Ive also noticed when I play a game as a ROM then I dont enjoy it as much as when it is actually being played on the console it was produced for.
With loose NES carts becomming cheaper, I am thinking of collecting in about 10 great games that I love and see how it goes
Props to an interesting topic, first off.
I found that when I was in grade school/middle school (up until 2004, when Halo 2 came out) I played a lot of games. I played the hell out of almost any game I bought, since I only had like $100 a month or so to spend on games. They each had to last, so I beat them all. Final Fantasy, Banjo Kazooie, Age of Empires -- all sorts of stuff I sunk 30, 40, 50+ hours into. I'd easily place my time spent in the thousands of hours. I don't regret it either -- it was quite entertaining.
When Halo 2 came out, I suddenly found myself with $500+ disposable income a month. I bought game after game, didn't open a lot of them, and started collecting random games for random systems that I didn't give a shit about. I figured I'd get around to playing them; nah, never happened. I played Halo 2, because I had sunk all my time into it, and I was good. And I don't regret that either.
Now that I'm close to 19, my solution has just been to buy very few games and play the shit out of them. Halo 3, CoD4, GH3, Rock Band -- I bought them and played them all. A lot. And sold them when I was done with 'em. The only game I've bought in the past 6 months that I haven't gotten shit out of (besides some garbage XBLA titles) is Crysis. And that's just because I bought that as more of a benchmark than anything else.
I think I could easily go weeks, months, or even longer without playing games now, such how my life is. I'm just not that focused on it, any more. But what I figured out was that I didn't have to unload hundreds on a ton of games and new systems. Okami? Great fuckin' game. Would I ever play it if I bought it? Hell no. So it's not gonna enter my house, even if it's for $5 -- there's just no point. No, gaming doesn't have that certain "magical" wonder about it that it did when I was spelunking around Ocarina of Time's caves, but it matters not to me now; I have fun with Halo and the occasional round of NBA Live or some other "casual" game. And that's enough.
To sum up this lengthy ass post, I think that as you mature, your tastes shift as well, and gaming holds a different place -- but not necessarily less important -- in your overall life.
Basically I first started off in 88 with the purchase of the NES system. I played then until the Christmas of 92 when my dad got us a Super Nintendo. I was lucky to get 3 new games a year since my dad had low income after my mom died of cancer.
I played the NES and SNES and would rent games at the local grocery store every other weekend. I was one of those kids who didnt have a Nintendo Power and I usually picked a game by its box and they usually turned out to be kinda crappy.Id rent stuff like Jaws,Rambo,Friday the 13th,Tag Team Wrestling for NES, some of the worst titles out there. I would also rent stuff like Battletanks,Judge Dredd for SNES. When I got older I realized I miss out on too many gems, and by that time it was too late
I picked up a Genesis in the summer of 1995 and played Sonic,Evander Holyfield boxing.There were a few good games I rented but I can't remember them off the top of my head.I was even lucky to get a 32X for Christmas of that year with Virtual Fighter. The 32x broke but I didnt care because I could really never find games for the thing.
In Christmas 96 I got a Playstation with MK Trilogy and rented a few games here and there.
My mass addiction to video games didnt start until I picked up Resident Evil 2 for the PS2. It was so amazing at the time that it blew the SNES out of the water. I eventually became a big PS fanboy.
Since PSONe games were so expensive I decided that I wanted to get a chance to play systems from my past that were too expensive for my dad to buy. I eventually got my hands on the Jaguar and 3DO, but the games were almost impossible to find for them. Luckily the Jaguar I got had some of the best games for the system for it.I also managed to get a Sega CD and the Sega Nomad. The system I wanted badly was the CDI, but I am glad I didnt ever get it.
I eventually traded my PS1 and my collection of 10 games and steering wheel for a Dreamcast. The one time I didnt get ripped off by Funcoland and played that for a good 2 years until I got into computers.
I forgot how got rid of the Dreamcast but I eventually picked up a Cube just to play the Resident Evil games. I would buy one and then return it. I had 3 Cubes that I owned for less than a month.
