Games aren't special any more

[RocketMBA]

When I was younger getting a new game was a really big deal. Games were very expensive, and without pocket money I had to rely on second hand deals to get perhaps a game every couple of years. I'd really play a game ragged and re-play it many times.

Now I'm an adult with disposable income I can walk into a shop and buy as many games as I want. At first this was a wonderful feeling, but I have come to take games for granted. I actually have games that I've never taken out of the box. The rarity is gone. They're not special any more, like they used to be.

Relate?

[Spooniest]

Amen!

Since emulation came around, I've got under the hood of a game or two and it destroys the mystery, I must say.

[Slothy]

Don't really feel that way. Sure, I'm more acutely aware of how many garbage games get made now than I was when I was a child, but that just tends to mean I spend less money and buy the really special stuff, or go out on a limb with things I'd normally never try in a Steam sale.

There's plenty of wonder to be had if you're willing to take a look. Not feeling it with AAA games? Start exploring indie titles. Modern game design got ya down? Pick up an old system you never owned and start tracking down some classics.

If you really wanted to go the latter route, buying a PC-Engine is pretty cool. God damn that thing had some awesome games.

[Spuuky]

Buying games isn't as 'special' for me anymore, but playing good ones still is.

[Del Murder]

I try to only buy few games so that it is still special. Unlike a lot of others I don't have this big backlog of games that I horde. I spend maybe 1-2 months per game and only play one at a time, so each one is a special experience.

[Ayen]

Had a similar rant, could do with growing up. You go crazy over a game then, later you could buy one and never take it out of the case like with you. It once took me a full year just to get around to playing a couple of games I got on the PS2, and I still have a couple on the 360 I haven't opened.

[Bolivar]

If you want that new game magic, go to a midnight launch, take a day off and grab it at 8am, or have it delivered so you can build the anticipation.

[Electroshock Therapy]

Game consoles are getting ridiculously more expensive as are the games themselves. I tend to hold off on next gen consoles until the next ones come out. Now that PS4 it out, I'm aiming to get a PS3 with backward compatibility. I won't get Wii U until much later also. Because average games cost $40-60 in new condition I cannot buy many new games. So for me at least, gaming is an expensive luxury.

[Slothy]

Game consoles are getting ridiculously more expensive as are the games themselves. I tend to hold off on next gen consoles until the next ones come out. Now that PS4 it out, I'm aiming to get a PS3 with backward compatibility. I won't get Wii U until much later also. Because average games cost $40-60 in new condition I cannot buy many new games. So for me at least, gaming is an expensive luxury.

If we're going to get technical games are technically cheaper than they were until about the time the PlayStation came out. Consoles might be too once adjusted for inflation. We're certainly at a point right now where they're not at their most expensive in history at least, especially factoring in the existence of things like Steam. Not that the argument that games are pricey is invalid mind you. They certainly are, but things have been a lot worse in previous generations.

I know I certainly don't miss paying in excess of $100 for some SNES and a lot of N64 titles. Even before factoring in inflation that's just ridiculously high.

[escobert]

To me it has nothing to do with money but everything to do with the games. I don't get the same level of enjoyment or time out of 99% of the game made now.

[edczxcvbnm]

Much like buying a piece of candy at the store when I feel like it, I am glad it is no longer special. I don't have to beg and whine to get this stuff any more. Glad that non-sense is over with.

On the super up side, I don't get excited or have to fake being excited about a crap game because I do research, read news and avoid those purchases unless I am hoping for a good time (Thanks Ride To Hell!).

Life is much better now =D *Drinks some Diet Double Dew*

[Psychotic]

I think a part of it is that I've done it all before. I used to spend hours and hours and hours on GTA after the story was done. I'd just get into my car and have some wacky adventures. GTA V has the biggest sandbox of all, so much to explore and do and I just... eh.... I got into a car chase with the cops a couple of times. That's... about it. I think it's because I've just done it all before so many times.

[Mirage]

My childhood isn't filled with the feeling of games being special, because I didn't actually have a console or PC that could run "recent" games until I was like 14-16 years old. Instead, I played lots of outdated PC games that were free anyway, seeing as we just copied the floppy disks that our friends had.

Granted, without the internet, and growing up in a rural area, the variety of games I had access to was still limited, so I still tended to focus on a few select titles.

Most games aren't as exciting to me now as they were 10 years (or more) ago, but that's mostly due to me having played most genres before, and know what to expect from most games. There are however still a lot of games that I really look forwards to playing.

I guess the most productive way of going about this problem for those who don't feel like games are special because they can afford any game anytime, is to instead look forwards to their release dates instead of your own acquisition date.

