Its not the same anymore

[nightrider1470]

Playing games when I was a child was magical. The buzz I got when I purchased a new magazine knowing I had a demo disk to try out was unbeatable.

I think those sensations are lost to childhood forever tbh. A big thing about being an adult is you can buy what you want when you want, there's no anticipation and you end up with so much stuff you don't play anything anyway. Humble bundles and steam sales do the same thing psychologically as having a chipped xbox, you have so much you end up playing nothing.

Took the words out of my soul!

 

[elh_2009]

Playing games when I was a child was magical. The buzz I got when I purchased a new magazine knowing I had a demo disk to try out was unbeatable.

I think those sensations are lost to childhood forever tbh. A big thing about being an adult is you can buy what you want when you want, there's no anticipation and you end up with so much stuff you don't play anything anyway. Humble bundles and steam sales do the same thing psychologically as having a chipped xbox, you have so much you end up playing nothing.

This totally, like you said Steam sales and things like Humble Bundle just means i build up a collection of games i will never play. Now i can just buy what i want when i want, across steam, psvita and steam i have more games than a chipped psone, its stupid.

Its almost "gaming season" and all the aaa titles will be coming out, back in the day i'd get one on release day or soon after and a couple for xmas then swap with my mates, now i can just buy them all on day 1 if i really wanted theres no need for a demo or magazine.

This and games are not as good anymore, simple as really, there is no Theme Park, C&C, Championship Manager, FFVII just COD and Battlefield...........

 

[arc@css]

Although a great number of the purchases I make are almost always in a sale (simply for a punt and no other reason), I usually find myself disappointed with the goods, which isn't surprising really since I wouldn't normally try out certain games / genres if the price was higher anyway. Perhaps like many other gamers, I sometimes wonder if this is partly due to me having been around gaming for a long time (seen it, done it, got the t-shirt), and because of this, games now have a lot to live up to. Due to the apparent shortfall in titles that appeal to me, I also find myself thinking that what I'd like to do is start a project if I had the skills - which I don't, unfortunately. At least not technically anyway.

I honestly can't remember for sure when the last time I was 'excited' to start a new title. Maybe it was around six years ago. That doesn't mean to say that I don't enjoy games anymore, I do, and at heart I will always be a gamer. It's just now, and for the last three or more years, the rate at which I find something worthy of playing to a large degree / to completion is simply less frequent. The association I made about child like excitement when looking at a new triple 'A' title isn't really relevant now, as all the factors mentioned have altered, myself included. So, while I look forward to some future titles (e.g. Legend of Grimrock 2 / Suis Generis), the way I express / experience my emotions is quite different compared to how it once was.

Btw, I think the fact that games used to come with a manual and box / art sometimes added to the occasion too.

One of the sorts of games that pique my curiosity, but very often leave me disappointed are indie titles. I really like some of the ideas, but child like artistic direction in games unfortunately really puts me right off. Probably the most keen I've been recently on something of this nature has been Hammerwatch, though I still don't think it's going to tick enough boxes. Runers looked interesting, but like with Hammerwatch I'm growing a little tired of these horde / waves of enemies in games. Give me quality, not quantity! Of course, this is just my opinion; for someone else, what I don't like will be just the ticket for them, which is totally understandable. I like the idea of making my own top down perspective game, but have little idea how to approach something which has any depth or complexity to it.

 

[RumbleBee]

Don't force yourself to play or feel pressure that you should be enjoying a game when you are not. Uninstall it and move on to the next one that peaks your fancy, play it until you are bored, rinse and repeat.

Oh god I think I suffer from this. I just can't seem to move onto a new game until I've finished the current one. This means I'll sit down at the PC and not have the focus to play as I can't really be bothered, which then leads me to forums where I'll type up a message just like this one

It's like there is a line I cross. I've started up loads of different games, but once I've spent a couple of hours with it I feel like I'm making a commitment. Have being playing Tomb Raider for about 2 weeks.

 

[taz488]

Same here, I think it must be growing older, how sad.

Last game I completed was Skyrim or Tomb Raider, next one will probably be GTA V, but other than maybe a couple games a year, they just don't cut it any more.

Although I will try a few of the other games mentioned in the same breath of the above in this thread.

 

[OspreyO]

I'm the same. RL just got too busy and my gaming just disappeared. I enjoyed some lighter stuff and Cod4 for a while, but I've been laptop bound for years. The joy has gone out of it when you've no time, and no budget for decent hardware. Now I have kids and it just feels like work, managing their gaming, so that I've even less incentive to do it. I don't even have games on the mobile anymore.

I still hope that in a few years, I'll build a gaming desktop again. When I can do it properly.

 

[kedge]

Go for a drive, take your mind off things

 

[theMilitant]

Up until about 4 months ago, I found myself in the OPs situation where I really couldn't get as much pleasure out of games as I used to. One game has changed that for me: Skyrim. It's unlike any game I've played before and I think that's a large part of the reason why I enjoy it so much. It's a new, refreshing experience compared to all the shooters I used to play.

