No, I haven't lost interest. I still enjoy playing video games.
No, I haven't lost interest. I still enjoy playing video games.
I was a gamer back in the early '80s. I built my own games using Basic on a Commodore Vic 20. The NES was huge, then Genesis and SNES took over. PSX, PS2, and Dreamcast kept me playing into the late '90s and early 2000s. Mid-2000s marked my move to PC gaming. I enjoyed Medal of Honor, Call of Duty, Far Cry, Doom... those were the prime times for PC gaming. I owned an AMD Athlon and a 6800LE (upgraded it by adding extra lines). Feeling blessed. I got married in 2004 and stepped away from gaming. Crysis inspired me to rebuild a gaming PC again. Playing stopped around 2010. My son was born in 2011 and I lost interest. GTA V pushed me to upgrade my Core2/GTX 650ti to 4690K//1070. Around 2017 I started losing motivation. Even with new AAA titles, it didn’t capture my attention anymore. I still loved Wolfenstein and Doom. Now I barely feel the urge to play. When I try again, it’s like a distant memory. Who knows? Maybe GTA 6 or a fresh Crysis will reignite my passion. Right now I prefer riding my bike, exploring the outdoors, turning down the lights, and just relaxing with music on my stereo. Perhaps I’m simply growing older.
People often feel disappointed when game quality drops. It wasn’t until a fresh title arrived that I regained interest. Before Valheim, I was so engaged I barely noticed the decline. Now, after years of playing, I’m starting to miss the earlier days. The newer games don’t capture my attention as much anymore.
It's really connecting with you. Being a gamer in the early 80s felt like something important—it was when gaming started becoming widely popular and letting people create their own experiences. I wish I had a PC back then or in the early 90s when I was young, got one for myself using money I earned in the early 2000s. Since then, I've always enjoyed playing on PCs, but lately (in recent years) I've started losing interest and struggling to remember the stories or characters. This has happened before, and I hope this is just another short chapter.
I really notice a big gap between what's available and what I expect. I'm frustrated with the limited character options—just endless bald figures with long pink hair on one side. The classic Schwarzenegger or Stallone roles no longer inspire excitement. Plus, game updates feel rushed; you wait six months for a complete patch. While you're waiting, feel free to engage in microtransactions whenever you like.
I appreciate being labeled a boomer. The ones I know are doing well in their careers, living comfortably, and managing their finances without excessive debt—generally keeping their lives in check. This isn’t about me not understanding the gaming scene. I’ve spent around 1,000 hours on GTA5, and Rockstar clearly understood how to engage players. At least I’m not missing out.
I enjoy games for their unique appeal and the reasons behind my playtime. I appreciate the creativity in video games, but also value experiences with broad possibilities (like GTA). Beyond gaming, I love painting Warhammer miniatures—it connects me to the rich freedom these games offer. Playing roleplay in open-world titles lets me embody characters freely, which helps me stay engaged without feeling burned out.
There’s a growing interest in classic first-person shooters that’s been rising recently. Explore titles from studios you like, such as the older Grand Theft Auto series. Also consider trying different activities—your passions evolve and you might find something fresh that reignites your love for gaming.
I developed games during the 80s and early 90s on platforms like C64 and Amiga. What sustained me was modding. Initially, I used a hex editor to rename racing team names to my own. Then I worked with textures to include details such as sponsor logos. Eventually, I expanded into plane and train simulators. I even earned income by working with an indie group. Later, I modified fantasy titles like Oblivion and Skyrim. Now I frequently purchase new games but seldom play them after testing—they either push me to meet their requirements or steer me in unexpected directions. My current favorites are modded building games such as Space Engineers. With them, I craft my own narratives. Modding feels similar to customizing a car, allowing personalization and driving hardware investment decisions. More power means more content to add.
I began gaming in the early '90s with the Commodore 64 and NES. My collection has expanded to include nearly every major system since, plus I started playing on PC in my teens. Half-Life sparked my passion. Seeing a friend's sibling play it made me realize how much I loved it. Eventually, my parents supported me and gave me an old computer. It could only run Half-Life at low settings around 10 frames per second, but I still played through it and enjoyed every moment. In the past decade, my gaming enthusiasm has faded somewhat, mostly because I felt like I was playing out of boredom. Still, there were exceptions—like The Witcher 3, which I played intensely. Now I own a wide range of titles (Control, AC Unity, DMC 5, Nier:Automata, Kingdom Come Deliverance, etc.), but I often struggle to muster the motivation. It’s unclear why, but there’s something missing when I play them. What really reignites my interest is VR. It’s the first time in a long while that I truly felt gaming had advanced. It’s the only consistent activity I have, and recently I’ve been enjoying many of my favorites, especially those modified versions like DOOM 3 and the original Half-Life. Being able to play these classics in VR feels like a dream. I’m hopeful that with PSVR 2 and Xbox entering VR, we’ll see more immersive AAA experiences. I just played Half-Life Alyx again last night—it brought back that same thrill I felt with the original. I’m eager to see more of this kind of game.