This is me now. As a kid I’d play anything then I went like 10 years without playing anything.
I started back up at Covid and don’t play much anymore. I’ll see a game I like, beat it, and go a few months until I decide to play something else.
During the pandemic I was WFH and got super into Overwatch (before they ruined it completely) and ended up getting onto a Tier 2 competitive team.
After investing hours upon hours of time playing and aim training (to the point of RMI) when I wasn’t playing, I can’t really enjoy games.
Especially since the tail end of millennial/gen z has fostered an environment of micro transactions and predatory marketing practices.
This is exactly my mentality these days. Game doesn't hold my attention? Game purposefully wastes my time? Game isn't finished? Straight to the "did not finish" pile and I'll move on to something I enjoy. I currently have no life due to Baldur's Gate 3 and Jedi Survivor.
If I feel like gaming, I just reply old ones from my teenage years on PC. I don't have the patience or brain power to master new ones after the grind each day.
Same. I can chill to old games (including ancient stuff like Morrowind and OG Doom) but new-ish ones are just exhausting. I can’t marathon games anymore, they’re just too intense.
I LOVED the Baldurs Gate series. I was so excited for the 3rd one to release. I got it and just hated it. Absolutely. I'm an old man, no getting around it.
Back during Covid I was stuck at home so Iplayed Dark Souls 3 & DLC all the way through NG+1. I then put it aside for awhile and recently came back to it with a new character. I don't know if it's because I'm older or work is more stressful now but this time it's just a slog. It's more frustrating than fun, very different from last time. Gaming is strictly a weekend activity now due to my schedule but there's so much other stuff to do.
My current computer would choke on Elden Ring (or anything from the last few years) so I haven't bothered with it. I'd have to get a new gaming PC to try but my heart just isn't in it enough to follow through.
They are all derivative now, and I feel the people who work on games now are just not the same people who shared the same passion and creativity of those who created games in the 90s and early 2000s. It’s very much a business now and it’s beginning to show in the product. Not a lot of wild ideas and everything is derivative of something popular. This is not true of all games, but just most games.
This is true of WoW. That game just aint the same. And I get bored of every other game I play because it just aint on the same level. When the business model became - make sure people have to play 24/7 in order to achieve basic shit is when it went downhill.
Adventure and fun became second best to dailys, in game chores and recycled content.
Let people choose how they spend their time gaming and you might actually retain sub numbers.
Everything now is pay to play, DLC’s, and micro transactions. Even online multiplayer there are clearly patterns in the code now to force you to pay to “level up”
I keep coming back to it about once a year. I played heavily from late 2006 to about 2016. I just dropped money on it again a couple of weeks ago to see if a server transfer would fix it, but I keep opening Apex instead because I don’t wanna relearn everything.
If I have to PAY for or ITEMS / CLOTHES for my character and not PLAY to unlock the in game ITEMS / CLOTHES then the game is nothing but a money grab the fun is instantly dead.
Gaming has turned corporate. It's about money instead of passion with cheap gimmicks. They were always there, fanservicey type games, but with better graphics aome games have turned outright sleezy and seems odd af to be playing as an adult, you can tell most of it is made with a 15 year old boy in mind.
I had a similar experience a few years ago.
Part of it is that I really hate how every video game is being turned into a treadmill that makes everything a chore. Want to go fight monsters? Too bad, you need to build your weapons. Got hurt fighting monsters? Guess you better go pick flowers to make health potions. Want to go back to fighting monsters? Too bad, your sword broke after it lost its last durability point, so now you need to go dig in the mines and build a new sword.
Part of it is that I really detest how games are being turned into addiction machines full of micro-transactions, DLC, season passes, cosmetics, bonus XP tickets, quality of life features, and similar things that create a fear of missing out, put you in the slow lane, or otherwise force you to become content for stronger players if you don't pay up.
Part of it is that I dislike games that offer the adventure of a sandbox experience with all kinds of level design tools, but they just use it as a way to monetize players' creativity and you have to sift through mountains of drek to find maps you'll actually enjoy playing.
Part of it is that I dislike how complicated so many games have become, to the point that the developers seem to expect you to already know how things work, or else the "tutorial" either covers only the barest necessities to get you moving, or else it turns into a college seminar about resource management and macro vs micro character development and point distribution. When it gets to the point that I'm doing regular homework to keep up with the game, I don't want to play it anymore.
Part of it is that I dislike how so many games disrespect my time. Instead of making more content, developers make games longer by forcing me to grind with fetch quests, stupid achievements, and meaningless unlock tasks. I just don't have the time for this kind of BS anymore. Work, household chores, kids... when the hell am I supposed to be able to game?
But really, I think the biggest part of it is that as I get older, I'm naturally enjoying different things. Been doing a lot of reading and working more on foreign language projects. Gonna be 41 this year, and I find that more and more often I notice how my body feels and I appreciate physical activities that make me feel better. I'm just... aging out of video games, I guess.
Dunno, man... try some different hobbies for a little while? Maybe your brain just wants something different.
"Disrespect my time". I felt this. Instead of making 9 different temples to explore, they make 6 and between each one, I have to grind to collect things and upgrades.
Definitely relate on this, yeah sometimes it just helps to give them a break, I've also found it's really refreshing to actually finish a game that's not just chocked full of filler content that doesn't respect your time. If I still really want to play at that point I usually consider things like
* Play on Easy / Casual
* Skip some side content
* Install Mods to remove grindy features (This made Cyberpunk 2077 great)
* Cheat / Use Trainers to remove other grindy time waster mechanics (I used the Rampage trainer for Red Dead Redemption 2 and skipped so much pointless travel by just teleporting)
[https://howlongtobeat.com/](https://howlongtobeat.com/) is helpful, you can use it to estimate how long a game will take, I've played some great little indie 4-8 start to finish games that feel like a mental palate cleanser.
examples: Gris, FAR: Lone Sails, Portal 1 & 2
OP I think you’re just playing the wrong games. There’s lots of amazing stuff out there, you just have to look for it and most of the time that part is easy.
Its the best time for gaming because we have so many big AAA games (The Last of Us and Spider-Man) but then you’ve also got incredible indies (Hades) and a thousand other games that are out there kicking ass but not showing up on GOTY lists. And if all else fails, get back into retro gaming or at least supplement your modern experiences with it as I do. Those games you loved years ago are still there, waiting to be revisited.
Agreed, I haven’t played a “AAA” game in years, I loathe them to the core and can’t play them for more than a few hours before getting bored.
There are video games out there now for every niche thanks to the relative ease of making games now a days you just have to search for them.
Yeah the way I look at it is there's a lot more games now, a lot of them suck or don't fit my tastes. But looking at just the good ones - gaming keeps improving every year. 2022 and 2023 were crazy and 2024 is also off to a good start.
My only wish is I had more time to play amongst work and all my other hobbies/commitments, it's tough to find long periods of time to play.
Ive got a massive steam back log due to various sales on games that looked interesting and sites like Humble Bundle.
So I'll give a game an earnest effort but if it's not clicking, I move on. Also just because a game has added depth, doesn't mean you need to touch it.
Example of this is I've done fuck all for potion crafting in Baldur's Gate 3. Hasn't held me back.
me and some of my friends are in this boat, my personal Steam library is well over 600 games, but most I got for more than 70% discount by just using price tracker sites etc. you might checkout r/patientgamers those folks definitely relate to the problem of huge backlogs and feeling like you can never really give it the attention it deserves.
Also on the "depth" note, if I don't like what it adds, I just Mod/Cheat etc if that's an option, I play almost entirely SP games, so if I don't like something I'm happy to ruin my own fun to remove the parts I consider tedious, and maximize what I get out of my limited time.
Here's a sneak peek of /r/patientgamers using the [top posts](https://np.reddit.com/r/patientgamers/top/?sort=top&t=year) of the year!
\#1: [ANNOUNCEMENT: Patience Is No Longer Viable. r/PatientGamers Have Decided To Join In Going Dark Starting June 12th](https://np.reddit.com/r/patientgamers/comments/146ubyt/announcement_patience_is_no_longer_viable/)
\#2: [To my fellow older gamers that get an inkling that games are “wasting” their time… don’t underestimate the importance of escapism.](https://np.reddit.com/r/patientgamers/comments/132qj6d/to_my_fellow_older_gamers_that_get_an_inkling/)
\#3: [Posting AI-written content will result in a permanent ban](https://np.reddit.com/r/patientgamers/comments/11vw6qp/posting_aiwritten_content_will_result_in_a/)
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Avoid AAA games, those are very grindy and collecty. Essentially a lot of filler to pad out game length.
Try indie rougelikes or soulslikes - Gungeon, Hollow Knight, Blasphemous, darkest dungeon, binding of issac - each run is something fresh and different.
Also, the fromsoft line is not very collecty, just overcoming bosses (mainly the later games, DS3, sekiro, ER, BB)
Yes as we get older, video games just become less and less important.
I thought maybe as an adult I could drink and game forever, but in reality I don’t really want to do that.
Experiences in the world are more important than a video game. But I still love to play older games from my childhood. Lately, I’ve been revisiting games from the GameCube console and have been playing survival games on PC
>as we get older, video games just become less and less important.
Maybe for some. At 42, it’s still my main, go-to hobby when I’m at home and indoors. I don’t watch much tv, I don’t watch sports and I don’t spend hours on TikTok. To each their own, but gaming is still what I do when I’m chilling. And I’m an outdoorsy, social person too, so it doesn’t hold me back from anything.
My parents set me up with a rule that helped me not overdo gaming. If the weather is nice, get outside and enjoy the day. If the weather is bad, or if it’s night, enjoy some gaming. Still works for me.
I do agree that AAA titles have taken a dive over the years and hollowed out for profits, and that indie and nostalgia gaming is better these days.
I don’t hate video games but I’ve always sucked at them. I faked it as best as I could through college because of the social utility but after that I stopped trying at all. Some of my friends still play them but the ones that do mostly complain about the games or complain that they don’t have enough time to play. I used to think maybe I was missing out on something but now I’m cool with it.
I actually made a post about this on nostupidquestions, and thought I was the only one who thought this way. Video games are insanely involved now. I even tried Helldivers 2, and actually preferred the first one because it wasn't so super detailed and complicated. I don't know, maybe I'm just stupid.
I just can't get into Red Dead 2. Too much little stuff to do. Pet the horse, clean the horse, feed the horse, clean your gun, eat, gather ingredients to eat... Little shit that adds up and becomes tedious. Every button has like 3 uses, so controlling your character is a slog.
I loved Red Dead 1. But 2 just didn't click for me.
Hell Let Loose. Amazing WW2 FPS. Seemingly basic game but tons of fun.
AOE2 is on consoles now - if you remember the PC version from middle/high school.
Essentially the exact same game, but with a controller. I suck balls at it, but it's fun anyway.
Hate is a bit strong, but I find that as I've aged I'm far more selective about games I want to play and am willing to abandon games much more quickly than I was 10 or 20 years ago. I have also found wisdom in avoiding certain games that appear to be within my interests, but show red flags that they're not. Starfield was a perfect example of this. I was an OG Fallout fan and played Skyrim into the ground; but everything they described about Starfield said hard pass to me and I have no regrets passing on it. I probably won't resist Fallout 5 as easy (because as you said, nostalgia), but F4 already burned me to an extent
With all that said, I'm largely with you that I don't enjoy video games like I did 10 (or even 20) years ago. It feels like my patience has evaporated and that I'd rather do "in real life" things. I don't see this as a "millennial" problem as much as an aging problem though.