I got a PS2, but couldnt get into it, so I sold that and played computer games again.
Now in 2008, and for most of 07 besides Gears of War I havent really played video games that much in general.
I am thinking of getting a PS3 to enjoy from my time off from college this summer, but I am still not sure, they are hard to find cheap on ebay
Last edited by ReaXan; 04-19-2008 at 10:14 PM.
Yeah, what he said. Made the same mistake in the mid '90s and here's me today...Originally Posted by Neil Koch
"Ambitious, but rubbish."
I agree that if your getting bored then just pack up and store the games and systems. better safe than sorry.
I'm 43 and even though there have been times where there were no really interesting games for a short time, I still never lost the video game bug. even now when raising two kids makes time scarce, I still find time play my DS, even if its just for a few mintues while waiting to pick kids up from school, or on breaks. lol I guess I am just a fanatic. heh heh
Xboxlive - MasterMeltd0wn
Wii - 7663 3838 9454 2990
I see that you mentioned Call of Duty 4 where you realized you weren't interested. See for me, I don't get sick of videogames as a whole, I get sick of oversaturation of certain genres (such as FPSs). I haven't bought an actual FPS since Quake 4 for the 360. I'm just tired of them and don't feel like I'm getting anything new with them. I mean yeah there is online play and all that, it just doesn't interest me. RPGs of any sort (turn based, tactical, action) as what I've been playing lately. Its those damn Atlus games, also, that keep me interested too because so many of them feel refreshing because they are so different. Just don't play games all the time, wait till you feel you are in the mood. I know I don't get as excited for new games as I did when I was younger, but I do get excited for flea market trips and still enjoy a lot of new releases they come out with.
I'm 26 and I have to echo what a lot of others have already said; I think part of the problem is that, as an adult, games are easily attainable for most. When you have a stack of games that is taller than you are, your attention span tends to suffer because the minute a game frustrates you or turns you off in the slightest, you stop playing. When you're a kid, you have to make the most out of what games you get, so you look at them with a less critical eye. That's why when you go back to play "classics" you used to enjoy, they very rarely live up to your memories of them.
The other thing I find is that the more you own and experience, the more you find that a lot of the games coming out now are generic and have been done to death.
Take breaks. I was totally out of the hobby during most of high school and there are huge gaps in my gaming history. I remember playing Maximum Carnage, Streets of Rage 2 and Super Street Fighter 2 TO DEATH on my Genesis. Then I sold my system and all of the games, and played NOTHING until I obtained a used PSX in order to play Metal Gear Solid in 2000. That's a huge gap. Then I bought a PS2 shortly after it launched in order to get MGS 2 and I picked up all the GTA's, and up until a couple of years ago, that was it. Now I've acquired a ton of PS2 games I missed over the years, on top of buying a 360 and PS3.
Don't force yourself to play when you don't feel like it. I sometimes don't touch anything for weeks. Just because your interest wanes, doesn't mean you don't love gaming and if DEFINITELY doesn't mean you should get rid of your stuff. If gaming has been a big part of your life, chances are you'll get the fever again, and when you do you'll only regret getting rid of what you had. You don't need to play 4 hours a day in order to be a gamer; treat it casually. And don't look for "the magic" because when you chase it, you'll never catch it. Just enjoy games for what they are, and when you least expect it, that one game will come around that will knock your socs off.
I'm with the lacking variety camp...anymore most anticipated games are just either remakes or game 20 in a series that started 10+ years ago...
What's going on right now?
Metal Gear
Mario
Gran Turismo
Ninja Gaiden
FPS #1000
Personally, I don't like FPS titles so I'm already out on a large majority of the market. It's just the same crap but with new graphics and some nifty added features...welcome to Madden but in a different way. Same games but slightly improved and with a different setting (WWII, WWI, space, the future, the past, etc)...
Other than that we get rehashed franchises time and time again.
