Too lazy to play games?
Discussion
TameRacingDriver said:
although I am useless, so sometimes I also find it frustrating and turn it off. Perhaps games now are too hard and demand too much attention, practice and concentration? When I grew up many games were a joystick, 8 directions and a fire button. Now you seem to have to learn about 50 different buttons.
This, nail on the head for me. I am crap at games. I just cannot seem to be able to master the controllers, XBox or PS.I'm 40, and I really struggle with games now, I want to like them, and I want to play them, but I'm just no good at them. I never play online, as I just end up getting killed, or losing the race. I really want to be good at GT6, GTA5, Project Cars etc, but i'm just not.
Its like teaching Granny to program the VCR...she just couldn't work it out.
I find I enjoy games like Cities:Skylines now, but then I play on it for a while, and I start to feel like i've wasted loads of time, and I should have been doing something else.
I feel the same, and am 42.
I do think a lot is to do with we are pretty much the first generation to have grown up with home gaming from an early age, so there is a big element of seen it, done it now. Yes technology moves on, but the core of the experience is the same - all that is happening is that the technology is replacing the imagination in terms of filling in the blanks around the game environments.
Take Elite: Dangerous - technically light years (no pun) ahead of the original, but I'd wager most people will have played it far less than they did the original despite all the eye candy. Because it's all been done before, just without the glitz.
What we need now, to keep older gamers hooked, is innovation- something new. Not just better graphics, sound and super duper HD resolutions. Work on the stories, interaction and AI both behind and in games and it keeps peoples interest. Rehashing 20 / 30 year old concepts doesn't work for longevity, though of course will hook the younger audience who are seeing it fresh.
It's only competitive (loosely termed) online games that keep my attention now (gotta show the whelps who is the daddy), or strong story based single players (firewatch I enjoyed, everybody's gone to the rapture was good too).
Don't feel guilty about gaming though - met wife through it and she is as bad for it as me
I do think a lot is to do with we are pretty much the first generation to have grown up with home gaming from an early age, so there is a big element of seen it, done it now. Yes technology moves on, but the core of the experience is the same - all that is happening is that the technology is replacing the imagination in terms of filling in the blanks around the game environments.
Take Elite: Dangerous - technically light years (no pun) ahead of the original, but I'd wager most people will have played it far less than they did the original despite all the eye candy. Because it's all been done before, just without the glitz.
What we need now, to keep older gamers hooked, is innovation- something new. Not just better graphics, sound and super duper HD resolutions. Work on the stories, interaction and AI both behind and in games and it keeps peoples interest. Rehashing 20 / 30 year old concepts doesn't work for longevity, though of course will hook the younger audience who are seeing it fresh.
It's only competitive (loosely termed) online games that keep my attention now (gotta show the whelps who is the daddy), or strong story based single players (firewatch I enjoyed, everybody's gone to the rapture was good too).
Don't feel guilty about gaming though - met wife through it and she is as bad for it as me
Its a generation thing clearly
44 years old, got a PS1 when it was new and stuck with it until PS3....
Ridge Racer
Tomb Raider
Call of Duty
and of course the GT series.
Always amazing, but equally always with rubbish sound.
By the time I had a PS3 and GT4 I had bought a Game-racer seat and Logitech wheel, pedals and gearstick..... Once I'd reached my level...and got bored, it all now collects dust as there appears to have been no suitable leaps in game play or experience.
Roll on convincing VR, and make it quick!
44 years old, got a PS1 when it was new and stuck with it until PS3....
Ridge Racer
Tomb Raider
Call of Duty
and of course the GT series.
Always amazing, but equally always with rubbish sound.
By the time I had a PS3 and GT4 I had bought a Game-racer seat and Logitech wheel, pedals and gearstick..... Once I'd reached my level...and got bored, it all now collects dust as there appears to have been no suitable leaps in game play or experience.
Roll on convincing VR, and make it quick!
I can empathise with a lot of posters on here. Except I think I have a wider problem of having forgotten how to spend free time.
By the time everything is done and the kids are asleep I have maybe a couple of hours where I can do what I want. However I find myself just sitting around in a sort of stunned silence, maybe staring at Facebook posts or answering work emails on my phone. By the time I've mustered the energy to switch on the PlayStation or the PC and load anything up it's too late and I shuffle off to bed.
I often have thoughts of buying a new game and putting aside some time to really "get into" it. I then find myself flicking through my Steam account in dismay as I realise that the play time on all these expensive new games is the length of time it takes to load the game up and start the tutorial bit (i.e. about 5 mins...)
