Who Doesn't Really Game Anymore But Is Still Crazy About Them?

[mrgreen4242]

I'm like this... I used to game a ton, and it's still something I consider 'important' (I consider gaming in my computer purchases for example) but I just do it often anymore. I tend to game in spurts... I'll play a game for 4, 5, 6 hours on a weened, and then not at all for two weeks. The biggest problem for me is time with my wife/family. She doesn't game (much - like Mario Kart and Party) and it's important to do things together which takes away time from gaming.

That said, I've actually been thinking about this lately and have decided to be proactive in making time to game. I'm moving my various consoles around the house to be more available to me while doing other things (moving the GameCube into the bedroom, the XBox into the living room, etc - both are currently in the home theatre room... I'll miss playing on the 100" screen w/ 5.1 surround, but at least I'll be able to play)!

I'm either playing now, or have on my "to play" list:

Lego Star Wars II (just started)
Fable (nearly done)
Gear of War (replay at harder level)
Oblivion (I don't know how I will EVER finish that)
FEAR
BioShock
Halo 2
Halo 3
Half Life 2 + expansions
Paper Mario 1k Year Door
Zelda: WW
Zelda: TP
KOTOR
Beyond Good and Evil
Prince of Persia: Sands of Time
Guild Wars/WoW (been meaning to get casually into a MMO again)

As you can see, the list is HUGE. I'll never make it through if I don't MAKE time to do it, so I am going to start giving myself time coupons. X hours of gaming, X hours online, with X bonus hours for finishing up chores I need to get to, etc. I'm hoping to regularly squeeze in 4-8 hours of gaming a week this way and still have enough time to spend with the wife/family... we'll see though!

 

[0098386]

See I keep making the same mistake over and over - buying into systems that I know I won't enjoy (through lack of line up).
I have 4 games on my Xbox 1, in the end I only played one game quite often (Halo 1). I sold my PSP because it was a POS... Though I have been looking into getting a second hand one for PS1 games. I thought I'd try waiting next time and kept the PS3 for a few months, but nothing.

The 360 is the only system to change that for me. At first it looked naff, part of it still does. It's only the mega hits that I'm interested in since I don't feel like spending £50 on games that my PC could do for cheap and the only benefit over last gen is higher resolutions.

 

[Antares]

Yup. After really thinking about this topic, it does truly describe me. I follow game news fervently. I always pick up games that I want to play on launch day. However, most of the time, I don't end up playing them right away, if at all. Often, it may take months for me to beat a game. I simply don't have enough time to do all of the things that I want. Man, I wish days were 34 hours long instead of 24...

 

[JackAxe]

I wish days were 34 hours long instead of 24...

They could be, just make your weeks 4.9 days instead of 7.

The older I get, the faster time goes.

<]=)

 

[JackAxe]

See I keep making the same mistake over and over - buying into systems that I know I won't enjoy (through lack of line up).
I have 4 games on my Xbox 1, in the end I only played one game quite often (Halo 1). I sold my PSP because it was a POS... Though I have been looking into getting a second hand one for PS1 games. I thought I'd try waiting next time and kept the PS3 for a few months, but nothing.

The 360 is the only system to change that for me. At first it looked naff, part of it still does. It's only the mega hits that I'm interested in since I don't feel like spending £50 on games that my PC could do for cheap and the only benefit over last gen is higher resolutions.

I avoided the XBox, because Halo was the only game worth playing with friends and most other games were lower-rez ports of PC games with horrid controls. Now I avoid the 360, because it's PC ports with horrid controls and as you mentioned, it cost more than a PC in the long run. PC games always hit the bargain bin faster and there's always free online stuff to be had. On that note, the PS3 and its UT3 PC like support gives me high hopes.

I made the mistake of buying a Clié from Sony, so I knew exactly what to expect with the PSP, so avoided it like the plague.

And to ramble further.

The DS is the first system I've bought games for in abundance since the 16-bit days when it comes to consoles.

<]=)

 

[panzer06]

The biggest problem for me is time with my wife/family. She doesn't game (much - like Mario Kart and Party) and it's important to do things together which takes away time from gaming.

Actually I should have made RTS gaming a requirement before I remarried!

Other than a few "sandbox" games like <Insert anything> Tycoon, she doesn't play at all.

I still get out to my grown kids homes and enjoys a few hours of COH, LOTR BFME II, C&C3 etc.

Sold the MB CD and bought MBP SR 2.2 just to handle these with some decent graphics.

Cheers,

 

[Chone]

I avoided the XBox, because Halo was the only game worth playing with friends and most other games were lower-rez ports of PC games with horrid controls. Now I avoid the 360, because it's PC ports with horrid controls and as you mentioned, it cost more than a PC in the long run. PC games always hit the bargain bin faster and there's always free online stuff to be had. On that note, the PS3 and its UT3 PC like support gives me high hopes.

