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A personal reflection on outgrowing videogames and their forums. A farewell.
- Nov 11, 2012 9:33 am GMT
Hey Oilers, don't know if you remember me as I've had a few different usernames over the past 12 years on this website. But just wanted to say hi...I don't post at all on the site anymore, lost interest in it as IMO it declined quite a bit over the years. But I always remember the cool people like yourself, Minda Cubed, and many others that I haven't seen in ages.
Hey things change in life all the time. Priorities change. I still game quite a bit, but it obviously gets harder to have the time as time passes.
Congrats on the marriage, and I wish you well in all you do.
- Nov 11, 2012 9:46 am GMT
-MM
Former Gamespot Moderator
Oilers, I'm not sure if you remember me or not, but I've been here since the launch of Gamespot as a reader and reader review, not to mention being a former mod around here, and I think I've known you long since then. It's sad to see you go, but it's highly understandable. Goodbye and good luck with everything you do! Don't be a stranger, ya hear?
- Nov 11, 2012 10:02 am GMT
I can definitely sympathize with feeling like having to choose between gaming and maturity. And I've forced myself in the direction of maturity on a couple of occasions, but gaming still keeps coming back. In the process I realized that maturity just sort of accumulates. And you'll probably never feel as mature as you are eventually perceived. Best of luck.
- Nov 11, 2012 5:20 pm GMT
I read the OP and can relate, but then a game such as Journey arrives which demonstrates to me the potential of this hobby. Video games are not the problem, and maturity holds no bearing on their allure. As long as games continue to be released that push the boundaries, I will always game. In truth, I find to say, "sorry games, I outgrew you" to be shortsighted (as much as I can see the stagnation taking hold in the industry at present). Comparatively to others, this medium is very much in its infancy. - Nov 11, 2012 5:24 pm GMTJust need to keep a balance in life to enjoy videogames.
- Nov 11, 2012 5:30 pm GMT
He's getting married soon.
I give him two months and then he will be back.
He's getting married soon.
I give him two months and then he will be back. :lol:
- Nov 11, 2012 7:51 pm GMT
My Games - My Movies - My Backlog - My Journal - XBL/PSN: DJLay
Now Playing: House of the Dead: Overkill, Plants vs Zombies, Guild Wars 2, Forza HorizonCongrats on your engagement - and hopefully we'll see you around the forums even once in a while. Also, if you're ever downtown during weekdays, I'll take a break and grab a coffee or something. It's all a balance for me. I mean, the past few years I've had the odd bit of gaming burnout, some longer than others. I still detest certain genres as a result (pretty much anything Call of Duty-esque bores me to death) but at the same time a reduced amount of time to play games and some of the widest variety we've ever had in the history of videogaming helps to keep things fresh. Things have also changed. I didn't have kids three years ago. I didn't have a wife/girlfriend back when I first joined the Gamespot forums. I had way more time to play games, to analyze them, to discuss them. I enjoyed that. But even though I have a fraction of the time I used to, I still derive some amount of enjoyment from discussing games. Sure, I might only finish one game for every five I used to, but that's okay. And I'm okay with most games being a juvenile escape - with work, kids and family, it's nice having a break once in a while. As I type this I have Forza Horizon idling on the monitor to the left. There is no greater commentary on mankind found in that game, but it's fun. It's satisfying. But yeah, the aspects of growing old disrupt things. For me moving a couple of months back was a huge disruptor for my game time. I'm still getting used to this city (and the cold, dear god the cold). I'm still learning at my job. My kids are endlessly entertaining. I've cut back my discussion here on these forums a lot since the VU's heyday. I don't mind - everyone gets old and priorities do shift. I also hate being called a 'gamer' even if it's sort of a meaningless moniker. I don't consider myself a gamer, though. I just play games, it's not what defines me as a person. But I still love them. I love sliding around corners in a racing game, bouncing off enemy heads in Mario, pulling a chainsaw up through the crotch of a Locust, yelling at the screen after I make a choice in The Walking Dead, or even playing plastic instruments in Rock Band or dancing around while my Kinect tries frantically to figure out what it is I'm doing. Part of me will always remain a kid. And I'm okay with that - I'd hate to lose it. - Nov 11, 2012 11:04 pm GMTGood luck with everything and congrats on the marriage. The games you are looking for are all in the indie scene. You should check out PC gaming and Steam sometime. There are a lot of original games there that will never see the light of day on consoles. Not every game is the equivalent to a summer blockbuster action movie, the fancy pantsy art films are there too if you know where to look. I think quitting playing videogames would be the same as not watching movies or reading books, expand your horizons past Nintendo and you will see a much wider world of gaming.
