Aja on 3/6/2020 at 04:55
I go through phases, too. I'll find a game I get interested in and want to spend every waking moment playing it. The last time it happened was with Prey, I think. But since I got my Switch, I've played it almost exclusively, and usually in short sessions, which means overall I've been playing way less than usual. I do sometimes crave that feeling of getting really immersed in a game, but like you I've been focusing more on creating things, music and woodworking and home renos and that kinda stuff, which is ultimately more fulfilling for me. There are a few games I'd count as being fulfilling in the same way, but not many. And it doesn't usually have much to do with spare time. If I have lots of spare time, I tend to do very little in general and get grouchy about it.
Jason Moyer on 3/6/2020 at 07:40
I thought I was experiencing gaming ennui, but lately I replayed Thief Gold and am about halfway through Thief II and I'm enjoying the hell out of them. Right now I feel like I'd rather be reading a book or playing a musical instrument than enjoying a hobby that mostly makes me feel stupid. At least until Outer Worlds is on Steam or Deathloop comes out.
SubJeff on 3/6/2020 at 12:05
I'm time poor so I find it hard to get into big games these days. Death Stranding sessions are too long for the time I have, though Spiderman seems fine.
I have to really find something fun to play it these days, and it has to be from the start. I got Invisible Inc and just couldn't get into it. FTL though, it's complex enough to be engaging but not too much.
Cyberpunk looks like it'll be great. I don't have time for that though. I'm hoping I can get into TLOU 2 as I've been looking forward to it. Ghost of Tsushima too.
heywood on 3/6/2020 at 14:11
This topic is really on point for me.
I used to blame my decrease in playing time on lack of free time. Between work, doing things with the kids, home maintenance, and family gatherings, I've had little time for hobbies over the past few years. My other hobbies have suffered as well: motorcycle riding, cycling, skiing, golf, tennis. But this pandemic has given me a different perspective. I'm still working full time, and with kids at home, day care has become a much bigger burden. On the other hand, we don't have family gatherings anymore and we don't go anywhere, so I actually have more free time on the weekends.
I've been trying to take advantage of that to play some recent games I've missed out on, but I'm having a really hard time getting into them. I've mentioned this a couple of times on the Shock forum, but I started with Prey and it just didn't pull me in. It's a damn good game, and right up my alley, but I felt like I was forcing myself to play it. I could have just as happily spent the screen time reading about current events or engineering and science, looking for recipes to try, or helping my kids play a game.
And when I am genuinely in the mood to play a game, I'm more drawn to playing around with old favorites and mods than trying something new.
Judith on 3/6/2020 at 15:14
My work involves staring at two screens for most of the day, so I want to spend the rest of it elsewhere, possibly outside, at some physical leisure or activity. I get back to my desk in the evening, for 2-3 hours max, but I prefer to spend that time creating stuff rather than playing. So I'm not even looking at AAA time sinks these days. Everything above 10-15 hours feels too demanding for me. Either fast sessions in something like Dirt Rally, Quake Champions etc., or short indie games is what I'm interested in now.
froghawk on 4/6/2020 at 13:14
Same boat here, but I actually feel it's a GOOD thing. Gaming got pretty addictive for me and took me away from my creative work. Now I'm actually making music again, like I should have been doing the whole time I was gaming. Very thankful I'm not feeling the pull anymore...
SubJeff on 4/6/2020 at 13:43
A friend of mine says he feels guilty if he plays games now, because there is always other stuff to be getting on with. I kind of get that.
demagogue on 4/6/2020 at 14:15
Especially recently, but generally I've always done this, I play games more like a ritual than for the story or actual full game.
I play a lot of sims, rogue-likes, and strategy type games that are effectively one-off and just an hour or so at a time. Like, these days, I'll get into GTA V and just drive the big loop around the whole island. (BeamNG Drive, American Truck Sim, Dakar also allow free open world driving.) Or into Descenders and I'll goof around on the starting field, and then a few courses. (Really fun idea. The game opens in an open multiplayer field where you can just ride around and do stunts around other people. Now I like doing that as much as the actual courses.)
Lots of one off card, board, or puzzle games, Evolution, Carcassone, Magic, TripleA, Hidden Through Time, DROD. The roguelike I'm into now is Caves of Qud. Every time you make it to a new area, there are new threats and opportunities you have to learn, and they tend to be charming and there's a sly humor to it. So I keep coming back, but just to just clear out the first few levels of the next random dungeon on the map until my inventory is overloaded and call it a day. Noita is another great roguelike for one-offs.
I got some big story games waiting to go through, RDR2, Disco Elisium, maybe Dark Souls counts, Baulder's Gate, Grim Dawn, and Kingdom Come Deliverance... They're all great, but hard to get through now. The main issue with me is my sickness since March has had a long tail, it just won't quit me, so I don't have the same energy every night to handle a slog of a game. I'm sure I'll get back to them when I get the energy back, but for now I'm happy with the one hour one-offs.
Harvester on 4/6/2020 at 14:18
For me it's more like most games are not relaxing enough after a workday. I still play on weekends and off days, but after work when I ask myself 'I gotta unwind, what should I do for fun and relaxation' most of the time I find myself calmly reading the newspaper, watching the 8 o'clock news and turning on a movie afterwards. If not a movie, then a show or book, but not often a game. On weekends though, I do play games, but around 2 hours a day at most.
Anarchic Fox on 4/6/2020 at 16:46
After the burglary, I thought to myself, "It's okay. I'll gradually rebuild my console collection and library, and I'll eventually be able to play all the important games that I missed." However, the months that followed, I... realized that I didn't need to. Like, Death Stranding, God of War, Spiderman, etc. from this generation look like they would be immensely interesting to play and analyze. But it's okay if I don't, and it's okay if I lose touch with the mainstream of gaming.
I've been present for so many eras of videogaming (from the NES era onwards) that I felt like I had an obligation to fully experience each one, in order to someday provide valuable historical perspective about games; for instance, in order to reveal beauty and brilliance that have become obscured by the passage of time and technology. But there is no such obligation, and I can do valuable intellectual work in games criticism, even if I completely lose touch with the remainder of it.
I'll still figure out a way to play From games, though. And once the PS5 generation has kicked off, I have friends whose PS4s I can borrow.