I made the mistake of buying a Clié from Sony, so I knew exactly what to expect with the PSP, so avoided it like the plague.

And to ramble further.

The DS is the first system I've bought games for in abundance since the 16-bit days when it comes to consoles.

<]=)

Yeah its true, sure a 360 is only like $350 but a good 720p (1280x720) HDTV will run you about $1000-$2000 so thats around $1500, add $50/year for live, extra controllers, higher price tag on games and accesories. Now if you build a PC with a 500$ 20" monitor (Thats an incredible premium quality monitor, 20" usually go for $200) you still have 1000$ for the rest of components which can easily net you a 8800GTS 320MB card and a quad core processor.

Similar price, better graphics, more flexibility and a computer is more useful beyond games... its a computer for Christ's sake

Now I'm not dissing on consoles, but its weird FPS are such a popular genre in consoles when its a genre that plays much better on a PC, sure games like Halo are praised but they hold very little when compared to their PC counterparts, there is a reason why Half Life 2 was GOTY, not Halo 2.

What's the deal with Halo anyways? I didn't find it particularly fun, I'm sure Co-Op is a blast but the singleplayer and even the multiplayer seemed so... average. And this is coming from a die-hard Marathon fan, heck I still play Marathon on LANs nowadays and its much more fun than Halo.

 

[0098386]

For me and my friends - Halo was great in that, rather than opening up so many possibilities to the player, it limited them. It added strategy to the FPS genre IMO. Carrying 2 weapons, 2 types of grenades. Even the Capture the Flag multiplayer map Sidewinder. It only gave you 2 options (or 3 if you're a risky mofo) to get to the flag. How many weapons were there in total? 4, 5? A few vehicles too.

It's very well designed. Halo 2 felt a little more open. Whereas a game like Half Life with it's Garry's Mod and other stuff really opens the game up. So it works on both ways.

I'm afraid that with progression and sequels comes the fan cry of 'more weapons! more junk!' in order to keep the game updated. The ending aside, the single player in Halo 2 just wasn't as good as Halo 1.

 

[IscariotJ]

Ah, kindred spirits! I used to game lots; Unreal, UT CTF, a bit of Quake3. At some point, I just tired of having to the PC up to date, just so that it would run the games nicely. The PC started to gather dust, as the only gaming consisted of WC3 on my PB. At that time, the only consoles I had, were an N64, for OoT, and a GBC ( Oracle Of Season/Ages rocks! ).

The Cube revived my gaming for a while with AC, MP 1+2, Viewtiful Joe, but it wasn't until I got a DS, and then the Wii that I've made an effort to get back into gaming. There's some cool stuff coming to the DS ( Zelda, Heroes Of Mana, FF: Fatal Revenant ) and the Wii ( MP:C, Civ ).

Quite excited to see GoW/UT3 coming to the Mac.

 

[GFLPraxis]

Carrying 2 weapons, 2 types of grenades. Even the Capture the Flag multiplayer map Sidewinder. It only gave you 2 options (or 3 if you're a risky mofo) to get to the flag. How many weapons were there in total? 4, 5? A few vehicles too.

It's like you've never played an FPS before I've played maps with dual grenades types and multiple paths to the flag a decade ago!

 

[0098386]

It's like you've never played an FPS before I've played maps with dual grenades types and multiple paths to the flag a decade ago!

No no, it's more than that. It's design, Bungie did a fantastic design job on Halo 1. They did the opposite of Quake with it's abundance of weapons. They basically, on many levels, stripped the FPS down to a few core components. Infact in battles it's mostly the setting that remains the dynamic. Where most games you'd just get bigger and harder enemies (which you do in Halo as well, theres just less of them).
There isn't one overflowing gameplay bit in Halo 1.

Dual wield was just utter crap.

 

[Antares]

I think Time Splitters 2 had better multi-player gaming than the Halo series. Sure, there were no vehicles but the maps and weapons were more fun. Halo wasn't bad by any means, but I don't understand what was innovative about it. Pretty much everything the original Halo did, some other game did before it (on PC or console). And to restrict weapons, you could always customize matches to only include a few weapon types.

 

[Tom B.]

I still play Game Boy and DS games for at least 2 hours a day. I also play StarCraft and WarCraft III a lot too. But as for consoles, I almost never play them. My brother does though, so he's always buying the latest Wii and 360 games. I have never even played Twilight Princess or Bioshock, despite my brother buying them both on their launch days.
And it's only gonna get worse, as I start at a new college next week, and I'll have 2-3 hours of work to do every night, and 5 hours on Saturdays and Sundays.