I was really looking forward to the Wii but it is in stand still right now with only a few trickle titles worth looking into...
But at least my old stuff is still fun...
Take a hike, wang-broom!
I swear I can smell your stinky hands from here!
To quote your avatar: You Have Spoken a Truism!
I did a lot of experiments on myself and basically came to the same conclusion--when I'm at a distant relative's house and I only have one game, you can bet I'll be not only playing it but be addicted as well. But when I'm at home and in my "room of doom" I can't seem to focus on one game for more than a few hours, at most.
"Buying with the intention of playing later" is actually kind of counter-productive, because what happens is that those games you haven't payed yet get in your mind, getting it in a hurry to get through THIS game so you can play THAT one. Thus the game you're currently playing becomes a chore, because in the back of your mind you're thinking "I wish I could hurry up and beat this game so I could play all those OTHER games..."
It's almost enough to make me want to give up my "life's mission" (not that I don't have more than one by this point) and just sell half my gaming library. I did exactly that with my overlarge sci-fi/fantasy book collection and somehow its easier to stay interested when you only have ten books as opposed to 100.
...
That being said, I think another issue is fandom. Fandoms have a way of ruining everything, even if they are on the whole positive experiences. Enjoyment of a show or a game tends to become more about analysis, examination, than actually you know sitting back and enjoying the thing. And the opinions and trivia you accumulate take up so much mental real-estate that something has to be thrown out, and that something is usually your sense of excitement and wonder at the game itself.
Actually I've written an article for another forum which I think illustrates the point just fine. I'll post it in the Off-Topic section.
I have to agree with this statement. I am in the process of moving, so almost all of my stuff is packed up in boxes at the new apartment waiting for me to go through and catalog it. I kept my PSP out of the box, but all of my games are in it. I happened to leave Castlevania in the PSP. I had no intention of finishing this game (call me crazy I know), but since it was the only game left in my PSP I've been playing the hell out of it. I've been pulling my hair out finding all the maidens in Rondo, using every character in Symphony and it's been great fun. Definitely made me think of the old days.
Ive had this problem off and on, i mean i was huge into gaming from 93 to 2001, but after that i would play a game, beat it, and found another in the same genre. then i'd get bored and not play for a few months. Its been a rut ive gotten into, but with the PSP and its homebrew, ive been replaying NES and SNES games.
The thing about modern gaming now is too much choice, high prices, and not enough connection to what we've been used to. Whether thats the graphic style(2d, overhead), music(the quality has DECLINED severely in recent years), or the games' systems they were on. Game systems are coming out faster than they used to. SNES lasted 91-97, and even longer in Japan. We're lucky to even get a system to last 4 years. I hope 2d and overhead games never die. The DS and PSP(homebrew anyway on PSP) are keeping some fraction of us "old school" gamers around. I wish gaming today wouldnt be so "hollywood involved" and FPS or GTA-clone bound.
On topic, ive gotten myself into a "game by game" frame of mind. One game at a time, and try as soon as possible to get into another one(whether its the same genre or game company or whatever), or the gap will widen and i'll stop playing again.
I'm 26 from the heart of the NES generation. If all I was to see or hear a bunch of kids or me personally playing COD4 on a "projection screen" my love of gaming would come to an end too. You need to make your gaming a little bit more personal than that. Projection screens are $Hit for gaming anyway. Whether your using a monitor or TV, 26"-32" is ideal. I Played the great S.T.A.L.K.E.R the other week on a $2000.00 42" monitor, it was crap, 50" unplayable. Yup, far better on the 24"- 26" LCD monitor in an atmospheric room.
As for downloading ROMS or buying pirates?. Your taking the romance out of collecting & killing the appreciation of buying a good game, or rare gem that will never be enjoyed.
