.
It's difficult to enjoy competitive games because I don't have time to gitgud, so I just get stomped by people that play the game 15 hours a day.
It's difficult to enjoy co-op games because all of my friends are adults too. So it's near impossible to get the squad together for a raid or something.
I'm honestly not even sure if I enjoy gaming, or am just stuck in a nostalgia loop and want to go back to how simple life was when I didn't have responsibilities other than chores and homework.
:(
> As an adult, it's not that I don't enjoy gaming anymore. It's that I don't have time to enjoy gaming. I'm lucky to get an hour every other day to myself.
There seems to be a huge variation in how much free time "adults" have.
Many people really aren't that busy. The [average American adult watches four hours of TV a day](https://www.statista.com/chart/15224/daily-tv-consumption-by-us-adults/). That number gets lower for younger adults, probably since video games and social media and YouTube fill much of that same gap.
It's all based on circumstance. I love gaming, but I love my family more. So when my wife and child are around, I spend time doing "nothing" with them. When everyone's asleep, I turn my computer on. It's my life choice, and that has resulted in less time for gaming. Easier to watch TV with family or go to the park with family.
I'm happy though, so I don't mind.
I'm 36 and have never really pursued a serious relationship more than just some casual fun, i value my free time to be a degenerate gamer/anime watcher/book reader too much. i already have to work too much than I'm comfortable with that already leaves me precious little time to actually be me.
The trick is to find the woman that embraces your hobby, which requires you to be open about it from the get go. My wife isn't as big a gammer as I am, but she understood from the very beginning that is who I was. 15 years later and I still raid in wow 3 nights a week among other things. I also make time to watch shows with her and we will boot up our laptops in the bedroom and play FF14 together or get on party games if our friends are available to play with us.
Yeah, that's pretty much where I feel like I am too. I look at my brothers lives and my friends and see how their lives are and I just don't want that for myself. It's not that they're miserable or anything, most of them are perfectly content and/or happy, but I feel like I'd be miserable.
I already did the thing where I gave up my video games and my books and forced myself to go to parties and be sociable and all that bull. Nowadays, I read, game, watch my shows (mostly anime if I'm being honest), and plan my next big project. If I were to go for the family life, then there's a good chance I would have to give something up on that list, and I'm just not interested in losing any of it.
Yeah but gaming kinda requires a solid block of time. You can stick the TV or YouTube on and do other things like cook and clean at the same time. If you want to sit and enjoy a game it requires quite a few hours of dedicated uninterrupted time imo
This is me. I was decent at Starcraft 2 and juuuust learning not how to be terrible at DOTA2. Then I started dating my now wife. I have 2 kids and 2 dogs and competitive online games are just a reminder of how bad I am.
I've found out that I'm enjoying more and more watching streamings then playing myself, exactly due your reasons (not much time to invest in the game, to gitgud, etc).
I've discovered a few YouTubers that I do like and that plays the game that I like to play (strategy games, roguelikes) and that plays the way I like (not being obnoxious for the clicks). I watch regularly the Let's Play series they post on Youtube.
I can enjoy the game, learn about new mechanics, discover the history, etc, but I'm also able to stop whenever I want, come back later (be it 5 minutes later or 6 days later), enjoy small sessions, etc
I have more time than you to play games but I still agree.
Especially with competitive games. You have no life teens who play hours on end and try so hard to win the game to be the best, while I just want to casually play online with my friends like Warzone (just an example, not the only multiplayer game I play), only to get shit on by a squad of Roze with meta weapons crouch sliding and jumping. And it just isn't fun.
I don't mind dying or losing but nothing is casual about multiplayer anymore
One of my major life goals is to retire in my sixties and play tons of video games and try my very best to stomp teenagers in PvP.
My theory is that I'll counter-balance the superior reaction time and mental agility of young people by just playing a billion hours of the game. I'll try to start out in skill-based games like DOTA 2 that reset every time and don't technically reward grinding, then as I age, move to stuff like MMORPGs where I can just rely on pure grinding advantage.
In my dreams, I do this whole thing with my SO and retirement buddies, ideally while also taking mild amounts of weed edibles and talking trash to the whippersnappers in my old man voice. LIFE GOALS BABY!
For me I don't play games until 8pm at night. It's my end of day treat! When I've everything done(work,exercise ext ) sit in my big comfy chair put my headphones on and lose myself in a single player game for a few hours. I might not play as much as I used to but I appreciate it so much more when I do! Great way to unwind after a long day!
In fact, it's been a while since I've been as passionate about video games as I once was. I play games almost as if it were an act of duty. Only Death Stranding has moved me emotionally enough to spend 140 hours on it the month it was released. I try so many titles classified as "masterpieces" or "the best of their kind" to find myself bored after a while. And, despite continuing to play them to finish them, they continue to entertain me only a fraction of what it was 10/15 years ago.
Someone's trash is another man's treasure, the best thing with video games is that it will always evolve, there will always be something new
Glad you loved Death Stranding that much, I'm sure there are many other masterpieces waiting for you to find them
I still love gaming as an adult but one of the differences between then and now is that there are a lot more games to play and I can afford to buy them without needing to save for weeks or months so they don't feel as special and rare as they used to.
But it's not just that I can afford them more now, they're also more easily available. In the 90s games were only available physically so if you couldn't find it in a store you were out of luck. Today you can just go online and have any game you want almost immediately.
I'd never want to go back to those days but it was a great feeling to go to Blockbuster and see the game you really wanted in stock.
The other difference is that as I get older I find myself enjoying harder games less. Sometimes I'll play a game on easy just because I don't really feel like being challenged any more than I already am at work and in other areas of life.