- Nov 12, 2012 2:54 am GMTTake me back to installation 04.
This thread was a really good read.
Im an older gamer and can relate but games are my entertainment when I have the time.When Im sitting around with nothing to do or relaxing,I'd rather play a game than watch TV or a movie.I wouldnt have cable if it wasnt for my family and very few movies interest me.Its really the only form of entertainment that I find entertaining.
- Nov 12, 2012 5:09 am GMTFrom what you've disclosed about yourself I think it's safe to say that I entered the world of adult responsibilities way ahead of you. I don't want games that mimick real life, I want games that provide a safe but envigorating escape from reality. I think it's true that there has been a dearth of really good games lately, but more will come and there are still plenty of oldies but goodies that I haven't played yet. Gaming changes, forums change and people change. There's no way to escape the impermanence of life. The people who are here now are no less valid than those who've gone before. Otherwise, in general, I try to limit my expectations. I take my gaming one game at a time and I take my forum participation one post at a time. Keep an open mind and temper your expectations and you will rarely be disappointed. Finally, let me be the first to welcome you back to the forum in advance for the time that will inevitably come when you change your mind.
- Nov 12, 2012 8:26 am GMT
Do not invite me to your union. Doing so will get you ignored.
[QUOTE="Oilers99"]I just outgrew you.[/QUOTE]
This is the only part of your post that I take issue with, and I take issue with it everytime I see it. "Outgrowing" video games makes it seem like they're only for children, which has never been the case. You may have lost interest in video gaming, or no longer have the time for you, but you never "outgrow" games. I know that you still love them. Hell, you took part in one of the Designer for a Day contests, so that shows your desire and passion for them. Even if I stop playing games for the reasons you've described, I can never say that I "outgrew" them. I'll be playing until I go blind or have arthritis. Gaming is a form of entertainment just as movies, books and music are, and all four mediums appeal to everyone, regardless of age.
Anyway, I do get the whole saturation of shooting-people-in-the-face games. It's what I call the Call of Duty effect. It's actually hazardous the industry, because it's robbing other smaller more interesting and creative games from selling because everyone's clamoring for the next cookie cutter shooter. Then it becomes discouraging for smaller developers and publishers to want to continue to innovate, so they end up going the me too route and add to the problem. How do you fight the ignorant masses, though? If they aren't interested in Shadow of the Colossus because all they want to play is Call of Duty, how can you fix that? How can you educate them? It's like trying to someone who listens to screamo to try to apprecate Mozart and Tchaikovsky. It's a cultural thing and I think it's too late to start truly culturing this new generation of gamers. It bums me out.
But, I still find good in the hobby. I still play the popular stuff, but I also still play the niche stuff. Have you purchased Theatrhythm Final Fantasy? That is so good! I'm still desparately awaiting the Last Guardian and hoping against hope that Professor Layton vs Ace Attorney makes it stateside. The Wii U is very promising and I'm hoping Pikmin 3 will turn out great, unlike Sticker Star which is letting me down a bit. Speaking of Paper Mario, I believe you and me talked the most during my time playing it. I think you also remembered me slipping away to the throes of Final Fantasy XI. Yeah, that game was evil, which is why I'm surprised I'm still anticipating Final Fantasy XIV...
I don't blame you for wanting to give up video games, though. You're about to get married - congratulations by the way! - and that will only further cut into your free time, but you'll view it as a worthwhile tradeoff; real quality time. Regardless, you simply won't have the time or interest to dig deeper through the layers of regurgitated annual sequels to really find the gems worth playing. I just hope you find a way to get in some gaming here or there. Cutting it out completely when it's been engrained in you for so many years is a really hard thing to do. Whatever the case, I wish you the best.
I myself haven't been very active on the forums either. It's gone through way too many changes, and I can blame it it all on Gerstmann Gate. To see this place get split right down the middle birthing Giant Bomb in the process (which is now in the same building again) and losing so many veterans was hard. Then the whole revamp of the Terms of Use a while back hasn't really seemed to improve things. GS never found the proper balance for moderation, so they pretty much just threw it all away. To be honest, the only thing that has kept me on this site has been doing reader reviews and blogs, but now I'm starting to question whether I want to blog anymore. I used to get a lot of comments back in the day, but now if I write a blog more than a couple paragraphs, I only get a couple, and sometimes none. Even reviewing is something that I don't think I want to do anymore. It almost seems pointless, because everytime I see a GS review, I see the comment pages flooded with idiots who either think the score is too high or too low. I don't want this as a profession anymore if this is how my audience is going to react.
Anyway, if you still have me on AIM check in some time and say hi. It was fun posting with you.
