Losing interest in playing games but not gaming...?

Post by **jrod1986** » Thu Mar 13, 2008 9:11 pm

Hey Guys,

For over the past year or so I've noticed an interesting trend in my life as far as games go. I now tend to play games in short bursts and usually I'll never pick them up again. Mario Galaxy is a recent example. I got it soon after it came out, played around a bit and haven't touched it for weeks. About the only games I play with any regularity anymore (again, in short bursts) are sports games.

Anyways, when I was younger up until the age of eighteen or so I would almost always beat all my games entirely. Infact, I would usually always be playing a game if I had some spare time. I played anything from RPGs to Puzzles, to sports--I liked it all. A couple years later though I noticed the said change. It seemed to coincide with the time I arrived in college.

In any case, I find myself a 22 year old college student trying to finish his degree with very little time to play games. The thing is though, I don't think it's just the lack of time that's led to my current gaming trend. I still enjoy reading about/writing about/discussing games (hence, why I'm here) so now I pose this question.

Am I getting 'old' or outgrowing games? Or is it just a time/priority issue? Pullmyfinger touched on this in the other topic and I agree that a lot of us at this point in our lives may just enjoy discussing gaming more than playing the actual games. Either way, I'd appreciate any feedback. I'm definitely happy with where I'm at in life, but at the same time I wonder what caused this change.

Post by **vlame** » Thu Mar 13, 2008 9:17 pm

this is happening to me right now as well. i more of a collector now than a player. i have a ds and started phoenix wright ( i beat part 1 am on part 2), hotel dusk, trauma center, zelda, i just can't finish one of them. last game i truly beat was svc card fighters. maybe it's a college disease.

Post by **Scooter** » Thu Mar 13, 2008 10:18 pm

I started gaming in my 20's and now I'm 46. I go through bursts of playing a lot and then not for quite a while. I wish I had time to play more but life has its priorities and gaming isn't always at the top. About once a month I go see a friend and we game all day long. It's a great time for both of us. I probably spend more time on discussion board and ebay talking about gaming and searching for collectible games and hardware to add to my collection than I do actually gaming, but these things go in cycles. When you feel like playing you'll do it and if time is hard to find you'll make time if you really WANT to.

Get your degree and a good job. That's a lot more important than beating the latest game!

Post by **peace4myheart** » Thu Mar 13, 2008 10:29 pm

I think it is partly due to age with all the accompanied responsibilites and perhaps also due to gaming burn out. Gaming is like a drug man. The first hit, during our younger years, is always the best. After the initial shot, you need more to get the same sensation, more excitement, more stimulation. Just a part of the human experience. Just a part of life. This is why divorce rate is so high in this country, not due to gaming, but due to human being's adaptive nature leading to boredom.

I don't know about you but I get distracted very easily nowaday, partly due to age, partly due to life. I can't seem to play RPG for too long now without getting bored unless they are really engaging, i.e. a game with a real cool story like Persona 3. I am afraid to admit it, but I think I have turned into a casual gamer and am going back to my roots. I like to play games in spurt now too. That's why I am playing more and more fighting games and shmups, 30 minutes to 1 hour at a time.

Post by **Mozgus** » Thu Mar 13, 2008 10:36 pm

We're all getting to, or have gotten to that point in our lives.

Post by **aaron** » Thu Mar 13, 2008 11:10 pm

yeah this is a pretty common occurrence with everyone who is into gaming. i just compensate for it by downloading a shitload of games i'll probably never play.

Post by **raztat** » Thu Mar 13, 2008 11:34 pm

Ive been there before. I quit gaming for quite some time when the xbox was around. What got me back to gaming was a buddy wanting to play some diablo 2 with me. I always try to fit a hour of gaming in my day. I have about 6 free hours of the day when im not working, sleeping, or doing school shit, but most of it is on the forums, ebay, or with a friend then it is with gaming. Im growing out of my 360 and going back to my roots, genesis and snes.

Post by **retro_gammer79** » Fri Mar 14, 2008 8:22 am

I struggle with this exact problem all the time. What is is playing a retro game you loved as a kid and now as an adult it isn't as cool as you remember. I know what you mean though with Mario Galaxy I play a few levels an hour or so and I am good for the day. However, a good RPG different story. I also have this problem with MMO's online as well. Was heavily into wow then went to LOTRO and now going back to WOW. I think as we get older has have less of an attention span and gets harder to hold our interests.

Post by **Pullmyfinger** » Fri Mar 14, 2008 12:37 pm

I have that problem, now that I finished school and work for a living I hardly have time for gaming and end up casual games or games I am familiar with.

I haven't been able to play an RPG in years, since I don't play often I usually get lost in the story, when I get to the level grinding parts I lose all motivation to play, if I have an hour or two to spare, it just doesn't feel right to spend it walking around a grassy hill killing the same monster 30 times to level up.

Lately I've been playing mostly online games on the DS, a quick match of puyo puyo, a couple battles of advance wars, maybe a round of zelda, anything quick without cutscenes.

Post by **racketboy** » Fri Mar 14, 2008 12:48 pm

I think it's just part of being an adult.
Once I had a lot of other things in life I had to manage, playing games became a lower priority.
I'm always saying that I enjoy talking about games more than actually playing them.

I'm almost a little nervous about joining in on some of the activities at Momocon as I don't practice enough to be a really skilled gamer in a lot of genres. Some people would assume if I run a gaming site I would be a really good gamer, but that isn't the case

I'm hoping the game club with help with that -- it should help broaden some of my horizons and help me devote more time to games without throwing the rest of my life out of balance.