Nice to see you listing some of the greatest games of all time. Metal Gear Solid (PS1) revolutionised a genre, Gran Turismo revolutionised a genre, Super Mario Galaxy<<< Argubaly the greatest platformer ever made, Ninja Gaiden/Ninja Gaiden Black better games for XBOX, FPS #1000< Would that be Crysis or S.T.AL.K.E.R? Either way, I'm finding S.T.AL.K.E.R., Bioshock overall to be better games than the Half Life series. Apples & oranges. Remakes or not, it seems to me developers keep pushing the boundaries. You ask why didn't MGS 2 or MGS 3 top Metal Gear Solid? Because the PS1 version was gaming perfection. You can't top perfection. Early Crash bandicoot (PS1) will never be topped, not on the PS3 or PS4 or generations thereafter. You will realise this playing the very first level of Crash 1. Early Tony Hawks 1,2,3,4 (PS1) will never be topped. You can't top them games in the series especially when games like this are released around the height of ones gaming enjoyment, from whatever year or time that maybe.
What are you actually expecting here???.. With every title released, your looking for something to revolutionise a genre?. Sorry, ain't gonna happen, the mind can only be so broad. The greatest gaming minds ever can't always bring new ideas to the table. If you have Wii, you will surely have the greatest platformer of all time for it, BUT don't expect in a months time for another platformer release to top that, it just don't work that way. You would get more repect if you was a developer yourself, easy as hell being a critic. You go out and develop a game that will top Super Mario Galaxy & you will see just how much work goes into these titles. Ones mind can only be so broad with new ideas.
Of course your old stuff is fun. Its been played out, tested & rated. Have you managed to play your way through all the old stuff?. Surely your going to find other titles you will enjoy from years gone by via the use of different systems. Personally speaking, I'm yet too get 100% in the entire Crash series or complete an entire an Tony Hawks game, so here I am, trying to achieve something most gamers didn't. Anybody's dimished love for gaming can always be rekindled. What them guys need to do is: back off gaming, all the while keep themselves updated via the net/magazines etc to what great titles are being released, research legendary titles for specific consoles of yesteryear & childhood, start collecting them titles (eBay, Car boots, Markets etc), dump the girlfriend, wife & kids, set your room to have a great gaming atmosphere, GO BACK TO OLD SKOOL & over time your enthusiasm will be rebuilt.
Added to that, I think some gamers who lose enthusiasm fail to relate to the characters & connect to the world a game presents & they realise the journey is fiction & getting to the end doesn't contribute anything constructive to there real world environment.
Last edited by VitaminX; 04-28-2008 at 11:11 AM.
It comes and goes for me,
But never sell
just wanting to get some more opinions
I've been hoarding games since the Dreamcast days and I've yet to get to those earliest "rainy day" grabs. I've experienced the gaming lull 3 times in my life.
1st: 13 years old, 1993. Took up comic books and card collecting. Then DKC and Doom hit (1994/5); back in.
2nd: 21 years old, 2001. Girls. I still supported a PS2 and Gamecube, but not too heavily. In 2005 I suddenly felt the urge to go catch-up crazy and collected numerous games across all platforms that I own, as well as adding several systems.
3rd: 28 years old, right now. Other than Super Mario Galaxy, nothing from the current gen (aside from handhelds) seems to interest me. THAT IS NOT to say that I somehow believe there are not any good games out there. They just don't grab me, that's all. Oddly, I've become fascinated with fashion this time. I am becoming a denim whore.
Many of the games I purchase now are quick "pick up and play" games, such as shmups or music games. I find that now I buy games and they hardly hold my attention for a couple hours before getting relegated to the pile. I still have an interest, but I find it hard to justify more purchases when I lack the attention span. I enjoy watching other people play games more than play them myself. I read about games 10 times more than I play. I've realized that this is a pattern in my life, and surely I'll snap out of it again in the future. I try to change my buying habits accordingly, only purchasing games I know have good replay value -- for whenever I snap out of this haze.
Broaden your horizons when it comes to your hobbies. Try something new. But don't forget where you came from, gaming will always be a part of you.
Last edited by SpaceHarrier; 11-18-2008 at 03:15 AM.