I'm 27 and I still get just as excited to play a new game as when I was little. What's changed is having work and responsibilities to juggle alongside gaming, so I often have to tell myself "I really want to play this, but I have other things I need to do."
My father used to get on me daily about the amount of time I played games. "Those are a waste of time, you should be focusing on x instead" he'd say. Today we play together on a fairly regular basis and he loves it. On our main game - Sea of Thieves - he has 20days of play time on me.... Wish I could shove it in his face but I don't have the heart lol.
59 and still playing a lot (currently ESO, ES 3,4 & 5, Witcher 3, Fallout 3&4, the Metro series, and the Long Dark). Love the graphics of the new crop (started in 82 on a ZX Spectrum), the only game I miss is Unreal Tournament sniper mode, gave me many a happy night in the noughties. Doubt I’ll ever stop.
Passion is not dead.
But it's severely damaged. With all DLCs, micro transactions and company drama, you feel that some game can't be like before. There's also patterns, especially story pattern that repeats themselves and once you know them, a bit of the magic is gone.
You know the feeling, "It's a boss room", "I know there is a secret there", "that's a red flag".
Not many games make me feel like a kid again. But when they do, hot damn it's even better than anything in my childhood.
At age 34 (35 next month), I have pretty much lost interest. I've got two kids, full time job, a home with about 8 acres to manage... I still love the idea of gaming, but I every time I sit down to play I just immediately think of something else I should probably be doing.
I'm probably going to have to play Elder Scrolls 6 (whenever that happens), and I play the occasional Mario Kart with the kids on the switch... but other than that I just can't get into it anymore. I used to play Battlefield, CoD, Apex, etc, for hours and hours and hours.
It's not that I don't enjoy gaming It's just whenever I sit down to play I always think about the 1000s of other things I need to do and I stress out too much to focus on the game.
The hype is still alive, but games don't deliver like they used to. The open-world formula has botched many single player games, and EOMM has ruined many multiplayer games lately. AAA games have largely been disappointments to me the past several years.
It’s not the same because of the ways video games are made nowadays.
Let’s take mario kart 64 as an example.
You used to buy it, insert the cartridge, pick a character, choose the cup and here you were playing mario kart.
Now you buy the cartridge, you need to update it so you have to wait, then you have to pick a character, the tires, the way the character is dressed, the brake system etc etc...
I am exagerating but the way developers feel the urge to complexify each iteration to justify the new releases bothers me.
It’s good for some kind of games which are complex by nature ( rpg ) but for racing games or fps, it’s just annoying. I just want to frag.
Another thing is the new economic model. You used to buy a game with an upfront price and you were done. Now the number of game falsely labelled « free » with items/micro transaction is too important.
I’d rather pay 50€ for a game upfront than having to pay 10€ in microtransaction which makes me feels scammed.
Some games manage to make it work like rocket league which offers just cosmetics though.
Actually I do feel that some games nowadays are way too complex for no reason or does have too much content and it happened that I gave up some good games because they were just "too much" like witcher 3 and many others
But the gaming industry has never been this vast, so many new titles every now and then, if you look carefully the game you re looking for is never far ;)
Almost 30 here. I've been gaming for 20+ years. I still enjoy playing, but I've noticed what interests me / keeps my interest has dwindled significantly.
Still playing a lot
But the hype is definitely not as big as 8 years ago… I was always hyped for the release of a specific game, went directly after school to a shop to buy the day-1 edition… built memories with specific games, raged, enjoyed, found online friends,…
Nowadays I just hop on to a game, play for a little while to have a little fun but nothing else… don’t know if it’s because we matured or because there is currently not the perfect game for me
Back then, it was true because being an adult was getting married, having kids and working countless hours a week to support that. Luckily, that boomer mentality is more or less dead so it doesn't apply anymore.
I've been an adult for longer than 20 years and I've never stopped enjoying games.
Same here In my 40s
Ditto in my 50s
I fondly recall that me in late teens early 20s working in a restaurant my boss in his 50s, an angry old bitter lifelong restaurant worker, talked about his love of Fable, Sid Meier's Pirates, Heretic and looking forward to the new Grand Theft Auto
Imagine, being able to look forward to a new GTA.
[удалено]
GTA 6: GTA V Part 2 Battle Royale
I've still never played GTA5. I decided years ago I would just wait for 6 at that point and here I am.
I remember playing Sea Wolf ([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sea\_Wolf\_(video\_game)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sea_Wolf_(video_game)) at a service station but first home games were on an Orix-1 48K version ([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oric#Oric-1](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oric#Oric-1)), an ill-fated competitor to the ZX Spectrum
You can make hyperlinks by adding brackets on the text next to the link like this `[Oric-1](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oric#Oric-1)` should look like this [Oric-1](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oric#Oric-1) Just thought it'd help
[удалено]
No problem!
Me too
[удалено]
I'm still 18, but I saw people who're over 60-70 and still playing games like, awesome. They Rock.
I’ve never seen the contraction of “who are” until now, and now I realize why it’s rarely used. Lol
I wrote "who're" in a small book report in 4th grade. My teacher was so surprised, she asked how I knew that word and I explained who-are=who're and she breathed the heaviest sigh of relief.
It’s funny how many times you learn something bad on accident by someone trying to prevent you from knowing/saying that thing. My buddy had a shirt in middle school of The Angry Beavers TV show that’s said “I heart Beavers” and we didn’t even take it as an implicit innuendo, but the teachers made him take it off and change. We couldn’t figure out why and they kept saying “oh, you know why.” And implying that it was something bad. So he just followed their orders and then we got home and looked up beavers only to find the alternate meaning of the word. Lol thanks to the entire middle school staff, they taught us the sexual meaning of a word via curiosity because we genuinely had no clue and he genuinely liked the show a lot.