Not sure what the answer is.
By the time everything is done and the kids are asleep I have maybe a couple of hours where I can do what I want. However I find myself just sitting around in a sort of stunned silence, maybe staring at Facebook posts or answering work emails on my phone. By the time I've mustered the energy to switch on the PlayStation or the PC and load anything up it's too late and I shuffle off to bed.
I often have thoughts of buying a new game and putting aside some time to really "get into" it. I then find myself flicking through my Steam account in dismay as I realise that the play time on all these expensive new games is the length of time it takes to load the game up and start the tutorial bit (i.e. about 5 mins...)
Not sure what the answer is.
RTB said:
I can empathise with a lot of posters on here. Except I think I have a wider problem of having forgotten how to spend free time.
By the time everything is done and the kids are asleep I have maybe a couple of hours where I can do what I want. However I find myself just sitting around in a sort of stunned silence, maybe staring at Facebook posts or answering work emails on my phone. By the time I've mustered the energy to switch on the PlayStation or the PC and load anything up it's too late and I shuffle off to bed.
Sounds very familiar.By the time everything is done and the kids are asleep I have maybe a couple of hours where I can do what I want. However I find myself just sitting around in a sort of stunned silence, maybe staring at Facebook posts or answering work emails on my phone. By the time I've mustered the energy to switch on the PlayStation or the PC and load anything up it's too late and I shuffle off to bed.
Chris Type R said:
RTB said:
I can empathise with a lot of posters on here. Except I think I have a wider problem of having forgotten how to spend free time.
By the time everything is done and the kids are asleep I have maybe a couple of hours where I can do what I want. However I find myself just sitting around in a sort of stunned silence, maybe staring at Facebook posts or answering work emails on my phone. By the time I've mustered the energy to switch on the PlayStation or the PC and load anything up it's too late and I shuffle off to bed.
Sounds very familiar.By the time everything is done and the kids are asleep I have maybe a couple of hours where I can do what I want. However I find myself just sitting around in a sort of stunned silence, maybe staring at Facebook posts or answering work emails on my phone. By the time I've mustered the energy to switch on the PlayStation or the PC and load anything up it's too late and I shuffle off to bed.
. What is wrong with us? 
The time thing is an interesting one, and I think maybe that is *part* of the problem. Although I don't have kids, I do have a partner, and she's not into games at all (save for Bejeweled or Solitaire on an ipad), and although she doesn't mind me having some "me time", I'm pretty sure she'd be on my case if I were spending hours gaming.
Another post from earlier today rung a chord with me. I actually lost interest in games a while ago, and didn't have a computer capable of playing any for quite a few years. Then I decided I missed it and thats when I got my current rig. Except I've had for probably over 2 years now and I dare say I haven't even racked up 100 hours of play time in the whole 2 years, which seems like such a waste of money.
The thing I understand even less is the fact I am a petrolhead with a great system and steering wheel and pedals, and yet I still CBA to use it, when in fact I should probably love this sort of thing. I only occasionally do a couple of practice laps on the 'ring in a couple of different cars on Project Cars before quitting and not playing again for months.
Another post from earlier today rung a chord with me. I actually lost interest in games a while ago, and didn't have a computer capable of playing any for quite a few years. Then I decided I missed it and thats when I got my current rig. Except I've had for probably over 2 years now and I dare say I haven't even racked up 100 hours of play time in the whole 2 years, which seems like such a waste of money.
The thing I understand even less is the fact I am a petrolhead with a great system and steering wheel and pedals, and yet I still CBA to use it, when in fact I should probably love this sort of thing. I only occasionally do a couple of practice laps on the 'ring in a couple of different cars on Project Cars before quitting and not playing again for months.
Old Tyke said:
+ another. Some days when I'm not working I get absolutely nothing done, just sat on the PC browsing forums and gazing out of the window in a bit of a trance. Before I know what's happened, the whole day has gone and it's time to go to bed again . What is wrong with us?
+1 for me, I also do this. What IS wrong with us indeed?!. What is wrong with us? We're 'that age' and 'that generation'
family or partners provide a big part of the answer...but I don't even have that for an excuse
What did our dads do of an evening/weekend/free time?
mine fixed stuff around the house mainly, or planned holidays with family/friends with the caravan...
family or partners provide a big part of the answer...but I don't even have that for an excuse
What did our dads do of an evening/weekend/free time?
mine fixed stuff around the house mainly, or planned holidays with family/friends with the caravan...
bstb3 said:
Take Elite: Dangerous - technically light years (no pun) ahead of the original, but I'd wager most people will have played it far less than they did the original despite all the eye candy. Because it's all been done before, just without the glitz.
