I used to like them as a teenager and whenever I pick up a game now (I'm in my early 40's) I am just completely bored. Part of it I think is because it requires some form of mental engagement after a day's hard work?
1. I understand software better and can see that my in-game actions are mostly changing variables, or values in a database.
2. Games are 'balanced' and therefore limit the upside for a potential great strategy I might come up with.
3. Nothing new under the sun: How many more pseudo-scifi research trees or weapon mechanisms or unit capabilities am I supposed to learn in my lifetime?
4. They don't make them like they used to. Older games had a hardcore element to them, were often quite difficult and unforgiving (a result of less market pressure and less polish). Instead of online guides and pro streamers showing how they are played, the games had a mystery about them; we often didn't even have a manual for a game we copied.
4. Less need to prove myself in competition with my peers through games and play (which is aparently a fundamental thing for children)
5. Less magic: The first game that had real voice actors, the first real 3D game seem to have had a greater impact than today's incremental improvements.
6. Limited time and energy. I find it tough to spend the prime energy of a day for a game.
7. Computer work makes me want to get away from computers eventually.
I do watch streamers and youtube videos of the games of the 90ies occasionally and find entertainment and closure (through experiencing games I never got to play).
Right. Pick up a copy of Dead Cells and come back here in 100 hours.
The last bit of "magic" I felt was World of Warcraft. Stepping into a world that actually felt like world was an entirely new experience. The game felt alive in a way that no other game has since felt. Years later Blizzard would largely destroy this magic by turning that sense of awe into a grind, and allowing players to fast travel wherever they wanted. The magic of possibility and random encounters disappeared.
Every game since then has paled in comparison. After WoW, you also feel that every moment spent in a game is largely a waste of time. I'm incapable of playing these massive 30-90 hour games that seem to dominate the industry today. Sometimes I pick up Quake for a few quick rounds. But 30+ hours is a solid investment of my incredibly limited time.
Wouldn't a 'balanced' game make the impact of strategy even greater? Many of the most strategic games in the world like chess or go are balanced.
> 4. Less need to prove myself in competition with my peers through games and play (which is aparently a fundamental thing for children)
It's never been easier to find and compete against the best in the world at games. If you're good enough at an online game you can find yourself essentially playing pick-up basketball against LeBron James.
> 7. Computer work makes me want to get away from computers eventually.
Yeah agreed on this one for sure.
#4 Just as we get older, it's no longer about computer games, the playground, or sports where we need to prove ourselves? Don't mind me if that's not actually a thing, psychologically.
I still can't hardly play video games, but I've been between gigs this last year and have been working with my hands building stuff. That's done more for my psyche than anything, even the self-help reading material that I immersed myself in to recover from burnout, depression and anxiety.
I worry for people living in big cities or around too much technology with no creative outlet. So if you are reading this and thinking "crap I don't even have a garage", try finding a local group into the same stuff you are. I got lucky that there's a local Burning Man group where I live. But there are almost certainly maker spaces or startup enthusiasts somewhere near you. Older folks are surprisingly good at this, so you might get lucky and find a mentor to bounce ideas off of.
I would play video games with any of the interesting people I've met lately. So maybe it's not the games, it's the immediate company.
Actually, I think archive.org has a lot of those old games, playable directly through a web browser, so it depending on the game it may be much easier than what I wrote above.
The only ones that caught me surprised were Factorio and dota2 both of which I then ended up playing far too much. The first singleplayer, and the second with a group of RL friends.
And if you do not enjoy games anymore, that's fine. Plenty of things to do in the world.
Soma is especially great. It's utterly scary, it's beautiful to explore (per my taste), and the way the story unfolds really pulled me in.
SubNautica somewhat qualifies if you have a hint of thalassophobia. There is a very small combat element that you can entirely ignore.
Most other games bore my adult self as well, but the above are so compelling that I only play them in the right conditions so that I really enjoy them: alone at night with headphones.
Nowadays, nothing perks my interest really. I did really enjoy Breath of the Wild and Ori and the Blind Forest. Everything else is just kinda meh.
I have scarce time. Something has to be really worth it to take away from family time, home projects, chores, work, professional development, working out, and hobbies (reef aquarium, banjo, audio books, and smaller interests like ATV, bows and guns, and emergency prep).
I did like Infocom games though I didn't finish most of them.