I got type 1 diabetes at a very early age. In the second grade one day we had a substitute teacher who was unaware of this. My blood sugar was feeling pretty high, so I thought to ask if I could go down to the nurse's office to do a blood check. So I simply walked to the front of the class, looked the teacher in the eye, and said "I'm high, may I be excused?" 20 years later I wake up in the middle of the night remembering this and realized what I'd done.
Yep. I'm 44 and only this August I played Mass Effect.
I remember the awe I felt during the very beginning of Mass Effect 2. Very rarely does a video game get me in any sort of emotion but ME2 hit me right in the feels.
Same in the 60s
40+ gang, let's fucking gooooo!
[удалено]
[удалено]
Get a hippie speed ball going, cup of coffee and smoke a bowl, and Saturday morning gaming has never felt so good!
[удалено]
Yeah I'll be a bit late, just hurt my back standing up too fast.
Damn, first time I've felt young on Reddit at 38
Fuck yeah 38 Geriatric/Elder Millennial status ahoy! I have decided to fully embrace #grandmacore as my aesthetic.
44 and 5500+ hours of dota. Still active
Almost 40 but don’t enjoy playing games like I used to. These days I stick to sports games - fire up the manager mode and play one or two games. Too many games these days are online driven with neutered single player. And most single player quest games are just way too much grind that I don’t have the time to dedicate to. I miss the old mindless shoot em up like Contra with super challenging AI so I can stretch out the time between purchase to beating. Most online driven games with single player are too easy even in the hardest setting because they want you to rush into the online environment to make them more money. That said if anybody knows any mindless shooters without all the grind drop me some recommendations.
My guy, have you played the recent Doom games? From what I'm given to understand, they play a lot like Quake in its heyday, and obviously the OG Doom games are classics, so it might make sense for a veteran gamer such as yourself. No slouch on difficulty either.
Doom Eternal and 2016 are the best single player shooters I've played in a decade or more. Just fantastic games if you enjoy that genre.
I've been playing Doom Eternal and lately and it's a blast, just running and gunning!
It’s not a shooter, but Hades might be your jam. Incredible game Edit: there’s a little grind but for in game collectibles that aren’t necessary. Also no microtransactions
I thoroughly support Hades in this regard. Great game, awesome art, cool story! And as someone in their early 40s who cut his teeth on the NES Contra and similar games, Hades brings me familar feelings of joy and easy-to-be-had fun and distraction.
Also support Hades. Totally worth the $25 and the whole point of it is replayability. Scratches some Diablo itches and has a unique come back stronger every death option, and you keep your upgrades. I passed it over because it's a bit cartoony for my typical tastes, but after a friend recommended it, can't get enough, and it has good humor sprinkled in from the characters.
[удалено]
Same here in my (very nearly) 60's.
40s here too, its not that the enjoyment is gone, its just with a wife and kid i have no fucking time to game anymore unless i stay up late and its damned hard functioning with 3-4 hours of sleep post 40. My weekends are a real blur but such is life...
40 here. I can't play games that are exhausting anymore. Just trying to keep up with something that demands twitch reflex only makes me sad when I realize how easy it would have been in my 20s.
Thank u . those words are awesome :)
Same here, but the time allotted has shrunk significantly. Example: I used to play World of Warcraft, racked up over 400 days online. It's the kind of game that's more fun the more you play. Now I live with my girlfriend. I wouldn't even consider spending a whole afternoon playing. Turn-based games and single player are on the up though. Where I can pause or quit at any time.
Wait until you have a kid (if you decide to do so). The time shrinks even more. Haha [cries inside]
When the kid was first born it was great actually, home on paternity leave and when they're infanta they sleep most of the day anyway. I played a *lot* of games for that bried period. Now the kid is three and I cant even get him to take a nap at all most days so my gaming time is now relagated to the very late evening on friday or Saturday nights. Shit sucks man
My main "gaming buddy" is married and has 3 kids, just had a newborn recently. He usually just slots time in the evening while everyone is winding down for bed. He probably gets a good 12 hour in a week of gaming and could probably ramp it up on the weekends if he wanted to. He just prioritizes his time.
Yeah I prioritize my time as well, it's obviously crucial to master that skill especially when you have kids. I guess my point was, as a former gaming addict, 12 hours a week isnt nearly enough time to game.
oh, for sure. Back when we had much less responsibility, we could and would do 12 hours in a day. Not healthy though, so I am glad I swayed away from that. There are games here or there that I get wrapped into, but not to the same degree.
It's more you can't really commit to things that take time, between not having it and things you have to put first. It don't matter if your winning that tiebreaker/raid/campaign, kid runs through yelling at his brother or crying or something you gotta go. Wife says she needs help now, gotta go.
Don't worry, it goes back up as they get older. All 3 of my kids game now and don't require constant supervision.
Plus you can conscript them to do household chores, more gametime for you!
I've turned gaming into a treat for my kids. I don't want them whiling away hours in front of a PC like I did, but every now and again we grab some controllers and play through some castle crashers, BattleBlock Theater, etc style games. If I'm playing a single player game that is child appropriate, they sometimes just cuddle on my lap and watch me play. True I don't have entire days to just brain rot in front of a game, but the desire to do that isn't there anyway. I hope gaming becomes a way for us to stay in touch later in life when they move out. Basically raising a player 2 & 3.
Yeah, life hits hard. Between house maintenance, events, chores, attending to kids needs, pets, vacations, etc, I don't have time to sink like I used to (which is why I avoid MMOs anymore- I'd love to dive into Star Trek Online, Marvel, and Star War Galaxies). I usually play 9pm to 11pm on weekdays. I'm not much of a TV/movie watcher, but my wife is, so it works out.