OP, maybe trying out some new genres of games will help you find the joy again

 

[MatTheCat]

This and games are not as good anymore, simple as really, there is no Theme Park, C&C, Championship Manager, FFVII just COD and Battlefield...........

So you are saying that games like Bioshock Infinite, Dishonored or Witcher 2, just aren't as good games as we got in the good old days?

There is a lot of dirge around for sure, much of it hyped up dirge that is widely considered gaming gold (Skyrim being the worst offender imo). But the really good games of the modern era are much better games and offer much more than any games in the entire history of gaming.

The gfx capabilities in modern games are at such a high level, that practically any random screenshot taken from a fully explorable 3D virtual enviornment, is now matching and even beating the painstakingly detailed artwork of high grade comic strips that were very popular throughout the 80's and 90's. Furthermore the story telling in at least the games that I have mentioned above, is now also of what I would describe as a high grade. Bioshock and Dishonored are full of amusing cultural caricatures and parodies, woven into their respective cleverly scripted and archetype centric tales. For someone who really enjoys indulging in high grade artwork, and who enjoys a bit of good story telling, then gaming has never been better than it is today, with the added bonus of gameplay in the best games, also being much better than it ever has been. In what games of yesteryear for example, has the gameplay of in Bioshock Infinite, Dishonored, or the Witcher been beaten?

The best games out today, are better than the best games out in any period in gaming history. (with exception of Bombjack on MAME.....a 1984 arcade game, 147Kb ROM)

I am 38, and have been through my 'gaming is boring these days' phase. Perhaps that was because I was looking too much to gaming to provide me with my thrills? There is much more to life and as a person matures, it is only natural that they are going to be less inclined to invest their energies into non productive 'past times'. Quite simply put, you are never gonna enjoy games nearly as much as you enjoyed them as a teenager, young adult when both your imagination and competitive instincts were in their prime. But games can still be thoroughly enjoyed providing you don't waste your time playing games that are indeed empty, unrewarding, repetitive, and boring.

My tip is that normally you will know within a very short space of time whether a game is going to press your buttons. If you are playing a game for a couple of hours, but struggle to find the motivation for it, then sack it immediately. I done that with Tomb Raider. However, I then went back to it and gave it a second chance and went on to have some immense fun with the game. But if upon 2nd inspection the game just isn't doing it for you, as was the case for me with Assassins Creed Black Flag, then don't waste your life or energy any further. Whatever you do, don't sit playing a game for hours trying to force yourself to enjoy it simply because the whole wide gaming world tells you that you should be enjoying the game. I have done that with so many dirgey mediocre over-rated titles (Skyrim, Mass Effect, Dragon Age, COD, Metal Gear Rising, Batman...pfft...the list is endless).

In summation, ruthlessly cherry pick titles that press your buttons and bin the rest. So what if you just spent £30 on it. Your time is worth much more than that. And most importantly, if you are beyond your mid 20s, and if upon all honest reflection, gaming is still your main focus or 'reward' in life, then you need to reassess your priorities.

 

[GIBURROWS]

Because of multi-player we have to make our own enjoyment and the games just lack any imagination, creativity or longevity, back in the console days there were no chance of multi-player unless you had friends over and developers had to work harder to get you interested and keep you interested now they know they can just make half a game then promise some DLC at tri monthly intervals then bring out another game the following year.

It is a sad state of affairs and not much can change due to all the small companies selling out to the greedy, hungry for cash and nothing else machines.

Micro-transactions killed gaming and I have killed off any franchise that ever includes that **** I mean how dare they charge us over and over again it's like TAX!

 

[Edinho]

Barrysworld and Jolt servers, Clanbase. Proper clan matches.......

Medal of Honor, RTCW, COD1, vanilla WOW. Those were the days. All this was in my late 20's going into mid 30's. Its all a pile of **** now tbh. Just glad I did it when it was actually worth doing. I've got other things i'd rather be doing now and just can't be bothered with gaming at all.

 

[stument]

Try online gaming... CSGO, Bf, COD and you will get those thrills again!

You just need to find a good group to game with using voice comms

 

[grimm]

The thing that's killing gaming for me is the constant stream of released games that are unfinished. I miss the days when I could just put the game into the machine and play, be that console or PC. The odd patch on PC was fine where it was maybe a patch after 6 months to fix a few minor bugs, but nowadays it seems like every time I turn my PC on Steam is updating at least 6 of my installed games.

 

[RandomNoob]

I'm 35 and grew up owning commodore 64, megadrive, snes, playstation and so on. I still find my GOG purchases get more playtime than my Steam/origin/uplay purchases, I guess I'm a retro gamer at heart.

I have a habit of pre-ordering games then when released not playing them for a year. I'll probably get flack for this but I find that bf4 cant compare to the enjoyment I got from bf 1942 and bf2. The same go's with the cod games, they just aren't as good as previous games.