I'm 33 and I just so happen to be getting more and more disinterested in current-gen games. I just realized this after purchasing Fallout 3 and GoW2. One minute I'll boot up the 360 and within 2 minutes realize I have no desire to play anything. I will play these games still but only in 30min to 1hr increments. That seems to be the only amount of time I can stand them.
Like others, I went through a phase where I didn't play much. However, for me it was right after the NES. I never bought a SNES, 32X, Saturn or Dreamcast. I just skipped right over them due to my chasing girls.
In college, the PS1 brought me back. Played many many games on that system. I also bought a N64 for Mario and Zelda.
Then, I got disinterested again and I didn't buy a PS2 until I saw Guitar Hero and had to have it. I never owned a Xbox 1.
Now, I have Wii and 360. I have more games on my Wii than the 360 but I like both. Like others, I play a lot of virtual console and arcade games. I just like the older games better, no question. There are some great games but I am suddenly finding myself coming to the point again where I may take a break from gaming the next gen.
It's the down cycle
I'm 17 now and am experiencing this. I find that I'm not interested in Rock Band near as much as I was two months ago, I'm only interested in playing it if I sing and play an instrument at the same time. This is probably due to the fact that I'm getting better at playing a real guitar and it is more entertaining to me than playing Rock Band guitar. Also, Mirror's Edge doesn't interest me near as much as I thought it would because at times it makes me mad and if it weren't for Fallout 3 and Left 4 Dead I probably wouldn't be playing anything now.
Do I feel like I'm losing interest? Absolutely. I posted a very similar topic back in 2003.
http://www.digitpress.com/forum/showthread.php?t=16000
And honestly, I still feel it. There are a few games here and there that I get excited for, but on the whole, most of the modern stuff doesn't really 'do it for me' anymore.
Take this Holiday(November-Christmas) for example. Of the umpteen titles that are being or have been released, I have a huge interest in 4 of them. Castlevania Order of Eccelsia, Need for Speed Undercover, Midnight Club L.A. and WoW. There are maybe 4 others I wouldn't mind trying out, but I'm not going to lose any sleep or yearn for them if I don't get that opportunity. Contrast that to the heyday of the PS2 back in 2000-2001, when I had a hard time counting the number of games I (really, truly) wanted with both hands.
Thing of it is, I still feel a little out-of-touch, and maybe that my interest isn't as high as it once was. I'm sure money does play a part in my feelings, as I've not spent as much in the past. But that money I do spend, I'm making sure they're games that I am going to like one way or another. Even if it does turn out to be a dud, it's in a series I like, so I'm not blindly buying stuff just to buy it.
Thing is, the magic is still there, I just look for it in classic games or titles I can pick up for a quick fix if I don't have a lot of time. Loss of interest in modern gaming happens to a lot of folks. There are a good number of members here that aren't into the new stuff, and that's fine, since they've got their titles that hold gaming magic for them.
RIP bargora, you will be greatly missed.That is how we do things on Giedion Prime.
Same here. Years ago, I enjoyed long quests like Dragon Warrior, The Legend of Zelda, Super Mario RPG, and Ocarina of Time. Now, I'd rather play Pinball Hall of Fame, World of Goo, Dr. Mario, Marble Mania, or even old games like Star Fox 64 or Ms. Pac-Man. They feel more like games to me, instead of interactive movies.
I think I, along with a majority of people here , have sold off games and systems because they got tired of them, yet they hunger to play them 2 or 3 years later and wish they still had them.
I thought giving old game systems to relatives helped, but they even end up loosing them or trading them off, so that is not a great compromise in the longrun.
There is also the issues of keeping it at grandma's house for safe keeping, but you then realize your like 30 years old coming over to to play and not 10 years old, it looks sorta stupid and creepy.
I have an XBox I picked up with 15 games and its sat in my closet with really no inclination to want to play it. I don't want to sell it, but I dont want just to sit in the closet either. I also worry about not using it for a long period of time then magically not work when I am ready to finally sit down and play.
Its a mess, but I am sure I will figure out something once this college semester is over.
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