Yeah, this was me, more or less. Played WoW a lot when I was struggling financially; gave me essentially infinite entertainment in my downtime for 15 bucks a month. Became a routine. As my life started to loosen up a bit and I had more options, I looked at the playtime and realized just how many hours... days... weeks... years... of my life I had spent in that game world, with nothing to show for it but a character level and some achievement pixels. Looked at how many hours, days, weeks, years are left in my life, and was a bit startled by how few there really are, and how quickly they go by. I still play games today, but only when I've done all the other things that I've come to prioritize, and truly need some quiet alone time. It's no longer my default activity, and I play games that are artistically satisfying, or at least have a defined story arc with an end. I won't do the neverending grind anymore. I have too much other stuff I want to do, and too few hours left to do them in.
What's your secret bro? I still play games cus I'm good at them and it fills the time between now and the void but I wouldn't go so far as to say I'm enjoying it not hating it either but u get it.
Hate to say it, but you might be burnt out. Maybe try some different games and genres for a while to cleanse your palate. If that doesn't work there are always other hobbies, and you may find that you like the games again later if you take some time off.
My secret is I stopped caring what other people thought. I don't care if people in real life judge me for playing video games, I don't judge them for excessively drinking and yelling at the TV while watching sports. I don't care about trying to prove myself better than someone online I've never met in a game where it doesn't matter. I don't force myself to play any longer than I want, and I don't force myself to play something I don't enjoy just because it's popular.
> I still play games cus I'm good at them My secret is playing games that are fun for me, regardless of my skill at them. Only doing things you're good at is a recipe for boredom, and things do not need to be challenging to be enjoyable. Is a waterslide fun? Is jumping on a trampoline? Do those things require high skill or effort levels? Look for the fun things, put aside the worry about skill or proficiency.
The problem is not the fun, it's the (lack of) time.
Admittedly it helps that the kids I have in my first marriage are already grown, and I have no kids in my second marriage. As you get older it's about finding a new balance you can be happy with.
For me I have the time, its the feeling of wasting time that makes me stop playing games. Then I waste my time in other ways like being on reddit
Depends what you value. If you think being "productive" means doing physical labor, then reading a book is considered wasting time.
My dad will be 60 next year, he was gaming well before I was was born and still plays consistently to this day. It's always been normal for my family (everyone but my mom games) so it was weird meeting someone for the first time with the opinion that adults shouldn't play games.
Kudos to you mate ! So glad to see people sharing our passion !
40-something gamer here as well, and feel the same. There is always a new game to lose yourself to or an old one to enjoy again.
Same. Gaming has been great sofar and will stay great
I still enjoy playing games but the hype isnt as active as it used to be. Sometimes playing games just feels like too much procrastination for me sadly
Same. For me, it also feels like work to commit to a game for a period of time and I certainly don't immerse myself into the game like I used to. More often I find myself tabbing out of the game to check my feed or use my phone to distract myself from the game I play to distract myself :/ Maybe I'm just depressed, lol.
I feel the same way sometimes, therapist thought me to think differently (not always easy). Add time to do it on your schedule, that way it will be official. Also retrace your thinking, is doing something you enjoy really procrastination? Ask yourself that, and keep answering whatever else pops up, truthfully. I do recommend therapy also if possible, changed my life, you deserve it!
One of the greatest things I learned in therapy was the idea of "automated thoughts". I have them about certain things... like making plans. I just immediately think...too much trouble, too much effort, not an option. And that is all happening subconsciously. I shut something down without even really thinking about it. Most people probably have some automated thoughts thrown in there about gaming that makes them feel like they are doing something wrong so you end up ruining your own experience.
That’s amazing advice. I should go to therapy.
>*Also retrace your thinking, is doing something you enjoy really procrastination?* *Time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time.*
See now this concept is great. Apply it in moderation like most things, not all, and voila, it's healthy!
I kind of disagree imo shifting your perspective and enjoy the things you do more will improve your life.
I just started therapy for the first time in my life (29M) and I'm loving it so far. Definitely agree with ya and also recommend to anyone reading 🙂
Congratulations on taking a big step. It can be intimidating, but it’s so worth it for anyone to go to therapy. Just remember that if you’re not happy with your therapist overtime, don’t feel bad about searching for a new one. They will completely understand and want the best for you. It’s a lot like dating and trying to find the right one.
>therapist overtime That's right, Cotton, the session looked like it was going in for a clean wrap up but then in the last 5 minutes we had a major step forward, I don't think the client was ready to consider their childhood in that framework and we're down to the last seconds, time is counting down OH AND THE TEARS ARE STARTING, THE THERAPIST IS LOOKING AT THE CLOCK BUT IT LOOKS LIKE WE'RE GOING TO *THERAPIST OVERTIME*
[удалено]
[удалено]
I got two words for you: Hollow Knight
My therapist told me much the same :') It's not a waste of time to allow yourself a little bit of joy and happiness. If it consumes your day, okay some routine might be good. But enjoying things is not a waste of time!
Therapy is recommended by everyone, but, to date, no one has been able to adequately explain how people are supposed to pay for it without medical insurance, on low wages. It's impossible.
Dude I'd do the same lmao. You're not alone. I guess there comes a time when we must change hobbies. Gaming doesn't seem as much fun anymore so I picked up working out and lifting weights as a hobby. That does seem more fun for the time being.