- Nov 12, 2012 9:23 am GMT
"There is more to a person than the body alone, many tend to refuse to see that" - Reina Beaumont
I'm female, please stop regarding me as male, I find that quite insulting and offensive, thank you.
I never knew you, or even spoke to you, but I can understand how it feels with losing interest in gaming. I've found myself drifting farther and farther away from it due to the over abundance of always bland and boring male lead only characters in games, the constant mindlessly boring violence - man have gun, man kill many, man pound chest in victory, rinse and repeat for the majority of titles churned out - dull stories with little imagination and tend to come across as something you might see in some popcorn movie like a Bay movie and the ever increasingly lack of imagination and new ideas. It's getting harder and harder to find a game that isn't the usual male lead only boredom, that has more to offer than playing some bland character to some bland story made for those who want the same boring things over and over again while being fearful of change and progress where needed. I look at all the shooters coming out and have been released, with the slight exception of Borderlands 2 since that's the only shooter to at least allow players to choose between male and female characters for once even if the characters are a tad too stereotypical in their designs, and all I see is yet more rehashes and more mindless boredom for the dim witted who lap the stuff up with each release. It's become the same way with the majority of titles that have nothing new or interesting to offer, they just do the same thing that's been done for years. I don't want to play as male, I have no desire to play as male and I'm sick to the back teeth of being forced to be male in pretty much every game, I'm sick of constant violence for no purpose other than to cater to the violence hungry attention deficient crowd, I'm sick of the weak stories, the weak game play, the enforcement of multi player in pretty much every game and I'm sick of the stale ideas that offer nothing new. With so few games allowing for playing as female for a change, new ideas and imagination being very lacking, stories getting ever worse and the constant promotion of violence then there's very little of interest that isn't the same tired thing. So few ever speak up though, too many want things to never change because they're fearful of change and fearful of progress in an industry that is suffocating in the rut it's gotten stuck in. There's too much immaturity and sexism in gaming and with the gamer community, too many small minds that act like anything that could finally help the industry to grow and mature would take away their comfort zone. Almost thirty years of gaming and outside of fancy graphics and technology improvements, there's been little progress when it comes to the game themselves. And so few are speaking up about that. - Nov 12, 2012 9:45 am GMT
XBL Gamertag: SomethngWicked
I joined Gamespot almost 10 years ago as well, and I've always enjoyed reading your posts, Oilers. I hope everything goes well with your upcoming wedding, and say hey to Zeldachu for me, won't you?
Farewell.
- Nov 12, 2012 12:26 pm GMTI don't know you, but good read, and goodbye.
- Hey Oilers, I've been around GS since 2002, and remember reading quite a few of your posts, and your Dev for a Day entry. Sad to see you go.
- Nov 12, 2012 2:36 pm GMT
I've always enjoyed your posts, and I'm sad to see you go. Additionally, I hate that it takes a long time GS vet saying goodbye to bring out a lot of other longtime vets that have become lurkers. You know who you are.
I don't know if I'm in the middle of 'outgrowing' games, or if things have just been so hectic in my day-to-day life, and games have been so stagnant, that I've just slowed down. My forum presence has certainly dropped off quite a bit too. That makes some sense as my job has gotten busy enough that I can't check the boards every five minutes like I used to. Next-gen, and PC gaming are going to be the things that determine whether or not gaming remains a passion of mine or not. This current crop of games and consoles are pretty long in the tooth. Right now I'm just cycling through my favorites from this gen and I've all but stopped looking forward to anything.(GTAV being the exception!)
I thought that Dishonored would be a game that would pull me back into paying attention to current-gen offerings, but after spending a few nights with it, it felt too much like a frankenstein monster of a bunch of current gen 'hit' franchises. For me, it represents a lot of what I don't like about games currently. It presents itself as a fairly open experience, but the more I played it, the more I constantly just felt like I was doing it wrong no matter which way I tackled it. Additionally, I think games need to realize that they need to do more than offer a 'good' ending and a 'bad' ending. Bioshock did it poorly, and Dishonored seems to be the same way. When a game makes it clear at the beginning that you either need to be Jesus or Hitler to get the ending you want, it doesn't really encourage choice and open ended gameplay, you essentially are just forced to decide at the beginning whether you want the good ending or the bad and then you have to adhere rigidly to that choice for the next several hours of gameplay to get a meager payoff.
I don't know what the answer is though. I don't think that a more tightly controlled narrative like Uncharted or Gears is as satisfying either because you are pretty much just running down a chute for 8 hours. I think that is why I keep going back to Skyrim, Oblivion, New Vegas, Dark Souls and Minecraft more than any other game that has come out in the last six or seven years. I never feel like I'm compelled to tackle those games in any particular way, which is very freeing. I play games for escapism, and for me, the best escapism is when I feel like I'm in complete control of the game I'm playing.