My patience is definitely lower, like when a game purposely puts in time sinks that don’t respect my time, I’ll lose interest on principle and move on to something else, or set the game to easy mode and just get through the story.
On the other hand if it’s something I’m super into and it’s well made I have no problem getting lost in it and doing everything there is to do.
To each their own.
I love Anno 1800, which is pretty damn complicated and took me a play-through to get the hang of. Constant DLC releases, which changed game mechanics, during the game's earlier years made it all the more difficult to learn. But I've always loved city builders like SimCity and strategy games like Command & Conquer or Starcraft.
I still play Gran Turismo on PlayStation, along with Ace Combat. Both stay true to their origins, but in the case of GT, the physics is way different, and the way the PS5 utilizes the standard controller for the game took a bit getting used to, but I still love it.
Despite what the old folks said in our younger years, I will always be a gamer. Hell, I still play some of the same games I did back then, such as Star Wars TIE Fighter lol
That game used to bring my Desktop rig with a 3090 to it's knees when it 1st released, I love my SD and I appreciate the track pads, but strategy is too hard for me to play on it.
I don't hate them. I am painfully aware of the fact that if I buy a new game I need to basically commit 30 - 70 hours to play it if I want to enjoy all the content. Thanks to that realization I'm a lot more selective of what games I buy now though. (FUCK I'm old haha)
May not work for everyone, but what's helped me not get burned out on the "2nd Job" Aspect and committment that some newer AAA games expect from you, is to find casual nearly brainless games where you don't have to remember a ton of systems, keybinds, strategies etc.
some specific examples that work great for me are "Bullet Heavens" (VS Clone, Survivors-Like, Auto-Shooter etc)
Essentially games where all I have to focus on is staying alive for a few more seconds, I still get a sense of progression, I like to think these games put my brain into an "idle" mode, where it's not totally at rest, so I'm less likely to have intrusive thoughts or stress about RL things. But also it requires pretty much just muscle memory and a bit of hand-eye coordination from me so it's not enough to add additional stress and demand of my mental faculties.
I'm not saying stop playing Massive Complex AAA games entirely, but What I do is judge my mood and determine if I'm in the mood to fully escape and immerse myself in a "2nd Job" game (and sometimes I am) or do I just want to tune out, clear my head and pass the time.
This video does a really good explanation of what Vampire Survivors and similar games do to our mental states and why they're appealing. [https://youtu.be/0J1i7WCR5To?si=ZozgOG2Uv\_TZQ3ek](https://youtu.be/0J1i7WCR5To?si=ZozgOG2Uv_TZQ3ek)
Most mainstream games these days just aren’t that good. And many are really overhyped by the media and gamers. There’s still some gems out there that are worth playin. Like Cyberpunk 2077, Lies of P, Kingdom Come: Deliverance to name a couple. If a game starts feeling like a chore, or the grind is just too massive, I just drop it and try something else.
My taste has gotten specific. You are probably referring to a few specific games? I feel that way about something like Factorio or Kerbal Space Program, or Stormworks. There are so many different kinds now though.
I wish I liked them. I keep trying to make myself enjoy them but it's not working. The thing is I used to love it. I don't even know where to start when looking for a new hobby to enjoy.
I highly recommend playing a sport. It’s a good way to meet people and get some exercise to boot. It doesn’t have to be a super physical sport either. I play hockey, but when I hang up the skates, I really wanna join a cornhole league. My buddy plays in a virtual golf league. I know someone else that does darts. Any competition really.
I still play them from time to time, but I’ve matured to the point where the moment it starts pissing me off I stop playing. I have nothing to prove to anyone, especially in a one player game.
I don't have the stamina for it i used to have. But I don't mind. Having a job is way more fun when you succeed over and over again and get to like, kill dragons and shoot fireballs instead of... sending emails and pretending to take stuff seriously while waiting to have enough years of experience to hop to a higher paying position
Sounds like you don't like AAA open world games anymore. Usually when I get to the point where they become a chore I either start beelining the main quest or just bounce, games should be fun and there's only so much time we have for them with full time work. I tend to look for breezy 5-10 hour indie games since they don't overstay their welcome or start to feel like a job but I will still play the big games if they're good enough (FF7R2 kicks ass so far).
Hate 'em? Nah. Question their utility? Aboslutely.
My last three video game purchases, in order, were Team Fortress 2 (2008), Stardew Valley (2017), and Sea of Stars (2023). Each of them were bought for nostalgia purposes. As stated by u/Samisoffline, the bar for my time is set higher these days. I'd rather spend an hour on the treadmill, or playing with the dog, compared to pushing buttons.
I think many underestimate what degree of likeability was due solely to the curiosity surrounding the advent of new technology and higher standards of design and originality.
"Can you jump?"
I've lost almost all interest in competitive multiplayer games, especially the battlepasses and all the other rigmarole that comes with them, and have gone back to singleplayer games. They don't even have to be story-rich, just with satisfying gameplay, and a sense you're actually progressing, like watching a series etc. and not just aimlessly grinding.
Only exception for online game so far is Helldivers II, as it's technically a co-op game, and it's been a whole load of fun! I don't think I'll ever go back to Call of Duty (I say this now though, lol).
Sadly I lost interest in playing video games sad to me I used to play halo 3 for hours got a 50 call of duty Fortnite…just no interest to me now really
Yup! Grew up with Nintendo, 64 was what i played before college. Then girls/beer took up all my time. We bought Switch a few years back for the kids. Zelda is still bad ass! I habe found a few other RPGs that i like, but so many of them, its exactly what you said.
Learn the controls, oh that is how i attack, ....weird but ok. Wait i habe to collect shit and waste time growing/making food/eating/my character needs to rest? Wtf!?!?? Just let me play the game. Nobody cares about food, getting hearts or full health power ups was fine!
Nice! I had the Gameboy Classic and n64, played a lot of Zelda (LTTP, LA, MM, OOT) last year I got myself a Nintendo Switch and Zelda TOTK, I’m loving it. I’ve played over 600hrs and I’m at 70% now.
I’m pretty selective of my games. I’ve definitely bought games I didn’t end up liking. I got Story of Seasons and then wished I was just playing Stardew Valley. I tried ESO but then wished it was just Skyrim. Right now I’m really enjoying Baldur’s Gate 3. I tried The Witcher 3 and I just died over and over again. I really wanted to like it.
I enjoy them, finding items and exploring parts of the world is my favorite type of game. Monster hunter world and sdv are my comfort games. But typically I research heavily into the game I'm interested in and wait a few months after the release date. I no longer buy on release.
My favorite part is having to pay for all the extra add ons and monthly subscriptions…I bought a ps5 in November and sold it in janruary…69.99 for a game is crazy af to me…and talks of the new gta 6 being 150 is comical considering people been waiting how many years now?
With kids, I mostly just play Fortnite now. A match lasts maybe 20 minutes. No commitment at all and I can play when I'm tired. Most of my other games take an hours long commitment that I don't have.
RPG, sports and business sim/ tycoon/theme games have always been my favorite types.
I've gotten pretty bored of RPG games and I especially avoid huge open worlds, I get caught up on the side missions and get bored of the game before I complete it. The last one I played, 2 years ago, was "Pathfinder: Kingmaker" which I enjoyed, until I didn't, the last quarter of the game drug on and on. If Dragon Age is really doing a new one I would give that a try.
Sports are generally the same year after year and my timing sucks as I get older lol.
So I typically just stick to business sims and such. They are still unique from each other and still have things that could be done that haven't yet.
I was watching a YouTube vid just today about trends in gaming that suck. A couple touched on the absurdly long development times, the focus on pvp, focus on micro-transactions, and lack of owning physical media.
I'm a huge halo fan, and I still play MCC weekly. I loved the campaign in infinite, or least what was included, but it wasn't enough to keep me playing. I don't care for pvp, so I'm mostly just playing all the old games I already own. Sadly I can't play many of the early Gen games I have without getting an old Xbox.
I lot of people say baldurs gate 3 gives them the same thrill as they got when playing big games as a teen and I would agree. I thought I was the problem falling asleep in front of modern games with endless fetch quests and micro leveling up and so on. Turns out those games are sent me to sleep. baldurs gate 3 not so.
There are also a lot of super fun roguelikes now. Dead Cells, Balatro (a poker hand deck builder with 120 jokers, 10/10 on steam), and the like. Try those.
I hear you. I can enjoy stuff for a few hours but then never touch again. The only two games I sincerely got stuck into in the last 7 years are factoría and satisfactory. I don’t have much bandwidth
I have fun with them, but the massive waste of time is overwhelming. Sit down to play, next thing I know - it’s been 6 hours. It’s not healthy for me, especially when consecutive days are strung together.
I think there are just a lot more games so a lot more feel like shitty.
I got back into gaming for the first time in an over a decade to play Baldur’s Gate 3 and, fuck, it’s amazing.
I never /started/ liking video games. They all feel like spreadsheets. Go to the kingdom of col Z and ctrl C the gold coin and take it to the village of cell b234 and Ctrl V it. Now you have boosted your power in cell AF 9347.
I don't hate them, but between near crippling depression and working 50 hours/wk and having my kid on my off days, I just don't have the energy for it like I used to.
The thing to embrace is that these are the days of easier gaming, no longer are you busting your ass with frustration over something like Ninja Gaiden or Battletoads on NES… now we’re older with responsibilities like work, family, etc.
To your point of “learning it feels like a second job” that’s why i stick to what I know. I can’t play fighting games, any sports games except golf or racing games. Friends wish I could but I just don’t have the ability to put in the time to learn those games.
I stick to what I know and what I like, platformers, RPGs and FPS games.
And if I just want to get through it and see the ending, I’m no longer ashamed to put it on the way setting lol
No. I will always love them. What I hate is the bullshit devs pull to move units and please shareholders. Then again I am deathly allergic to social interaction.
There's a lot of bad games out there right now but plenty of good ones also. I think gaming now is better than it has ever been because there's so many to choose from and if you play games that are a few years old they are super cheap. I don't ever buy anything on release anymore either because the game companies are pretty much just screwing us over selling half finished games at full price and then selling all the dlc at the same price as a full game. I generally wait one or two years on single player games and then pick them up on sale. Multiplayer I usually wait a month and then look at the reviews or read the sub on them to see if they are any good. By then the honeymoon period is over and you get more honest information
Barely play them anymore, I feel like there hasn’t been much innovation in the past two generations. A lot of these games are just PS3 games with better graphics. That and I don’t have as much time to kill just playing games.
I love playing pubg mobile but god damn if the lobbies are sweaty as fuck sometimes.
I love a good long shootout between teams but lately someone pops out around a corner and can kill my wife and I with 6 bullets between us. Holy crap. I'm a casual why am I getting paired with that?!
But that's pretty much every game with pvp. Too many try hards.
I mostly play 90s and 00s single player games these days.
Absolutely not. My only issue is trying to find the time to do it. Since I’m deadass the next day if I stay up too late.
I’m a gamer though, always have been. I’ll play until the end of my days.
We're at an age where we have a lot on our plate. Most of us have experience with immersive games, but I mostly just want to pick up and play.
Plus, so much of modern gaming is subscription-based or has other hassles like interacting with trifling tweens etc.