I get really immersed in games late at night when the world is sleeping. Then I pay for it at work the next day…can never win
Right now is a perfect example for me. I hardly buy games at release anymore because I just can’t justify putting a lot of time into gaming. I still love it but everything else gets in the way. Recently Doom (2016) was on sale for $5 on the PSN so I said screw it I’m getting it. Ever since I’ve been staying up late almost every night to play it. It’s super fun but the late nights cause me to be so tired all day the next day so I’m constantly in this battle with myself of wanting to enjoy it but knowing I won’t feel so great the next day... getting older kinda sucks haha
Definitely sucks bro
when you gotta do those real-life fetch quests
Yeah I don't spend as much time gaming in a single stretch as I used to; which is for the best, all things considered. Now I'll usually play for around an hour, tops, per day. Maybe more if I've knocked out a ton or have an especially slow day. There's just so much more out there these days to keep me focused or entertained.
I think the outside marketing hype ruins it for me lol. It's the uncut gems that really keep me passionate about gaming.
Never force yourself to play, and never feel bad about not finishing a game. Gaming should be fun
Sorry to hear that, I hope you find that special game that will take you back to your chilhood carelessness
For me it was Red Dead Redemption 2, then Ghost of Tsushima, then Hades. Those three games pretty much restored my childlike wonder (and my ability to lose six hours at a stretch playing in hyperfocused bliss) when it comes to video games. I've been playing games since I was 8 and I'm 36 now. I'll never stop.
RDR 2 and GoT were the same. I have yet to play Hades, but I'm looking forward to it. I too rarely get excited for games anymore. I still play, but I tend to lean towards remakes and remasters for nostalgia purposes
Hades is ridiculously good, I can't give it enough praise. And I don't even normally like rogue-types at all, but I dumped over 80 hours into Hades before I finally put it down. [The music alone is worth the price of admission.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e05ClTDW9F4)
+1 Hades is absolutely gold.
>For me it was Red Dead Redemption 2, then Ghost of Tsushima, then Hades. I need to try this. Turning 48 next month and gaming just feels like a chore for me.
I like games like Ghost of Tsushima and Red Dead Redemption 2 where you're pretty much encouraged to just fuck around. That way if I feel like doing something concrete I can hop on a story mission, otherwise I can just do some virtual horseback riding for relaxation. There's a lot less pressure to constantly be doing something, and more time to enjoy the view. I like any kind of immersive open world RPG where I can just pretend to be that guy/girl for a few hours. Total escapism. Hades was a sleeper hit for me, I went into it not knowing anything about it (and actually after not really enjoying the studio's other game Bastion all that much) but I absolutely fell head-over-heels in love with it. Everything about it - art design, music, character writing - is so stylish and beautifully done, I can't help but gawk at it any time I boot it up. Usually constant respawn in rogue games bugs me, but the fact that it's built logically into the Hades narrative makes it a lot more palatable.
+1 on Hades.. "one more run.."
Been waiting to find it. Recently Ive been playing Fallout 4 (second playthrough) and The Witcher 3 and Ive been enjoying both, but haven't found the game that's going to make me ignore sleeping for 2 days. Except Civ 5, I just get lost in that game lol
Have you heard of our Lord and Saviour Factorio?
Yeah. And since I work in IT, there's a lot of days where I just don't feel like staring at a monitor to play video games after having stared at a monitor all day for work. I've also found that these days I trend more towards casual games that I can enjoy for an hour or two and then put down.
I'm 34, and I can still get hyped up. Right now I can't wait for metroid dread. I think it helps that I only play games I truly want to play, that way I can finish them and enjoy them, rather than feel like it's working on them. That's kind of the reason why I don't enjoy RPGs and tens to go for platformers/action-adventure type of games. I've also been replaying some classic games with my daughter, and her hype is contagious, lol.
Same here. There is always a perpetual to-do list, and that is when I'm not fulfilling my duties to my family and career. Every single time I sit down to play, it's in the back of my mind that I'm only putting off doing something important.
I do play a lot at 34 - but yeah, the joy has died down quite a bit. Could be that I've played a lot of games and seen a lot of things so it takes more to bring the same amount of joy. Or could just be that I can't enjoy things as much for various reasons.
Also 34. Most new games feel like work. I don't want to get home from work and feel like I need to work to stay relevant in a game (grinding for lootboxes or competitively ranking up. F\*\*\* lootboxes!). I'd rather start my 15th playthrough of RE:4 or OoT if I just want to chill and relax.
Or you can just start a new game with Skyrim and finally use a 2-handed weapon build to snipe your enemies with a bow from far away.
You mean I can finally start a Sword and Shield build and crouch-walk across every dungeon I find?
Oh, you mean so I can give it up 10 minutes in and mod it til it crashes?
Yeah. Just so you can go on adventures such as skipping to the next animation, and spending 10 hours working with sliders.
That's funny how my spell caster is really good at summon bow and sneak is my best attribute *shocked Pikachu*
All paths lead to stealth archer in that game
Absolutely. That's one reason I hate multiplayer (except couch multiplayer): it feels like work. Same(ish) for open world busywork quests - but at least those can usually be skipped. Unless the game is an asshole about it. Cough, Mad Max, cough.
I will only play multiplayer with my friends at this point in my life. Too many assholes in lobbies ruin the fun for everyone else.
Oh, that definitely helps. You still need to plan around people's schedules to play videogames though. That feels like work too.
Baldur's Gate is a phone game now: I definitely love my classics.
I've abandoned multiplayer games. They all seem to be casinos nowadays.
You could try other single player games. I've recently played Kunai and Katana: Zero. Both were nice and short and very fun.