With me the issue with Elite Dangerous was that it takes sooooo long to get a decent ship, travel is way to slow especially if you have a lower ship and there are clans that shut down entire systems on a whim. Not a game for the casual player and far too involved for me to get into properly.Old Tyke said:
Chris Type R said:
RTB said:
I can empathise with a lot of posters on here. Except I think I have a wider problem of having forgotten how to spend free time.
By the time everything is done and the kids are asleep I have maybe a couple of hours where I can do what I want. However I find myself just sitting around in a sort of stunned silence, maybe staring at Facebook posts or answering work emails on my phone. By the time I've mustered the energy to switch on the PlayStation or the PC and load anything up it's too late and I shuffle off to bed.
Sounds very familiar.By the time everything is done and the kids are asleep I have maybe a couple of hours where I can do what I want. However I find myself just sitting around in a sort of stunned silence, maybe staring at Facebook posts or answering work emails on my phone. By the time I've mustered the energy to switch on the PlayStation or the PC and load anything up it's too late and I shuffle off to bed.
. What is wrong with us? In my youth I love Tomb Raider or Gran Tourismo, now I just don't seem to be able to get into it at all, and the odd thing is my lad is 15 and I find him playing FIFA for hours possibly the most annoying thing in the world for some reason!
I know exactly what you mean. I'm 31 now and with a wife and a 50hr a week job I find I don't have the time to invest in the games I want. I've barely touched Fallout 4 and have been trying to finish off skyrim for a while now. I usually end up just jumping onto a multiplayer game, which I do enjoy, but I wish I could more easily get into the single player games.
Same here. Modern games leave me cold. I even upgraded my graphics card to an 8gb card.
What do I play?.... command and conquer Kane's wrath and generals.
Also love Heroes of Might and Magic 3 (wog edition) as I can play it on silent with the wife watching. Telly.i can also leave it and come back in an hour .
Love doom too!
What do I play?.... command and conquer Kane's wrath and generals.
Also love Heroes of Might and Magic 3 (wog edition) as I can play it on silent with the wife watching. Telly.i can also leave it and come back in an hour .
Love doom too!
At 34 I've been feeling the same for a couple of years now, and never really figured out what causes it. There used to be a time when I could sit down with a complex game and figure it out, poring over the large manual to help me along the way. These days though if a game doesn't "grab" me within the first few minutes I lose interest and move on to something else. Another aspect I think we all share though is having other things to do around the house for example, or we have a partner who may not take too kindly to us disappearing onto the PC for hours on end.
I bought Mass Effect Andromeda the other week and for the first time in many, many months it's a game that has hooked me in to the point where I'll spend a good few hours at a time playing it. Prior to that though and for quite a while, I've been playing 'dip-in, dip-out' games like The Division or some simple strategy games, that allow me to play for half an hour then move on to something else (like chores at a weekend!) shortly after.
Originally I put this feeling down to having spent so much time playing games over the past five years (I was a shift worker with most days off in the week so everyone else is at work), so I was burned out from a gaming perspective, but now I work normal hours and have much less time to play, my attitude hasn't changed so it must be something else.
I bought Mass Effect Andromeda the other week and for the first time in many, many months it's a game that has hooked me in to the point where I'll spend a good few hours at a time playing it. Prior to that though and for quite a while, I've been playing 'dip-in, dip-out' games like The Division or some simple strategy games, that allow me to play for half an hour then move on to something else (like chores at a weekend!) shortly after.
Originally I put this feeling down to having spent so much time playing games over the past five years (I was a shift worker with most days off in the week so everyone else is at work), so I was burned out from a gaming perspective, but now I work normal hours and have much less time to play, my attitude hasn't changed so it must be something else.
This all sounds very familiar!
Spent a fortune getting a proper wheel set up, PC, big TV and in the end it was so rare that I could be arsed to set it all up and play.
However, I picked up Ghost Recon Wildlands at the weekend and that has grabbed my interest more than any other game has for a long time. Its easy to pick up and play, fair amount of stealth and tactics plus the co-op is good (i.e. good players outnumber the idiots).
Spent a fortune getting a proper wheel set up, PC, big TV and in the end it was so rare that I could be arsed to set it all up and play.
However, I picked up Ghost Recon Wildlands at the weekend and that has grabbed my interest more than any other game has for a long time. Its easy to pick up and play, fair amount of stealth and tactics plus the co-op is good (i.e. good players outnumber the idiots).