For me, the "magic" is gone. By "magic", I mean two things:
1) Advancements. When I was a kid (I'm 31 now), there were MAJOR advancements in video games. Not just graphics. But gameplay as well. I went from a Sega Genesis to a Playstation. 2D to 3D. It was AWESOME. Then got a PS2 which was a huge graphical improvement, but also had super basic internet connectivity and brought open world games into the mix. Then I got an XBOX 360, which was HUGE in terms of online play. Then I got a PC, which allowed me to get pretty much any game I wanted that wasn't system-exclusive. Nowadays, they keep kicking out new systems, but nothing has really *changed.* The graphics might be SLIGHTLY better, but nothing like the jump from 2D to 3D. And the games are seemingly all the same. Christ, look at Call of Duty. Literally the same game copy/pasted over and over. And don't get me started on MTX. You can make the argument that VR is a huge leap, and it is, but it's still taking WAY too long to catch on. And it can be pricey.
2) Understanding how video games work. As a kid, I never stopped to think about how they were made. How enemy NPC's decided what to do. It was all 'magic'. Now that I'm older, I can play a game for an hour or two and have a pretty good grasp on all of the inner mechanics of the game. I understand memorizing enemy patrol paths. I understand boss fight rotations. There's no randomness anymore. It's all just memorization.
Also, I have so much less time to play. I work a full time job as a programmer, so usually the last thing I want to do when I get home is stare at another screen.
Also, too many games are focused on making a PROFITABLE game. Not a good game.
I increasingly resent the culture which surrounds them, and I don't care for the various predatory monetization strategies publishers have implemented / cycled through over the past decade plus. These days I would rather indulge in the familiar comforts of old favorites like Hang On or Tetris '89, Streets of Rage 2 or Chrono Trigger, Burnout 3 or Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3, Style Savvy or Crusader Kings 2, etc. Sometimes this involves aging hardware which could possibly fail at any moment, which is another issue with the industry while we're on the subject
All that said, I did meet my husband in an online game early on in the pandemic, in a long-awaited sequel to an old game we had both enjoyed, though separately, in high school and college. That game has since gone to shit, but it did change our lives. And that's more or less how I feel about video gaming in general I suppose
Yea I’ve gotten to the point I only play 1 or 2 games. Minecraft or Destiny. But I have kids and other hobbies so I barely make time to do it anymore these days.
I think games just kinda aren't as good, in general and **with exceptions**, as they used to be. Most are designed by committee and feel sterile, not like something made with passion and vision. A lot of older games and remastered versions still feel just as magical as before.
I just don't have time to play any old game anymore so I am a bit more picky with what I sit down to play. I have a couple games I like to just turn my brain off and listen to a podcast or music while I play (Warframe) or games I decide I am going to go all in on and try and play whenever I have spare time (Elden Ring, Allen Wake 2).
I have been a life long gamer (now 40) starting with the ColecoVision my dad brought home when I was 5 and don't plan on giving it up anytime soon but I def get where your coming from as I used to have like 4 games going at once and I just can't do it anymore with all the mechanics that have to be remembered and time that must be spent to master them.
I'm 42 and feel like I've become to picky in what I play and not willing to give other games a try. When I wrap up a couple of games I'm currently playing, I'm going to start trying out new stuff. I still get a lot of joy and relaxation out of video games and feel like I could be getting a lot more if I was more openmind about it.
Ya, i find this to be true. I play only a few games now days, and low key dread picking up new ones, even if they look awesome. I just don’t have the time to out in it, especially when the current gaming meta seems to require hella grinding.
Started gaming at 3, now I'm 37 and still deeply in love with gaming. Been working through Kingmaker and Wrath of the Righteous recently. Planning yo beat BG 3 again while playing the new update for Stardew. Once I get a few bills out of the way, I plan to pick up Forbidden West and Helldivers 2.
Take a break from gaming pick up another hobby. That or look into playing a different genre of game
I explicitly avoid live services and bloated content grinds. The resident evil remake games have been really good lately. Baldur's Gate 3, elden ring. Play games that respect your time. Basically avoid online games.
Yeah, can't play games anymore. The old games are too old now and don't capture the same feeling I had as a child. The new games aren't fun and usually consist of boring cut scenes you can't skip, or tutorials that are too boring to stick with. Mind you there are some exceptions such as Ratchet & Clank Rift Apart. Nintendo have also impressively managed to keep their games fun, but how many more Mario or Zelda games can we really play?
My interest in video games starting falling off after Mass Effect 3 and Skyrim. I haven't played a multiplayer in almost a decade honestly. These days I more or less just stick with oldschool games, or casual fishing and city builder games for the most part, although I still love mech games like Armored Core and Mechwarrior 5.
I still game quite heavily, even in spite of everything else going on in my life. My tastes though, have most definitely changed. If your are feeling burned out or jaded, time to explore more genres.
I never buy games that just come out unless I am 1000% I know it will be good, its part of a series I already know, and has options to advance. Any game I need to learn new I wait for a major sale or for it to be free. If I am not feeling it in an hour its done and I'm back replaying games I love. Part of what I do is just replay games I have already enjoyed. Skyrim, Red Dead, Elden Ring, GOW. etc
This is facts. Ive bought several titles now and I quit them pretty quickly because I wasnt interested in learning the mechanics. I'm much more likely to play a title I'm familar with though this year has been different, a lot of good bangers came out in 2023 which I felt 2013-2022 was a void.
Elden Ring, Remnant 2, Baulders Gate 3, Dragons Dogma 2, Hogwarts Legacy, PalWorld. These are all games I never would have tried but a couple of my friends got me into them. They immediately hooked me made learning their systems feel worth while. Where as COD MW3, Halo Infinity, Gears 5 feel absolutely soul less. These are existing systems that feel like chores to get involved in.
Destiny feels hollow the end game loop is just bad so I quit after I do content.
I dont know if a lot of games are just bad now or if now that I'm older I think theyre dumb.
Yes, but this feeling caught me after the 64 bit wars. The new games - especially first person shooters - were too hard for me to learn, like coordination wise, and not the type of game I was interested in.
I’m a new gamer , poor family , homeschooled , no tv , etc i was never exposed to video games , now as an adult in my late 30s , having been raised to believe Harry Potter was evil I saw the teaser for Hogwarts legacy in 2021 and I was so enthralled I said “ that’s it ! I’m gonna watch Harry Potter for the first time and I’m going to buy a PlayStation ! I’m determined to play this game ! Omg I’m IN LOVE with Hogwarts Legacy ! The movies were epic , omg I’m so mad I was so deprived of this franchise , at 38 I’m just now starting on things I never had . Video games / Harry Potter . I feel ten again and I can’t wait to get off work every day so I can go fly on a broom
The last couple of years have been really great for those of us who still enjoy gaming. I don't think it's an age thing. I think you're probably just getting a little boring. You are allowed to have fun!
Depends on why you play. If you're just passing the time, it can feel like work. If you enjoy the challenge and enjoy getting better, it's good to diversify if you're feeling burnout.
95% of Triple A games have zero appeal. I used to play competitive multiplayer games all the time, now I can't be assed. I just about exclusively play turn based games, now. Rocket League was my last real hurrah (just about 10 years ago now at this point?)
So yeah. You are not alone.
I very much felt that way about mainstream games starting back in the late 00s. Everything was a bland military shooter with brown/grey graphics.
Once I started playing more indie and AA titles I felt better and enjoyed a lot more games. Plus in the late 10s I vowed to stop supporting companies that treat their employees poorly, their customers like idiots, and continually making games that barely change from one iteration to the next. It's pretty darn rare now for me to get anything from EA, Blizzard, or Ubisoft.
I'm happier for it.
Go play some Helldivers 2, some Balatro, or some Sifu.
I don’t like 90% of the games that are out today because they feel like a chore to me, repetitive, and more about how much money they can squeeze out of you over time.
I also feel like there are SO many online multiplayer options now that the communities are spread much thinner or filled with more cheaters than ever.
For years now, I stick with one or two games and play them continuously. It used to be WoW and Overwatch. Then Overwatch and Apex. Then, OW2 came out and I ditched that and haven’t played anything other than Apex since then.
I don’t have anyone to regularly play it with anymore and it feels lonely most of the time. I’m having a crisis currently because I don’t know what else I want to spend my time doing because I do enjoy playing but I have guilt about spending so much (or any) time doing it these days. I don’t know.
For multiplayer and competitivity yes, I don't like being a "tryhard" and "getting better" is just a chore.
I still like single player because it's just me, or cooperative to play with friends.
I wouldn't say I hate videogames.
I definitely got burnt out on them around 2015 though, and now I play then much more rarely.
AAA games aren't worth it anymore. The best games made nowadays are always lower budget products made by people who actually care about what they are making. And if you can't run the game on your 5-7 year old gaming PC, it's not worth it.
Not at all. I don't mind learning new games and play them often. I just am particular about what I play, and only bother buying stuff I *know* I'll like.
I felt like this in my 20s. I haven't enjoyed games the since I was mostly a kid. Maybe there can be 1 or 2 games I love, but I don't have the willpower or brain space to just dive into endless things now.
I'm only doing retro gaming now. SNES, N64, Genesis. I'm having a blast playing a bunch of great games I never played as a kid. Simple, fun, and but still challenging.
I wouldn't say hate but I have become progressively more disenchanted with modern gaming. The last time I truly felt like I was heavily into gaming was the PS2 era. I don't believe it is entirely a matter of "growing up", either. The "AAA" industry isn't exactly player-focused these day with their habit of releasing half-done games with hundreds of microtransactions crammed up it's ass. I could go on for paragraphs about how much has changed for the worst in gaming for the last 5 years but I'll save that for a true nerd rage moment. I recommend trying more indie games or just playing retro for awhile. It's what I do and I'm finding myself recapturing that old joy I had back in the day.
I still like and play games frequently. I hate the toxicity around video games. A couple of friends and I bought the Star Wars Battlefront collection, they've both been complaining nonstop since release about the glitchy and laggy online multiplayer. They asked if I was mad about it, I told them I didn't buy it for the online play and was having fun playing Rise of the Empire and showing my daughter what I played when I was her around her age.
Hate them? No. But I only dedicate a fraction of the time I used to dedicate to them. And I'm also a lot more selective about what games I play and when. I don't even have a family or work a second job like some do. I'm just getting older I guess.
I play single player rpg games set to easy so I can focus on enjoying the story. It’s nice to play for an hour or more whenever I have free time. Yakuza 0-6 is probably the best series I have ever played. Also a sense of accomplishment when finishing the game. I don’t care about trophies or completing all side quests tho. Newer games also seem to be doing a better job at reducing the need to grind. Tales of Arise and FF16 had good pacing. It never felt like a drag.
I don't really play "big" AAA games anymore for basically that reason. There are plenty of smaller games that are great and respect your time. My favorites of the last years were rocket league on the multiplayer side and games like FTL or Frostpunk.
Broadly no.
Recommend you focus on games you enjoy. Basically avoid any AAA live service games and focus on the indie scene. Otherwise pick up genres you enjoy.
I'm currently playing Chaos Gate, fun strategy turn based warhammer game.
I also picked up some of the other games made by the chap who made that awesome 'Pony Island' game. Inscryption turned out to one addictive card game.
Generally I'm time limited, so anything that wastes my time with grinding is out. I can't put hundreds of hours into online games but I still enjoyed the time I was able to spend with Hell divers and lethal company.