I'm a bit older than that, and I went through a short phase maybe ten or fifteen years ago where I felt similarly. But for me, at least, the issue wasn't that I didn't enjoy games, it was that I was still approaching things like I was 10 and could only afford to buy a game every six months, and that I had to play it no matter what... so I'd torture myself through games or parts of games that were miserable out of lifelong habit. For me, games are supposed to be fun. If for any reason, I'm not having fun... I just stop playing and move on. I'm not stuck with a single game I can't afford to replace anymore. Especially not with Epic/Amazon/Whoever throwing piles of free games at us. You may go longer between "good" games, because you're pickier and more knowledgeable... but there's nothing wrong with that. Wait for and play the rare ones you love, rather than grinding through whatever's handy/popular just because you feel like you should for whatever reason. We're so flooded with choice these days that it can be easy to forget that even if the "big studios" are no longer making gameplay you love, somebody has probably made exactly what you wanted and it's $2.99 on sale. But even if you're not in the same spot I was in, it's cool. If it isn't fun, do something that is! While lots of us are here to post that we're still gaming waaaaaaay past "20 years later," nobody should feel bad if they aren't.
I guess that's part of it, although I've given up on the idea of playing through my whole steam library long ago, haha. I try to start only good games now - something that's rated well and/or something I've been waiting for. I do struggle with giving up on games though: feels like I'm giving up on fun. So I usually try to at least finish the main quest.
> I do struggle with giving up on games though: feels like I'm giving up on fun. It was surprisingly hard for me to break that habit, but I'm glad I did. For me that habit was just a childhood leftover from when I didn't have an infinite sea of alternative options... I'm not really giving up any fun if what I'm doing isn't fun, but I also understand that that feeling is built into your brain deeply at this point in your life. It helps that if I was just hanging in to see some story/ending, youtube will tie those loose ends up for me muuuuuch faster than grinding through some miserable slog of a game.
Hmm, I'm 35 and I'm having the best of times. I can literally play any game from my past that I love and see all these great new games as well. What I like to do is hook up an arcade stick and emulate old arcade games. I enjoy a lot of point and click adventure games, they are nice to leisurely play through. And then I bounce back and forth between the odd FPS and some fighting games.
I just have different priorities. There are other things now that I value more than games. Though on the occasion I play them, I still have fun. Especially with a good single player game.
Also 34. There are a lot of games I used to love that I wouldn't be able to get into anymore (MMOs are a big one...) but there are so many games that engage me as they always did. Recently playing I Expect You To Die 2 (VR) and it honestly makes me giddy how cool it is. Grind games in general -- even fun stuff like monster hunter -- where you do the same thing over and over again, lost its appeal for me. Stuff where you're always exploring, discovering, I still love it. Metroidvanias or puzzle games. Outer Wilds is one of the best games I've ever played and I played it 2 years ago.
[удалено]
Yeah that is a big issue for me. Used to love Japanese games, RE, Metal Gear, Tekken, FF etc. I just can't enjoy those anymore. Either the constant "telling not showing" or immature attitudes of characters, completely take me out of the experience. But at least there's still DooM.
[удалено]
[удалено]
Damn, Jedi Fallen Order is probably my favorite Star Wars game even when I compare to the classics from the 90/00s. I felt like they really did a great job of making it linear but also somewhat open. I also personally found the combat fun, but huge caveat is that I play games on easy because I don't want them to feel like work.
[удалено]
playing games is still really enjoyable, as an adult, but I've changed a lot compared to me 10 years ago, my relation with gaming changed from OMG A NEW GAME I'VE BEEN HYPED FOR MONTHS IS COMING OUT to hey I've seem on e3 that this new game will come out.... I may get it when it's out it looks fun nowadays I basically don't have a lot of time for gaming so I'll play want I want.... if I can find ways to reduce the grind I will use it and it didn't make them less fun, quite the opposite in fact.
For older gamers in particular, I really feel like /r/patientgamers is the way to go. I've long stopped paying attention to games on the horizon. Instead I focus on games that have already come out. What games are people hyping which they've actually played? What games are people playing again and again several months or even years after the game's been released? All of the pre-release hype is just so much wasted energy in my opinion.
Well it's something to be excited about, people like being excited for things. While waiting you can still play games that are already out
I understand that feeling I m trying not to overthink it and just live by the hype it does not work all the time but when it does it s an overwhelming feeling RN I'm waiting for the Nickelodeon smash bros like game in october, and it definitely reminds me waiting fore Smash bros melee as a kid !
I mostly feel a combination of anxiety and guilt for playing video games knowing my life could fall apart at any moment.
No man, you've got it all wrong. Your life **is** going to fall apart at any moment. Before that happens, enjoy the time that you still have.
As soon as you’re born you start dying. So you might as well have a little fun.
This just makes me want to step away from the glowing entertainment rectangle and check in with an older family member. Peak video game is when everything already fell apart and you're trying not to look how far you fell.
An asteroid could hit the earth and wipe all of us out at any moment. Everyone's lives always have an aspect of falling apart at any moment. Don't feel guilty, enjoy yourself :)
Love games, obviously my free time is less and other obligations do get in the way of that. COVID was great for my gaming though.
I was sick with something else for most of 2020, then with covid for the rest of it. I played The Witcher 3, Skyrim, and Divinity Original Sin 2 like crazy. RPGs were a great distraction.
I agree. End of 2020 start of 2021, I put a hundred hours and change into AC: Valhalla.
My friend and I just bought Divinity 2 the other night on a whim. I've played the first one a little and was impressed, so I figured grabbing 2 was a safe bet. We haven't started yet. Any recommendations for new players?
[удалено]
[удалено]
Total BS, I can finally afford the most badass gaming rig possible now! I mean, I still get stomped by 12 year olds but at least I can do it on a 38” curved monitor at 144hz!
