"I grew outta video games"... what makes u return?

[Aussie2B]

Games have pretty much always been a part of my life, and I've always been happy to have 'em. The only sort of "game-less" period I had was from the point in time in which my brother sold off his NES and games to when I was 11, saved up my money, and bought myself a SNES (the first system that I personally owned). I was quite sad when he sold the NES; I still loved the games. That was pretty much the end of gaming for him, though, so I had to make do until I could get my own console (couldn't have been more than 2 or 3 years).

Anyway, since then I've been a gaming nut, but sometimes I do wonder if the internet has really changed gaming for me. Well, it has, but I question if I play games as much as I used to when I typically would play at least a couple hours after every school day (and then a ton all weekend). Nowadays I have I have a lot of other time consumers like college, my boyfriend, and other stuff. Often times when I get free time I'll use it up on the computer at a message board or toying around with all the gaming merchandise I bought thanks to eBay and online stores.

[PapaStu]

I guess I kinda fit into this leave/come back frame. Ive had a few times where i've thought, wow just think of all that money that could be saved for whatever, and instead you spent it on games, IDIOT. I might not buy something for a few weeks, but I always would start back up.
Recently my local Indy shop died and that took a huge hit on me. I was one of their biggest customers for a number of years (as so that I had my own hold box), and bought stuff at least once a week. With their shutdown I cleaned them out of PSOne games that I didnt have (70 plus), as well as big amounts of other games. Since then ive really cut back on games, and when I do buy, its never from "A" place, its kinda just where ever. Anyhoo since the loss I burned out on PS stuff (my main collection staple) so to prevent myself from going completely batty ive started to collect variants for my main systems, and have put the general collecting for everything on the back burner. Doing it has given me a new edge on games in general and made me have some fun again as I felt that my collecting had just gotten to the point of walking into a place and just buying stuff and not really caring.

In regards to getting tired to games or burning out, never has happened to any point worse than, well ive just played too much for the day and cant play any more kinda thing. Ive been playing some sort of video game since i was 2 (parents 2600) and at 24 I still play almost daily. I honestly dont think that im ever gonna get sick of playing.

[musical]

(1) college stole all my free time in the 90s - even my Star Trek addiction went on the backburner - I came back in 2002 because
- (a) I discovered atariage.com emulation to replay classics
- (b) I fell in love with the story-based RPGs on PS2
- (c) television is the big suck - can't find anything worth watching so might as well game

[bargora]

At one time I thought that I had "left" and "come back". Then I looked at the larger picture, and realized that I had simply shifted to computer gaming sometime in the late 80s once the Atari 2600 games stopped coming. (There was something unwholesome about the NES's D-pad that turned me off on the system for years.) Then, years later, I got a Playstation, and I switched back from computer gaming to mostly console stuff.

So did I ever "leave"? That depends on how big you think the house is.