 

[MooMoo444]

Playing games when I was a child was magical. The buzz I got when I purchased a new magazine knowing I had a demo disk to try out was unbeatable.

I think those sensations are lost to childhood forever tbh. A big thing about being an adult is you can buy what you want when you want, there's no anticipation and you end up with so much stuff you don't play anything anyway. Humble bundles and steam sales do the same thing psychologically as having a chipped xbox, you have so much you end up playing nothing.

I found a lot of PS1 gems from those demo discs. I do miss a good demo disc.

 

[mxoagentjohnson]

I'm 35 and grew up owning commodore 64, megadrive, snes, playstation and so on. I still find my GOG purchases get more playtime than my Steam/origin/uplay purchases, I guess I'm a retro gamer at heart.

I have a habit of pre-ordering games then when released not playing them for a year. I'll probably get flack for this but I find that bf4 cant compare to the enjoyment I got from bf 1942 and bf2. The same go's with the cod games, they just aren't as good as previous games.

I'm a lot younger but my heart resides in the PS1, N64 era, and 95% of the time i do the same, buy games and never play them for up to a year or two after, i'm usually here playing games on emulators i never had the privledge of playing as a kid.

Technology is awesome.

 

[Noxia]

Had stacks of OPMUK as a kid, used to save my pocket money to buy it. Used to love it when the Net Yaroze games came on them, my friend and I played Gravitation for months.
Sometimes the demos were really generous too.

 

[WesleyBurns]

I feel the same. I'm 34 Now and used to love most games.

In the recent past I have LOVED Fallout NV, Crysis 1, Far Cry 3 (I'm on the 3rd play now and now playing with mods), Need for speed games (some are junk), Rage.

Starcraft 2 went a little limp and Crysis 2/3 for me was a boring experience (stupid story).
Just tried to play the new UFO: Afterlight game that I used to play in the 90's and I just closed it after the 1st laborious opening scene. It feels like a cartoon on rails.
Tomb Raider the new one, haven't really played it, closed it after 1st scene.
Diablo III stopped playing, wasn't never really into DD games.
Got 1/2 way through the new Wolfenstein: The New Order game, got 1/2 way thought and stopped, it is a re-skinned rage. Also it is capped at 60FPS and John Carmack endorses GSYNC? lol looks like poo on my Asus Rog.

I have pre-ordered Far Cry 4, The Crew, Alien: Isolation

Unless a game has a good hook/story/game play, I just am like :| So it is either age when you have money to buy what you want, or games just suck?
I get more joy out of constantly tweaking my PC when new parts come out...

So please Far Cry 4 don't suck...

 

[mxoagentjohnson]

I feel the same. I'm 34 Now and used to love most games.

In the recent past I have LOVED Fallout NV, Crysis 1, Far Cry 3 (I'm on the 3rd play now and now playing with mods), Need for speed games (some are junk), Rage.

Starcraft 2 went a little limp and Crysis 2/3 for me was a boring experience (stupid story).
Just tried to play the new UFO: Afterlight game that I used to play in the 90's and I just closed it after the 1st laborious opening scene. It feels like a cartoon on rails.
Tomb Raider the new one, haven't really played it, closed it after 1st scene.
Diablo III stopped playing, wasn't never really into DD games.
Got 1/2 way through the new Wolfenstein: The New Order game, got 1/2 way thought and stopped, it is a re-skinned rage. Also it is capped at 60FPS and John Carmack endorses GSYNC? lol looks like poo on my Asus Rog.

I have pre-ordered Far Cry 4, The Crew, Alien: Isolation

Unless a game has a good hook/story/game play, I just am like :| So it is either age when you have money to buy what you want, or games just suck?
I get more joy out of constantly tweaking my PC when new parts come out...

So please Far Cry 4 don't suck...

I didnt like 3 as much as i did the first, but everyone i know loves it, 4 however looks godlike!

The last game that really captured me in was Bioshock Infinite, and i havent even played 1-2 (i dont see the point, everyone spoiled it for me so early it made me salty)

And yea, i love carmack, but hes kinda been a bit hypocricial lately with the whole (I fully endorse 120fps bla bla i love monitors oh hey 60fps locks)

 

[V F]

Go for a drive, take your mind off things

Heaven. Simply heaven. Only, I can't see anyone in this thread with a setup like that. Bet that all costs close to 8 - 10,000. Let alone the space.

Rich men gaming.

Barrysworld and Jolt servers, Clanbase. Proper clan matches.......

Medal of Honor, RTCW, COD1, vanilla WOW. Those were the days. All this was in my late 20's going into mid 30's. Its all a pile of **** now tbh. Just glad I did it when it was actually worth doing. I've got other things i'd rather be doing now and just can't be bothered with gaming at all.

As well as, Q3F clan/team speak games in 2000 - 03. ISDN 64/128k days, 34 players.