Of course, that’s a good thing; a human being staying the same age for years might need a checkup with the doctor.
I recently sold my gaming console, my trusty old PlayStation 5, which I had bought at the peak of the COVID pandemic. It was around Christmas, during a two-week holiday break, which was perfect for diving into next-gen games with their own stories.
I believe I must have played thousands of hours, spending lots of time playing on days off and weekends, and occasionally an hour in the evening during the week. Over that time, I experienced varying stories filled with interesting characters and gameplay mechanics.
The console was customized by adding a two-terabyte SSD, making it not only faster but also allowing me to actually keep some games whenever I got a new one. Limited storage, combined with games increasing in size, means you’re installing and deleting more often than you would like. Not very entertaining when you’d like to be entertained by your entertainment system, of course!
I sold the console to what seemed like a family man, who must have wanted to play the upcoming Grand Theft Auto VI. Funny thing is, I didn’t intend on pre-ordering it or playing it immediately. While the world is anxiously awaiting its release (it has been thirteen years since the release of GTA V), I am sitting this one out for now.
Reason?
Digital.
I love collecting things that are physical and having at least some ownership over what I have. Everything is digital nowadays. Lots of entertainment is subscription-based; there was even a time when car features were behind paywalls! That’s not entertaining; that’s frustrating. Whatever it takes to boost revenue, I guess.
Besides, back in the day when I was a big gamer, I would have slapped money on the table to grab a copy of the most hyped game, or at least waited a bit and scoured stores and websites to get one five bucks cheaper. With GTA VI, I feel like I don’t really care anymore.
Games often move too fast. My reflexes are not as fast as they used to be, especially in first-person shooters like Call of Duty: Warzone, where I simply enjoy wandering around, looting boxes, and then being gunned down by someone who is slipping, sliding, and jumping around, carrying a weapon that’s glimmering, shining, and even has animations on it. To even imagine someone paying money to have that on a few square inches of pixels… It’s interesting, to say the least.
Back in the day, I was very competitive online and wanted to win every match I played. Something would click, and I would become a ‘sweat’ (someone who does the slipping, sliding, and jumping thingy frantically). I would rack up a big score, feel my heart pumping after the match was over, and do it all again.
The games I play nowadays are more peaceful, with some faster-paced elements, but mainly because I can play them by myself. I enjoy experiencing fun gameplay and interesting worlds that I can explore however I like.
I’m not sure, but I think it’s because I’m getting older and attach more value to the experience than to being part of ‘it’: the hype, the trend, the frenzy. Maybe I’ve discovered that I should enjoy it for myself, not for someone else.
It’s the same with movies. I truly enjoy a good movie with a strong plot and symbolism throughout, where the actions make sense and lead to a satisfying payoff. I don’t really like going to the cinema; the sounds around me bother me too much. I want to enjoy a good movie, not hear the crunching sounds of the person next to me. I feel too self-conscious being
The most unsatisfying aspect of all this?
I forgot my PlayStation was my Blu-ray player! I have a rather big collection of Blu-rays and no way to view them now.
Well, I guess that means it’s back to scouring stores and websites, finding a good deal on a Blu-ray player.
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