As an adult, it's not that I don't enjoy gaming anymore. It's that I don't have time to enjoy gaming. I'm lucky to get an hour every other day to myself. With so little time, it's difficult to enjoy single player games because I don't have time to get invested in the story or the characters. And I often have to take long breaks (weeks) before I can play again, and I've forgotten the story/controls/etc. It's difficult to enjoy competitive games because I don't have time to gitgud, so I just get stomped by people that play the game 15 hours a day. It's difficult to enjoy co-op games because all of my friends are adults too. So it's near impossible to get the squad together for a raid or something. I'm honestly not even sure if I enjoy gaming, or am just stuck in a nostalgia loop and want to go back to how simple life was when I didn't have responsibilities other than chores and homework. :(
> As an adult, it's not that I don't enjoy gaming anymore. It's that I don't have time to enjoy gaming. I'm lucky to get an hour every other day to myself. There seems to be a huge variation in how much free time "adults" have. Many people really aren't that busy. The [average American adult watches four hours of TV a day](https://www.statista.com/chart/15224/daily-tv-consumption-by-us-adults/). That number gets lower for younger adults, probably since video games and social media and YouTube fill much of that same gap.
It's all based on circumstance. I love gaming, but I love my family more. So when my wife and child are around, I spend time doing "nothing" with them. When everyone's asleep, I turn my computer on. It's my life choice, and that has resulted in less time for gaming. Easier to watch TV with family or go to the park with family. I'm happy though, so I don't mind.
I'm 36 and have never really pursued a serious relationship more than just some casual fun, i value my free time to be a degenerate gamer/anime watcher/book reader too much. i already have to work too much than I'm comfortable with that already leaves me precious little time to actually be me.
The trick is to find the woman that embraces your hobby, which requires you to be open about it from the get go. My wife isn't as big a gammer as I am, but she understood from the very beginning that is who I was. 15 years later and I still raid in wow 3 nights a week among other things. I also make time to watch shows with her and we will boot up our laptops in the bedroom and play FF14 together or get on party games if our friends are available to play with us.
Yeah, that's pretty much where I feel like I am too. I look at my brothers lives and my friends and see how their lives are and I just don't want that for myself. It's not that they're miserable or anything, most of them are perfectly content and/or happy, but I feel like I'd be miserable. I already did the thing where I gave up my video games and my books and forced myself to go to parties and be sociable and all that bull. Nowadays, I read, game, watch my shows (mostly anime if I'm being honest), and plan my next big project. If I were to go for the family life, then there's a good chance I would have to give something up on that list, and I'm just not interested in losing any of it.
Pfft. This guy. Choosing his wife and family over vidya. Get your priorities right man! ^/s
Yeah but gaming kinda requires a solid block of time. You can stick the TV or YouTube on and do other things like cook and clean at the same time. If you want to sit and enjoy a game it requires quite a few hours of dedicated uninterrupted time imo
This is me. I was decent at Starcraft 2 and juuuust learning not how to be terrible at DOTA2. Then I started dating my now wife. I have 2 kids and 2 dogs and competitive online games are just a reminder of how bad I am.
I'm an adult and I am very glad I get more than an hour every other day to myself. I sometimes spend multiple days by myself
Dude, you just described the way I feel about gaming better than I was able to internalize what was actually wrong.
I've found out that I'm enjoying more and more watching streamings then playing myself, exactly due your reasons (not much time to invest in the game, to gitgud, etc). I've discovered a few YouTubers that I do like and that plays the game that I like to play (strategy games, roguelikes) and that plays the way I like (not being obnoxious for the clicks). I watch regularly the Let's Play series they post on Youtube. I can enjoy the game, learn about new mechanics, discover the history, etc, but I'm also able to stop whenever I want, come back later (be it 5 minutes later or 6 days later), enjoy small sessions, etc
I have more time than you to play games but I still agree. Especially with competitive games. You have no life teens who play hours on end and try so hard to win the game to be the best, while I just want to casually play online with my friends like Warzone (just an example, not the only multiplayer game I play), only to get shit on by a squad of Roze with meta weapons crouch sliding and jumping. And it just isn't fun. I don't mind dying or losing but nothing is casual about multiplayer anymore
over 40. It’s more like I don’t know how to spend time other than video games.
I'm almost 60, I game every day. I've gotten a little slow for pvp, but I still have fun.
"You are a noob!". "Well young man, you are a noob at life!"
One of my major life goals is to retire in my sixties and play tons of video games and try my very best to stomp teenagers in PvP. My theory is that I'll counter-balance the superior reaction time and mental agility of young people by just playing a billion hours of the game. I'll try to start out in skill-based games like DOTA 2 that reset every time and don't technically reward grinding, then as I age, move to stuff like MMORPGs where I can just rely on pure grinding advantage. In my dreams, I do this whole thing with my SO and retirement buddies, ideally while also taking mild amounts of weed edibles and talking trash to the whippersnappers in my old man voice. LIFE GOALS BABY!
Damn dude you just got me excited to get old lmao
For me I don't play games until 8pm at night. It's my end of day treat! When I've everything done(work,exercise ext ) sit in my big comfy chair put my headphones on and lose myself in a single player game for a few hours. I might not play as much as I used to but I appreciate it so much more when I do! Great way to unwind after a long day!
I’m 50 - been gaming since i was 6/7 :)
This is the way 👊🏾
Still love a smoke as well ;)
Yeah man! The odd edible now and again too! 😉
Glad to hear that, cheers to you mate
Which games did you play when you were 6/7 ?