I find myself playing simple 'retro' type games more than anything else. Resogun is easily my most played game on the PS4 .. it's just easy to pick up for a short blast, even though I often spend hours on it (just one more go ...) once I start playing.
I have loads of AAA stuff but it just requires too much commitment to get into those games. There's usually lots of plot to learn and cutscenes and tutorials to go through before you can even start playing them that put me off getting into them, then you have to learn complex controls which mean that if you stop playing the game for a while, it's really hard to pick up the controller get back into it on a whim.
Online focussed games should offer quick and easy fun but they are generally full of teenagers who do nothing but sit in their bedroom and play the game 24x7 and as a result, I have no chance at all. It's zero fun getting constantly wiped out.
Add to that modern console things like multi-gig patches before you can play, and I'd much rather have simpler games.
Aside from a PS4 Pro (and PS3 and Vita) I have a pretty decent PC setup but hardly spend any time gaming these days. If I have spare time in the house I'd rather just watch some TV shows that I've downloaded or just browse through my YouTube subscription channels. Now that the weather is picking up, even if I do have spare time I'd much rather go out for a cycle or walk (which is actually a good thing).
I have loads of AAA stuff but it just requires too much commitment to get into those games. There's usually lots of plot to learn and cutscenes and tutorials to go through before you can even start playing them that put me off getting into them, then you have to learn complex controls which mean that if you stop playing the game for a while, it's really hard to pick up the controller get back into it on a whim.
Online focussed games should offer quick and easy fun but they are generally full of teenagers who do nothing but sit in their bedroom and play the game 24x7 and as a result, I have no chance at all. It's zero fun getting constantly wiped out.
Add to that modern console things like multi-gig patches before you can play, and I'd much rather have simpler games.
Aside from a PS4 Pro (and PS3 and Vita) I have a pretty decent PC setup but hardly spend any time gaming these days. If I have spare time in the house I'd rather just watch some TV shows that I've downloaded or just browse through my YouTube subscription channels. Now that the weather is picking up, even if I do have spare time I'd much rather go out for a cycle or walk (which is actually a good thing).
Djtemeka said:
Same here. Modern games leave me cold. I even upgraded my graphics card to an 8gb card.
What do I play?.... command and conquer Kane's wrath and generals.
Also love Heroes of Might and Magic 3 (wog edition) as I can play it on silent with the wife watching. Telly.i can also leave it and come back in an hour .
Love doom too!
Nothing wrong with that. My PC is capable of playing BF1 on high with no lag and at the moment I switch between The Division, Borderlands 2 and Dungeon Keeper (google it younglings) What do I play?.... command and conquer Kane's wrath and generals.
Also love Heroes of Might and Magic 3 (wog edition) as I can play it on silent with the wife watching. Telly.i can also leave it and come back in an hour .
Love doom too!
It's like having an M3 - You can't (legally) get full potential out of it all the time but it is sure nice cruising in comfort knowing what's under the bonnet.
Having read through all these replies to what has turned out for me to be an insightful, interesting thread, I can only conclude that although I almost certainly won't sell up, I certainly think the days of me throwing big money at my PC for games has now come to an end. I've always liked my "toys" but there seems little point in spending £400+ on a GPU for me to play for an hour a month. In all likelihood when my current kit expires or becomes out of date I will probably just go with a budget setup, but in fairness I don't think my current machine will particularly struggle with almost anything for quite a few years yet.
It has got me thinking though what games are likely to be best for a bit of casual game play. As mentioned before, the likes of the deathmatches on UT or Quake 3 used to get a fair bit of play back in the day and even the likes of Serious Sam. I actually even have the latest Serious Sam installed but even that seems to have lost the simplicity that made its predecessors so easy to pick and play. Apart from Doom, is there even anything around from the last few years that has that mindless entertainment factor at its heart? I feel like there must be something out there that will appeal, and given how much money I've sunk into it, I don't really want to give up on it completely!
It has got me thinking though what games are likely to be best for a bit of casual game play. As mentioned before, the likes of the deathmatches on UT or Quake 3 used to get a fair bit of play back in the day and even the likes of Serious Sam. I actually even have the latest Serious Sam installed but even that seems to have lost the simplicity that made its predecessors so easy to pick and play. Apart from Doom, is there even anything around from the last few years that has that mindless entertainment factor at its heart? I feel like there must be something out there that will appeal, and given how much money I've sunk into it, I don't really want to give up on it completely!
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