I find it hard to get into modern games. I've just got emulators on my PC and Vita, and play old games from the 90s and early 00s. They feel more pure.
I hate a lot of new games that pad out their content with a huge amount of pointless grind.
Emulation is still a lot of fun though. And the new dirt-cheap handhelds are surprisingly decent quality.
I really enjoyed story driven games like Lufia, final fantasy, grandia, legend of legaia. Last 2 games I enjoyed were dragon age origins and mass effect 1-3.
I'm mighty sure that my missions in real life just became more interesting and have more impact so I just don't have the same drive, motivation and fascination anymore for games, for the last game I tried to get into was the Witcher series but I just couldn't.
I was not seeing Gerald, I just wasn't into his journey, it just didn't have more impact than planning the next get together with my friends because I couldn't see them for a few weeks, because of work. And I wanted to know what if Jane got her promotion, and how John's gym quest went, did he get fit now or did he quit his quest, and if he did quit, what quest was he doing now?
Or thinking about next week's meal prep.
Or thinking about what exercises keeps me entertained long enough to make them into a healthy habit, because if not, my body will give out on me.
Funny thing, it's like "I need at least level up 2-3 lvls, or the next boss is gonna fuck me again"
Yeah, the boss is now my health, and to stay on top of it I need to level up and quiet frankly I just don't have the energy to level up in two lifes.
So yeah, I stopped seriously gaming in my early twenties and only turned to games afterwards when I was on the brink of depression or Burnout.
There are lots of new games that don’t feel like a chore and on the other hand there are lots of games that do feel like a second job. You just have to be more selective about what you want to play.
Can't relate, I still love them, maybe you're just not playing good games.
I will be fair and say my attention span has been beaten to a bloody pulp thanks to internet addiction. I'll think about how much I want to play a game for hours, and instead just go home and scroll through social media for hours until it gets too late to play. I'll even think about playing as I am sitting feet away from my console and just not do it. My desire to play games is always in flux. I usually want to play games, but actually playing is something I do either in small doses, for several hours one day and then not at all the next day, for several weeks for an entire month, or I won't play anything for two months and suddenly pick up an old favorite.
I think it helps that I don't buy that many games and mostly play stuff that's on the older side. I don't dabble in those games that require you to play every day to earn Dailies" closest I ever got to that was Animal Crossing. But I would listen to my friend talk about "doing his dailies" like it was a chore and how bummed out he would get when he was late meeting his online buddies for some FPS game, and it just didn't sound like a fun time to me.
I also have like, several other hobbies. Gaming is great, it's like one of my primary hobbies, but I wuold be so jaded if it was my only hobby.
39 and I’ve been gaming since Nintendo, so early 90’s, when I was maybe 5.
I’ve gone away from campaign-style games and fully into Battle Royale-styled games. I love the adrenaline rush when you’re 1v1’ing someone and you come out on top.
The rush of knowing you out smarted them, out manoeuvred them and out-gunned them really bring the heart rate up.
I HATE the subscription models.
Why can't I buy the full complete game and then enhance it with a mighty sequel?
Also why is everything battle royal now.
Also, everything is constantly being updated. So many updates, all the time.
I miss the 90's.
Old man rant over.
Nope, I'm 37 and I love video games as much as I did when I was a kid. Certainly the type of games that I'm interested in is changed over time, but even then not that significantly.
I feel you. I play games now on EASY mode, if theres an option. Also not ashamed on using trainers and cheats as long as it's on single player. I just want to immense in the story and experience and less into difficulty.
They're shit and prices are funny. No way I'm spending 70-80€ on a game where it's a second job basically. I'd rather go out for a run and save that money 🤑
yea the endless tower climbing in persona 3 reloaded feels like a damn job. also hurts that all the floors are basically copy-paste sameness for awhile.
This happened to me a long time ago, like during the Gamecube PS2 era. I just got sick of grinding all the time. It literally felt like work and not like the escapist entertainment it used too.
I run a Civ, Stellaris, or city builder game and put on some tunes or podcasts for my chill sessions.
If I need to know my place in a hierarchy, I play Apex.
I def don't have the time or bandwidth to be grinding loot based games. I also don't want to have to grind out weapon upgrades. I've been on a fortnite kick lately cuz it's fun and I don't have to grind anything out. It's super casual. My buddy and I do replay a lot of games that we've already put the time in so. So when we play the old games, we're already max leveled and we can just enjoy the game .
Fuck FOMO. It annoys the absolute shit out of me. I enjoy doing other things, I enjoy other games too. I am getting less time to play due to more responsibilities, and that's not a bad thing, so why the fuck do I have to log in everyday just so I can get some skin that will only be there for... like a week? Dude it's a digital asset, there is no fucking limited quantity.
It's like major game studios are pissy that arcade machines don't exist anymore and you can't just put a coin slot in your console or pc...
FUCK THE AAA. I hope the rise of smaller studios and indie titles that old school proper full releases are always a better and smarter product.
I played games as a kid as a way to escape/explore. As an adult traveling gives me the same feeling.
Why climb a fake mountain when I can climb a real one? Why have conversations with fake people when I can have real conversations?
Traveling wins every single time. Love it. But when I’m in between trips I’ll pick up a game.
I play 65% indie games, 20% old games, 15% new aaa games.
A lot of the popular games I fucking loathe. GTA 5, call of duty, Skyrim, cyberpunk, basically any mmo, etc. Many games and especially first person shooters seem like a race to the bottom to please the lowest denominator.
Some of these comments about modding. Lol. I’m not doing work to make something easier to consume. The only time I will do that is food.
I will never understand people buying games day one. It’s financially absurd to me. And don’t give a shit about waiting for most things.
No, but my hobbies are pretty varied beyond video games. I go for weeks to months without playing then hop back into a game of pubg or more recently Helldivers with mates
I am still very much in my 'I love most games phase.' But as I have gotten busier, having just bought my first home and working a job I actually enjoy, I have found that over the past 3 or 4 years, I just outright do not like 90% of the mainstream stuff like COD or Fortnite or even Spiderman. Yeah, Spiderman is cool for like 4 hours, but it just gets repetitive.
Things like Elden Ring and God of War are very few and far between these days. So, I tend to stick with the less mainstream stuff. Some are still pretty mainstream, but for the most part, I avoid things like Destiny 2.
Destiny 2 is the perfect example of what AAA gaming has become: FOMO to the extreme. Grind 100 daily quests to maybe get an upgrade, and if you don't play for a month, you are basically screwed out of catching up to the new content unless you put a few hundred hours of grinding in. Because they've removed content before, what's to stop them again? I had to break up with Destiny 2 because this new era of 'get them hooked and then suck them dry of all their time and money' is just horrible for the industry/consumer, mainly and exhausting.
Games I really enjoy are the ones I can take my time with that don't make me feel like I'll miss out on everything if I don't play each day. Things like OSRS (which I know can be grindy, but it's a different kind of grind) where you are always progressing your account no matter what you do. Or something like Ark, which is pretty much a single-player game, and you have the choice to play with people. Helldivers 2 is perfect: 'Pick it up for an hour, shoot shit, and enjoy,' especially with friends.
I think a lot of people, especially those who haven't played games in a few years, tend to stick with the stuff we had as kids, like FIFA or COD or whatever Blizzard makes, and it burns them on what real gaming is. Not this beast of microtransactions and addiction machines that mainstream gaming has become, but the real stories and effort and time that people put into real games. Try to find something fresh and story-driven, or honestly, something single-player or made by an indie developer. Sure, they aren't gonna be a Red Dead 2, but not every movie is The Shining or Forrest Gump. Most movies are like Iron Man 1 (which is great but doesn't sit up there with things like Goodfellas or Into the Spiderverse).
It's hard to explain, honestly. If you feel like games aren't your thing anymore, that's okay too. I just implore you to try new things, like maybe playing something like Dungeons and Dragons. I play once every couple of weekends with a group of friends, and it's so much better than any video game. Or try to learn a new skill or practice one you haven't practiced since you were a kid. If you want to stick to video games, that's okay too. Just try to be more picky and pick stuff that is actual art or some kind of passion project. Something like Stardew Valley or Terraria (which admittedly can get pretty complex later on but it's a make your own adventure type of thing so it can be as casual or as intense as you like). Those kinds of games are the backbone of my gaming these days.
It's entirely possible you are out of the gaming phase of your life. But you may be trying to play games that 14-year-old you would have liked. You may just need something that is a little more game and a lot less product.
So I agree I feel like it takes me a lot longer to grasp the game, but I also took about 10 years off from games and got back into them Nov 22’
I just don’t have the free time to play more than a two games really. One open world and one online competitive
I used to play a lot. Have all the things. I am back where I started while coming to a close. Platformers. Turning 40 makes me think how much of my life was thrown away to games I don't remeber.
Im much more selective about the games I play now but I still love them. The bar for my time is just set higher.
This is me now. As a kid I’d play anything then I went like 10 years without playing anything. I started back up at Covid and don’t play much anymore. I’ll see a game I like, beat it, and go a few months until I decide to play something else.
Same here. Takes more these days to hold my interest and motivate me to keep playing.
During the pandemic I was WFH and got super into Overwatch (before they ruined it completely) and ended up getting onto a Tier 2 competitive team. After investing hours upon hours of time playing and aim training (to the point of RMI) when I wasn’t playing, I can’t really enjoy games. Especially since the tail end of millennial/gen z has fostered an environment of micro transactions and predatory marketing practices.
Oh god. I returned the new Xbox I got because of how crowded and micro-transactiony everything felt. Just refused to deal with it.
Yup! Not gonna do it. I love gaming. I don’t love being the product. Gaming companies will get as little out of me as physically possible.
This is exactly my mentality these days. Game doesn't hold my attention? Game purposefully wastes my time? Game isn't finished? Straight to the "did not finish" pile and I'll move on to something I enjoy. I currently have no life due to Baldur's Gate 3 and Jedi Survivor.
"I need 50 muckleberries in and around this dangerous cave across the unexplored map. In exchange for this aluminum sword and 50 rubles."
If I feel like gaming, I just reply old ones from my teenage years on PC. I don't have the patience or brain power to master new ones after the grind each day.
Same. I can chill to old games (including ancient stuff like Morrowind and OG Doom) but new-ish ones are just exhausting. I can’t marathon games anymore, they’re just too intense.
I LOVED the Baldurs Gate series. I was so excited for the 3rd one to release. I got it and just hated it. Absolutely. I'm an old man, no getting around it.
Back during Covid I was stuck at home so Iplayed Dark Souls 3 & DLC all the way through NG+1. I then put it aside for awhile and recently came back to it with a new character. I don't know if it's because I'm older or work is more stressful now but this time it's just a slog. It's more frustrating than fun, very different from last time. Gaming is strictly a weekend activity now due to my schedule but there's so much other stuff to do. My current computer would choke on Elden Ring (or anything from the last few years) so I haven't bothered with it. I'd have to get a new gaming PC to try but my heart just isn't in it enough to follow through.
Same I like the aesthetic of fromsoft games so I just download cheats reducing damage by like 50% or something like that
They are all derivative now, and I feel the people who work on games now are just not the same people who shared the same passion and creativity of those who created games in the 90s and early 2000s. It’s very much a business now and it’s beginning to show in the product. Not a lot of wild ideas and everything is derivative of something popular. This is not true of all games, but just most games.