[Pike]

Nah, can't say I relate. Steam sales are legitimately magical to me and are something I look forward to year-round-- in fact, I credit Steam with doing much to rekindle the joy after I went through a period of "gaming apathy" in my mid-20s. Playing games still fills me with glee. There's nothing like playing a vidya after not being able to for weeks (hi, NaNoWriMo) and remembering just how much you love them.

[RocketMBA]

For clarity, my issue is not with the quality or quantity of games now - even though most "AAA titles" these days are not at all to my tastes - it's with how readily available any game is to me now I'm a grown adult. The scarcity is gone.

It would appear that I am in the minority that has become so jaded with computer games that they are of little interest to me at all, regardless of any perceived scarcity or lack thereof.

[Bolivar]

Game consoles are getting ridiculously more expensive as are the games themselves. I tend to hold off on next gen consoles until the next ones come out. Now that PS4 it out, I'm aiming to get a PS3 with backward compatibility. I won't get Wii U until much later also. Because average games cost $40-60 in new condition I cannot buy many new games. So for me at least, gaming is an expensive luxury.

This just isn't true. The PS4 is much less expensive than the PS3 was and has launched with a number of AAA-quality titles which are free to download and play (with more on the way). Even the Xbox One is no more expensive than the launch 360 was, and if you factor in inflation (as you can with games) you're actually paying less today than you were back then.

[Loony BoB]

Technically I can afford a lot of games.

Realistically, with all the outgoings I have and all the different things I want to save up for, there is no way that I could afford to just buy a crapload of games. Having said that, I was in GAME just the other day eyeing up pre-owned copies of Assassin's Creed (£3.99) and Assassin's Creed II (£3.99, or £4.99 for GOTY edition). But if you're referring to new games... nah, just can't justify spending £40-50 on a new game every month. I probably could if I weren't so invested in FFXIV. Who knew that a subscription game would be saving me money?

[Pike]

it's with how readily available any game is to me now I'm a grown adult. The scarcity is gone.

I suppose I never experienced this. Growing up, games were always a huge thing in my household and we always had an abundance of them. We had a Commodore 64 in the mid-80s, which is how I did all my gaming back then, and we had at least 150 games for it. Possibly more. I fondly recall memories of being a wee tot and gleefully pouring through our boxes of games and picking out which one to play out of the hundreds. It was truly something special, and Steam largely recreates that experience for me :)

[Aulayna]

I had this feeling recently when I couldn't afford the new XCOM expansion and the new Zelda. Now I've got XCOM and loving it, and get to buy the new Zelda tomorrow which I'm stoked about.

I do relate that when I have a lot of money gaming loses it's oomph - though that's because I'd just throw money on stuff I'd never normally consider buying, just because I have money. So I've tried to be more restrained in my purchases.

[Spuuky]

Steam sales are legitimately magicalNow THIS is something I miss. I remember when Steam sales were legitimately magical. But then Coal Bots ruined everything, and sales are just sales now.

[black orb]

When I was younger getting a new game was a really big deal. Games were very expensive, and without pocket money I had to rely on second hand deals to get perhaps a game every couple of years. I'd really play a game ragged and re-play it many times.

Now I'm an adult with disposable income I can walk into a shop and buy as many games as I want. At first this was a wonderful feeling, but I have come to take games for granted. I actually have games that I've never taken out of the box. The rarity is gone. They're not special any more, like they used to be.

Relate?
>>> It is your fault for becoming rich..:luca:

As for me, I can only afford like 2 or 3 games every year.
so yeah, games are still very special to me..

[Spooniest]

Games that I play when I'm depressed:

Ff4-6

Strider

Super Mario Bros 2

Ninja Gaiden 2

Revenge of Shinobi

Shinobi 3

And occasionally Super Metroid or LTTP

[RocketMBA]

Apologies in advance for my flagrant display of necromancy here.

It's been almost a decade, so I thought I'd revisit my opinion on this. In short: it hasn't changed. In fact, games are less 'special' to me than ever.

Game Pass, however, has made it possible for me to engage in modern-era gaming without great expense or commitment to any one particular game. It's helped me enjoy gaming again, even if gaming can't be a priority time wise.

It's also helped me define my current taste in gaming: I like things I remember. I like the games that trade in nostalgia, that I can pick up and put down like so many of the '90s arcade-style titles. I like low commitment, high fun games that I can play in 15 minute bursts.

I'm also very aware that I'm praising a service that quite frankly makes games feel more throwaway than ever before, but the ease of access and massive choice outweighs that for me.

Relate?