It’s been a long time.

A long time since I’ve played a game that goes with me. That goes beyond the borders of the game, and follows me around. It’s been a long time since I’ve found characters that make me want to squeal in delight, that inspire me to write, to draw, to roleplay, to stick pictures to my bedroom wall and to dream every night about -

Well, you get the idea.

I thought it was because games were getting worse. That there was a lack of imagination, a lack of characterization, a lack of sheer creative inspiration in the game industry. That the money men were squelching any flash of originality, in an attempt to hit the middle-of-the-road audiences.

I no longer think that’s true. The industry is jam packed with incredible games. Games that sound amazing, games that have piled up in a ‘to play’ list as long as my arm.

Perhaps we can only be that kind of gamer for a short period of time. In school, in college, when creativity of our own is valued. When hiding from adult life, or responsibility, or problems. When we have time, and space, and a need for escape. When we want to play, to be kids again.

Real life - that life characterized by long hours of work, taxes, marriage, an entire house to worry about cleaning instead of a room, and a need to make a dinner that is no longer a half eaten quesadilla from the night before - gets in the way. Not just in the way of games. It gets in the way of writing, art and dreams of becoming an astronaut. It gets in the way of friendships. Hobbies. Playing in the mud.

It’s a difficult balancing act. Nobody wants to be that kid in their parents basement, with a part-time job at a pizza place. But what’s the point of slaving and growing-up and being responsible if there’s no fun anymore? It’s been a long time since I’ve stayed up until 5am with a game, a bottle of cheap wine, and a bag of chips. I miss that experience. Sure, doing it every night ain’t good, but surely once in a while isn’t so bad?

Games are an immersive experience. They work their best magic when you set aside a few hours for them. But time is a harder and harder commodity to find, let alone to ‘waste’ on something so ‘anti-productive’.

I start games with the best of intentions. I promise myself I am going to dedicate myself to this game until I beat it. I promise myself that this time I will let myself be sucked in. I delight at opening cinematics. I zip through the training levels. As soon as I get to the meat of the game - bam. Time for bed. Or work. Or the partner phones.

Well, enough! If I expect games to entertain me, I need to at least give them a chance to do so.

So tomorrow night is game night. I’m going to actually spend some time in another world, and get to know my way around a bit.

See you there!

This entry was posted on Saturday, February 23rd, 2008 at 2:24 pm and is filed under Gamer Culture, Editorial. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.