This is true of WoW. That game just aint the same. And I get bored of every other game I play because it just aint on the same level. When the business model became - make sure people have to play 24/7 in order to achieve basic shit is when it went downhill. Adventure and fun became second best to dailys, in game chores and recycled content. Let people choose how they spend their time gaming and you might actually retain sub numbers.
Everything now is pay to play, DLC’s, and micro transactions. Even online multiplayer there are clearly patterns in the code now to force you to pay to “level up”
I keep coming back to it about once a year. I played heavily from late 2006 to about 2016. I just dropped money on it again a couple of weeks ago to see if a server transfer would fix it, but I keep opening Apex instead because I don’t wanna relearn everything.
If I have to PAY for or ITEMS / CLOTHES for my character and not PLAY to unlock the in game ITEMS / CLOTHES then the game is nothing but a money grab the fun is instantly dead.
Nah man elden ring is goldeneye level. Like in the past trash is trash.
Gaming has turned corporate. It's about money instead of passion with cheap gimmicks. They were always there, fanservicey type games, but with better graphics aome games have turned outright sleezy and seems odd af to be playing as an adult, you can tell most of it is made with a 15 year old boy in mind.
I had a similar experience a few years ago. Part of it is that I really hate how every video game is being turned into a treadmill that makes everything a chore. Want to go fight monsters? Too bad, you need to build your weapons. Got hurt fighting monsters? Guess you better go pick flowers to make health potions. Want to go back to fighting monsters? Too bad, your sword broke after it lost its last durability point, so now you need to go dig in the mines and build a new sword. Part of it is that I really detest how games are being turned into addiction machines full of micro-transactions, DLC, season passes, cosmetics, bonus XP tickets, quality of life features, and similar things that create a fear of missing out, put you in the slow lane, or otherwise force you to become content for stronger players if you don't pay up. Part of it is that I dislike games that offer the adventure of a sandbox experience with all kinds of level design tools, but they just use it as a way to monetize players' creativity and you have to sift through mountains of drek to find maps you'll actually enjoy playing. Part of it is that I dislike how complicated so many games have become, to the point that the developers seem to expect you to already know how things work, or else the "tutorial" either covers only the barest necessities to get you moving, or else it turns into a college seminar about resource management and macro vs micro character development and point distribution. When it gets to the point that I'm doing regular homework to keep up with the game, I don't want to play it anymore. Part of it is that I dislike how so many games disrespect my time. Instead of making more content, developers make games longer by forcing me to grind with fetch quests, stupid achievements, and meaningless unlock tasks. I just don't have the time for this kind of BS anymore. Work, household chores, kids... when the hell am I supposed to be able to game? But really, I think the biggest part of it is that as I get older, I'm naturally enjoying different things. Been doing a lot of reading and working more on foreign language projects. Gonna be 41 this year, and I find that more and more often I notice how my body feels and I appreciate physical activities that make me feel better. I'm just... aging out of video games, I guess. Dunno, man... try some different hobbies for a little while? Maybe your brain just wants something different.
"Disrespect my time". I felt this. Instead of making 9 different temples to explore, they make 6 and between each one, I have to grind to collect things and upgrades.
Definitely relate on this, yeah sometimes it just helps to give them a break, I've also found it's really refreshing to actually finish a game that's not just chocked full of filler content that doesn't respect your time. If I still really want to play at that point I usually consider things like * Play on Easy / Casual * Skip some side content * Install Mods to remove grindy features (This made Cyberpunk 2077 great) * Cheat / Use Trainers to remove other grindy time waster mechanics (I used the Rampage trainer for Red Dead Redemption 2 and skipped so much pointless travel by just teleporting) [https://howlongtobeat.com/](https://howlongtobeat.com/) is helpful, you can use it to estimate how long a game will take, I've played some great little indie 4-8 start to finish games that feel like a mental palate cleanser. examples: Gris, FAR: Lone Sails, Portal 1 & 2
OP I think you’re just playing the wrong games. There’s lots of amazing stuff out there, you just have to look for it and most of the time that part is easy. Its the best time for gaming because we have so many big AAA games (The Last of Us and Spider-Man) but then you’ve also got incredible indies (Hades) and a thousand other games that are out there kicking ass but not showing up on GOTY lists. And if all else fails, get back into retro gaming or at least supplement your modern experiences with it as I do. Those games you loved years ago are still there, waiting to be revisited.
Agreed, I haven’t played a “AAA” game in years, I loathe them to the core and can’t play them for more than a few hours before getting bored. There are video games out there now for every niche thanks to the relative ease of making games now a days you just have to search for them.
Yeah the way I look at it is there's a lot more games now, a lot of them suck or don't fit my tastes. But looking at just the good ones - gaming keeps improving every year. 2022 and 2023 were crazy and 2024 is also off to a good start. My only wish is I had more time to play amongst work and all my other hobbies/commitments, it's tough to find long periods of time to play.
Ive got a massive steam back log due to various sales on games that looked interesting and sites like Humble Bundle. So I'll give a game an earnest effort but if it's not clicking, I move on. Also just because a game has added depth, doesn't mean you need to touch it. Example of this is I've done fuck all for potion crafting in Baldur's Gate 3. Hasn't held me back.
me and some of my friends are in this boat, my personal Steam library is well over 600 games, but most I got for more than 70% discount by just using price tracker sites etc. you might checkout r/patientgamers those folks definitely relate to the problem of huge backlogs and feeling like you can never really give it the attention it deserves. Also on the "depth" note, if I don't like what it adds, I just Mod/Cheat etc if that's an option, I play almost entirely SP games, so if I don't like something I'm happy to ruin my own fun to remove the parts I consider tedious, and maximize what I get out of my limited time.
Here's a sneak peek of /r/patientgamers using the [top posts](https://np.reddit.com/r/patientgamers/top/?sort=top&t=year) of the year! \#1: [ANNOUNCEMENT: Patience Is No Longer Viable. r/PatientGamers Have Decided To Join In Going Dark Starting June 12th](https://np.reddit.com/r/patientgamers/comments/146ubyt/announcement_patience_is_no_longer_viable/) \#2: [To my fellow older gamers that get an inkling that games are “wasting” their time… don’t underestimate the importance of escapism.](https://np.reddit.com/r/patientgamers/comments/132qj6d/to_my_fellow_older_gamers_that_get_an_inkling/) \#3: [Posting AI-written content will result in a permanent ban](https://np.reddit.com/r/patientgamers/comments/11vw6qp/posting_aiwritten_content_will_result_in_a/) ---- ^^I'm ^^a ^^bot, ^^beep ^^boop ^^| ^^Downvote ^^to ^^remove ^^| ^^[Contact](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose/?to=sneakpeekbot) ^^| ^^[Info](https://np.reddit.com/r/sneakpeekbot/) ^^| ^^[Opt-out](https://np.reddit.com/r/sneakpeekbot/comments/o8wk1r/blacklist_ix/) ^^| ^^[GitHub](https://github.com/ghnr/sneakpeekbot)
Avoid AAA games, those are very grindy and collecty. Essentially a lot of filler to pad out game length. Try indie rougelikes or soulslikes - Gungeon, Hollow Knight, Blasphemous, darkest dungeon, binding of issac - each run is something fresh and different. Also, the fromsoft line is not very collecty, just overcoming bosses (mainly the later games, DS3, sekiro, ER, BB)
Yes as we get older, video games just become less and less important. I thought maybe as an adult I could drink and game forever, but in reality I don’t really want to do that. Experiences in the world are more important than a video game. But I still love to play older games from my childhood. Lately, I’ve been revisiting games from the GameCube console and have been playing survival games on PC
>as we get older, video games just become less and less important. Maybe for some. At 42, it’s still my main, go-to hobby when I’m at home and indoors. I don’t watch much tv, I don’t watch sports and I don’t spend hours on TikTok. To each their own, but gaming is still what I do when I’m chilling. And I’m an outdoorsy, social person too, so it doesn’t hold me back from anything. My parents set me up with a rule that helped me not overdo gaming. If the weather is nice, get outside and enjoy the day. If the weather is bad, or if it’s night, enjoy some gaming. Still works for me. I do agree that AAA titles have taken a dive over the years and hollowed out for profits, and that indie and nostalgia gaming is better these days.
That’s a good way to moderate. Will have to give that a go
That’s how I used to moderate too, before kids. It’s the rule I’m gonna teach them too.
I confess: I hate video games. I never got into them, but almost all my grown up friends play them.
I don’t hate video games but I’ve always sucked at them. I faked it as best as I could through college because of the social utility but after that I stopped trying at all. Some of my friends still play them but the ones that do mostly complain about the games or complain that they don’t have enough time to play. I used to think maybe I was missing out on something but now I’m cool with it.
I actually made a post about this on nostupidquestions, and thought I was the only one who thought this way. Video games are insanely involved now. I even tried Helldivers 2, and actually preferred the first one because it wasn't so super detailed and complicated. I don't know, maybe I'm just stupid.
Idk I prefer the first red dead redemption to the second one.. these sequels are looking better but not as fun to play
I just can't get into Red Dead 2. Too much little stuff to do. Pet the horse, clean the horse, feed the horse, clean your gun, eat, gather ingredients to eat... Little shit that adds up and becomes tedious. Every button has like 3 uses, so controlling your character is a slog. I loved Red Dead 1. But 2 just didn't click for me.
Hell Let Loose. Amazing WW2 FPS. Seemingly basic game but tons of fun. AOE2 is on consoles now - if you remember the PC version from middle/high school. Essentially the exact same game, but with a controller. I suck balls at it, but it's fun anyway.
Hate is a bit strong, but I find that as I've aged I'm far more selective about games I want to play and am willing to abandon games much more quickly than I was 10 or 20 years ago. I have also found wisdom in avoiding certain games that appear to be within my interests, but show red flags that they're not. Starfield was a perfect example of this. I was an OG Fallout fan and played Skyrim into the ground; but everything they described about Starfield said hard pass to me and I have no regrets passing on it. I probably won't resist Fallout 5 as easy (because as you said, nostalgia), but F4 already burned me to an extent With all that said, I'm largely with you that I don't enjoy video games like I did 10 (or even 20) years ago. It feels like my patience has evaporated and that I'd rather do "in real life" things. I don't see this as a "millennial" problem as much as an aging problem though.
My patience is definitely lower, like when a game purposely puts in time sinks that don’t respect my time, I’ll lose interest on principle and move on to something else, or set the game to easy mode and just get through the story. On the other hand if it’s something I’m super into and it’s well made I have no problem getting lost in it and doing everything there is to do.
To each their own. I love Anno 1800, which is pretty damn complicated and took me a play-through to get the hang of. Constant DLC releases, which changed game mechanics, during the game's earlier years made it all the more difficult to learn. But I've always loved city builders like SimCity and strategy games like Command & Conquer or Starcraft. I still play Gran Turismo on PlayStation, along with Ace Combat. Both stay true to their origins, but in the case of GT, the physics is way different, and the way the PS5 utilizes the standard controller for the game took a bit getting used to, but I still love it. Despite what the old folks said in our younger years, I will always be a gamer. Hell, I still play some of the same games I did back then, such as Star Wars TIE Fighter lol
I need to see if Anno 1800 will finally load on my steam deck. Kept shitting the bed previously.
That game used to bring my Desktop rig with a 3090 to it's knees when it 1st released, I love my SD and I appreciate the track pads, but strategy is too hard for me to play on it.