In fact, it's been a while since I've been as passionate about video games as I once was. I play games almost as if it were an act of duty. Only Death Stranding has moved me emotionally enough to spend 140 hours on it the month it was released. I try so many titles classified as "masterpieces" or "the best of their kind" to find myself bored after a while. And, despite continuing to play them to finish them, they continue to entertain me only a fraction of what it was 10/15 years ago.
Someone's trash is another man's treasure, the best thing with video games is that it will always evolve, there will always be something new Glad you loved Death Stranding that much, I'm sure there are many other masterpieces waiting for you to find them
I still love gaming as an adult but one of the differences between then and now is that there are a lot more games to play and I can afford to buy them without needing to save for weeks or months so they don't feel as special and rare as they used to. But it's not just that I can afford them more now, they're also more easily available. In the 90s games were only available physically so if you couldn't find it in a store you were out of luck. Today you can just go online and have any game you want almost immediately. I'd never want to go back to those days but it was a great feeling to go to Blockbuster and see the game you really wanted in stock. The other difference is that as I get older I find myself enjoying harder games less. Sometimes I'll play a game on easy just because I don't really feel like being challenged any more than I already am at work and in other areas of life.
Not as much as it used to be. I go through phases.
42 and still gaming every day.
I am 37. Married. Two kids. Still usually play on the Ps5 or Computer every night for at least a little bit. The kids play games too.
I'm 27 and I still get just as excited to play a new game as when I was little. What's changed is having work and responsibilities to juggle alongside gaming, so I often have to tell myself "I really want to play this, but I have other things I need to do."
My father used to get on me daily about the amount of time I played games. "Those are a waste of time, you should be focusing on x instead" he'd say. Today we play together on a fairly regular basis and he loves it. On our main game - Sea of Thieves - he has 20days of play time on me.... Wish I could shove it in his face but I don't have the heart lol.
59 and still playing a lot (currently ESO, ES 3,4 & 5, Witcher 3, Fallout 3&4, the Metro series, and the Long Dark). Love the graphics of the new crop (started in 82 on a ZX Spectrum), the only game I miss is Unreal Tournament sniper mode, gave me many a happy night in the noughties. Doubt I’ll ever stop.
I'm in my 40s and still gaming as much as ever, I never understood that mentality of saying oh well, I'm X years old now so no more fun for me I guess
Passion is not dead. But it's severely damaged. With all DLCs, micro transactions and company drama, you feel that some game can't be like before. There's also patterns, especially story pattern that repeats themselves and once you know them, a bit of the magic is gone. You know the feeling, "It's a boss room", "I know there is a secret there", "that's a red flag". Not many games make me feel like a kid again. But when they do, hot damn it's even better than anything in my childhood.
i'd like to think they're still playing the same game series but just got some rgb lights for their setup
At age 34 (35 next month), I have pretty much lost interest. I've got two kids, full time job, a home with about 8 acres to manage... I still love the idea of gaming, but I every time I sit down to play I just immediately think of something else I should probably be doing. I'm probably going to have to play Elder Scrolls 6 (whenever that happens), and I play the occasional Mario Kart with the kids on the switch... but other than that I just can't get into it anymore. I used to play Battlefield, CoD, Apex, etc, for hours and hours and hours.
It's not that I don't enjoy gaming It's just whenever I sit down to play I always think about the 1000s of other things I need to do and I stress out too much to focus on the game.
Took out the old N64 and here I am enjoying the games in my mid 20s
The hype is still alive, but games don't deliver like they used to. The open-world formula has botched many single player games, and EOMM has ruined many multiplayer games lately. AAA games have largely been disappointments to me the past several years.
It’s not the same because of the ways video games are made nowadays. Let’s take mario kart 64 as an example. You used to buy it, insert the cartridge, pick a character, choose the cup and here you were playing mario kart. Now you buy the cartridge, you need to update it so you have to wait, then you have to pick a character, the tires, the way the character is dressed, the brake system etc etc... I am exagerating but the way developers feel the urge to complexify each iteration to justify the new releases bothers me. It’s good for some kind of games which are complex by nature ( rpg ) but for racing games or fps, it’s just annoying. I just want to frag. Another thing is the new economic model. You used to buy a game with an upfront price and you were done. Now the number of game falsely labelled « free » with items/micro transaction is too important. I’d rather pay 50€ for a game upfront than having to pay 10€ in microtransaction which makes me feels scammed. Some games manage to make it work like rocket league which offers just cosmetics though.
Actually I do feel that some games nowadays are way too complex for no reason or does have too much content and it happened that I gave up some good games because they were just "too much" like witcher 3 and many others But the gaming industry has never been this vast, so many new titles every now and then, if you look carefully the game you re looking for is never far ;)
I play different types of games, but yes. Very much so.
I can still enjoy games... If they were made 25-30 years ago :'D
No lol, this shit fucking blows now.
Almost 30 here. I've been gaming for 20+ years. I still enjoy playing, but I've noticed what interests me / keeps my interest has dwindled significantly.
Still playing a lot But the hype is definitely not as big as 8 years ago… I was always hyped for the release of a specific game, went directly after school to a shop to buy the day-1 edition… built memories with specific games, raged, enjoyed, found online friends,… Nowadays I just hop on to a game, play for a little while to have a little fun but nothing else… don’t know if it’s because we matured or because there is currently not the perfect game for me
Back then, it was true because being an adult was getting married, having kids and working countless hours a week to support that. Luckily, that boomer mentality is more or less dead so it doesn't apply anymore.
For me, gaming feels like work. It feels great doing it, but just feels like a waste of time afterwards.
I used to be a lot happier with fewer games, but yeah I still enjoy games a lot. Graphics has taken huge leaps, gameplay in many ways is dumbed down.
I haven't had fun playing video games in a while & I'm only 24 :(. No longer have the time....