As for forums, I always wonder if all of us are just lurking and waiting for someone else to post something to respond to, and that is why things are dead a lot of the time. I really miss the good old days of the GGD, which, unfortunately, I think I only caught the tail end of. That being said, this place has remained small and tightknit over the years, and between it and the RoF, I always feel like I'm at home when I'm here at GS. I always hope that there will be a resurgence of quality discussion here, and I don't know if I've helped or hurt the chances of that in my years as a moderator. I eagerly await both new consoles and the new posters that they may bring, I also hope that they might bring some old posters out of the woodwork.
Edited on Nov 12, 2012 2:41 pm GMT Edited 2 total times.
Now Playing: Skyrim, Hot Shots Golf: World Invitational, Dark Souls
Now Listening: Bill Callahan, Ice Cream Cathedral, Magic Sword
I've always enjoyed your posts, and I'm sad to see you go. Additionally, I hate that it takes a long time GS vet saying goodbye to bring out a lot of other longtime vets that have become lurkers. You know who you are.:P
I don't know if I'm in the middle of 'outgrowing' games, or if things have just been so hectic in my day-to-day life, and games have been so stagnant, that I've just slowed down. My forum presence has certainly dropped off quite a bit too. That makes some sense as my job has gotten busy enough that I can't check the boards every five minutes like I used to. Next-gen, and PC gaming are going to be the things that determine whether or not gaming remains a passion of mine or not. This current crop of games and consoles are pretty long in the tooth. Right now I'm just cycling through my favorites from this gen and I've all but stopped looking forward to anything.(GTAV being the exception!)
I thought that Dishonored would be a game that would pull me back into paying attention to current-gen offerings, but after spending a few nights with it, it felt too much like a frankenstein monster of a bunch of current gen 'hit' franchises. For me, it represents a lot of what I don't like about games currently. It presents itself as a fairly open experience, but the more I played it, the more I constantly just felt like I was doing it wrong no matter which way I tackled it. Additionally, I think games need to realize that they need to do more than offer a 'good' ending and a 'bad' ending. Bioshock did it poorly, and Dishonored seems to be the same way. When a game makes it clear at the beginning that you either need to be Jesus or Hitler to get the ending you want, it doesn't really encourage choice and open ended gameplay, you essentially are just forced to decide at the beginning whether you want the good ending or the bad and then you have to adhere rigidly to that choice for the next several hours of gameplay to get a meager payoff.
I don't know what the answer is though. I don't think that a more tightly controlled narrative like Uncharted or Gears is as satisfying either because you are pretty much just running down a chute for 8 hours. I think that is why I keep going back to Skyrim, Oblivion, New Vegas, Dark Souls and Minecraft more than any other game that has come out in the last six or seven years. I never feel like I'm compelled to tackle those games in any particular way, which is very freeing. I play games for escapism, and for me, the best escapism is when I feel like I'm in complete control of the game I'm playing.
As for forums, I always wonder if all of us are just lurking and waiting for someone else to post something to respond to, and that is why things are dead a lot of the time. I really miss the good old days of the GGD, which, unfortunately, I think I only caught the tail end of. That being said, this place has remained small and tightknit over the years, and between it and the RoF, I always feel like I'm at home when I'm here at GS. I always hope that there will be a resurgence of quality discussion here, and I don't know if I've helped or hurt the chances of that in my years as a moderator. I eagerly await both new consoles and the new posters that they may bring, I also hope that they might bring some old posters out of the woodwork.:)
- Nov 12, 2012 3:13 pm GMT
Cheerio Oilers, have a nice life full of music and wonder and wife, but you lost me when you said that PM: TTYD was funny. - Nov 12, 2012 3:33 pm GMT
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Wii Number: 8378 2715 3722 5659
XBL: SnipeHockey
Sorry to see you go, your posts were always top notch. I can understand burning out on games, there are times when I question why I keep playing, but for me, it comes down to gaming being one of the few things that allow me to wind down, so I keep coming back. Best of luck to you though.
- Nov 12, 2012 3:37 pm GMTDavid Wong wrote:You're the kind of man a man wants when a man wants a man.
Latest reviews:Final fantasy: 4 Heroes of Light, Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors andDark Souls
Latest Retro Review:Metroid Zero Mission
Best game of all time: Majora's Mask
The best game of this gen: Knights in the Nightmare
Didn't read the whole thing, but I can say that this coming generation looks rather grim for me. I'm considering ditching new games and going 100% retro.