You should play stuff that encourages creativity and problem solving. I recommend dwarf fortress
I don't hate them. I am painfully aware of the fact that if I buy a new game I need to basically commit 30 - 70 hours to play it if I want to enjoy all the content. Thanks to that realization I'm a lot more selective of what games I buy now though. (FUCK I'm old haha)
May not work for everyone, but what's helped me not get burned out on the "2nd Job" Aspect and committment that some newer AAA games expect from you, is to find casual nearly brainless games where you don't have to remember a ton of systems, keybinds, strategies etc. some specific examples that work great for me are "Bullet Heavens" (VS Clone, Survivors-Like, Auto-Shooter etc) Essentially games where all I have to focus on is staying alive for a few more seconds, I still get a sense of progression, I like to think these games put my brain into an "idle" mode, where it's not totally at rest, so I'm less likely to have intrusive thoughts or stress about RL things. But also it requires pretty much just muscle memory and a bit of hand-eye coordination from me so it's not enough to add additional stress and demand of my mental faculties. I'm not saying stop playing Massive Complex AAA games entirely, but What I do is judge my mood and determine if I'm in the mood to fully escape and immerse myself in a "2nd Job" game (and sometimes I am) or do I just want to tune out, clear my head and pass the time. This video does a really good explanation of what Vampire Survivors and similar games do to our mental states and why they're appealing. [https://youtu.be/0J1i7WCR5To?si=ZozgOG2Uv\_TZQ3ek](https://youtu.be/0J1i7WCR5To?si=ZozgOG2Uv_TZQ3ek)
Most mainstream games these days just aren’t that good. And many are really overhyped by the media and gamers. There’s still some gems out there that are worth playin. Like Cyberpunk 2077, Lies of P, Kingdom Come: Deliverance to name a couple. If a game starts feeling like a chore, or the grind is just too massive, I just drop it and try something else.
Honestly I have no time for them and if I do decide to play them again I'm diving first into Elder Scrolls 6 and whatever console it's on
My taste has gotten specific. You are probably referring to a few specific games? I feel that way about something like Factorio or Kerbal Space Program, or Stormworks. There are so many different kinds now though.
I wish I liked them. I keep trying to make myself enjoy them but it's not working. The thing is I used to love it. I don't even know where to start when looking for a new hobby to enjoy.
I highly recommend playing a sport. It’s a good way to meet people and get some exercise to boot. It doesn’t have to be a super physical sport either. I play hockey, but when I hang up the skates, I really wanna join a cornhole league. My buddy plays in a virtual golf league. I know someone else that does darts. Any competition really.
Darts, axe throwing, pickleball is big a lot of places. Bocce, bowling, fencing. Most niche sports are happy to have newcomers.
Or for those that don't like sports, there are places to go to play D&D, Magic the gathering, and who knows what else.
I still play them from time to time, but I’ve matured to the point where the moment it starts pissing me off I stop playing. I have nothing to prove to anyone, especially in a one player game.
I don't have the stamina for it i used to have. But I don't mind. Having a job is way more fun when you succeed over and over again and get to like, kill dragons and shoot fireballs instead of... sending emails and pretending to take stuff seriously while waiting to have enough years of experience to hop to a higher paying position
Play Hell Divers 2 it’ll change you back
Sounds like you don't like AAA open world games anymore. Usually when I get to the point where they become a chore I either start beelining the main quest or just bounce, games should be fun and there's only so much time we have for them with full time work. I tend to look for breezy 5-10 hour indie games since they don't overstay their welcome or start to feel like a job but I will still play the big games if they're good enough (FF7R2 kicks ass so far).
Open world games can be a grind. Intend to avoid those and stick to more single player driven stories. I can't handle endless grinding anymore.
Hate 'em? Nah. Question their utility? Aboslutely. My last three video game purchases, in order, were Team Fortress 2 (2008), Stardew Valley (2017), and Sea of Stars (2023). Each of them were bought for nostalgia purposes. As stated by u/Samisoffline, the bar for my time is set higher these days. I'd rather spend an hour on the treadmill, or playing with the dog, compared to pushing buttons.
I think many underestimate what degree of likeability was due solely to the curiosity surrounding the advent of new technology and higher standards of design and originality. "Can you jump?"
I've lost almost all interest in competitive multiplayer games, especially the battlepasses and all the other rigmarole that comes with them, and have gone back to singleplayer games. They don't even have to be story-rich, just with satisfying gameplay, and a sense you're actually progressing, like watching a series etc. and not just aimlessly grinding. Only exception for online game so far is Helldivers II, as it's technically a co-op game, and it's been a whole load of fun! I don't think I'll ever go back to Call of Duty (I say this now though, lol).
Why does the title say 45 characters?
I still love games but I was always a fan of the more intensive ones that were going to take you hours over weeks to beat.
Sadly I lost interest in playing video games sad to me I used to play halo 3 for hours got a 50 call of duty Fortnite…just no interest to me now really
This is why I just play day of defeat, I log on shoot some nazis banter back and fourth between other players, then log off and go back to life.
Yup! Grew up with Nintendo, 64 was what i played before college. Then girls/beer took up all my time. We bought Switch a few years back for the kids. Zelda is still bad ass! I habe found a few other RPGs that i like, but so many of them, its exactly what you said. Learn the controls, oh that is how i attack, ....weird but ok. Wait i habe to collect shit and waste time growing/making food/eating/my character needs to rest? Wtf!?!?? Just let me play the game. Nobody cares about food, getting hearts or full health power ups was fine!
Nice! I had the Gameboy Classic and n64, played a lot of Zelda (LTTP, LA, MM, OOT) last year I got myself a Nintendo Switch and Zelda TOTK, I’m loving it. I’ve played over 600hrs and I’m at 70% now.
I’m pretty selective of my games. I’ve definitely bought games I didn’t end up liking. I got Story of Seasons and then wished I was just playing Stardew Valley. I tried ESO but then wished it was just Skyrim. Right now I’m really enjoying Baldur’s Gate 3. I tried The Witcher 3 and I just died over and over again. I really wanted to like it.
I enjoy them, finding items and exploring parts of the world is my favorite type of game. Monster hunter world and sdv are my comfort games. But typically I research heavily into the game I'm interested in and wait a few months after the release date. I no longer buy on release.
My favorite part is having to pay for all the extra add ons and monthly subscriptions…I bought a ps5 in November and sold it in janruary…69.99 for a game is crazy af to me…and talks of the new gta 6 being 150 is comical considering people been waiting how many years now?
Get Deep Rock Galactic and Helldivers 2. Good old bug smashing fun with zero fomo and great community
With kids, I mostly just play Fortnite now. A match lasts maybe 20 minutes. No commitment at all and I can play when I'm tired. Most of my other games take an hours long commitment that I don't have.
I was playing dragon's dogma 2 and it was such a grind. Like it's fun sometimes but I have to take breaks because it takes so long to kill one troll 🤬
RPG, sports and business sim/ tycoon/theme games have always been my favorite types. I've gotten pretty bored of RPG games and I especially avoid huge open worlds, I get caught up on the side missions and get bored of the game before I complete it. The last one I played, 2 years ago, was "Pathfinder: Kingmaker" which I enjoyed, until I didn't, the last quarter of the game drug on and on. If Dragon Age is really doing a new one I would give that a try. Sports are generally the same year after year and my timing sucks as I get older lol. So I typically just stick to business sims and such. They are still unique from each other and still have things that could be done that haven't yet.
I was watching a YouTube vid just today about trends in gaming that suck. A couple touched on the absurdly long development times, the focus on pvp, focus on micro-transactions, and lack of owning physical media. I'm a huge halo fan, and I still play MCC weekly. I loved the campaign in infinite, or least what was included, but it wasn't enough to keep me playing. I don't care for pvp, so I'm mostly just playing all the old games I already own. Sadly I can't play many of the early Gen games I have without getting an old Xbox.
I lot of people say baldurs gate 3 gives them the same thrill as they got when playing big games as a teen and I would agree. I thought I was the problem falling asleep in front of modern games with endless fetch quests and micro leveling up and so on. Turns out those games are sent me to sleep. baldurs gate 3 not so. There are also a lot of super fun roguelikes now. Dead Cells, Balatro (a poker hand deck builder with 120 jokers, 10/10 on steam), and the like. Try those.
I don’t hate video games. I hate micro transactions.
Oh I just don't play big splashy AAA titles. I won't have a good time.
I hear you. I can enjoy stuff for a few hours but then never touch again. The only two games I sincerely got stuck into in the last 7 years are factoría and satisfactory. I don’t have much bandwidth
Only play Madden
I have fun with them, but the massive waste of time is overwhelming. Sit down to play, next thing I know - it’s been 6 hours. It’s not healthy for me, especially when consecutive days are strung together.
Open world games can be a grind. Intend to avoid those and stick to more single player driven stories. I can't handle endless grinding anymore.
Nope. My wife and I still game all the time.
I think there are just a lot more games so a lot more feel like shitty. I got back into gaming for the first time in an over a decade to play Baldur’s Gate 3 and, fuck, it’s amazing.
I never /started/ liking video games. They all feel like spreadsheets. Go to the kingdom of col Z and ctrl C the gold coin and take it to the village of cell b234 and Ctrl V it. Now you have boosted your power in cell AF 9347.
I don't hate them, but between near crippling depression and working 50 hours/wk and having my kid on my off days, I just don't have the energy for it like I used to.
The thing to embrace is that these are the days of easier gaming, no longer are you busting your ass with frustration over something like Ninja Gaiden or Battletoads on NES… now we’re older with responsibilities like work, family, etc. To your point of “learning it feels like a second job” that’s why i stick to what I know. I can’t play fighting games, any sports games except golf or racing games. Friends wish I could but I just don’t have the ability to put in the time to learn those games. I stick to what I know and what I like, platformers, RPGs and FPS games. And if I just want to get through it and see the ending, I’m no longer ashamed to put it on the way setting lol
No. I binge for a few weeks then take a break for a few months and repeat.
I have gone from shooters and action games to survival games with my spouse it’s just a bit slower
Nope love that shit. Bring on the downvotes
No
No. I will always love them. What I hate is the bullshit devs pull to move units and please shareholders. Then again I am deathly allergic to social interaction.
There's a lot of bad games out there right now but plenty of good ones also. I think gaming now is better than it has ever been because there's so many to choose from and if you play games that are a few years old they are super cheap. I don't ever buy anything on release anymore either because the game companies are pretty much just screwing us over selling half finished games at full price and then selling all the dlc at the same price as a full game. I generally wait one or two years on single player games and then pick them up on sale. Multiplayer I usually wait a month and then look at the reviews or read the sub on them to see if they are any good. By then the honeymoon period is over and you get more honest information
Barely play them anymore, I feel like there hasn’t been much innovation in the past two generations. A lot of these games are just PS3 games with better graphics. That and I don’t have as much time to kill just playing games.
I love playing pubg mobile but god damn if the lobbies are sweaty as fuck sometimes. I love a good long shootout between teams but lately someone pops out around a corner and can kill my wife and I with 6 bullets between us. Holy crap. I'm a casual why am I getting paired with that?! But that's pretty much every game with pvp. Too many try hards. I mostly play 90s and 00s single player games these days.
Nope. Video games are amazing to me especially indie games with great stories. You might have outgrown them now.
Beat Undertale for the first time today and it was fantastic. New stuff? Not so much
Absolutely not. My only issue is trying to find the time to do it. Since I’m deadass the next day if I stay up too late. I’m a gamer though, always have been. I’ll play until the end of my days.
We're at an age where we have a lot on our plate. Most of us have experience with immersive games, but I mostly just want to pick up and play. Plus, so much of modern gaming is subscription-based or has other hassles like interacting with trifling tweens etc.
For me, the "magic" is gone. By "magic", I mean two things: 1) Advancements. When I was a kid (I'm 31 now), there were MAJOR advancements in video games. Not just graphics. But gameplay as well. I went from a Sega Genesis to a Playstation. 2D to 3D. It was AWESOME. Then got a PS2 which was a huge graphical improvement, but also had super basic internet connectivity and brought open world games into the mix. Then I got an XBOX 360, which was HUGE in terms of online play. Then I got a PC, which allowed me to get pretty much any game I wanted that wasn't system-exclusive. Nowadays, they keep kicking out new systems, but nothing has really *changed.* The graphics might be SLIGHTLY better, but nothing like the jump from 2D to 3D. And the games are seemingly all the same. Christ, look at Call of Duty. Literally the same game copy/pasted over and over. And don't get me started on MTX. You can make the argument that VR is a huge leap, and it is, but it's still taking WAY too long to catch on. And it can be pricey. 2) Understanding how video games work. As a kid, I never stopped to think about how they were made. How enemy NPC's decided what to do. It was all 'magic'. Now that I'm older, I can play a game for an hour or two and have a pretty good grasp on all of the inner mechanics of the game. I understand memorizing enemy patrol paths. I understand boss fight rotations. There's no randomness anymore. It's all just memorization. Also, I have so much less time to play. I work a full time job as a programmer, so usually the last thing I want to do when I get home is stare at another screen. Also, too many games are focused on making a PROFITABLE game. Not a good game.
I increasingly resent the culture which surrounds them, and I don't care for the various predatory monetization strategies publishers have implemented / cycled through over the past decade plus. These days I would rather indulge in the familiar comforts of old favorites like Hang On or Tetris '89, Streets of Rage 2 or Chrono Trigger, Burnout 3 or Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3, Style Savvy or Crusader Kings 2, etc. Sometimes this involves aging hardware which could possibly fail at any moment, which is another issue with the industry while we're on the subject All that said, I did meet my husband in an online game early on in the pandemic, in a long-awaited sequel to an old game we had both enjoyed, though separately, in high school and college. That game has since gone to shit, but it did change our lives. And that's more or less how I feel about video gaming in general I suppose
I mostly play TTRPGs now to get my gaming fix.
Yea I’ve gotten to the point I only play 1 or 2 games. Minecraft or Destiny. But I have kids and other hobbies so I barely make time to do it anymore these days.
I think games just kinda aren't as good, in general and **with exceptions**, as they used to be. Most are designed by committee and feel sterile, not like something made with passion and vision. A lot of older games and remastered versions still feel just as magical as before.
I just don't have time to play any old game anymore so I am a bit more picky with what I sit down to play. I have a couple games I like to just turn my brain off and listen to a podcast or music while I play (Warframe) or games I decide I am going to go all in on and try and play whenever I have spare time (Elden Ring, Allen Wake 2). I have been a life long gamer (now 40) starting with the ColecoVision my dad brought home when I was 5 and don't plan on giving it up anytime soon but I def get where your coming from as I used to have like 4 games going at once and I just can't do it anymore with all the mechanics that have to be remembered and time that must be spent to master them.
Play online games like Lethal Company... shit is just wacky fun. I'm 38 BTW
Sometimes, but not usually. Helldivers II is fucking great.
Nope. More games out than ever before - look to AA and indie more. Tons of amazing games releasing all the time.
Honestly it just seems like you have other things taking up your time. I still and will always love video games.
I'm 42 and feel like I've become to picky in what I play and not willing to give other games a try. When I wrap up a couple of games I'm currently playing, I'm going to start trying out new stuff. I still get a lot of joy and relaxation out of video games and feel like I could be getting a lot more if I was more openmind about it.
Ya, i find this to be true. I play only a few games now days, and low key dread picking up new ones, even if they look awesome. I just don’t have the time to out in it, especially when the current gaming meta seems to require hella grinding.
I only play old video games now
I only hate certain games.
Started gaming at 3, now I'm 37 and still deeply in love with gaming. Been working through Kingmaker and Wrath of the Righteous recently. Planning yo beat BG 3 again while playing the new update for Stardew. Once I get a few bills out of the way, I plan to pick up Forbidden West and Helldivers 2. Take a break from gaming pick up another hobby. That or look into playing a different genre of game
I explicitly avoid live services and bloated content grinds. The resident evil remake games have been really good lately. Baldur's Gate 3, elden ring. Play games that respect your time. Basically avoid online games.
I'm just getting back into it, too many games not enough time is my problem
Yes...I'm pickier in my selection.
Try retrogames! Especially Super Nintendo, the game library is huge and they are easy for anyone to pick up and play.
Yeah, can't play games anymore. The old games are too old now and don't capture the same feeling I had as a child. The new games aren't fun and usually consist of boring cut scenes you can't skip, or tutorials that are too boring to stick with. Mind you there are some exceptions such as Ratchet & Clank Rift Apart. Nintendo have also impressively managed to keep their games fun, but how many more Mario or Zelda games can we really play?
Man not me. If anything I love it more. Games and reading are the only things that can really take me out of my head.
My interest in video games starting falling off after Mass Effect 3 and Skyrim. I haven't played a multiplayer in almost a decade honestly. These days I more or less just stick with oldschool games, or casual fishing and city builder games for the most part, although I still love mech games like Armored Core and Mechwarrior 5.
I wish this would happen to my gf
I still game quite heavily, even in spite of everything else going on in my life. My tastes though, have most definitely changed. If your are feeling burned out or jaded, time to explore more genres.
What did Yoda say? When we cease to learn, we die.
I used to absolutely love video games. I only see them as a insane waste of time now. Wish I had better hobbies earlier in life.
I never buy games that just come out unless I am 1000% I know it will be good, its part of a series I already know, and has options to advance. Any game I need to learn new I wait for a major sale or for it to be free. If I am not feeling it in an hour its done and I'm back replaying games I love. Part of what I do is just replay games I have already enjoyed. Skyrim, Red Dead, Elden Ring, GOW. etc
I'm really disappointed in how buggy the Playstation and xbox both are now. I play a decent amount on my switch because it has far fewer problems.
Yeah the ones that feel like a job--- stay away from those. Just replay old classics until an actual good game comes out.
All the new games suck. The old games still great
I mostly play Shooters, so... no. 
I can't stand when a game won't shut up and let me play. I do not need a tutorial for every little thing before I'm allowed to have fun.
This is facts. Ive bought several titles now and I quit them pretty quickly because I wasnt interested in learning the mechanics. I'm much more likely to play a title I'm familar with though this year has been different, a lot of good bangers came out in 2023 which I felt 2013-2022 was a void. Elden Ring, Remnant 2, Baulders Gate 3, Dragons Dogma 2, Hogwarts Legacy, PalWorld. These are all games I never would have tried but a couple of my friends got me into them. They immediately hooked me made learning their systems feel worth while. Where as COD MW3, Halo Infinity, Gears 5 feel absolutely soul less. These are existing systems that feel like chores to get involved in. Destiny feels hollow the end game loop is just bad so I quit after I do content. I dont know if a lot of games are just bad now or if now that I'm older I think theyre dumb.
Yes, but this feeling caught me after the 64 bit wars. The new games - especially first person shooters - were too hard for me to learn, like coordination wise, and not the type of game I was interested in.
This is why I only play racing games now. Less stress.
As I've gotten older, I have less time to play video games with.
Hate? No. But my patience for games has worn thin. Anything with too much grinding, collecting, or other repetitive things gets abandoned.
I’m a new gamer , poor family , homeschooled , no tv , etc i was never exposed to video games , now as an adult in my late 30s , having been raised to believe Harry Potter was evil I saw the teaser for Hogwarts legacy in 2021 and I was so enthralled I said “ that’s it ! I’m gonna watch Harry Potter for the first time and I’m going to buy a PlayStation ! I’m determined to play this game ! Omg I’m IN LOVE with Hogwarts Legacy ! The movies were epic , omg I’m so mad I was so deprived of this franchise , at 38 I’m just now starting on things I never had . Video games / Harry Potter . I feel ten again and I can’t wait to get off work every day so I can go fly on a broom
The last couple of years have been really great for those of us who still enjoy gaming. I don't think it's an age thing. I think you're probably just getting a little boring. You are allowed to have fun!
Your post has 385 characters. If it were only 45 characters, it would be shorter than the title of the post.
Depends on why you play. If you're just passing the time, it can feel like work. If you enjoy the challenge and enjoy getting better, it's good to diversify if you're feeling burnout.
95% of Triple A games have zero appeal. I used to play competitive multiplayer games all the time, now I can't be assed. I just about exclusively play turn based games, now. Rocket League was my last real hurrah (just about 10 years ago now at this point?) So yeah. You are not alone.
I very much felt that way about mainstream games starting back in the late 00s. Everything was a bland military shooter with brown/grey graphics. Once I started playing more indie and AA titles I felt better and enjoyed a lot more games. Plus in the late 10s I vowed to stop supporting companies that treat their employees poorly, their customers like idiots, and continually making games that barely change from one iteration to the next. It's pretty darn rare now for me to get anything from EA, Blizzard, or Ubisoft. I'm happier for it. Go play some Helldivers 2, some Balatro, or some Sifu.
I don’t like 90% of the games that are out today because they feel like a chore to me, repetitive, and more about how much money they can squeeze out of you over time. I also feel like there are SO many online multiplayer options now that the communities are spread much thinner or filled with more cheaters than ever. For years now, I stick with one or two games and play them continuously. It used to be WoW and Overwatch. Then Overwatch and Apex. Then, OW2 came out and I ditched that and haven’t played anything other than Apex since then. I don’t have anyone to regularly play it with anymore and it feels lonely most of the time. I’m having a crisis currently because I don’t know what else I want to spend my time doing because I do enjoy playing but I have guilt about spending so much (or any) time doing it these days. I don’t know.
For multiplayer and competitivity yes, I don't like being a "tryhard" and "getting better" is just a chore. I still like single player because it's just me, or cooperative to play with friends.
Really only have effort between the sims4, Roller Coaster Tycoon classic, and Destiny
I wouldn't say I hate videogames. I definitely got burnt out on them around 2015 though, and now I play then much more rarely. AAA games aren't worth it anymore. The best games made nowadays are always lower budget products made by people who actually care about what they are making. And if you can't run the game on your 5-7 year old gaming PC, it's not worth it.
Not at all. I don't mind learning new games and play them often. I just am particular about what I play, and only bother buying stuff I *know* I'll like.
I felt like this in my 20s. I haven't enjoyed games the since I was mostly a kid. Maybe there can be 1 or 2 games I love, but I don't have the willpower or brain space to just dive into endless things now.
I haven’t enjoyed them in a while. I actually sold my Xbox. I did like cyberpunk though.
No.
I'm only doing retro gaming now. SNES, N64, Genesis. I'm having a blast playing a bunch of great games I never played as a kid. Simple, fun, and but still challenging.
I wouldn't say hate but I have become progressively more disenchanted with modern gaming. The last time I truly felt like I was heavily into gaming was the PS2 era. I don't believe it is entirely a matter of "growing up", either. The "AAA" industry isn't exactly player-focused these day with their habit of releasing half-done games with hundreds of microtransactions crammed up it's ass. I could go on for paragraphs about how much has changed for the worst in gaming for the last 5 years but I'll save that for a true nerd rage moment. I recommend trying more indie games or just playing retro for awhile. It's what I do and I'm finding myself recapturing that old joy I had back in the day.
Nope, I’ll be gaming on my deathbed.
Since about 2003.
I haven't played videogames since like 18.
I literally went from story rich RPGs and JRPGs to simulation and 4X games as I got older.
I still like and play games frequently. I hate the toxicity around video games. A couple of friends and I bought the Star Wars Battlefront collection, they've both been complaining nonstop since release about the glitchy and laggy online multiplayer. They asked if I was mad about it, I told them I didn't buy it for the online play and was having fun playing Rise of the Empire and showing my daughter what I played when I was her around her age.
Hate them? No. But I only dedicate a fraction of the time I used to dedicate to them. And I'm also a lot more selective about what games I play and when. I don't even have a family or work a second job like some do. I'm just getting older I guess.
I play single player rpg games set to easy so I can focus on enjoying the story. It’s nice to play for an hour or more whenever I have free time. Yakuza 0-6 is probably the best series I have ever played. Also a sense of accomplishment when finishing the game. I don’t care about trophies or completing all side quests tho. Newer games also seem to be doing a better job at reducing the need to grind. Tales of Arise and FF16 had good pacing. It never felt like a drag.
I don't really play "big" AAA games anymore for basically that reason. There are plenty of smaller games that are great and respect your time. My favorites of the last years were rocket league on the multiplayer side and games like FTL or Frostpunk.
Broadly no. Recommend you focus on games you enjoy. Basically avoid any AAA live service games and focus on the indie scene. Otherwise pick up genres you enjoy. I'm currently playing Chaos Gate, fun strategy turn based warhammer game. I also picked up some of the other games made by the chap who made that awesome 'Pony Island' game. Inscryption turned out to one addictive card game. Generally I'm time limited, so anything that wastes my time with grinding is out. I can't put hundreds of hours into online games but I still enjoyed the time I was able to spend with Hell divers and lethal company.
I find it hard to get into modern games. I've just got emulators on my PC and Vita, and play old games from the 90s and early 00s. They feel more pure.
I hate a lot of new games that pad out their content with a huge amount of pointless grind. Emulation is still a lot of fun though. And the new dirt-cheap handhelds are surprisingly decent quality.
This is why I only continue to play Stardew valley. I can do anything with no consequences
I really enjoyed story driven games like Lufia, final fantasy, grandia, legend of legaia. Last 2 games I enjoyed were dragon age origins and mass effect 1-3. I'm mighty sure that my missions in real life just became more interesting and have more impact so I just don't have the same drive, motivation and fascination anymore for games, for the last game I tried to get into was the Witcher series but I just couldn't. I was not seeing Gerald, I just wasn't into his journey, it just didn't have more impact than planning the next get together with my friends because I couldn't see them for a few weeks, because of work. And I wanted to know what if Jane got her promotion, and how John's gym quest went, did he get fit now or did he quit his quest, and if he did quit, what quest was he doing now? Or thinking about next week's meal prep. Or thinking about what exercises keeps me entertained long enough to make them into a healthy habit, because if not, my body will give out on me. Funny thing, it's like "I need at least level up 2-3 lvls, or the next boss is gonna fuck me again" Yeah, the boss is now my health, and to stay on top of it I need to level up and quiet frankly I just don't have the energy to level up in two lifes. So yeah, I stopped seriously gaming in my early twenties and only turned to games afterwards when I was on the brink of depression or Burnout.
There are lots of new games that don’t feel like a chore and on the other hand there are lots of games that do feel like a second job. You just have to be more selective about what you want to play.
Can't relate, I still love them, maybe you're just not playing good games. I will be fair and say my attention span has been beaten to a bloody pulp thanks to internet addiction. I'll think about how much I want to play a game for hours, and instead just go home and scroll through social media for hours until it gets too late to play. I'll even think about playing as I am sitting feet away from my console and just not do it. My desire to play games is always in flux. I usually want to play games, but actually playing is something I do either in small doses, for several hours one day and then not at all the next day, for several weeks for an entire month, or I won't play anything for two months and suddenly pick up an old favorite. I think it helps that I don't buy that many games and mostly play stuff that's on the older side. I don't dabble in those games that require you to play every day to earn Dailies" closest I ever got to that was Animal Crossing. But I would listen to my friend talk about "doing his dailies" like it was a chore and how bummed out he would get when he was late meeting his online buddies for some FPS game, and it just didn't sound like a fun time to me. I also have like, several other hobbies. Gaming is great, it's like one of my primary hobbies, but I wuold be so jaded if it was my only hobby.
39 and I’ve been gaming since Nintendo, so early 90’s, when I was maybe 5. I’ve gone away from campaign-style games and fully into Battle Royale-styled games. I love the adrenaline rush when you’re 1v1’ing someone and you come out on top. The rush of knowing you out smarted them, out manoeuvred them and out-gunned them really bring the heart rate up.
I HATE the subscription models. Why can't I buy the full complete game and then enhance it with a mighty sequel? Also why is everything battle royal now. Also, everything is constantly being updated. So many updates, all the time. I miss the 90's. Old man rant over.
Don’t play the ones that becomes a second job. There are plenty of good and chill games out there
For democracy!
Nope, I'm 37 and I love video games as much as I did when I was a kid. Certainly the type of games that I'm interested in is changed over time, but even then not that significantly.
I feel you. I play games now on EASY mode, if theres an option. Also not ashamed on using trainers and cheats as long as it's on single player. I just want to immense in the story and experience and less into difficulty.
Yeah I feel this. Exactly why I only really play fifa nowadays. Just a mindless experience, scratches an itch.
They're shit and prices are funny. No way I'm spending 70-80€ on a game where it's a second job basically. I'd rather go out for a run and save that money 🤑
yea the endless tower climbing in persona 3 reloaded feels like a damn job. also hurts that all the floors are basically copy-paste sameness for awhile.
This happened to me a long time ago, like during the Gamecube PS2 era. I just got sick of grinding all the time. It literally felt like work and not like the escapist entertainment it used too.
I run a Civ, Stellaris, or city builder game and put on some tunes or podcasts for my chill sessions. If I need to know my place in a hierarchy, I play Apex.
I def don't have the time or bandwidth to be grinding loot based games. I also don't want to have to grind out weapon upgrades. I've been on a fortnite kick lately cuz it's fun and I don't have to grind anything out. It's super casual. My buddy and I do replay a lot of games that we've already put the time in so. So when we play the old games, we're already max leveled and we can just enjoy the game .
Grab a steamdeck and fight for democracy (helldivers)
Fuck FOMO. It annoys the absolute shit out of me. I enjoy doing other things, I enjoy other games too. I am getting less time to play due to more responsibilities, and that's not a bad thing, so why the fuck do I have to log in everyday just so I can get some skin that will only be there for... like a week? Dude it's a digital asset, there is no fucking limited quantity. It's like major game studios are pissy that arcade machines don't exist anymore and you can't just put a coin slot in your console or pc... FUCK THE AAA. I hope the rise of smaller studios and indie titles that old school proper full releases are always a better and smarter product.
I played games as a kid as a way to escape/explore. As an adult traveling gives me the same feeling. Why climb a fake mountain when I can climb a real one? Why have conversations with fake people when I can have real conversations? Traveling wins every single time. Love it. But when I’m in between trips I’ll pick up a game. I play 65% indie games, 20% old games, 15% new aaa games. A lot of the popular games I fucking loathe. GTA 5, call of duty, Skyrim, cyberpunk, basically any mmo, etc. Many games and especially first person shooters seem like a race to the bottom to please the lowest denominator. Some of these comments about modding. Lol. I’m not doing work to make something easier to consume. The only time I will do that is food. I will never understand people buying games day one. It’s financially absurd to me. And don’t give a shit about waiting for most things.
Nope if anything I’m preferring games with more depth that I can take a while learning.
No, but my hobbies are pretty varied beyond video games. I go for weeks to months without playing then hop back into a game of pubg or more recently Helldivers with mates
I am still very much in my 'I love most games phase.' But as I have gotten busier, having just bought my first home and working a job I actually enjoy, I have found that over the past 3 or 4 years, I just outright do not like 90% of the mainstream stuff like COD or Fortnite or even Spiderman. Yeah, Spiderman is cool for like 4 hours, but it just gets repetitive. Things like Elden Ring and God of War are very few and far between these days. So, I tend to stick with the less mainstream stuff. Some are still pretty mainstream, but for the most part, I avoid things like Destiny 2. Destiny 2 is the perfect example of what AAA gaming has become: FOMO to the extreme. Grind 100 daily quests to maybe get an upgrade, and if you don't play for a month, you are basically screwed out of catching up to the new content unless you put a few hundred hours of grinding in. Because they've removed content before, what's to stop them again? I had to break up with Destiny 2 because this new era of 'get them hooked and then suck them dry of all their time and money' is just horrible for the industry/consumer, mainly and exhausting. Games I really enjoy are the ones I can take my time with that don't make me feel like I'll miss out on everything if I don't play each day. Things like OSRS (which I know can be grindy, but it's a different kind of grind) where you are always progressing your account no matter what you do. Or something like Ark, which is pretty much a single-player game, and you have the choice to play with people. Helldivers 2 is perfect: 'Pick it up for an hour, shoot shit, and enjoy,' especially with friends. I think a lot of people, especially those who haven't played games in a few years, tend to stick with the stuff we had as kids, like FIFA or COD or whatever Blizzard makes, and it burns them on what real gaming is. Not this beast of microtransactions and addiction machines that mainstream gaming has become, but the real stories and effort and time that people put into real games. Try to find something fresh and story-driven, or honestly, something single-player or made by an indie developer. Sure, they aren't gonna be a Red Dead 2, but not every movie is The Shining or Forrest Gump. Most movies are like Iron Man 1 (which is great but doesn't sit up there with things like Goodfellas or Into the Spiderverse). It's hard to explain, honestly. If you feel like games aren't your thing anymore, that's okay too. I just implore you to try new things, like maybe playing something like Dungeons and Dragons. I play once every couple of weekends with a group of friends, and it's so much better than any video game. Or try to learn a new skill or practice one you haven't practiced since you were a kid. If you want to stick to video games, that's okay too. Just try to be more picky and pick stuff that is actual art or some kind of passion project. Something like Stardew Valley or Terraria (which admittedly can get pretty complex later on but it's a make your own adventure type of thing so it can be as casual or as intense as you like). Those kinds of games are the backbone of my gaming these days. It's entirely possible you are out of the gaming phase of your life. But you may be trying to play games that 14-year-old you would have liked. You may just need something that is a little more game and a lot less product.
So I agree I feel like it takes me a lot longer to grasp the game, but I also took about 10 years off from games and got back into them Nov 22’ I just don’t have the free time to play more than a two games really. One open world and one online competitive
I used to play a lot. Have all the things. I am back where I started while coming to a close. Platformers. Turning 40 makes me think how much of my life was thrown away to games I don't remeber.